Let Me Adore You

by LaughterLoveAndLarry

Summary:

Seven Years after the war, Harry has made a relatively comfortable life for himself working as a nanny, of all things. However, when the family he was working for announced a sudden move, Harry was left feeling lost, struggling to get himself back into a routine, at least until a sudden, unexpected job opportunity fell into his lap, working for none other than Draco Malfoy. Harry is instantly taken by the sweet little boy who is the spitting image of his father, and okay, maybe with the father, too.

Featuring a sweet Scorpius Malfoy who has Harry wrapped around his finger, an overwhelmed Draco, who just wants his son to be happy and to become a Healer, and a very eager Harry Potter, who is desperate to prove to Draco that he could be everything he ever wanted, if he would just see him.

Notes:

And we start Harry's journey! Room for Two, but from Harry's POV. Can be read as a stand alone, chronologically, or in tandem with Room for Two. Hopefully this one is just as comforting.

Chapter 1: CHAPTER 1

Harry was nervous.

He was waiting on a Firecall from a new potential client that Hermione had recommended to him. Had insisted on, really. She hadn't given him much detail at all, just assured him that he'd be a perfect fit for the family. He trusted her entirely, though. He knew she'd never have set this up for him if it wouldn't be a good fit, so he'd agreed to at least have the interview.

He had been a mess after Bill and Fleur had left with little Victoire. He loved that little girl, had taken care of her at least five days a week for the last four years; since she was a baby, and he'd been absolutely heartbroken when Bill told him they had to move to Brazil for a new job offer he’d received.

Harry had contemplated going with them pretty seriously. They'd offered to let him stay on, of course, but with the raise Bill was going to be getting, Fleur would be able to quit her job and parent full time. They just didn't need him anymore.

On top of that, he just couldn't move so far from everything he'd ever known. He loved England, he loved his friends and his family here, the life he'd built here. He couldn't leave it all behind just to trail after them like a lost puppy and be a burden to them. They didn’t need him inserting himself into their family indefinitely.

So, he'd stayed, saying tearful goodbyes, his heart breaking even more when Victoire cried and begged him not to leave her. Harry had done his best to assure her that he still loved her, would always love her, and promised her that they'd still see each other. That was a promise he intended to keep. He knew Bill would come back to visit regularly, and he could go visit them in their new home.

He missed her terribly. So terribly, in fact, that he hadn't left his house for two weeks, and hadn't even been able to consider watching another child for several months. The thought of getting that attached again, just to lose them, was unbearable. It felt like he had lost a piece of himself, and he didn't have many pieces left to give.

It was time, though. He'd been unemployed and moping for long enough, he had to get back to some kind of routine, some normalcy. He still missed her, incredibly so, but he wasn't consumed by grief anymore. He got to talk to her fairly regularly over Firecall, and had even gone to visit a few times. It made it easier, still having that link.

Hermione and Neville had first suggested he try meeting someone, going out on a date, just something to get him out of the house and moving again, but that was out of the question. No, this- finding a new job- this was better. He could handle this. He thinks.

He startled when the Firecall finally came through, jerking him out of his thoughts. He quickly pasted a smile on his face and leaned in closer as a woman's face appeared in his fireplace.

"Good morning," Harry greeted her pleasantly.

"Good morning, Mr. Potter," she greeted him cheerfully. "I hope you're doing well."

"I am, thank you, Mrs...?"

"Malfoy," she said with a knowing smile. "Astoria Malfoy."

Harry felt his heart jump to his throat, speeding up.

Malfoy.

His mind flashed back to the boy who had always held his attention in a way no one else ever had. He pictured Malfoy, the way he had looked at his trial, so frail and afraid, so timid, and then to the boy who had returned to Hogwarts for his Eighth Year, much more confident, holding his head high despite the near constant torment he faced after the war, determined to make something of himself.

Harry had been in awe of him, then, fascinated by the changes he'd seen. Some people weren't good people; unwilling and unable to change, to ever take accountability for the terrible things they'd done, but Malfoy... he did. He'd changed. Harry saw it that entire year, and he had so much respect for him because of it, so much admiration.

He'd wanted the other boy so much back then, so much it had been almost painful, and he foolishly wondered what the other boy- well, man, now, he presumed, was doing; what he looked like, where he worked, if he still drank his tea with his pinky up, if he'd get to see him, to know him. He very suddenly wanted this job almost more than he'd wanted anything before.

It was ridiculous, though. Harry knew nothing would ever have come of his silly boyhood crush. Malfoy was straight; the proof of that was floating in his fireplace right now. He was married. He had a child. Or children. He felt so ashamed for even letting his mind wander there, even for a moment, especially when he was talking to Malfoy's gorgeous wife about a job. It had been a long time ago, anyway, it wasn't like he was still harboring feelings for his childhood nemesis. But maybe they could be friends. Harry would like that, very much so.

"Mr. Potter?" Mrs. Malfoy said, jarring him once again from his thoughts. "Are you alright?"

Harry blinked rapidly. "Oh. I'm so sorry. Yes, of course, I'm fine, just a bit of a blast from the past, hearing that name," he chuckled, and she smiled softly at him.

"That's quite alright. I imagine it must be a shock for you."

"It is, but not in a bad way," Harry assured her quickly. "I'm still interested in the job, if you don't think he'd mind me working for you."

"I don't think it will be a problem," she smirked, eyes dancing with amusement. "So, tell me, what did Mrs. Granger-Weasley tell you about the position?"

"Not much," he admitted. "Just that I'd be interviewing today for a family in need of full-time care, and she assured me it would be a good fit. How many children do you have?"

"Just one. Scorpius. He's four, and such a little dear. He really is an easy child, but Draco got into the Healer training programme at St. Mungo's, and with the start of his internship, I'm afraid he's become incredibly overwhelmed, but the stubborn fool is unable to admit when he needs help."

Harry's brows pinched slightly. That made it sound like Malfoy handled most of their son's care and worked full time. He wondered what Astoria did for work. It must be something even more demanding than becoming a Healer.

"I see," Harry said carefully. "Well, I'm happy to help in any way I can. Would he need help with anything beyond caring for your son? I can do more..."

She smiled sweetly at him. "I think I'll let him go over that part, he'd know better than I. Why don't you tell me a bit about your experience?"

"I nannied for my best friend's brother and his wife for the last four years, but Bill got offered a job working for the Ministry in Brazil as their lead Curse-Breaker; he couldn't turn it down. They left just after Christmas. I, um. I took it quite hard," he said quietly, swallowing thickly. "I haven't been able to really think about finding a new family until recently. When Hermione recommended you, I figured it was about time to get back into it."

"I'm so sorry to hear that," Astoria said sympathetically.

"It's alright. It's fine. I can get Bill to send a letter of recommendation if you need-"

"Oh, that won't be necessary," she said, shaking her head. "Pansy Parkinson and Mrs. Granger-Weasley both assured me you'd be phenomenal, and I trust their judgement. I think this will be absolutely perfect."

Harry smiled, finally relaxing a bit. "I can assure you that I will take excellent care of your son. I adore children, feel right at home with them. I can be a bit spontaneous, I suppose, but as long as you and Malfoy are alright with me taking him out of the house, I think he'll have a great time with me."

"Of course. I don't see why that would be an issue."

She spent the next hour or so talking to him, asking him several, seemingly unrelated, questions about himself, but not really mentioning much about the little boy or herself. When he asked her a few things, like what his favorite food was, or if was afraid of anything, she just told him that Malfoy would want to speak to him about it. It was rather perplexing, but it wasn't his place to question their strange family dynamic.

"Now, what about your wages?" she prompted. "How much do you charge and how do you prefer to be paid? Per hour? Per day?"

"Oh. Er. I just had Bill give me what he could afford. I don't do it for the money," Harry said awkwardly. He wasn't sure how that would work in this situation, though; he doubted there was much the Malfoy's couldn't afford.

"Give me a number, dear," she said with a laugh, clearly thinking the same thing.

"Um. Fifty galleons a week?" he said hesitantly. That sounded fair, right? He didn't care about the money, he had more than he knew what to do with anyway, but that would at least cover anything he decided to take the little boy to do, and if he wanted to buy him something or get him a birthday or Christmas gift. He made a mental note to ask when his birthday was.

She looked surprised by his answer, frowning a bit. "That's hardly enough to live on," she said, pursing her lips.

"It's plenty," he assured her.

"Alright then, I shan't argue with you about it. When can you start?"

"Do I have the job then?" Harry asked excitedly.

"Of course, don't be silly," she laughed, a bright, tinkling sound that suited her perfectly.

"Brilliant!" he said with a grin, dimple popping. "Well, I can start any time. When do you need me?"

"How about Monday? It'll give you the weekend to relax, and give Draco time to... come to terms with the change."

Harry's smile faltered. "Oh. Um..."

"No, no, it's not you, darling. It's his stubborn nature. I told you; he has a hard time admitting he needs help, and a harder time accepting it. You'll be just fine," she said earnestly, and he relaxed again.

He could understand that. Malfoy had been incredibly self-reliant in Eighth Year. Even in Sixth Year, if he wanted to think about that. He could definitely see that Malfoy might still have trouble not being able to do everything alone.

"If you're sure," he replied. "Monday will be just fine."

"Perfect!" she squealed in delight. She rattled off the address, and Harry carefully wrote it down.

"Just come round the house on Monday at eight o'clock, that should be early enough. You’ll need to Apparate."

"Alright. Do I need to bring anything?"

"No, no, just yourself. Draco will be delighted. I'm afraid I have another engagement, but thank you so much for your time, Mr. Potter. Best of luck to you."

Harry bid her goodbye, and leaned back on his heels, releasing a hard breath that ruffled his fringe, and he ran a hand through his messy locks.

He'd gotten a job. Working for Malfoy, of all people.

A slow grin started to take over his face, stretching his cheeks.

It was kind of bizarre. If he'd told his younger self that he'd gotten a job working for Malfoy, he'd have been horrified. Or ecstatic, if he was talking to a slightly less young version of himself. He felt rather ecstatic now.

He found himself wondering what it would be like, and how he would feel seeing Malfoy interact with his wife. She had seemed delightful, truly. She was beautiful and funny, quick-witted and sassy; Harry can see why Malfoy fell in love with her. A slight pang of jealousy rose up in his chest, but it fizzled out quickly. He couldn't find it in himself to be bitter. He was happy for Malfoy. The man deserved to find some semblance of happiness after everything he'd been forced to go through.

Harry hummed quietly to himself, and he felt anticipation churning in his gut. He was excited, really excited. He was going to get to know a new little boy and hopefully be a positive figure in his life, and if he was lucky, make a new friend. Everyone could use more friends, right? This was going to be great. He just knew it.

*

Harry spent the weekend puttering around his house, trying to distract himself until Monday. He'd made sure to call Hermione and tell her he'd gotten the job, to which she had been thrilled about. When he casually mentioned who he'd be working for, she pretended to be surprised, and he'd let her get away with it, even though he knew she had known. It didn't matter that she'd known; it didn't change anything, and it wasn't like he was upset about it. Quite the contrary, actually.

After that, he just spent some time trying to clean up Grimmauld a bit more with Kreacher. It was frustrating, being there. No matter what he did, the house never felt like home to him. It was dingy and dreary and musty, even though he'd aired it out probably a hundred times in the last seven years. The only room that wasn't depressing was his bedroom, the room that had been Sirius' when he lived here. He’d painted the walls a pale cream color and kept the windows open as much as he could to let light and fresh air in.

Hopefully Malfoy would want him to watch his son at his house, not have Harry bring him here. He could, it wasn't dangerous anymore, just not the most inviting environment for a small child. He'd figure that out if it came to it.

After what felt like years, Monday finally rolled around. He'd woken up earlier than usual to shower and dress himself in his favorite pair of dark blue jeans, worn soft with years of use, a simple white t-shirt, and his brown leather jacket, wanting to ward off the slight chill of the May morning. Last time he'd seen Malfoy, he'd still been wearing Dudley's hand me downs; it would be nice to be wearing clothes that actually fit him properly. Hopefully it would make Malfoy take him more seriously.

Harry fussed with his hair, eventually getting it to look somewhat reasonable; purposely messy instead of just... actually messy. He cleaned his teeth, then shoved his glasses on his face, grabbing a granola bar and pocketing it just in case on his way out. He didn't know how early Scorpius ate breakfast, and if he'd already eaten, Harry didn't want to wait until lunch to get something in his fluttering stomach. If he hadn't eaten, Harry could just eat with him.

"Kreacher!" he called out.

Kreacher appeared with a pop, bowing. "Yes, Master?"

Harry wanted to smack himself. He'd asked Kreacher probably ten thousand times to stop bowing to him and calling him that; he hated it.

"Kreacher. Please. For the love of all that is holy, stop doing that," Harry begged. "It makes me so uncomfortable."

"Kreacher is to be respecting his masters," the old Elf croaked.

"Ugh. I'm just letting you know that I'm leaving for work now. I don't know when I'll be home. Do whatever you want while I’m gone, alright? Maybe you can go visit Winky."

Kreacher nodded, and hobbled out of the room without more of a response. Harry sighed, summoning the parchment that had Malfoy's address on it, remembering to grab his wand at the last minute, and then Apparated to the correct street. He popped up just inside the gate, and stared in awe at the stunning house before him.

This... wasn't what he expected at all. He thought he'd be going to a mansion or something, something more comparable to Malfoy Manor, but this wasn't that. At all. It was a beautiful, two-story Victorian style house with a red brick exterior, flowering gardens, and a porch swing, hidden away by a grove of trees and a tall, flowering, wrought iron fence. It was large, but not ostentatiously so. It looked like a normal house for a large family, cozy and inviting.

He grinned, a sense of calm washing over him. Harry was excited. Unnaturally excited. He couldn't wipe the grin off his face at the prospect of getting to know this new Malfoy and his little boy.

Eagerly, he bounded up the porch steps and checked his watch. Eight on the dot. Pleased at his punctuality, he knocked on the door confidently. This was going to be great; he repeated in his mind. Astoria had assured him he was perfect for the job, and he wasn't going to let her down.

Several long moments passed before the door opened, and there they were. Malfoy had his son tucked into the side of his leg, eyes glued to the ground, not looking at Harry yet.

"Hello, thank you so much for coming. It's so nice to meet-" Malfoy finally lifted his eyes, locking on Harry. "Potter?"

Harry grinned even wider. He sounded the same, posh and clipped and polite. It was comfortingly familiar, and Harry felt any remaining tension seep out of his body.

"Morning, Malfoy! Good to see you," Harry greeted enthusiastically, holding his hand out for Malfoy to shake.

"Potter... what exactly are you doing here?" Malfoy asked politely, paying no mind to Harry's extended hand.

Harry laughed. "I'm here to nanny for you, obviously," he reminded him. Why else would he be here?

Malfoy stared at him, dumbfounded, looking like he was shocked, completely blindsided, and Harry faltered a bit, confidence wavering slightly.

"You don't- didn't your wife-?" Harry asked uncertainly, head cocking slightly to the side in askance.

"She didn't," Malfoy told him in a clipped tone.

"Oh," Harry said, disappointment crashing over him. What the fuck? Why was he even here, then? He thought he was coming to work, but Malfoy was looking at him like he'd seen a ghost, not his new employee.

Harry was about to apologize and ask him if he'd like Harry to leave, when a small voice interrupted his internal panic.

"Hello," the child glued to Malfoy's side said quietly. Harry looked at him, and the little boy who was like a miniature clone of his father was staring at him with wide, hopeful eyes, practically vibrating with the effort it was taking him to stand still and be good.

Harry's heart instantly melted, and he crouched down to greet the four-year-old properly. "Well, hello there," Harry said softly. "You must be Scorpius. Wow, you look so much like your daddy! I'm Harry," he said, holding his hand out so Scorpius could shake it if he wanted to.

Scorpius looked up at his dad for permission. Good boy, Harry thought, already impressed by his behavior. Malfoy sighed quietly, but gave his son a small nod, granting permission to introduce himself.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise, however, when the little boy practically launched himself at Harry, ignoring his outstretched hand in favor of a hug.

"Hi! I'm so excited you're here to play with me!" Scorpius said happily.

Harry froze in shock for a moment at the instant familiarity before melting into the hug. This, right here, was why he loved kids so much. They were so innocent, so trusting, so inherently sweet, just ready and willing to give all the love and affection they had to anyone who would take it.

Harry listened with rapt attention to Scorpius give him a rundown of what he had planned for them to do as he clung to Harry's shoulders, then he started spouting off random facts about himself animatedly, telling Harry all about his favorite color (blue) and ice cream flavor (chocolate), his love of drawing and magical creatures, how much he couldn't wait to fly on his own broomstick. He mentioned his grandparents and his Auntie Pansy and Uncle Blaise, told Harry all about his father's new job and how much he missed visiting the sweets shop in Diagon Alley.

Harry committed every detail he could to memory, wanting to remember this when he was forced to leave, needing to cling to this feeling when he inevitably had to start looking for a new family to work for, again.

His heart clenched. He didn't want to leave already. He wanted to stay and spend time with this awesome kid and talk to Malfoy, try to get him to see that things didn't have to be like they were in school. They could be friends. This could work.

"Potter," Malfoy said stiffly, interrupting Scorpius' retelling of the dream he'd had last night.

Harry looked up at him apprehensively, ready to be told to stop touching his child and to go kick rocks.

"Would you like to come inside?" Is what came out instead, and Harry couldn't help but smile in relief. If he could just get Malfoy to talk to him, he'd see that this wasn't a terrible idea.

"Of course," Harry said pleasantly, keeping his voice light. "Lead the way," he said, addressing Scorpius this time.

Scorpius grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him inside the house, leading him to what was obviously the living room. The inside of the house was even more stunning; clean and minimal, with soft, pastel colors painted on the walls. The living room was done in a soft turquoise with a gray sofa, a fluffy, overstuffed armchair in a corner, a small table and a large, ornate fireplace with a hand carved mantlepiece that held a few photos of Scorpius and Draco. None had Astoria in them, though, which Harry found incredibly odd. He could see a glimpse of what looked like a large, airy kitchen through an archway in the living room, complete with a marble topped island. Cooking in there must be a dream.

He silently took a seat on the sofa, noting that Malfoy had tea and biscuits set out, presumably for him, or whoever he thought would be coming today to work for him. Malfoy fussed with the tea service for a minute, making two cups in an identical manner; three sugars, no milk, and Harry took the opportunity to really take him in for the first time since arriving.

He was tall. Taller than Harry remembered from when they were in school, with long, willowy limbs. Harry barely came up to his shoulder. He was wearing light grey trousers and a lavender button up with the top two buttons undone, showing off smooth, pale skin and sharp collarbones. His sleeves were rolled up, and Harry noticed his Dark Mark wasn't visible, but that hardly mattered; he knew it was there, and he didn't care one bit. That had been something that happened to him, not something he was, and it was inconsequential.

His hair, though... his thick, white blonde hair had grown out to his shoulders and it was tousled prettily around his face; his face that he'd definitely grown into.

Christ, he was so fucking pretty. Even more attractive than Harry remembered. His sharp, angular features worked for him now, with high cheekbones and a jawline sharp enough to cut glass. His pointy chin had squared out a bit with age, softening his otherwise slightly severe face. He was stunning. Merlin help him.

"Scorpius," Malfoy said gently. "Would you mind giving Potter and I a few minutes alone, love? We have some grown up things to discuss."

"But..." Scorpius protested, his bottom lip trembling.

"Just for a few minutes," Malfoy urged him gently, clearly not wanting to say whatever he needed to say in front of his son.

"Why?" Scorpius asked sadly.

Harry glanced at Malfoy, then back at Scorpius. "I need to talk to your dad about hopefully coming back to play with you, but you know, I would really love it if you could draw me a picture, Scorpius. I need a new one to put on my desk at home. My Godson doesn't like to draw me pictures anymore, he's seven now, and more interested in quidditch. Do you think you could make me something nice to show him drawing is still cool?"

Scorpius' eyes grew round and his jaw dropped in shock before he nodded determinedly. "I'll make the best picture ever for you," he said seriously, getting up from the couch and running towards a staircase.

He'd only been gone a few seconds when his little head poked back down the stairs. "Do you like Nundu's?" he asked.

Harry frowned, mind racing to try and remember exactly what a Nundu was.

"Uh, yes?" Harry said questioningly.

"Kay!" Scorpius said happily, disappearing again and loudly shutting his door.

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Nundu's, huh?" he asked, and Malfoy shrugged.

"He loves magical creatures. Last month he was obsessed with Hippocampuses. He has loads of books on different ones." Malfoy explained, then cocked his head slightly. "How did you know he likes to draw?"

Harry chuckled. "He told me outside. He's adorable, Malfoy, truly. And smart, too. Not many four-year-olds can read, or even speak as well as he does."

Malfoy lowered his gaze, hair falling in front of his face to hide his smile. "Thank you," he said quietly. "Would you like some tea?"

Harry nodded, taking the teacup Malfoy offered him.

"You have a lovely home. Not quite what I expected. It's very homey," Harry complimented. "Where's your wife, by the way?"

He hadn't seen Astoria at all. He'd expected her to be here when he arrived today, but maybe she was already at work?

Malfoy seemed confused by his question, though, giving Harry a weird look, eyes squinting. "Do you mean Astoria?"

Harry nodded.

Malfoy shrugged. "Fucking off somewhere in Spain, I'd imagine," he said conversationally.

Harry's jaw dropped. What the fuck? That was a shockingly rude way for Malfoy to speak about his wife. And did he say Spain? Why on earth would she be in Spain?

Malfoy saw the look on Harry's face and snorted. "We're divorced, Potter. Didn't she tell you?"

"No," he replied slowly, frowning. That was a pretty big detail to leave out! Hope flared in his chest for the briefest of moments before he tamped it out. He was divorced, not gay. Harry needed to get a grip. That wasn’t why he was here.

"Well, we are. Right after Scorpius was born. She's not involved, I've no idea why she thought it was appropriate for her to hire a nanny for me."

Harry's face fell at his statement, disappointment taking over once again. "Do you not need a nanny, then?"

Draco sighed. "No, I do."

"But you don't want it to be me."

He wasn't asking; he could tell. Malfoy was not pleased to have him here. Harry had been a fool, thinking they could get to know each other as adults, have a fresh start. He didn't know why he wanted it so badly, but he did. He was already attached to that little boy, and not even getting a chance to show Malfoy that he was a good, responsible choice hurt.

"Ideally, no," Malfoy confirmed his fears. "We don't exactly have the best history, do we? You hate me. How can I trust you with my son? He is... he's my entire life. I need to make sure he's safe and well cared for."

Harry studied him, swallowing down his displeasure at the unexpected turn the morning had taken. Maybe he could still salvage this. Malfoy hadn’t kicked him out yet, after all. He didn't want to just accept defeat and move on.

"I don't hate you, Malfoy. I knew who I was applying to work for. And even if I did dislike you, I'd never take it out on an innocent child. That's not- I'm not like that," Harry said quietly.

He watched as Malfoy studied him impassively, that damn Malfoy mask firmly in place. Maybe that was a good thing, though. Malfoy wouldn't put that face on if he didn't want to hide what he was thinking. It gave him a bit of hope.

"Why are you a nanny, anyway?" Malfoy asked. "I heard you were starting Auror training."

"I did. I hated it. Didn't even finish out the year," Harry answered with an embarrassed chuckle.

It had been what everyone had expected him to do, what he himself had thought he wanted, but once he started, he was just miserable. He was so tired; tired of war, tired of horrible people doing horrible things, tired of the Ministry and the pressure. Hermione had actually been the first to tell him to quit if he wasn't happy. He'd tried to stick it out, but when Ron quit to go work with George, he had no reason to force himself to stay. It had definitely been the right choice. Harry didn't know why, but he felt the need to explain his choice. He wanted Malfoy to know that he wasn't the same Harry he'd been in school, either. He'd grown up.

"I guess I'd just had enough fighting," he started, "enough of doing what was expected of me. I took some time off, trying to figure out who I am without the threat of imminent doom hanging over my head. I helped Andromeda with Teddy, my Godson, a lot during that year. Then Bill, Ron's oldest brother, and his wife Fleur, had their daughter about five years ago, and they needed someone to help babysit when they went back to work. I offered, and it kind of morphed into becoming a full-time nanny."

Malfoy stared at him, seemingly surprised by the revelation. "I see. Astoria told me the last family you worked for moved. Would that be them?"

Harry nodded. "I nannied for them for about four years, but Bill got a job offer working as a Curse-Breaker for the Ministry in Brazil over the winter, and he couldn't turn it down. I was crushed, though, I miss Victoire so much."

He didn't want to get emotional during this, but he wasn't capable of hiding how much it still hurt that she was gone.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Potter," Malfoy said, sounding uncharacteristically soft. "Are you sure you want to turn this into a career? Astoria said you hardly requested a wage."

Harry gave him a soft smile. "I love kids. It's was the only thing I knew for sure about myself after the war. I know more now, obviously, I know who I am now, but that hadn't changed. I don't need the money; I'm not doing it for that. I'm doing it because it makes me happy. And the kids like me back, so," he shrugged, leaning back on the couch.

He wasn't lying, children did like him. He listened to them, made them feel like people, like they mattered, not like they were nuisances. He never wanted any child to grow up feeling unwanted or unimportant like he had. That hurts. He wanted them all to know that they always had at least one person who they could count on. Not that he knew anyone as cruel as his own aunt and uncle had been, of course, but the sentiment still stood.

"And my kid? Are you sure you want to be responsible for a Malfoy? You'd have to be around me occasionally, too.  Would that be a problem for you?"

"Of course it won't be a- wait, does that mean I got the job?" Harry asked excitedly, hope flaring up. He wanted this job, so much.

Malfoy sighed. "If you want the job, Potter, it's yours. Scorpius already seems attached to you and he's known you for five minutes."

Harry laughed. "I want it. To be fair, when I came here today, I thought I already had the job. I still want it."

Malfoy's lips twitched, the only sign that he was affected whatsoever by Harry's exuberance. "Very well. I do have a few questions for you, if you don't mind, and I'm sure you have some for me as well."

"Of course, go ahead," Harry said, nodding.

"Well, first order of business would be your schedule. I need someone six days a week, every day except one. I never know when that day will be until the end of the previous week, but it’s always a weekday, never on the weekend. He has playgroup on Saturday afternoons, I’ll give you the information for that. If you need a day off, just let me know in advance, if at all possible, and I can have my parents watch him that day. I just prefer to keep unsupervised contact with them limited, for what I hope would be obvious reasons," he said, glancing up at Harry anxiously.

Harry was a bit surprised to hear that Scorpius didn't spend much time at the Manor, but didn't comment on it. "I'm fine with that. I don't really do anything anyway. What times?"

"I'd need you to start at eight in the morning, but I, unfortunately, can't give you an exact end time. I'm interning at St. Mungo's, and the hours are unpredictable. If you need to be home at a specific time, though, let me know now so I can come up with other arrangements for evenings."

Harry nodded. "Again, no problem there," he said dismissively. "I live alone. The only thing I ever do is help George and Ron at the shop sometimes. I could probably even bring Scorpius with me there if you're okay with that. He might like it."

Malfoy looked contemplative, then shrugged. "I'm fine if he goes there, I suppose. Are you sure you don't need more free time, though? I don't want to prevent you from having a social life," he said quietly. "You're young, Potter. You should be going out, having fun."

Harry suppressed a snort. That was at the bottom of his priority list, honestly. He went out with his friends every other Friday if he could, but he didn’t date. He knew that’s what Malfoy was hinting at, and he had no desire to go back there.

"I do have fun. We just have different definitions of what that consists of. I have fun with the kids I spend time with, or sometimes with my friends. They’re busy with their own lives, though."

Malfoy nodded. He looked lost in thought for a moment, so Harry gently prompted him.

"Duties?"

Malfoy blinked in confusion, frowning. "Er. Watching my son?"

"Obviously," Harry laughed. "I mean, cooking, cleaning, shopping? Anything?" Anything at all. Please let me help you.

"Oh. No. Just watching Scorpius. Play with him. I'll take care of the household chores when I get home, you don't need to do any of that."

Harry watched him for a long moment, noting the tired bags under his eyes, the slight slump to his shoulders. He was exhausted. He said he didn't need extra help, but he also didn't say Harry couldn't help, and he would be taking advantage of that loophole.

"Alright," he nodded, leaving it at that.

"Alright then. I suppose next would be your wages. Astoria didn't tell me how much you charge, just that I could afford it. Which, to be fair, could mean anything. Do you charge hourly or weekly?"

Harry laughed. That was the exactly what he had thought when she’d asked him that. "I told her fifty galleons per week for full time. I don't care how many hours, really, like I said, I'm not doing anything else."

"Fifty galleons per week," Malfoy said flatly.

"I told you; I'm not doing it for money," Harry said, shrugging. "I just want to have enough to do things with the kid I'm watching, like go out for ice cream or buy them a toy or something."

Malfoy blinked at him, then grabbed a piece of parchment, scribbling rapidly in flowing script. Even his handwriting was elegant. Harry was trying to read what he was writing when Malfoy spoke up again.

"Right. So, I'll be paying you two hundred and fifty galleons per week, plus an extra twenty-five for the inconvenience of losing your weekends, and you will invoice me separately for anything you buy for my son. Your wages are for your own personal use, they aren't meant to be spent on a child that isn't yours."

What?!

"What? Malfoy-" Harry tried to protest, but Malfoy cut him off with a severe look.

"It's not negotiable. This is my condition. I'm not going to have you, or anyone, working for me for pittance. It's not right," he said seriously.

Harry sighed. He didn't like that at all, but he suspected it might be wiser to pick his battles when it came to Malfoy. He didn't want to lose this opportunity by being stubborn about money. "Fine. But I'm not invoicing you, that's stupid."

"Invoice me, give me receipts, tell me how much things cost, I don't care. You'll be reimbursed regardless," Malfoy said flippantly.

...and this was the battle, apparently. That was fast. "Malfoy, please. I seriously don't need the money. I have more than I know what to do with. If you insist on paying me more because it makes you feel better, fine, but at least let me buy things if I have him out of the house. That makes me really uncomfortable."

Malfoy's lips thinned, but Harry knew he'd won this one. "Fine."

Harry relaxed. Look at them, compromising. He was proud of them. "Great. Thank you," he said, reeling in his giddiness. "What else?"

"Probably the most important point," Malfoy said, grimacing. "How will you protect my son from the press? No offense, but you're Harry Potter. I know you still get papped when you go out. I don't want him to be a target."

"I can't promise we'll never encounter the press," Harry said, frowning at his lap. "But I always did my absolute best to not let photos of Victoire get printed. It rarely happened. Usually a bribe works, or an exchange. I give them something they want in return for privacy for the child."

Usually something far more personal than he liked, but his privacy mattered a hell of a lot less to him than his kids'. Besides, nothing could be worse than what- nope. He wasn't even going to think about that right now. Not the time. It would never be the time.

Malfoy frowned at that, but didn't pry, thank goodness. "Okay. I suppose we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," he said, looking away.

Harry felt uneasy. He needed to make sure Malfoy understood that he took the safety of the people in his life very seriously. Teddy, Victoire, his friends, the Weasley's... and it would also include Scorpius and Draco, too. He wanted to spend time out in public and still let the people he loved have a normal life, regardless of who he was, and he would do whatever it took to ensure that they were protected from the media and from his more... overzealous fans.

"Malfoy, I need you to understand that I would never let anything happen to him, okay?" Harry said earnestly, leaning forward in his seat to look him in the eyes. "Never. I would do everything in my power to keep him safe. And you, too."

Harry saw Malfoy's throat bob as he swallowed, looking away. "Right. Well, I think that's it," he said, "unless you have anything to add?"

Harry had so much to add, but before he could open his mouth, Malfoy cut him off.

"Excellent. I'll have my solicitor draw up a contract based on what we discussed and have it owled to you. When can you start?" Malfoy said.

"Er. Right now? I thought I was coming to work today," Harry said, smiling slightly.

"Oh. Right."

"Harry!" Scorpius yelled, running out of his bedroom, waving a paper around wildly.

Harry looked over to the little boy and grinned widely. "Hi! Did you finish your picture?"

"Yeah! Look, look!"

Scorpius handed Harry the picture, and Harry gasped dramatically, but he studied the picture, seriously impressed by how genuinely good it was for a four-year-old.

"Do you love it?" Scorpius whispered, looking at Harry hopefully with enormous eyes.

"I do," Harry said truthfully, giving him a big hug. "This is the best Nundu drawing I've ever seen! Thank you so much, you're so talented."

Scorpius beamed, giggling a little bit, then began to describe his picture in great detail, telling Harry all about the colors he used.

Malfoy let it go on for a while, but eventually he interrupted. "Scorpius? Can you come here, love?" he said quietly, beckoning his son over to him.

Scorpius went easily, climbing onto Draco's lap, giving him a cuddle. "Would you like Harry to come and play with you while I go to work?"

"Yeah!" he said excitedly. "We can be bestest friends! I don't have any friends yet. No one likes me."

He had tried to whisper the last part, but Harry heard him anyway. He felt like he'd been slapped, and judging by Malfoy's devastated expression and panicked look to Harry, he found that revelation just as upsetting.

Harry had spent less than twenty minutes in this child's company, and he could already tell that he was a little ray of sunshine; he had a very hard time believing that no one liked him. Why did he feel that way?

"Scorpius, that's not true. I love you, so much. So do grandma and grandpa, and Auntie Pansy and Uncle Blaise, and Uncle Theo, too. Who wouldn't like you, my little star?" Malfoy murmured to him

Scorpius shrugged his little shoulders. "Dunno. No one at playgroup ever wants to play with me. I don't like it."

That was so sad. Harry still hated to see how other children could be so cruel. It came from the parents, and he knew it. Malfoy knew it, too. He looked wretched.

"Do you want to stop going to playgroup?" Malfoy asked his son carefully. He looked a bit lost, like he didn't quite know how to handle this, but Harry wasn't about to butt in on a conversation like this. It was nowhere near his place.

Scorpius shrugged again, then nodded.

"Okay. If you don't enjoy going, I won't make you go. It was supposed to be fun for you."

"Okay," Scorpius said. "Harry will play with me."

"I would love to play with you," Harry agreed softly, then an idea struck him. "You know who else would love to play with you?"

Scorpius shook his head, grey eyes wide.

"My Godson would. He's nice to everybody. I bet you could teach him so much about Magical Creatures, couldn't you?" Harry asked, trying to get Scorpius happy again and praying he wasn't overstepping by suggesting this.

"Does he like Creatures, too?" Scorpius asked curiously, perking up a bit. Malfoy stayed silent, so Harry took that as permission to continue.

"Yeah! I just got him a book about dragons. Do you like dragons?"

Scorpius nodded enthusiastically. "Papa is a dragon! Grammy says so!"

Harry snapped his gaze up to Malfoy, whose face was flaming. Harry wondered what exactly that was about. "Is that so?" he asked, teasingly.

Malfoy stood up quickly, hauling his son up onto his hip. "Well, Potter, I actually do have to go to work. Did you mean it when you said you could start today?"

Harry smirked. Malfoy was trying to change the subject and avoid an explanation that might embarrass hum further, but Harry didn't press him. "Yep, I'm totally free, for as long as you need."

"Great. My shift starts soon. I'm going to go get ready. Will you be alright?"

What a ridiculous question. Harry ignored it, turning back to the little boy. "Scorpius, want to show me your room?"

Scorpius nodded eagerly, grabbing Harry's hand when Malfoy lowered him to the ground, pulling him up the stairs to what he assumed must be Scorpius' room. Malfoy trailed behind them and disappeared into his own room across the hall. Harry caught a glimpse of a surprisingly bright and inviting bedroom, pale green walls and a fluffy, white duvet covering an enormous bed before the door clicked softly shut.

Scorpius' bedroom was huge. He had a double sized bed against one wall that was pale gray, while the other three were a deep, stormy blue. There was a gigantic round rug in the middle of the room, and walls lined with artwork and bookshelves. He had an overflowing toy box in one corner, and about a hundred stuffed animals all lined up on a window seat, overlooking a large back garden. It was big enough to fly; probably big enough for a quidditch game. A thrill of excitement shot through him at getting Scorpius, and maybe even Malfoy, out there up on a broom. He rarely flew anymore, and he really missed it.

Scorpius pushed him over to the bed to sit, while he brought his stuffed animals over, one at a time, telling Harry their names.

"They're all alph'betical," he explained seriously. "This one is Arlo," he handed Harry a stuffed puppy. "And this one is Biscuit. Then Chewy and Dragon. There's lots; it's okay if you can't 'member them all."

Harry laughed. "I bet you I can remember. Just give me a few visits and I'll be able to name them with my eyes closed," he teased, and Scorpius giggled. "Who's next?"

Scorpius continued piling the soft toys around him until he reached the end of the alphabet and had to start over again. It was impressively precise; he'd definitely gotten that from his dad. No, his papa. Scorpius didn't call Malfoy 'daddy', for some reason. He wondered why that was. Maybe he'd ask someday, when he wasn't so worried about offending the man.

A throat clearing from the doorway drew both of their attention away from the task at hand. Malfoy stood there in what had to be his work robes. They looked very similar to the ones the Healer's wore, but they were a deep, forest green, not the traditional lime color, and a small badge labeling him as an intern shone from the breast. He looked great in them. The bold color really complimented his milky complexion.

"Papa!" Scorpius cried happily, running over to him. "I showed Harry all of my toys! He said he can remember all the names, but I said no way."

Malfoy actually chuckled at that, once again ducking his head a bit to hide his smile. Harry felt bereft, wishing he could see what the man looked like lit up with joy.

"I'll try to keep you updated on when I'll be home, if I can," Malfoy informed him. "I'm on Artefact Accidents for the next two months, if you need to contact me for any reason."

Well, that was entirely unnecessary. He didn't need to worry about getting home at a specific time or keeping Harry updated. He had nowhere else to be, anyway; they would be fine.

"You don't have to update me, Malfoy, you'll be busy at work, and you'll be home when you're home. We'll be just fine. Won't we Scorp?" Harry said to the small boy, waggling his eyebrows.

Malfoy's face soured somewhat at the nickname, but he didn't correct Harry. "I'll give you a quick tour, and show you where the Floo is," Draco said before turning to his son. "Harry will be right back, love," he said, crouching down to give him a hug goodbye, murmuring something quietly into his son's hair, stroking his fingers through the delicate blonde strands.

"I promise. Bye, papa. Love you," Scorpius said, rubbing his little nose against Draco's cheek adorably. Harry practically cooed at the sight.

"Bye, love. Go tidy up your room for me, okay? Potter?" He said, standing up and gesturing for Harry to follow him while Scorpius began to put his coloring supplies from earlier away and replace his stuffies without complaint.

Again, Harry found himself incredibly impressed. The little boy was so well behaved. This was going to be a breeze.

Harry followed Malfoy through a quick tour of his beautiful home, making mental notes of everything Malfoy pointed out to him.

"You've seen Scorpius' room, obviously," he started, then pointed to his own door, "and mine. Next to mine is the bathroom that Scorpius uses, and down the hall is my office and the library, and a spare room that I just use for storage right now. I need to go through that and set up a guest bedroom eventually," he said conversationally, heading back downstairs, trailing through each room.

"Down here we have the kitchen, dining room, foyer, and the living room. We usually eat supper in the dining room, but we do breakfast and lunch at the island. Feel free to do whatever you want, though. You can cook, if you like, or take him out to eat if you don't cook or don't like to cook. I try to keep a decent stock of food around."

Harry nodded. "That's fine. I do cook, so I'll probably do that, most of the time."

He actually couldn't wait to use this incredible kitchen. It was like a dream. Finally, he followed Malfoy into the living room, and the taller man gestured to the Floo.

"You can call me from here if you need to, it's already connected to the Hospital and the Manor. I'll add you to the wards before I leave, and I'll get your personal Floo connected as soon as possible, so you won't have to Apparate every day if you don't want to."

"Thanks, Malfoy. I don't mind Apparating, though. How does Scorpius do with side along?" Harry asked. He still had a few questions he hadn't gotten to ask earlier.

"He's fine with it. The Floo is easier, but he’s used to Apparating since I can’t leave our Floo open."

Harry nodded, wondering why the hell Malfoy had his Floo locked down. He frowned, realizing it probably wasn't for any good reason. He moved on for now, needing to ask his questions before Malfoy had to leave.

"I didn't get a chance to ask earlier, but does he have any allergies or medical conditions I need to know about?"

Malfoy's eyes widened in horror, and he cursed under his breath before pulling out his wand and summoning a rolled-up parchment.

"Here," he said, handing Harry the scroll. "This is everything you need to know. No medical conditions, but he is allergic to bananas.  Merlin, I can't believe I almost forgot to give you this."

"Hey, it's okay," Harry said gently, not liking how Malfoy was beating himself up over a simple mistake. "You had quite the shock seeing me on your doorstep. I'm sure you would have remembered at some point today. How serious is his allergy?"

"Bad, but not the worst I've seen," Malfoy told him. "He knows about it, knows to be careful about what he eats. He's fine if he touches them, but he can’t touch his face afterwards, and he absolutely can't ingest them. He gets a rash on his neck and hands first, then his tongue itches and his throat swells up. If that ever happens, get him to Mungo's immediately."

That sounded pretty serious to him. He'd have to be extremely cautious of that. "Of course. Is his emergency contact on here? Other than you, I mean."

Malfoy nodded. "My parents. 'Malfoy Manor' through the Floo. I'll have to have them add you to their wards, too."

Harry was confused. Why wasn't his mother listed as his emergency contact? Shouldn't he be contacting her if something were to happen? He didn't even know what days she took the little boy for visitation.

"Not Astoria?" Harry asked, knowing his surprise was showing on his face.

"I told you; she's not involved," Malfoy said shortly.

Harry was even more confused, but decided to leave it for now. He could ask again this evening, maybe when Malfoy was a little less on edge. The man was jittery, probably nervous about leaving his son with Harry, especially for the first time.

"Alright. That should be all for now. And Malfoy? Thank you. For giving me a chance. You won't regret it. I'm really excited," Harry told him earnestly.

He meant it; he was thrilled to be here, to get to spend time with Scorpius and get to know him, and possibly even see a bit of Malfoy sometimes, too. They weren't friends yet; not by a long shot, but this was far more amicable than Harry had ever hoped for. He was confident that he could wear the taller man down eventually, get him to come around to Harry a bit more. He just needed to be patient.

Malfoy studied Harry, molten silver eyes searching for... something. Whatever it was, he must have found it, because he softened considerably.

"Thank you, for doing this. For being so good with him."

Harry grinned at him. "That's no hardship. Now get to work before you're even more late, we'll see you later," he shooed him away towards the Floo.

Malfoy closed his eyes briefly, but he did move towards the fireplace, disappearing in a flash of green.

They were alone. Giddiness bubbled up inside of him, and he opened the scroll Malfoy had given him. It detailed his allergy, along with a vague daily routine. Scorpius didn’t have to take naps, but he could if he got tired, just not more than an hour or so, or he’d never go to sleep at night. He had a bath most nights and bedtime was to be no later than nine. He also listed his favorite foods and toys, and gave Harry permission to take him out of the house. Finally, the short list of emergency contacts, which consisted of Malfoy’s parents and Pansy Parkinson. Simple enough, he thought, rolling up the scroll and pocketing it.

He quickly ran through a mental checklist. He didn't ask if Scorpius had eaten, but he could just ask the boy himself that. Harry wasn't going to take him anywhere today in case Malfoy wanted to call. It was his first day leaving his only child home with what was essentially a stranger, he'd probably get nervous and want to check in at some point. They could color some more, though, or read, and maybe play Hide and Seek after lunch.

He'd have to figure out a plan for supper after he checked to see what kind of food Malfoy kept on hand. After today, he could do the grocery shopping. That would at least take one thing off Malfoy's plate, and give himself more freedom in the kitchen. Harry loved to cook, and he was really excited to get to cook for more than just himself. He had no idea what time Malfoy would be home, so he'd have to play the second part of the day by ear.

With a loose plan set in his mind; he jogged back up the stairs to rejoin Scorpius in his room. The little boy had finished tidying up, and was sprawled out on his bed with a gigantic book full of colorful pictures of magical creatures. Harry came over and sat on the edge of his bed. "What are you looking at?"

"My big book of creatures," Scorpius explained, sitting up on his knees to put the book in Harry's lap. "These are Kelpies, I like them a whole lot. When will papa be home?"

"I don't know, buddy, but you know what?" He lowered his voice a bit, like he had a big secret. Scorpius shook his head. "I'll be here to play with you all day, no matter how long it takes for him to get back, and we're going to have so much fun."

Scorpius grinned at that. "The most fun ever. You're going to be my bestest friend, right Harry?" His big, grey eyes were wide and pleading, little lip jutting out in a pout.

Harry smiled at him. He was so sweet, and so damn cute he almost couldn't take it. He looked so much like his father it was uncanny. "I sure hope so."

Scorpius had eaten breakfast, so Harry munched on his granola bar while Scorpius showed Harry his book. The entire book. Twice. Pointing out every detail about every creature.

How did he even remember all of this? This wasn't normal; the child was clearly gifted. He was a normal child, of course, but his memory was impressive, to say the least. Harry did remember Malfoy being smart, though. He didn't know his N.E.W.T. scores or anything, but he remembered him being just below Hermione in classes. His son really did take after him.

Harry eventually managed to get him to play a game, though. He cast a Tracking Charm on Scorpius and set him off to play Hide and Seek.

Scorpius had clearly never played this before, as the first few times he hid, he'd answer Harry each time he called out, "where are you?" Harry almost died of laughter, and had to explain that he didn't really want Scorpius to answer him, it was just part of the game. Eventually he got the hang of it, though, and ended up finding some really good places to hide.

The last time he hid, it had taken Harry a good twenty minutes to find him, almost causing him to panic and activate the Tracking Charm. He'd spotted him in the end, though, curled up inside his toybox sound asleep, half buried in a mountain of stuffed animals. It was one of the cutest things he'd ever seen, and he wished he'd brought his camera so he could take a picture and show Malfoy.

Harry carefully lifted the small boy out of the toybox and placed him in his bed, deciding to let him nap for a little while. In the meantime, Harry went downstairs and prepared them spaghetti for lunch, placing the food under a Warming Charm for when Scorp woke up before cleaning up after himself. Spaghetti was a safe choice, almost every kid liked it, and it was fast and easy.

Pleased, he sat down to take a break when he heard the Floo roar to life.

"Potter?" he heard Malfoy's hesitant voice call out to him.

Harry was immediately up, scrambling over to lean in front of the fireplace. "Malfoy, everything okay?"

Malfoy looked slightly embarrassed. "I- I just wanted to check in, see how everything was going. Where's Scorpius?"

Harry smiled at him. "Asleep. He passed out in the middle of hide-and-seek. Wish I'd gotten a picture, he was curled up inside his toy box, surrounded by all of his stuffies, just his little face sticking out. It was adorable."

Malfoy visibly relaxed. "Good. That's good. You moved him to his bed?"

"No, I shut the toy box lid, actually, didn’t want the light to disturb him."

Malfoy's jaw fell open in horror, and Harry couldn't keep up the charade. He laughed loudly at the look on the taller man's face. "Malfoy, I'm kidding. Relax, of course I put him to bed. I wouldn't leave him in there. I had a Tracking Charm on him, too, just in case. I ended up on the school roof once when I was a kid, anything can happen."

Malfoy relaxed again, and Harry was taken aback when Malfoy finally graced him with a smile. Not just a smile, but a full-on grin, his eyes crinkling slightly at the corners. It almost took Harry's breath away.

He was gorgeous. He should absolutely smile all the time. Harry felt his own smile stretching even wider in response, unable to control his delight at getting that response out of the stoic man.

"I'm sorry for calling-" Malfoy started to say, but Harry cut him off.

"Oh my God, no," Harry told him earnestly. "Don't apologize for that, seriously. He's your child, call as much as you want. I figured you might, so we stayed home today. I'm just sorry you caught us while he was napping."

Malfoy blinked rapidly, looking emotional, for some reason. "Thank you," he said quietly. "Um. I have to stay late to make up my hours, so I'm not sure when I'll actually make it home..."

"That's fine. I told you; I have nothing else to do. Don't stress about it," Harry assured him.

"Okay. I should go, but tell Scorpius I said hello, if you wouldn't mind."

"Of course I will. I'll give him a big hug from you."

Malfoy chuckled. "Thanks, Potter. See you later."

"Bye, Malfoy!"

After the Firecall ended, Harry went to go wake Scorpius up. They had lunch, and Harry took him outside to run around in the Garden for a bit until it started to get chilly. Harry made supper for the two of them, and let Scorpius help with a few of the simpler tasks, like stirring ingredients together and seasoning the green beans.

It was getting late, and Malfoy wasn't home yet. Harry grappled with whether or not to make him supper as well, but considering the hour, Harry figured he'd probably have grabbed something at the hospital. He could at least make him a hot tea later, though; he thought he might appreciate having tea before bed.

After they ate, Harry cleaned up the kitchen and living room and gave Scorpius a bath. Once he got the small boy washed, he stood up. "I'll be right back, Scorp. I'm going to go get something from downstairs, but I'll leave the door open. Just yell if you need anything, I'll just be a minute."

Scorpius nodded, continuing to play with his bubbles and bath toys, and Harry hurried downstairs to make a cup of tea for Malfoy. He was suddenly very glad he'd made note of how Malfoy liked his tea, and he added three sugars to it and stirred, carrying it upstairs and placing it on what he assumed was the bedside table Malfoy used, judging by the heavy medical textbooks that were stacked on it. He must study at night. Harry smiled, imagining the man wrapped up in his fluffy, cloud-like blanket, reading about Healing spells until he passed out.

He didn't linger, not wanting to intrude on Malfoy's personal space any more than he already had, but as he passed the man's office, he happened to spot a small stack of parchment and a quill and paused, suddenly getting an idea.

"You alright in here, Scorp?" he asked the boy, ducking his head into the bathroom.

"Yep, yep, yep!" Scorpius said in a singsong voice, not even looking at Harry.

Harry chuckled, then walked quickly back to the office. He ripped a small piece off of one, quickly scribbling out a small note.

Malfoy,

Thought you could use this to de-stress after a long day. Thank you again for letting me get to know your son.

Sleep well,

H

There. That was good, he thought. He slipped the small note under the teacup, casting a Warming Charm over it to ensure it stayed hot for whenever Malfoy was able to drink it, then went back to the bathroom to finish up Scorpius' bath.

By the time Harry got him out of the tub and got his pajamas on, it was well after eight o'clock, and Malfoy still wasn't home. Harry began to worry a bit; he'd been at work for nearly twelve hours. That was a long day for anyone, but he had no idea what a normal shift was for a Healer, even an interning Healer.

"Alright, buddy, it's time to get you to bed," Harry announced.

Scorpius pouted a bit, but he held his arms up for Harry to pick him up and carry him to his bed. The little boy was definitely tired, rubbing his eyes and laying his head on Harry's shoulder as he walked him across the hall to his room.

"What do you like to do at bedtime?" Harry asked him.

"Will you read me a story, Harry?" he asked, and Harry easily agreed, kneeling on the floor next to his bed to read to him.

They read Beauty and the Beast first, Harry being surprised to find muggle fairy tales among the magical books. Scorpius squealed in delight at the way Harry read, deepening his voice to a growl for the Beast and making it go higher when he read Belle's parts; even putting on a truly terrible French accent for Lumiere.

Scorpius insisted on another book after, then a third. Harry was growing quite tired himself, but when Scorpius asked for a fourth book, his little face pouting, he couldn't say no. It's not like he could leave yet, anyway, so what harm would it do?

Harry was grabbing yet another book off the shelf, this time about dragons, when Scorpius asked him, "Harry?"

"Yeah, Scorp?"

"Will you come back to see me again?" He looked genuinely worried, and Harry settled down on the floor once more, legs folded underneath him.

"Of course I will. As long as your papa lets me, I'll be coming back for quite a while," he said softly. "We're going to be best friends, remember?"

Scorpius nodded, but he grabbed hold of Harry's hand anyway. "Kay. I want you to come back forever. You're fun. I miss my papa."

"I'm sure he misses you too. When I come back tomorrow, maybe we can go do something fun, okay? I have a good friend who owns an ice cream shop, you know," Harry told him, trying to get his mind on something more positive.

"Really?" he asked, sounding awestruck.

"Yep. And we can go anytime. He makes the best ice cream in the world."

"I can't wait. Book, please."

Harry chuckled, but began reading again, trying to keep his eyes open, not even realizing when he lost the battle.

*

He felt a hand gently shaking his shoulder, and heard someone whispering his name.

"Potter. Potter, wake up, I'm home."

Harry jolted awake, and came face to face with the prettiest silver eyes he'd ever seen, far too close to his own face. He just stared, thinking he must still be dreaming, until those eyes suddenly filled with concern.

"Are you alright?" Malfoy asked quietly.

He blinked rapidly, snapping himself back to reality. "Shit, sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep," he rasped, trying to stand up. His legs were completely stiff and half asleep, and he stumbled a bit, but managed to keep himself upright and slip out of the bedroom after Malfoy.

"That's alright. I'm so sorry I got home so late," Malfoy said apologetically, leading them back downstairs. "I swear this isn't common. I'm almost always home in time to put him to bed."

He scrubbed a hand down his face, and Harry noted how exhausted he looked. It made his heart clench in sympathy. He didn't want Malfoy to think that he minded having to stay late whatsoever. He didn't mind in the slightest.

"Hey, I told you I don't mind, and I meant it. I didn't mean to fall asleep; I just didn't have the heart to tell him no more stories. It's like he was afraid to fall asleep, like he thought I wouldn't come back or something," Harry told him carefully. He left out the part about him missing his father so much, not wanting him to feel even more guilty when Scorpius was completely fine.

Malfoy smiled sadly at him. "Well, he’ll adjust eventually. He'll feel better once he sees you tomorrow."

"So, you want me to come back?" Harry perked up, grinning.

"I do, if you want to come back," Malfoy agreed. "Today went well, I take it?"

Harry nodded enthusiastically. "It went great. He's amazing, Malfoy. Looks exactly like you, too. I swear, sometimes he would make a certain face and I could have sworn he was you," Harry laughed.

Malfoy huffed out a tired laugh. "If only I had been more like him."

Harry's softened, wanting to tell him that he should be proud, and that he'd had his good qualities as a child, too, but his concern for the man finally couldn't be smothered any longer. He looked so incredibly stressed out, so overwhelmed, practically dead on his feet, he had to make sure he was okay.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked. "You look exhausted."

"I am," he shrugged. "It's alright. I'll get to bed soon enough."

"Did you eat?" Harry asked, now wishing he had made Malfoy his own supper. He should have just done it when he thought about it earlier, now it was too late and he was kicking himself for not doing it.

"I will," Malfoy said dismissively. He was lying, and they both knew it. He wanted to argue with him, to call him out, but he thought it wiser to mind his own business for now.

"Alright, if you're sure. I'll leave you to it, then. Maybe I can come over earlier tomorrow to give you a run-down of how the day went?" he suggested.

"That would be nice. Thank you again, Potter. You'll have to Apparate over until I can get you connected to my Floo, but you can come any time."

"Sounds good. I'll see you in the morning, get some sleep, Malfoy."

"You too, Potter, goodnight."

Harry waved goodbye to him with a smile and slipped out the front door. He stood on the porch for a moment, fighting the urge to go back in there and offer to make him something to eat. He couldn't do that, though. There was no way Malfoy would let him. Instead, he thought about getting to come back tomorrow, grinning up at the sky for a moment before he turned on the spot, Disapparating home with a loud crack.

He landed in the living room at Grimmauld, and he grimaced. After spending all day in Malfoy's surprisingly inviting home, his own seemed so much more depressing.

Harry sighed, turning towards the stairs, his own exhaustion creeping in. He was too tired to shower tonight, but he set his wand to go off early enough to shower in the morning and still get to Malfoy's in plenty of time to go over the day with him.

He peeled his clothes off and fell into bed wearing just his pants, grinning to himself as he replayed the day's events in his mind.

Today had started off rocky, but it had gone spectacularly well, all things considered. Scorpius was an angel; cute as hell, smart, a good listener, active... he was a fantastic kid, and Harry genuinely couldn't wait to see him again. He was a blast.

He had to remember to bring his camera with him. He loved taking pictures, and he thought Malfoy might enjoy having some more of his son to hang around the house. There were a few on his mantle, and one in his bedroom, but the walls were mostly bare. It wouldn't hurt to offer, anyway.

His smile dimmed a bit, though, as his mind turned to Malfoy. Astoria hadn't been exaggerating when she'd told him that Malfoy was spread too thin. His heart clenched remembering his tired eyes and brave front.

The man needed help, that much was obvious. He'd been raising his son alone for over four years, running himself ragged to repair his reputation, get himself a respectable career, and keep up with his home and his son. No wonder he was overwhelmed. Anyone would be.

Harry rolled onto his side, pulling his blankets up over his nose to ward off the slight draft that always blew through his bedroom, even in the summer.

Well, he wasn't going to have to do it alone anymore, Harry thought fiercely. Harry was here now, and he was going to help. He could prove to Malfoy that he'd done the right thing by taking him on, could prove to him that Harry could be useful. He'd take care of these boys.

Both of them.

Chapter 2: CHAPTER 2

Summary:

Our boys are getting into a routine, and Harry is overthinking, but he's working on it, the poor dear.

Harry woke with a jolt when his wand vibrated under his pillow. It was early enough that it was still dark outside, but he was instantly wide awake, jumping out of bed and waltzing to the shower with a grin plastered on his face.

He got to go back and watch Scorpius again today. Yesterday had been incredible, and he had big plans for today, but he had a pitstop to make before going over to Malfoy's house.

Harry smiled to himself as he washed. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so excited to get out of bed; it certainly hadn't happened since Victoire moved away, and even then, being with her had been comfortable, easy, because she was family and he'd known her for her entire life. She was his little princess, shy and quiet, and he'd loved her like an uncle, or maybe a big brother.

This was different, though. He could already tell the connection was different. Not more, not less, just different. It was new and exhilarating, and it felt like the start of a new journey, one that was going to be important. He could feel it. This was going to be great.

On top of his budding connection with Scorpius, he also had to factor in Malfoy. He had decided that he was going to make Malfoy's life easier come hell or high water even if he had to go about it sneakily, and he was going to start by making sure Malfoy had a hot meal when he came home at night. Harry had a niggling feeling the man skipped meals more than he ate them, and it wasn't healthy. He couldn't keep up the pace he was working at if he didn't take care of himself. Food was easy. He could pack him lunches, too, under the guise of just storing away leftovers, but really, he'd just make enough for him to take to lunch the next day. Easy.

He could also help him catch up on housework. His house was tidy, but Harry had noticed that less noticeable tasks, like dusting, had fallen by the wayside. He could help with that, too. Malfoy probably wouldn't even notice, which was perfect.

Before he got too ahead of himself, though, he had a visit to make. Harry threw on his typical jeans and t-shirt and his glasses, grabbed his jacket and his wand, and knelt in front of the Floo. Luckily Andromeda was an early riser, he knew she'd be awake by now.

"Andy?" He called out, grinning when her face appeared in front of him after just a few moments.

"Harry, dear. Any reason why you're calling so early?"

"Can I come through? I wanted to borrow a book from Teddy and ask you something."

She gave him permission, and he stepped through the Floo into her living room. He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek, then scooped his Godson up into a hug.

"Harry! You're here so early," Teddy giggled. He was seven now, growing up, but he still clung to Harry whenever he came to visit.

"I am. I had a favor to ask of you. Can I borrow that dragon book I got you last week? I'll bring it back this afternoon," Harry asked.

"Sure," he said. "I'll go get it."

He wandered off to his room, and Harry turned back to Andromeda. "I got a new job," he told her with a grin.

"Oh, that's wonderful! Another nanny position?" She said, pulling him to sit next to her on the sofa.

"Yep. Working for Draco Malfoy. I'm watching his son, Scorpius."

Her eyes widened. "My nephew?" Harry nodded.

"How is he doing? Cissy tells me he doesn't come round the Manor very often."

"Well, I can't really blame him for that," Harry said. "He seems good. Scorpius is delightful, Malfoy is..." lovely, incredible, impressive- "spread a bit thin at the moment. I'm hoping having me there will give him some breathing room, though. I actually wanted to ask if you'd mind if I brought Scorp over later to play with Teddy. They're cousins, they should get to know each other. He needs other children to play with."

"Absolutely. I've never even gotten to meet him. I think poor Draco feels uncomfortable being around us after... well. Everything," she said, frowning a bit.

He knew what she was talking about. Malfoy probably blamed himself for Ted and Tonks' deaths, for the fact that Teddy was an orphan. He'd contributed to what had happened, undeniably, but he had been a terrified kid who had been thrown in a situation he hadn't chosen, just trying to survive. If he'd defied Voldemort, he'd have been killed, along with his whole family. Harry couldn't blame him for that, and he knew Andromeda didn't, either.

She'd been spending quite a lot of time with her sister lately, reconnecting, trying to re-build a relationship that had been destroyed long ago. It was going well, too. If Andy could be around Narcissa and Lucius, Harry knew she'd be alright with Scorpius, and Draco too, if Harry could get him over here at some point. Having a bigger support system certainly wouldn't hurt him.

"Perfect. I wanted to take him to Fortescue's later. Why don't we come over here around ten? The boys can play, and then I can take them for ice cream and lunch. I have to swing by the shops, too, but I can bring Teddy back before I take Scorp home. As long as Malfoy says it's okay, of course."

Andromeda smiled at him. "That's sounds wonderful."

"Here, Harry," Teddy said, handing Harry the book. "Did you say ice cream?"

Harry laughed. "I did. I want to bring your cousin over to play today. Would you like to meet him?"

"I have a cousin?" Teddy asked, perking up.

"Yes, darling. Aunt Cissy's grandson, Scorpius. He's four," Andromeda informed him.

Teddy wrinkled his nose slightly. "He's a baby."

"He's not a baby," Harry told him gently. "He's really smart and a lot of fun. He likes to draw and he knows more about Magical creatures than I do. He likes flying, too. You'll like him, I promise."

Teddy thought about it, then shrugged. "Okay. Maybe I can take him on my broom, then. Does he like the Tutshill Tornadoes?"

"Why don't you ask him when he comes over? You can show him all the quidditch posters your room," Harry suggested.

"Okay."

"Great," Harry grinned, ruffling Teddy's shaggy mop of brown curls. "I'll see you both in a couple of hours, then. I'll call if plans change, I have to get over there."

"See you soon, dear. Enjoy your morning."

Harry bid them both goodbye, clutching the book in his hands, and just Apparated over to Malfoy's. It was just about half seven, plenty of time to go over yesterday before Malfoy had to leave for work.

Harry knocked on the door, humming as he waited for Malfoy to open it. After several minutes, he knocked again, thinking Malfoy just hadn't heard him.

He waited even longer, and still no answer. He'd been out here for at least ten minutes now, and he was growing concerned. He definitely remembered Malfoy telling him to come back today. He knocked again, longer and louder this time, then moved over to try and peek through the windows. The house was dark, but he could see someone moving near the stairs. Knocking again, he finally heard a little voice on the other side of the door.

"Who's there?"

"Scorpius? It's Harry," he said loudly, so the little boy could hear him through the door. "Where's your papa?"

"Harry?" Scorpius sniffled. "Papa is sleeping and I can't wake him up! I yelled and yelled, and I even went inside his room, but I'm not 'posed to unless he says so, and I got scared."

Harry felt fear grip him. That didn't sound normal. Had something happened? He cursed under his breath. "Okay. That's okay," he said, trying to sound calm. "Can you let me in?"

"I'm not allowed to open the door!" Scorpius said. "It's locked."

"Alright. Go on and try to wake your papa up again, and if you can't, come back down and let me know," Harry told him, not wanting to dismantle the wards if he didn't absolutely have to.

"Kay," Scorpius replied. It was quiet for another ten minutes before he came back.

"He won't answer his bedroom door!"

"I'm coming in, alright?" Harry said to him.

"No, no! I can't let strangers in!" Scorpius wailed.

"Scorp, it's alright. I'm not a stranger, am I? And remember, I'm supposed to be here," Harry reminded him.

Scorpius finally agreed, and Harry pointed his wand at the door and cast an Alohamora at it, preparing to take down the wards Malfoy had up. When he grabbed the door handle, though, he felt the wards bend for him, letting him inside easily. He'd forgotten that Malfoy had added him to the wards yesterday. He wanted to smack himself.

When he was inside, Scorpius attached himself to Harry's legs, hugging him. "Scorp, did you say you saw your papa? Was he alright?"

"He's sleeping on his big book," Scorpius said. "I poked him and he just snored. I didn't want to get in trouble."

Harry released a breath. Okay. He was just tired, then, not hurt. Okay. That was a relief.

"Alright. Thanks, buddy. Let's get you some breakfast real quick, and I'll go wake up your papa. He never said I can't go in his room, right?"

"Right. I want toast," Scorpius told him.

Harry situated the boy at the kitchen island with two slices of toast and jam, and gave him the book he'd brought over to read.

"I'll be back soon," Harry told him before jogging up the stairs.

He crept into Malfoy's bedroom, and his heart stuttered at the sight of Malfoy sprawled out face down on his bed, face resting on a large textbook. His mouth was slightly parted, and his blonde hair cascaded over the book, obscuring part of his face from view. Harry could see his hair fluttering slightly as he breathed evenly in his sleep. He looked so tired, and Harry hated to wake him, but he had to. He knew Malfoy wouldn't want to miss work. 

"Malfoy," he whispered, coming to lean over his bed. He gently moved the hair off of his face, fingers itching to card through his silky locks. He pushed that aside, though, and simply called out to him again. "Malfoy..."

It took a couple more times before the man stirred, giving a grunt in response, but not moving at all. Harry bit his lip.

"Malfoy," he said quietly, placing a hand on his back, unable to stop his fingers from gently stroking the smooth skin between his shoulder blades. He was so soft like this, face relaxed and worry-free. Malfoy let out a contented little sigh, sinking even further into the mattress, melting under the touch, and well, that was kind of the opposite effect Harry was going for.

He moved his hand up to his shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze and a shake. He was warm. Almost too warm, and Harry suddenly worried that he really was ill.

"Malfoy, are you ill? Are you not going to work today?"

He startled, though, when Malfoy's eyes flew open at his words and he sat bolt upright in bed in a panic. The page he'd been sleeping on tore loudly and stuck to his cheek, duvet falling down to pool around his waist, exposing his entire, bare torso. Before Harry could even think, Malfoy quickly plucked the book page off his cheek, eyes wild, and threw the covers back to scramble out of bed.

Harry's mouth went dry at the sight of a mostly naked Malfoy centimeters away from him.

Oh, holy hell.

Why was he that attractive? That- he should be illegal.

His shock was short lived, though, as the man stumbled right into him, almost falling over. Harry steadied him, concern overtaking shock and... whatever else he'd been feeling.

"Woah, calm down."

"Potter? How did you get in here?" Malfoy demanded suspiciously, stepping back out of Harry's reach and crossing his arms tightly in front of his chest. Harry tried not to stare at the thin, silvery scars crisscrossing Malfoy’s upper body, his stomach rolling violently as he remembered exactly how he’d gotten those scars.

"Er, you added me to the wards, remember?" Harry said, not mentioning that he himself had forgotten, and scratched the back of his neck nervously. "I knocked for quite a while, but no one answered, and I got worried."

Malfoy blinked at him, shoulders relaxing just a bit, then tensing right back up. "What time is it? Where's Scorpius?" He asked, practically running to his bedroom door to hunt for him.

Harry frowned, quickly grabbing a shirt he spotted hanging off the top of Malfoy's bureau; he couldn’t hold a conversation and look at him topless any longer.

"Relax, it's just gone eight, and he's perfectly fine," Harry assured him calmly, pulling him back gently by the arm and handing him the shirt. "He's eating toast at the table with a book I brought him. I'll make him a better lunch, but I wanted to check on you. He told me he couldn't wake you this morning and I was worried."

Malfoy clutched the shirt absently. “Did he open the door? He’s not supposed to do that,” he said worriedly, turning and heading for the bathroom instead. He'd only taken a few steps, however, when Harry heard a crunching sound, followed by a pained grunt.

Malfoy lifted his foot, groaning at the sight of his now broken watch, blood dripping down onto the carpet.

“Would you relax? Jesus, Malfoy,” Harry chastised him, forcing the other man to sit on the bed so Harry could examine the wound. He saw a tiny shard of glass sticking out of his heel, and he carefully plucked it out, vanishing it and the rest of the broken glass laying on the ground. “He didn’t open the door, he just shouted at me through it, so I came in on my own."

Harry watched in fascination as Malfoy healed the small cut on his foot with barely a glance.

"We were supposed to talk about how yesterday went," Malfoy said, voice heavy with disappointment, but he quickly pulled on the shirt Harry had handed him, looking around for his work robes. He frowned when he picked them up from the floor, sniffing them gingerly.

"We can talk later," Harry told him. "Are you sure you’re alright, though? You look a bit pale. More than usual."

Malfoy visibly bristled, and Harry immediately regretted his choice of words. He hadn't meant it offensively at all. Malfoy did look more pale than usual; he was just concerned.

"I'm late, Potter. I'm stressed out. I broke my favorite watch. And I need to get dressed," he explained pointedly, glancing down at the robes in his arms.

"Oh! Right, sorry, I'm sorry. I'll just be..." Harry gestured vaguely out of the room and slipped out of the door, face flaming. Christ, what was wrong with him? He should have given Malfoy privacy right away, he chastised himself.

Harry shook it off and hurried back downstairs to Scorpius, pleased to see him still in the same spot Harry had left him.

"He's awake," Harry announced, and Scorpius cheered.

Harry smiled at him, then turned to put the kettle on, quickly brewing some tea while he rummaged through the cupboards, looking for an appropriate mug. He grinned widely when he spotted a well-used travel mug. Perfect.

"Will you read to me, Harry? This page is hard," Scorpius cut in.

"Of course I will," Harry told him, quickly finishing the tea and setting a warming charm on it before going over and picking the boy up, arranging him on his lap so they could both see the book.

He read to him for a few minutes until Malfoy appeared in the kitchen. Harry glanced up at him, smiling warmly, but he stilled when he caught sight of the man.

He- his hair.

He had it pulled back, tied up in a small knot on the back of his head, a few shorter pieces escaping the elastic to fall around his face and shoulders. Harry had never seen him with his hair up. Why did that look so good? Why did everything look so good on him? It was unfair, truly, for someone to be that pretty. A jolt of arousal shot through him and he suppressed a shiver.

Malfoy definitely noticed his staring; he touched his hair self-consciously and cleared his throat, looking away uncomfortably, and Harry's heart sank. He suddenly was mortified at himself. Malfoy was straight. Harry should absolutely not be looking at him like that! Not ever. It probably disgusted him. He tried to swallow down his embarrassment as he watched Scorpius fling himself at his father, screeching happily.

"Papa! Papa, you wouldn't wake up!" He scolded his father, pouting.

"I'm sorry, love. I fell asleep before I could set my alarm," Malfoy murmured apologetically, hugging his son close, carding his fingers through his hair before standing back up. "I have to leave now, though."

Scorpius looked like he was going to cry, face pinching, eyes filling with tears. "Don't leave me," he begged, hugging Malfoy's legs tightly so he couldn't walk away.

"Scorpius..." Malfoy said quietly, looking at Harry helplessly. He looked devastated, and Harry hated it.

"Hey, Scorp," Harry said, getting up to come crouch next to the small boy, who turned to look at him with teary eyes. "I thought we could go visit Teddy, my Godson today. Remember, I told you about him? He's so excited to meet you. And then, maybe we can go get some ice cream. Before supper."

He whispered the last part like it was a big secret, but made sure Malfoy could hear him, just in case he preferred Harry did not feed his son junk before a proper dinner. Malfoy just pretended he didn't hear though, pointedly ignoring the sneaky look his son shot him.

"Okay," Scorpius squealed, giggling madly, clearly excited by the idea of doing something 'naughty'.

Harry couldn't help but grin, looking up and winking at Malfoy, who returned his smile.

"I have to go, love, I'm going to be late," he said, and Scorpius nodded, finally letting him go.

"Since we'll be out today, I thought you could just send me a Patronus if you need me, yeah?" Harry suggested, grabbing the tea he'd made and hurrying after Draco as he walked to the Floo. It would be the quickest way to communicate, and the Patronus would find him, no matter where he was.

"No," Malfoy answered shortly, shaking his head.

"Why not?" Harry asked, bewildered, thinking that maybe Malfoy had a recognizable Patronus form, and didn't want people to know he was in contact with Harry. That stung a bit. "We won't be anywhere too crowded, and no one will know it's from you."

"I can't cast a Patronus, Potter."

Oh.

Harry blinked, then furrowed his eyebrows. Malfoy actually looked upset by the revelation. It clearly bothered him that he couldn't do it. That was- that was really sad. He'd just assumed...

"Oh. Well, that's okay. We'll have to skip that today, then, but I'll figure something out," he assured the taller man. He would, too. They needed a way to communicate in case of an emergency.

"It's fine, Potter. We'll speak later," he said dismissively.

"Of course. Have a good day at work, I'll make sure we're home by four," Harry told him with a smile, shoving the cup of tea into Draco's hand and ushering him into the Floo before heading back to the kitchen. A few moments later, he heard the Floo roar to life, and he was gone.

Right. On with the day.

"Scorp? Did you finish eating?" Harry called to him.

"Yep!"

"Great! Come on, let's get dressed. You can play while I clean up the kitchen, and then we can get going. They're expecting us."

"Yay! I can't wait!" Scorpius cried, zooming past Harry and up the stairs. Harry laughed and followed him, helping the small boy get dressed in a shirt with dragons all over it.

"Do you want to take anything with us?" Harry asked him, and he nodded.

He pulled out his favorite dragon, the one he'd named Dragon, and his big book of creatures, and handed them to Harry, who put them in a bag. Harry left Scorpius in his room and ducked back into Malfoy’s room, pocketing his broken watch in the hope that he could repair it later, then cleaning the tiny blood stain out of his carpet before he went back downstairs to clean up, and set the bag next to the door.

Scorpius played in his room for a while longer, then came downstairs to read to Harry until Harry announced it was time to go.

"We have to Apparate, okay? Your papa said you know how?"

Scorpius nodded eagerly. "I just have to hold on real tight!"

"That's right," Harry said, scooping him up. "Hug me really tight."

Scorpius did, wrapping his arms around Harry's neck and hugging tightly, gasping when Harry spun them on the spot, the feeling of being uncomfortably squeezed through a straw taking his breath away for a moment until they popped up at Andromeda's.

Scorpius shivered, but giggled. "That feels funny," he said, rubbing his face.

"I know, it tickles, huh?"

"Sort of," Scorpius laughed.

"Do you want to knock on the door, or do you want me to?"

"I want to!"

Harry let him down, and he knocked rapidly on the door until it opened, and grinning widely when Andromeda appeared.

"Hi!" Scorpius chirped. "I'm Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy. I'm here to play! Is Teddy here?" He rushed forward to hug her before she could even utter a word, and Harry softened at the sight. He was so adorable.

"Well, hello there," Andromeda said with a laugh, eyes sparkling. "Aren't you a delight."

"Sometimes," Scorpius answered. "Sometimes I'm grumpy, though."

They both laughed at that. "I think that's fair to say about everyone," Andromeda assured him. "Come inside and meet Teddy, dear."

They both followed her inside to the living room, where Teddy was laying upside down on the couch, brown curls dangling over the edge, throwing a Snitch in the air and catching it. He glanced over, feigning disinterest when they entered the room, but Harry saw the curiosity in his brown eyes.

"Hi, are you Teddy?" Scorpius greeted him just as enthusiastically as he'd greeted his aunt. "I'm Scorpius. I like dragons, do you like them, too? Ooh, you have a Snitch! Do you play Quidditch? Do you have a broom? I'm not allowed to fly by myself yet, papa tells me no."

Teddy blinked at him, eyebrows furrowing, clearly not knowing how to take the little ball of energy that Scorpius was.

"Er..." he said uncertainly, looking to Harry for help. Harry just shook his head, hands in the air in surrender, biting back a laugh.

When he didn't continue, Scorpius deflated a tiny bit. "I like your hair," he tried. "It's curly."

"Thanks," Teddy said, giving him a small smile.

Teddy didn't wear his natural hair very often around company; he thought the curls made him look like a baby. Harry adored them, though, and was delighted that Scorpius had decided to pay him a compliment on them.

"Wanna see something cool?" Teddy asked, sitting up on the couch.

Scorpius nodded eagerly. Teddy scrunched up his face for a moment, then his hair was the same color as Scorpius', but still curly.

Scorpius gasped loudly, hands covering his mouth. "How did you do that?" he asked in awe. "You're allowed to do magic?"

"It's not magic, I can just morph."

"He's a Metamorphmagus," Andromeda explained. "That means he can change his appearance at will."

"Wow," Scorpius whispered, looking at Teddy like he was the greatest thing he'd ever seen.

"Do you like Quidditch?" Teddy asked, warming up quickly now.

"Yeah! I went to a game with my papa last year."

"Do you like the Tutshill Tornadoes? They're the best," Teddy said seriously.

"I- I don't know. But I can!" Scorpius said quickly.

"Come to my room. I'll show you my posters; I can teach you about them," Teddy said, getting up and taking Scorpius' hand, leading him up to his room.

Scorpius grinned excitedly, waving goodbye to Harry as he followed his cousin up the stairs.

Harry chatted with Andromeda over tea while the boys played upstairs for a couple of hours, but eventually Scorpius ran downstairs, eyes wide.

"Harry! Harry! There's a picture of Grammy on the walls upstairs! I saw it when I went to the potty! Why is that there?"

Harry blinked in surprise. Scorpius didn't know they were related?

"That's right; your grandmother is my sister," Andromeda told him. "That makes us family."

"Are you my Grammy, too?" he asked, looking confused.

"No, no, I'm your aunt. And Teddy is your cousin."

"I have a cousin?" he said, gobsmacked.

She nodded with a smile, and he laughed. "Papa will be so excited to hear that I have a cousin! And an auntie!"

"I think he already knows, buddy," Harry laughed.

"Why didn't he tell me?" Scorpius pouted.

Harry faltered. He knew why. He spent enough time here to know that Malfoy didn't visit because he felt uncomfortable. He didn't know he'd never even mentioned their existence to his son, but he understood why he aired on the side of caution. He knew that Malfoy still carried a lot of guilt around about the war. Harry couldn't blame him for not wanting his son to know about it, especially when Andy and Narcissa had only recently reconnected.

"Maybe he just wanted to surprise you," Teddy's voice came, and Harry whipped around to him in surprise, jaw dropping a little bit.

"Well, it worked," Scorpius said seriously, but let the topic go after that, to Harry's relief. He made a mental note to get Teddy an extra scoop of ice cream for saving him from that one.

Scorpius insisted they all draw dragon pictures after that, wanting to give his papa a gift. Teddy complimented Scorpius' admittedly very good picture, but they both just stared at Harry's.

"What?" he asked.

"That really stinks," Teddy told him bluntly, and Harry burst out a shocked laugh.

"Teddy! That's mean," Scorpius scolded him. He got up and patted Harry's hand sympathetically. "He tried very hard, and all you can do is your best," he said seriously, obviously mimicking something his father had told him multiple times before.

Harry teared up in an effort not to burst out laughing, and Andromeda looked to be in a similar boat. He looked like a miniature Malfoy with his solemn expression and silver eyes, it was hysterical.

"Alright, alright. I know I'm terrible at drawing," he chuckled. "Are you boys ready to go? We can get lunch and have ice cream," he added in a sing-song voice, trying to tempt them.

"Yessss!" Teddy cheered, his full personality finally coming out.

"Excellent. Let's get shoes on."

The boys raced to get their shoes and lightweight jackets on. "I'll bring him back before four," Harry told Andromeda. "I promised Malfoy I'd be back by then. Do you need anything while I'm at Diagon?"

"No, we're fine. You have fun. Good luck with both of them," she said, smirking at Teddy and Scorpius whispering conspirationally near the door.

"We'll be fine," he grinned.

"I'm sure you will. This is probably a dream for you," she laughed.

It kind of was. He loved kids, and getting to have two of his favorite people out together really was exciting for him.

"Yeah," he conceded with a chuckle.

He picked up Scorpius again, having him hold onto his neck, and grasped Teddy's hand tightly, then Disapparated with a crack, landing them in Diagon Alley.

Harry took them to a little Café he was familiar with for lunch, then they stopped by Florean Fortescue's for ice cream.

"Harry! Good to see you lad. And with two little ones today, I see!" Mr. Fortescue said good naturedly when they entered the shop.

"That's right. This is Scorpius," he said, introducing the small boy. "Scorp, this is Mr. Fortescue. He owns the ice cream shop.

"Hi! This is the most fun job ever, I bet," he said very seriously, looking exactly like Malfoy as he examined the case of flavors.

"That it is! Wouldn't want to do anything else," he agreed. "What will everyone be having?"

"He's allergic to bananas," Harry told the older man, wanting to make sure it was safe to even get him anything.

"No problem there, I haven't even used them in the shop in a good year or so. He'll be fine."

In the end, Scorpius got plain chocolate ice cream with chocolate chips and rainbow sprinkles on top, Teddy ordered triple berry, and Harry got his favorite, mint chocolate chip. Both boys turned their noses up at his green ice cream, and he retaliated by swiping some on Teddy's nose.

The boys squealed, both trying to get him back by flinging bits of ice cream at him until one of them hit him right in the face. Harry burst out laughing. "Alright, alright, truce!" he cried out, holding his hands up in surrender. "You win!"

"Ha!" Teddy said. "We win!"

"Yes, yes, you win," Harry said, vanishing the mess they'd made easily, then tickling both of them until they begged for mercy.

Luckily Mr. Fortescue was used to Harry and didn't mind if they got a little... rambunctious. He always cleaned up after himself, never left a mess for the older man to take care of, and Mr. Fortescue was so good natured, he never complained. Harry gave him a lot of business, and he'd known the man forever, practically. Florean had looked out for him when he'd been living at the Leaky Cauldron during the summer before Third Year, and Harry hadn't been able to fully appreciate that until he was much older.

They finished up their ice cream after that and bid Mr. Fortescue goodbye, and Harry checked the time. They still had a bit before four o'clock, so he asked them if they wanted to stop in the sweets shop. Both boys enthusiastically agreed, and Harry took them to Sugarplum's to look around, letting them each pick out one thing, then he took them to the shops to pick out food for supper.

"What should we have tonight, buddy?" Harry asked Scorpius as they perused the aisles. "I thought we could surprise your papa and make him a nice dinner for when he gets home from work. What do you think?"

"Yeah!" Scorpius said excitedly. "Papa would like that a lot!"

"Wonderful. What does he like?"

"Papa likes lamb," he said, making a face.

"I take it you do not like lamb?" Harry asked, smirking at him.

"Yuck. I want a cheese toastie."

"I think we can arrange that," Harry laughed. He took the boys around the store, quickly gathering all the ingredients he'd need to make supper, then they dropped Teddy back at home before Harry Apparated Scorpius back to his own home to start cooking.

Harry spread the ingredients out, humming while he worked. He had Scorpius in a small apron, standing on a stool so he could help with the tomato soup. Harry got the potatoes boiling, then got the lamb chops seared off and into the oven.

They worked together steadily, Harry teaching Scorpius how to do different techniques, even letting him chop up the mint leaves for the sauce, and taught him how to measure out ingredients by weight, explaining when it was important to measure, and when it was okay to just eyeball things.

Scorpius seemed to enjoy himself, and he was very proud by the time they finished and had everything plated. He helped Harry set the table for two using the good China, and they lit some candles after Harry put the meal under a Stasis Charm. He didn't know when Malfoy would be back, but it was nearly six already.

"Shall we tidy up while we wait for you papa to get home? If he's not here by the time we finish, you can go ahead and eat, okay?"

"Okay!" Scorpius agreed. Harry had only made food for the two of them. He'd eat later on at home tonight. He just wanted Malfoy to have a relaxing evening and get to actually enjoy his son’s company, instead of worrying about making dinner or cleaning the house. It wasn't necessary, not when Harry was here, getting paid way too much money, and perfectly capable of doing it. He certainly wasn't going to leave a mess for Malfoy that he hadn't even made. It was the least he could do, really.

Harry quickly made Malfoy a fresh cup of tea and ran it up to his bedroom, scribbling out another small note to stick under the mug, then rushed back down to help Scorpius. They'd nearly gotten the whole kitchen cleaned up when Harry heard the Floo roar to life. There was silence for a moment, then Malfoy called out to them.

"Scorpius? Potter?"

"Papa!" Scorpius screeched, immediately hopping off his stool and running to greet his father.

Harry followed close behind, leaning in the doorway with a soft smile as he watched the two interact, Malfoy murmuring softly to his son as he hugged him.

It made Harry's heart melt a bit, seeing the two of them together like that. Malfoy obviously loved his son more than life itself, and Scorpius worshipped the ground he walked on. It was nice that they had each other, that they were such a close-knit little family despite Draco's hard work that kept him out for long hours. Family was so important.

Harry's heart throbbed painfully in his chest, a deep, desperate wanting flaring up for a moment before he shoved it away. The truth was, he wanted this. He had always wanted this; a family. One that was his, someone to love who would love him in return, but it just wasn't something he was ever going to have. He wished things were different, wished that his life was different, that he wasn't who he was sometimes, but it wasn't, and he was. He just had to accept what came along with that. He couldn't risk trusting the wrong person, not again.

He snapped out of his daydream when Scorpius began regaling their day enthusiastically.

"We had the best day!" Scorpius was saying. "Did you know Teddy is our cousin?! I have a cousin! And an aunt! And he can change his hair, papa! He made it match mine. And he liked my dragon drawing. Harry isn't too good at drawing, but he tried really hard, and that's what matters, right?"

Malfoy snorted inelegantly, looking over at Harry, who was grinning at him, slightly embarrassed. He just shrugged. "Can't be good at everything, can I?"

"I suppose not. Did you go get ice cream?" Malfoy asked.

"Yeah! I had chocolate, with chocolate chippies and rainbow sprinkles. It tasted so good. Teddy likes the purple one, I can't remember what it's called, but Harry got mint! Yuck! It tastes like toothpaste!" Scorpius made an exaggeratedly disgusted face.

"That sounds lovely, but you shouldn't yuck someone else's yum. How boring would it be if we all liked the same thing?" Malfoy chided him gently.

"Sorry, Harry," Scorpius said sheepishly.

"That's alright, Scorp. I'm glad you didn't like it. Meant I didn't have to share," Harry said, winking at him. Scorpius giggled, squirming until his father put him down.

"Papa, come see what we did!" The little boy said next, pulling Malfoy towards the dining room.

Harry's heart sped up, praying he hadn't massively overstepped, but Malfoy just gasped when he entered the dining room, eyes roaming over the table and food, taking everything in.

"Do you like it? Harry made you supper! He said we made it, but I only helped a little bit," Scorpius pouted.

"No, no, you helped so much," Harry said to Scorpius, then glanced back at Malfoy anxiously, the skin on his neck prickling a bit under his intense gaze.

"I hope you don't mind," he said quietly. "I thought you'd be hungry after working so late last night and skipping breakfast. Scorp said this was your favorite," he rambled

"Potter-" Malfoy said, voice cracking with emotion. He looked so overwhelmed, but not in a bad way, for once. "You didn't have to do this. I told you I'd handle the cooking..."

"It wasn't a big deal. I like to cook, and you're tired. Plus, it gave us something else to do together," Harry said, giving him a crooked smile, relaxing a bit now that he knew Draco wasn't angry.

Malfoy looked back at the table, then frowned. "Why are there only two plates? Aren't you eating?" he asked, confused.

"Oh, no, I'll grab something when I get home," Harry dismissed with a wave. This wasn't for him; this was so Malfoy could enjoy a free evening and so Harry had some peace of mind, knowing he'd eaten.

"That's stupid. You cooked this, you should eat, too," Malfoy stated, like it was normal to invite your nanny to have supper with your family.

"Malfoy, really, I don't want to impose-"

"Potter. You're staying for supper. Please," he tacked on at the end, but remained firm.

"Please, Harry?" Scorpius added, folding his little hands under his chin and putting on his best pouty face.

"Well, that's incredibly unfair," Harry laughed a bit helplessly, but Malfoy looked quite smug, knowing Harry had already caved.

Malfoy conjured another place setting next to him for Harry, and Harry obediently took his seat.

Supper was wonderful. It wasn't awkward at all; it was light and comforting, like they'd been friends for years, not just reacquainted yesterday.

Malfoy practically moaned while he ate, causing Harry to squirm, and he blushed hotly when Malfoy said, "this is unbelievable. You should have done this for a career instead."

"Nah. I'm happy with what I ended up doing. Cooking is more of a hobby. I hated it when I was younger, but I love it now, it's relaxing."

"You should have been better at Potions," Malfoy said bluntly, then looked mortified that he'd said that out loud. "I mean-"

Harry burst out laughing. "You're not wrong. If I'd made the connection sooner, maybe I would have been."

When supper had all been eaten, Harry stood, beginning to clear the table.

"I'll clean up, Potter, you've done more than enough," Malfoy protested.

Yeah, no; that wasn't going to happen.

"Sure. Thanks, Malfoy. I'll just put these in the kitchen, then," Harry lied. "Why don't you go get changed or have a shower, and I can leave when you're done? You didn't get one this morning, right?"

Malfoy bit his bottom lip, looking torn. "Are you sure you don't mind? I don't want to keep you longer than I already have."

"I offered," Harry reminded him, chuckling. "Go ahead, I don't mind."

Malfoy squirmed. "Alright. Just a quick one, though," he conceded, then scurried off up the stairs.

Harry shook his head fondly. He finished carrying the dishes to the kitchen and washed them up quickly, most of the work having already been completed before Malfoy returned home.

"Come on, Scorp, let's get in the tub," he called out to the small boy who was sprawled out on the sofa.

He washed Scorpius up quickly, making sure to wash and comb his hair before he helped him into a pair of dark green pajamas. Harry carried him back downstairs and grabbed a coloring book, letting Scorpius direct him on how to color his picture until Malfoy reappeared.

"I'm done, Potter, you can go now. I'm sorry that took so long, but thank you for staying, and for supper..." Malfoy trailed off.

He looked surprised to see Scorpius ready for bed, but Harry couldn't focus on that right now. All he could do was stare at Malfoy, with his damp hair dripping against his neck, soaking the neck and shoulders of his white t-shirt. Harry had the insane urge to lick the droplets that were clinging to his throat, but Malfoy swiped them away, breaking Harry out of his trance.

Fuck, he needed to get out of here before he humiliated himself. He stood up quickly, smiling at the taller man. The much, much taller man. "No problem, Malfoy, really. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Malfoy nodded, and Harry hugged Scorpius. "Be good for your papa. Good job helping me surprise him."

Scorpius giggled, and Harry gave Malfoy a final wave before slipping out the door and Disapparating home.

His mind whirled, and he tried to will away the very unwelcome arousal that was still coursing through him at the sight of Malfoy, pink cheeked and dripping wet, smelling like freshly cut grapefruit and broomstick handles, trying to stop his mind from flashing back to his undressed state from this morning. He felt like a pervert, creeping on what was essentially his boss. His straight boss.

He's straight, he's straight, he's straight, he reminded himself over and over, desperately wishing it wasn't true. But it was, and besides, even if Malfoy were interested in men, why would he be interested in Harry? He wasn't stupid. Men who looked like that didn't go for people like... well, like Harry. Plain. Uninteresting. Boring. Harry didn't have an interesting job or go out or have any exciting hobbies or talents. Every relationship he's ever had, with the exception of Ginny, who he was still incredibly close to, had been a spectacular failure. He wasn't good enough. And he certainly wasn't good enough for someone like Malfoy, who was ambitious, successful, smart, funny, a wonderful father, and obviously talented. Harry was... just Harry. He could feel insecurity rising up, almost suffocating him, and he tried to shove it down.

This train of thought was pointless. It didn't matter if Harry was good enough or not, it would never be relevant because Malfoy didn't like men. Harry needed to talk to someone, hopefully someone who would help him get a bloody grip.

He stumbled towards his Floo, tossing in a pinch of Floo powder before emerging inside Ron and Hermione's little bungalow, coughing a bit.

It was late, and he probably should have called, but they've told him countless times to just come over whenever he needed to, and they were already hugging him hello before he could even worry about it.

"Harry!" Hermione greeted him with a smile. "I'm so glad you stopped- is everything alright?" Her eyes looked at him in concern, taking in the look on his face. "Why do you look so upset?"

"I had supper with them tonight," Harry blurted out. "I cooked, and Malfoy insisted I stay to eat with them. And then I got Scorpius ready for bed while he showered."

"Okay... Why is that bad? Did Malfoy say something horrible to you?" Ron asked, frowning.

"No, no," Harry assured him, babbling nervously. "No, he didn't. He's been nothing but kind to me, honestly. It was great. He's great. Wonderful. Spectacular. Gorgeous. Brilliant, even. Really brilliant. He's just terrific."

Ron stared at him, then glanced at his wife, who was watching him with wide eyes. "Mate..."

"I know!" Harry burst out, flopping down on their couch, covering his face with his hands. "You don't have to say it. I already know."

"Well. Should have seen this coming, honestly," Ron chuckled. "Still hung up on him, I see."

"It's not like I showed up at his house harboring feelings from Eighth Year, you know," Harry said defensively. "I'm not a lunatic. I just didn't expect him to be like... this. Or to look like this. It's been two days, and I feel like I'm back in Eighth Year, pining like a bloody fool. His son is just the best, I already adore him, and I don't want to ruin this, but I can't help but like him. It's impossible not to. He's such a good dad, and it's incredibly attractive. What am I supposed to do?" Harry asked helplessly.

"Ask him out?" Ron suggested, looking at him like he was dense.

"He's my boss, Ron," Harry reminded him. "My successful, brilliant, annoyingly beautiful boss. I can't ask him out."

"Why not?" Ron asked, confused.

Harry stared at him. "He's my straight boss, for one, Ron."

Ron snorted loudly. "Mate. I'm telling you now like I told you then. He's bent. Mark my words."

Harry rolled his eyes. "He was married, Ron, to a woman. He has a kid."

"So? You like both, why can't he?"

"He's right, Harry," Hermione added. "That doesn't necessarily mean anything."

"See? And y'know, I definitely remember hearing something about him and Nott in Fifth Year..."

Harry blinked. What?

"What? When did you- you know what? It doesn't matter. That's not the issue here. Even if he were gay, he's him, and I'm still just me."

"Yeah, you are," Ron interjected fiercely, immediately looking offended on Harry's behalf, like someone else had insulted him. Harry sighed internally. If they hadn't had this conversation dozens of times over the last three years, he'd be grateful to know how quick his best friend was to jump to his defense. "You're Harry Potter, you bellend. You're a bloody hero. You saved the world, you know, in case you've forgotten. I'd say that's pretty impressive," Ron told him bluntly, voice firm.

"That wasn't all me. I had help, a lot of it. I couldn't have done that alone. And that's not the point. I'm not... I couldn't offer him anything."

Hermione looked highly upset at that, her big brown eyes filled with sadness. "Harry... that's not true-"

"It is, Hermione," Harry cut her off, looking away, swallowing the lump in his throat.

"I wish you would stop letting what Owen-"

"Stop," he said abruptly, his heart aching. "This isn't about him."

"Yes, it is, Harry," she insisted. "You’re still hurt. What he did to you was horrible and disgusting, and nothing he said about you was true. Nothing any of them said was true, but you still believe them like they had any validity at all. They never even took the time to get to know you. Just because people in your past couldn't appreciate you doesn't mean no one will."

"That's not-"

"No, no, stop. Listen to me," Hermione said sternly, and he closed his mouth, frowning. She put her hands on his shoulders, giving him a tiny shake, like she thought she could physically shake some sense into him. "They were wrong. I hate what they've done to you. You're my best friend, and it breaks my heart to see you like this. You do have so much to offer. You deserve to be loved, Harry. Maybe it won't be by Malfoy, but someday, the right person is going to love you for who you are. You, the actual you, not what they want you to be or what the stupid Prophet paints you as. They're going to view everything that you see as a flaw as a gift. You are the best person I know, and someone is going to appreciate all of you someday. Who you are is more than good enough, and you are worth loving."

Harry stared at his lap, heart pounding. They've talked about this before, but she's never been that... unfiltered before, that determined to make him hear her. She looked genuinely upset, and he felt horribly guilty.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I didn't mean to upset you, that's not why I came over."

"Don't apologize, mate," Ron said quietly. He didn't look any happier than Hermione. "We just want you to be happy."

"I am happy," he insisted. "Really. I love this job already, and I'm happy with my personal life. I just wanted advice on how to... compartmentalize, I guess. Keep my feelings and my job separate."

"You know it's okay if you like him, right? You're not doing anything wrong if you do; you can't help how you feel," she told him gently.

Harry bit his lip. He did know that. It's not like he could just turn it off, anyway; feelings didn't work like that. At least his didn't. Especially not with Malfoy and his all-consuming presence. He wasn't trying to get rid of his crush; he knew that would be a fruitless endeavor, and even knowing they could never have a relationship couldn't stop him from wanting the other man, couldn't stop him from wishing things were different.

No, he just wanted to contain it a bit; control himself, or at least adjust so he wasn't so bleeding obvious about it. He always wore everything he felt on his face and he knew it. He didn't want Malfoy to figure it out and feel weird around him, or worse, fire him.

"I know," he replied in a quiet voice. "I do. But I just want to help him, not make him uncomfortable because I can't keep my stupid facial expressions in check. It happened three times today, and he definitely noticed. I feel like a creep."

Hermione sighed quietly, but gave him a small, sad smile. "You're not a creep, and I'm sure you're not making him uncomfortable, Harry, but if you really want to step back and not take a chance with him, which I think is a mistake, just for the record-"

"Massive mistake, really," Ron cut in with a nod, but she ignored him entirely.

"-then I would suggest that you stop overthinking it. Just relax, Harry. I'm not going to tell you not to give too much of yourself because that's just who you are. You can be there for him without making it romantic, you know you can. Just be you. You said he needs help, right? Well, you always help all of your friends out whenever we need anything, even without asking, and you don't have feelings for any of us, right? Just remind yourself that you aren't doing anything wrong. Be his friend."

Right. Just be his friend. That had been his goal in the first place. Hermione was right, it was totally normal for him to help his friends, and compliment them, and even have supper with them occasionally. He was enthusiastic; it was just how he was. Maybe he wasn't being as weird as he feared.

"Okay. I can do that," Harry breathed, relaxing a bit. "Yeah. Friends help each other."

"That's right," she said with a small smile.

"Friends have secret crushes too," Ron said under his breath, and Harry and Hermione both glared at him. "What? It's true. Look at me and 'Mione! We worked out alright, I’d reckon."

"Whatever," Harry said with a laugh. "Thank you both. That actually helps a lot. I was kind of spiraling. You know how it gets."

"We know," Ron said, throwing his arm across Harry's shoulders. "And as your best friends, we're not going to let you get down on yourself like that. You can always talk to us, mate, we'll set you straight."

"Thank you," Harry repeated softly. He loved them so much. He was so lucky to have them, really; all of his friends. He’d built a very close circle, and he didn’t take them for granted. They always were able to help him get out of his head, and always had far more patience with him than he deserved. He appreciated them so much.

Hermione studied him with serious eyes for a long moment. "You haven't let yourself have feelings for anyone in so long, Harry," Hermione said carefully, taking his hand. "Maybe there's a reason you still like him. I'm not saying you have to do anything about it, but just think about it, alright?"

When Harry didn't reply, Ron added, "She's always right and you know it. You shouldn't rule him out if you don't even know for sure that there's no possible way he could ever like you back."

Harry sighed, but nodded, knowing he was just going to store that comment away to unpack later. Or probably never. "Alright. I'll think about it. By the way," he said, hastily trying to change the subject, "we need a way to communicate when I have Scorpius out of the house. Malfoy can't cast a Patronus, and I was hoping you might have an idea for how he can reach me easily when I have him."

"Oh! I'm sure I can figure something out. Maybe something like the coins from the DA," she mused, mind successfully now stuck on a problem instead of on Harry.

"I was hoping more for something we can actually talk through. Maybe like the mirror Sirius gave me ages ago; do you remember that? I know he misses his son while he's at work," Harry said.

She pursed her lips. "Let me work on it."

"Thanks, Hermione. Knew you'd come through," he smiled at her.

"Always, for you."

*

Harry took Hermione's advice to heart. Most of it, anyway. Over the next two weeks, he kept doing what he had been doing, while carefully keeping his actions strictly platonic. He kept cooking for Malfoy and he packed him lunches, but he made sure he slipped out of the house before Malfoy could insist on him staying again. Malfoy deserved to have time alone with his son without Harry intruding on it. It was a bit lonely, eating alone every night after spending all day in the company of at least one Malfoy, but it couldn’t be helped.

He also continued to keep the house clean, and started throwing in extra chores as he noticed them needing done. He dusted and swept, polished the silver, and washed the bedding and the bathtubs. Last week, he'd washed the curtains so they smelled nice and fresh when Harry opened the windows to let in the spring breeze. That had been especially nice.

Hermione was right; he couldn't just stop caring, and he didn't want to. That wasn't who he was, He cared about Scorpius a great deal, but he also cared about Malfoy, and that care only grew deeper every time the man let his guard down a little bit and let Harry get a glimpse inside.

He managed to keep his little crush mostly under control, reminding himself that he wasn't doing anything wrong, that his feelings weren’t wrong, and as a result, Harry was able to relax a lot more around him. He felt more comfortable around him, able to joke and laugh and even touch him more freely without over-analyzing every move he made. It was a lot easier being around him without constantly feeling guilty for being attracted to him, but he was careful to keep himself in check, to not let his crush grow into something he couldn't contain, like love. Regardless of what Hermione had said, he couldn't let himself fall like that. It would hurt too much.

They could be friends, though, and that was enough, just knowing that he was helping, that he was making Malfoy's life easier. He could see it on the man's face; how the bags under his eyes weren't as dark, how his shoulders carried less tension in them, how he smiled a little bit more, a little bit more openly, and Harry had made it a personal goal to get the man to laugh more. He was still working on that. For now, Harry genuinely was happy that he was able to help, even a little. That was enough.

The one thing he allowed himself to indulge in that maybe wasn't entirely appropriate was the tea. He'd gotten in the habit of sneaking a mug of tea into Malfoy's room every night, always with a little note. Usually just saying something ridiculous, like 'don't underestimate the power of positivi-tea!', or a little stick drawing that Harry would Charm to move, something to brighten up his day or make him laugh. Malfoy never mentioned it, but he drank the tea every night, as evidenced by the empty mug in the sink every morning when he came over, and he didn't ask Harry to stop, so he kept doing it. It was just tea, just a note; it wasn't a big deal. It wasn't.

So, yes, he did all these things to help, and he kept his emotions under control when it came to Malfoy. Mostly. Definitely. Mainly, he just took care of Scorpius, teaching him new things and taking him out to Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade, or sometimes muggle London. They visited Andromeda and Teddy, and stopped by to visit Neville and his plants at Hogwarts once. He hadn't made it to Ron and George's shop yet, but he'd finally be taking him there today. He couldn't wait.

He'd stopped by Ron and Hermione's that morning to make sure it was still okay, and Hermione had handed him a pair of small, compact mirrors. He'd thanked her profusely, and she'd waved him off with a laugh, telling him she enjoyed the challenge.

When Harry arrived for work, he knocked loudly on the door, grinning when Malfoy answered, fully dressed. Most days, Harry just let himself in, and he was pleased to see Malfoy up and ready so early.

"Morning, Malfoy! Up on time today, I see," Harry said, smiling brightly. He'd taken to teasing Malfoy about oversleeping, and the other mostly ignored him now when he brought it up. Today was no different.

"Mhmm," Malfoy hummed absent-mindedly. "We need to talk, Potter."

"Uh oh, am I in trouble?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows exaggeratedly.

Malfoy's lips twitched, but he didn't crack. That was alright, Harry would get him laughing eventually. He could be patient.

"I'm serious, Potter. I thought I told you that you didn't need to cook here, or clean my house. Didn't I say that?"

"You did. You said I don't have to, not that I couldn't," Harry pointed out pragmatically. He wasn’t breaking any rules.

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Semantics, Potter. You knew what I meant."

"Does it bother you that I clean up after myself instead of leaving the mess for you? Does it bother you to have a meal to eat that you could just sit down and enjoy after a long day?" he asked, bewildered. He didn't want to make Malfoy uncomfortable, that was the opposite of what he was trying to do, but he didn’t understand why the man seemed to have such a problem with it.

"It bothers me that you're doing more than I'm paying you for."

"Malfoy, are you serious? You're paying me five times what I asked for," Harry told him incredulously.

"I'm paying you a fair wage," Malfoy argued. "I'm not going to treat you like a servant."

"Oh my God," Harry laughed, running a hand through his hair and looking up at the ceiling. This man was so, so ridiculous. It should be annoying or frustrating, but all Harry could feel was overwhelming fondness.

He stepped closer, placing his hands firmly on Malfoy's shoulders. "Malfoy, you're not going to win this, alright? I'm not going to be an inconsiderate prick and leave a mess for you to clean up at the end of the day. If I feed your son, it's no trouble to make enough for you, too. It's actually easier to cook for two. And I know you don't eat properly, don't try to deny it. I'm trying to make your life easier by lightening your load. You hired me to help you, so let me help you, alright?"

Malfoy stared, wide-eyed, looking dumbfounded. It was the most firm Harry had been with him thus far, but he wasn't caving on this. Malfoy nodded, giving up his internal struggle.

"Okay," he relented. "I truly appreciate everything you're doing; I hope you know that," Malfoy said earnestly, voice hoarse. He looked like it mattered a lot to him that Harry know that. He already did, though.

"I know you do," Harry said softly. "Now, where's Scorp? I want to take him to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes today."

"I'm in here!" Scorpius yelled from the table, shoveling food too quickly into his mouth.

"Slow down, Scorpius," Malfoy scolded, and he made a face, but did slow down a bit.

"By the way, I have the Floo connected to your house now," Malfoy informed him. "You can use that now if you prefer."

"Excellent. Oh! And before I forget, here," Harry said, digging in his pocket and handing Malfoy one of the mirrors.

"Er. Thank you?" Malfoy said in confusion, studying the mirror. His face morphed into a look of offended embarrassment, and Harry couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled out of him. Malfoy thought Harry was telling him he needed to work on his appearance, and it was laughable.

"I know what you're thinking, stop. You look lovely. This is so you can communicate with me when I have Scorpius out of the house," Harry explained with a grin.

Malfoy just stared at him, mouth slightly agape, and his cheeks turned a lovely shade of pink, but he didn't say anything. "Malfoy?" Harry eventually asked, concerned. "You alright?"

Malfoy blinked rapidly, shaking himself out of whatever that was. "Yes. Sorry. What?"

Harry smirked. "The mirror is so you can talk to us. My dad and Godfather had a set of these in school, and Hermione figured out how to make a set for us."

"How do they work?" Malfoy asked, turning the mirror over in his hand, fascinated.

"You just say my name into it, and I'll be able to talk back to you. Try it."

Malfoy flipped the mirror open and held it up in front of his face, and Harry did the same. "Potter?" he said quietly.

Malfoy's sharp, silvery eyes appeared in Harry's mirror and he took a moment to drink in the unique color before Malfoy gasped in shock, clearly having seen Harry in his own mirror. Yeah, this was definitely a good idea.

"We can talk through these?"

Harry nodded. "Anytime. It gets hot when you call my name, so I'll know to check it. Told you I'd figure it out," he said proudly.

"Technically, Granger figured it out," Malfoy pointed out, and Harry sputtered in indignation.

"It was my idea!"

"Sure, Potter, whatever you need to tell yourself," Malfoy teased him, "but thank you," he added seriously.

Harry smiled softly. He brushed his hand over Draco's forearm gently, giving him a slight squeeze. "You're welcome."

Malfoy pocketed the mirror and hugged his son goodbye, murmuring quietly in his ear.

"I will! I'm going to a joke shop today! And I'm meeting Harry's bestest friend! Best after me," Scorpius said seriously, and Harry chuckled.

"Alright. Make sure you behave. Don't forget, we're going to visit grandma and grandpa tomorrow," Malfoy reminded him with a slight grimace of distaste.

"I remember! I'll be good," Scorpius promised.

Malfoy kissed the top of his head, and bid Harry goodbye before disappearing through the Floo.

*

The joke shop was a smashing success. Ron and George both took to Scorpius like a fish to water, and long before they left, the two of them had Scorpius in their 'Invention Room', showing him new things they were working on and letting him spout off his own ideas, even taking notes on a few that they could actually use, his childlike wonder-filled questions providing them with some inspiration. They stayed most of the day, Harry loving how quickly they had taken Scorpius in, despite the fact that he was a Malfoy.

At some point, Malfoy had called him on the mirror, letting Harry know that he'd be home around seven, and Harry let him know that his son was having a blast.

Before they left, Ron pulled him aside. "If he wasn't the spitting image of old ferret face, I'd never guess that was his kid. He's done a really great job with him. No wonder you're obsessed."

Harry's face heated up. "I'm not obsessed. But yeah, he has done great with him. He's different. Like in Eighth Year, but more than that."

"You're totally obsessed," Ron chuckled, "but that's alright. This has been good for you, mate. I'm glad Hermione forced you into that interview. Things are better since we talked?"

Harry bit his lip, looking over at Scorpius who was climbing on George's back. "Yeah, they are. and I’m really glad, too."

*

"Want to stop in Sugarplum's before we go home?" Harry asked Scorpius after they picked up food for supper.

"Yeah!" Scorpius said. "Can I get a candy? Please, please, please?"

"I think we can arrange that," Harry laughed. As they walked to the sweets shop, Harry caught sight of a new restaurant he hadn't seen before. Osteria Della Bacchetta. Definitely Italian, then, although he had no clue what it meant. It looked fancy. It looked like something Malfoy would love. Maybe he'd try to get him here at some point.

"There it is!" Scorpius said excitedly, pulling on Harry's jacket and pointing to the shop before dragging a laughing Harry over to it.

"So. What do you want?" Harry asked him when they made it inside and he had made sure that his arm was still intact.

"I want to look."

So, they looked. And looked. And looked. Until eventually, finally, Scorpius spotted the display of Chocolate Frogs. "I want a Chocolate Frog, please," he stated politely.

Harry couldn't say no to that face. "That's a great choice," he said, handing Scorpius one of the boxes. "You know, these are your papa's favorite," he said causally.

"Really?" he asked, awed.

Harry nodded. "Yep. He ate so many of these when we were in school, I remember thinking he might turn into a Chocolate Frog!"

Scorpius shrieked with laughter at that. "Can we get him one, too? Please, Harry?"

"Of course we can," Harry said softly. Scorpius spent an inordinate amount of time choosing the exact one he wanted to get for his papa. Harry let him take his time, for as long as he wanted. Things like this were important, and he loved that Scorpius cared so much about it.

He finally picked one and Harry paid for both of the sweets, then took Scorpius home to make dinner. Harry let him open his frog while he cooked.

"Harry! What's this?" Scorpius asked, holding a card up for Harry to see.

"Ooo! That's a Chocolate Frog card!" Harry explained excitedly. "Look, you got Dumbledore! He was the first one I got, too. You can collect these. I have a bunch at home."

"What does it say?"

Harry helped him read his card, and spent the rest of the evening answering question after question about Dumbledore, and even then, even more about the steps he was taking to make their meal. Harry took it in stride, answering everything he could, then having him come over and help finish up the meal.

When Malfoy got home that evening, Scorpius ran up to him right away in excitement.

"Look what I got you today, papa!" Scorpius yelled, showing Draco a Chocolate Frog.

"Wow! How did you know I love these?" Malfoy asked, taking the candy his son was waving at him.

"Harry said so!" Scorpius said proudly.

Malfoy quirked a brow at Harry, and he just shrugged in response, refusing to be embarrassed. "I watched you obsessively for years, remember?"

Malfoy laughed. Actually laughed, bright and unrestrained, and Harry couldn't stop the pleased grin from spreading across his face. It was the best thing he'd ever heard.

"Open it, open it!" Scorpius urged. "They got cards inside. I got Dumbledore!" Scorpius said, showing Draco his Dumbledore card.

"They have cards inside," Malfoy corrected his grammar. "Do you want to open mine?"

"No, you," he pouted.

Malfoy opened the box, expertly stopping the frog from leaping away and biting its head off dramatically, making his son giggle.

Scorpius peeked into the box and shrieked, making Harry jump.

"Papa! It's Harry! Look, look! Why is Harry on a Chocolate Frog card?"

Harry felt his heart drop into his stomach. Oh, fuck. Oh no. No, no, no. He'd completely forgotten that he was on a Chocolate Frog card now. How had he forgotten that?! What were the fucking odds that out of two cards they'd gotten, one of them would be Harry's? He was supposed to be a rare card, one that didn't pop up often. The universe hated him, that's the only explanation.

Harry felt panic rising up in him. He didn't want Malfoy to think that he'd done this on purpose, didn't mean to cross a boundary. Malfoy didn't want Scorpius to know who Harry was. Harry didn't want him to know who Harry was!

He was going to lose his job for sure, Malfoy was going to hate him.

When Malfoy look up at him, Harry started rambling.

"I swear, I didn't plan that," he rushed out, trying to salvage this. "Oh God, I wasn't thinking, they weren't supposed to be a common card, I never thought..."

Harry braced himself for the yelling, the accusation, to be kicked out, but Malfoy shocked him when he just pulled his son closer, voice gentle, not angry. "You're right, that is him. Can you read what the card says? It'll tell you why he has his own Chocolate Frog Card."

Harry gaped at them, heart pounding, as Scorpius and Malfoy read the card out loud together.

Harry Potter

The Saviour of the Wizarding World. Notably defeated the Dark wizard Voldemort twice; the final time by using the Disarming Charm at the Battle of Hogwarts on May 2nd, 1998.

The only person known to survive the Killing Curse, twice. Known for the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead, left behind by Voldemort.

Also known for revolutionizing the Ministry of Magic along with Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley.

Triwizard Champion, 1994

Youngest Seeker Hogwarts has had in over one hundred years, 1991-1996

Harry Potter enjoys treacle tart, flying, and muggle golf.

Malfoy's face remained impassive through the whole thing until that last sentence, where his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Papa, what does save-your mean?" Scorpius asked, looking confused.

"It means that he saved the world," Malfoy told him simply.

Scorpius' eyes were enormous. "He saved the whole world?" he whispered.

Malfoy nodded. "The whole Wizarding World; our world. And some of the muggle world, too."

"How?"

"By winning a fight against a very bad man. The worst man who ever was. Potter beat him and saved us," Malfoy explained, eyes trained intently on Harry.

He felt himself blanche at that, embarrassment taking over.

"You saved me?" Scorpius asked Harry, sounding completely awestruck.

"Er," Harry said, eyes darting between Draco and Scorpius, not really knowing what to say to that. He hadn't, not really, not directly.

"He saved me, which is why I was able to have you," Malfoy answered for him, his voice painfully soft, like that meant something to him.

Scorpius' eyes grew impossibly bigger, and then he ran over to hug Harry's legs tightly. Harry was stunned, but he bent down awkwardly to hug the little boy back the best he could.

"Thank you for saving my papa," he said earnestly, and Harry swallowed past the lump in his throat.

"You're welcome," he responded quietly, running a gentle hand through Scorpius' hair, but he couldn't take his eyes off of Malfoy, who was staring at the two of them with a much too gentle expression.

Harry wanted to say so much to him. He wanted to tell him that he'd go back and save him a thousand times again, save him sooner, save him differently, if he could. He wanted to kiss him so badly. He'd explained Harry's role in the war so simply, but it felt massive to Harry, hearing Malfoy even acknowledge it at all, in any capacity, let alone in a way that made Harry sound like a hero, not just to the wizarding world in general, but to him, specifically.

Ron's words from a few weeks ago floated back to him, and he tried to shake them away before he melted into a puddle.

"Alright, little star, it's time to let Potter go home," Malfoy finally said. "Go pick out your pajamas for me, I'll be right in."

Scorpius pouted, but he let go. "Bye bye, Harry," he said, then ran to his room before Harry could reply.

"Malfoy, I'm so sorry about that," he blurted out as soon as Scorpius was out of earshot. "I forget I'm on one of the cards, and I know you didn't want him to know about who I am. I'm really sorry."

"Potter. It's fine. He would have found out anyway, at some point. I wasn't keeping it a secret, it just never came up," Malfoy said with a shrug.

Harry blinked, looking at him hesitantly, but he released a harsh breath. "So, I'm not fired, then?" he half joked, cracking a smile. He was honestly a bit worried about it still. He didn't want to lose his job.

"And lose your delicious cooking? Never," Malfoy joked back, and that finally made Harry fully relax, the tension leaving his shoulders. He wasn't angry. He'd never joke around if he was. Thank God.

"So. You like muggle golf?" Malfoy changed the subject, smirking.

Harry groaned, covering his face, but he laughed, face turning red. "No! I just told them that as a joke so they'd stop asking questions!" They'd asked far too many by that point. Of course they'd used the one thing he said completely off the cuff.

"A likely story, Potter," Malfoy scoffed, but his eyes shone with amusement. "At least now I know what to get you for your birthday. I'm sure I can find golf clubs in muggle London."

Harry rolled his eyes, unable to stop smiling at how ridiculous Malfoy was being. "You're insane. I'm leaving before you rub off on me," he teased.

Malfoy inhaled sharply. "That's what she said," he blurted out belatedly, then froze.

Harry stared at him in shock, barking out a shocked laugh before doubling over, clutching at his stomach. That was so bloody unexpected coming from posh and proper Malfoy, of all people, that he couldn't control himself.

"Oh my God," he gasped out after a moment, straightening up. "I can't believe you said that. I'm leaving before you can shock me even more today."

"Well, don't let me stop you," Malfoy shooed him away, and Harry grinned.

"You're fun," Harry breathed out warmly, fondness almost suffocating him. "See you on Wednesday, Malfoy. Don't shock your parents with any dick jokes, I doubt they'd find it as amusing as I do," Harry winked at him, then disappeared through the Floo without waiting for a reaction.

When he stepped out into his own home, he leaned up against the fireplace, sliding down until he was sitting on the floor, still grinning ridiculously as his heart beat rapidly.

Christ, he was so fucked. So, so fucked, but for once, he couldn't bring himself to care. 

Notes:

I hope you're liking it so far! I am very attached to this Harry. He needs all the hugs, and we are going to get a lot more into his past relationships in this story. I am also a huge fan of super supportive Ron and Hermione, so they'll be in this one a lot more.
Any comments or feedback is more than welcome! Thank you so much to everyone who is still loyally reading this massive universe lol.

Chapter 3: CHAPTER 3

Summary:

A small turning point and Draco's birthday.

By the next morning, Harry had decided to just accept that his feelings for Malfoy weren't going to be contained. He'd tried, truly he had, but it hadn't exactly worked. His efforts had done nothing to dampen his feelings, which only seemed to grow each time he had an interaction with Malfoy.

He was trying to be optimistic about the state of his poor, fragile heart, and the truth was that while it would be painful, it also felt rather freeing to just admit to himself that he was probably half in love with the man already. Maybe he always had been.

It sure felt like a short, fast leap, but he did suppose that it shouldn't be that surprising when he'd spent the better part of his Eighth Year in school and an embarrassing amount of time afterwards pining after the man, but he'd survived it then, and he could manage it now. It wasn't like he had any prospects anyway, or the desire to even look for a partner. He didn't want to meet anyone, let alone date. 

There were worse things than having an unrequited crush, after all; like brussels sprouts, he thought, turning his nose up at a large display of them in the grocery store he was currently shopping in.

"What do you want for supper tonight, buddy?" Harry asked Scorpius, who was walking quietly next to him, dragging his feet and looking sleepy. It would be a nap day, apparently. Harry had taken Scorpius to play at the park with Teddy that morning, and the two had run themselves ragged during a fierce game of tag. He'd definitely worn himself out.

Harry bent down and scooped up the little boy, letting him rest his head on Harry's shoulder while he draped the shopping basket over his elbow. His heart swelled as Scorpius nuzzled his face into Harry's neck, rubbing his nose against him affectionately like Harry had seen him do to his father countless times by now. Harry hugged him a bit closer.

God, Harry loved him so much already. It was impossible not to.

"Want pasketti," Scorpius yawned. " 's my favorite."

"I think that sounds wonderful," Harry told him. He quickly grabbed the ingredients for spaghetti Bolognese and homemade garlic bread before Apparating them back home to Malfoy's house.

Scorpius was already snoozing on his shoulder, and Harry just transferred him to his bed, checking the time to note when he needed to wake Scorpius up again before he hurried back down to start supper.

Harry hummed while he worked, some old muggle song his aunt used to play when he was small, and set the table before cleaning up his mess. Supper was on the table under a Stasis Charm, and Harry still had some time to kill, so he set about shaking out all the rugs, then he scrubbed the downstairs toilet until the whole bathroom smelled like lemons. He gave the sink and floor a quick wipe down and washed his hands before going upstairs to wake Scorpius up.

Harry felt... light today. He really did feel a lot better once he stopped fighting himself so much, once he realized it was a losing battle. He wished he'd done it sooner. And really, who could blame him? He reckoned that everyone who came into contact with Malfoy probably fell at least a little bit in love with him, as pretty as he was.

Speaking of, Malfoy actually got home at a reasonable hour today, and Harry greeted him by the Floo. "Hey, Malfoy. How was work?"

"It was fine," Draco replied. "Busy. I like this ward. My Lead Healer was a bit of a prick at first, but he's grown on me."

Harry chuckled. "That's good to hear. Scorpius played at the park most of the day. He fell asleep at the shops and had a bit of a nap here, but he's been up for a while; shouldn't give you any trouble at bedtime."

"Thank you, Potter," Malfoy said, giving him a genuine smile. Harry couldn't help but return it. Malfoy smiled a lot more these days, and he couldn't pretend that he didn't love it. He was so beautiful. Stern and intense most of the time, which was smoking hot in a very specific way, but when he smiled, his whole face softened, and he looked so warm and inviting that Harry often had to physically restrain himself from reaching out to hug him.

"You're welcome. I'll see you tomorrow," Harry told him, brushing past him to go to the Floo. He had a bowl of leftover stew at home that was calling his name, but when he tried to pass, he felt Malfoy grip his arm tightly, preventing him from leaving.

Harry glanced down at where Malfoy was touching him, heart leaping before he swallowed it down. "Yes?" he asked, smirking at the taller man. Harry may be smaller, but he was strong; he could easily pull out of that grip if he wanted to. He didn't want to.

"I must insist that you join us for supper if you're going to insist on cooking for me every night," Malfoy said primly, tone firm, leaving no room for argument.

"Malfoy, this is your time with your son," Harry declined gently. "You don't need me intruding on it and overstaying my welcome."

"That's nonsense," Malfoy argued, hackles rising. "Your presence is not a burden to me, and I'm extending the invitation. I won't have you going home and cooking all over again when there's plenty here. It's wasteful."

Your presence is not a burden to me.

Harry was stunned, trying not to melt into the floor. He'd gotten more comfortable here in the last few weeks, that was true, but hearing out loud that Malfoy didn't think of him as a burden or an intruder... it made Harry's heart clench.

Malfoy was an insanely private person; it was so difficult to get to know him at all, to get him to open up, and Harry cherished every nugget that was revealed to him. Being offered the opportunity to really get to talk to him, to see if he could get to know him even a little bit better, was painfully tempting.

He wanted to stay. He knew it the second Malfoy had opened his mouth. He always wanted to stay, but hadn't wanted to insert himself where he didn't belong. As much as he cared about them, this wasn't his family. But... they were friends. Harry definitely felt comfortable calling them that now. It wasn't weird to have dinner with a friend. It certainly beats going home to eat alone again.

He'd been silent for too long. He knew it when Malfoy's face shifted from cool confidence to uncertainty. "Unless you don't want to eat with us, that is," the taller man rushed out, his ears turning pink. "That was so rude of me, I shouldn't have demanded it like that, you're not obligated-"

"I want to," Harry cut him off firmly, resting his hand gently on Draco's forearm, smiling warmly at him as excitement fluttered in his chest. "I do want to. I usually eat alone; it would be nice to have some company. Thank you, Malfoy."

Malfoy nodded, looking relieved. "Good. I'll add a third place setting, then."

Harry nodded, biting his lip. He could feel his dimple digging into his cheek as he tried to stop himself from grinning like a fool.

"Papa, is Harry staying for supper?" Scorpius asked excitedly when he saw Malfoy adding another plate to the table.

"I am, if that's okay with you," Harry said, ruffling Scorpius' white-blonde hair.

"Yes, yes! Stay forever!" he said, spinning in a circle with his arms flung out wide.

Malfoy choked on a sharp inhale, causing him to cough violently, but Harry cackled delightedly. "Maybe we start with just supper," he said, grinning at Scorpius' eager face.

They all sat down to eat, and Malfoy offered Harry some wine to go with his meal. "I really shouldn't," Harry said, glancing at Scorpius.

"I'm home; you're not working, Potter, you're here as a guest. Relax a little," Malfoy insisted.

"Well, alright then. I have to warn you, though, Malfoy, wine makes me awfully... chatty," he said, accepting his glass with a smile and a slight flush on his cheeks.

Malfoy let out a dramatically put-upon sigh. "I suppose I can suffer through that," he said, and Harry laughed.

The wine did make him chatty, and the meal ended far too soon for Harry's liking. He was a bit tipsy, but it was time for him to take his leave. When he tried to say goodbye, though, Scorpius clung to him, tears filling his big, grey eyes.

"I don't want you to leave. Don't leave me!"

"Scorpius, Potter needs to get home," Malfoy said gently, trying to detangle his son from Harry's legs. "We can't take up all of his time, love, that's not fair to him."

Harry blinked. Did Malfoy not mind if he stayed? There was no reason for Harry to rush home to an empty, dark house. If Malfoy didn't care if he stayed just a bit longer...

"But I want him to put me to bed! He reads the bestest! He does voices and everything," Scorpius whined.

"Scorpius." Malfoy said sternly, his patience visibly thinning.

"I don't mind," Harry said quietly, glancing at Malfoy nervously. He hoped he hadn't interpreted the situation wrong, hoped he wasn't stepping on Malfoy's toes. "I really don't need to rush home."

Malfoy sucked his lower lip between his teeth, contemplating. "Alright," he eventually relented. "But just one story, and you need a bath."

"Yay! Thank you!" Scorpius squealed, hugging him, then hugging Harry. Harry tried not to get too excited to get just a few extra minutes with him.

"Potter, I'll bathe him quickly, you can just relax in the living room if you'd like," he said, then narrowed his eyes. "And under no circumstances are you to clean up supper. I'll do it after he's in bed."

Harry casually put his hands behind his back, crossing his fingers and swaying on his feet a bit, making his eyes big and innocent, popping his dimple for extra effect. "Of course," he said easily.

Malfoy watched him suspiciously for a moment, then sighed, guiding Scorpius upstairs.

Harry waited until he heard water running, then went to the kitchen, quickly washing up the dishes and the dining room table, placing the half empty bottle of wine on the counter under a Cooling Charm. He'd barely sat back down when he heard Scorpius calling for him.

"Harry! I'm ready!" he shouted from his room, and Harry chuckled, hurrying up the stairs.

"Alright! What did you pick?" Harry asked him excitedly, rubbing his hands together

Malfoy huffed at him quietly, smirking at his antics, and Harry flashed him a crooked grin.

"Snow White! There's lots of voices, see?" Scorpius said, pointing out a picture of all the dwarves.

"Ooh, good choice," Harry said approvingly, taking the book and sitting on the edge of Scorpius' bed. “That’s one of my favorites.”

Harry read him the book, putting on funny voices for each character, enchanting little visuals in the air with magic to match the different scenes for Scorpius, taking in how the boy's eyes lit up with joy until they grew heavy with sleepiness.

Harry finished the story quietly and brushed Scorpius' white blonde hair off of his forehead, unable to resist pressing a gentle kiss there. He softened even more when Scorpius murmured a sleepy, "night night, Harry. I love you."

"I love you, too, buddy," Harry whispered back, voice thick.

When they finally left the room, Malfoy gave Harry a soft look. "Thank you for being so good with him," he said lowly. "You really go above and beyond. He was quite lonely before you started watching him. He's not anymore. That means so much to him, and to me. Thank you."

Harry just chuckled at Malfoy's words. He didn’t need thanks; he loved watching Scorpius. "I'm crazy about that kid."

Malfoy stared for a long moment, eyes slightly distant, lost in thought. "Would you like to stay for a bit? Have another glass of wine? If you didn't like it, I have more to choose from. A rosé, perhaps?" Malfoy eventually blurted out, taking Harry by complete surprise.

He blinked, and he couldn't contain the grin that overtook his face, excitement fluttering in his chest.

"Yeah," he agreed eagerly, not even stopping to think if this might be a bad idea. He didn't care if it was; he'd deal with whatever fallout came later. He wanted to stay, wanted to hang out with Malfoy and talk to him, wanted to get to know this new version of him so badly it was almost painful. He finally, finally had the chance and he'd be damned if he passed it up.  "I'd really like that, actually. And the wine was great."

Malfoy smiled, looking inexplicably relieved. "Grood," he said, then visibly blanched, while Harry only grinned wider at seeing perfectly poised Malfoy flustered because Harry had agreed to stay. What a turn of events. "Good. Great, I mean. I'll just go grab the bottle," he said, hurrying off embarrassedly while Harry chuckled delightedly at him.

Harry wandered into the living room while Malfoy grabbed the wine, admiring the photos on his mantlepiece. A new one sat on display now; one that Harry had taken recently of Scorpius trying to lick ice cream off of his cheek. Harry loved that photo, had laughed like mad while he had taken it, and Malfoy had thanked him profusely for giving him a copy. Harry had that same photo on display in his bedroom, alongside Victoire and Teddy.

"Potter," Malfoy said sternly when he returned with the wine. "I thought I told you not to clean up. Did I not say that?"

"You did," Harry conceded, turning away from the fireplace.

"You said you wouldn't," Malfoy said accusingly.

"Well, I had my fingers crossed," Harry shrugged, smirking at him.

Malfoy's jaw dropped, and he huffed out an incredulous laugh. "Are you seven, Potter?"

"If I was, you'd be in big trouble for serving me wine," Harry pointed out cheekily, and Malfoy pressed his lips together, a gesture Harry had come to learn meant that the man was trying valiantly not to laugh. It was a look he often wore around his son, and in increasing frequency, around Harry. He considered it a great achievement, making Malfoy make that face. 

Malfoy poured out two glasses and handed one to Harry before sitting on his elegant pale grey sofa.

Harry joined him, grabbing one of the throw pillows to hold in his lap and sat so he was facing Malfoy, one leg tucked up under him, the other stretched out on the floor comfortably. Harry didn't like sitting on furniture normally; he liked to fold himself into it, make himself at home. This sofa was a bit hard, but it was decent. Just rather dull.

"You're an absolute menace, you know that?" Malfoy said to him once he was situated, and Harry grinned delightedly, sipping from his glass.

He probably didn't need a second glass, truthfully; Harry rarely drank. Even when he went out with his friends, he usually only had butterbeer. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had something stronger than that, actually, but this was a special occasion, and he wanted to make sure his nerves took a backseat tonight.

"Why, thank you," he said, nudging Malfoy's ankle with his socked toes. Malfoy didn't move away, to Harry's immense joy, letting Harry keep his toes close enough to nudge him every time one of them shifted.

They chatted idly for a bit, mostly about Scorpius, but Harry also filled him in on Teddy and Andromeda, and updated him on what Ron and Hermione had been up to since school when he asked. He told Malfoy that they were married now, and trying for a baby, and Malfoy let him ramble about Victoire for a good fifteen minutes, not once looking even remotely bored.

At some point, Malfoy refilled their glasses, and Harry felt himself slowly slipping from barely buzzed to delightfully tipsy, bordering on drunk. His whole body had relaxed by now, and he felt warm, his tongue felt looser, and his curiosity was winning out, questions that he'd kept carefully tucked away since he came to work here slipping out bit by bit.

"So, what have you been up to since school?" Harry asked him.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "This," he said vaguely, motioning around him. "The house, Scorpius, taking my Healer exams. Now interning. It keeps me busy; I don't have time for anything else."

He had to ask. He had to. He may never get the chance to ask Malfoy anything personal again. Malfoy held his cards so close to his chest, never giving away too much of himself, never letting on too much of how he was feeling. Harry could sense it, though, sense an underlying sadness. He wanted to dig into that, find out what was hurting Malfoy and heal it so he could be happier, But to get there, he had to ask, even if the answer was painful to hear.

"So, no great romances, then?" Harry asked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively, trying to keep his inquiry light. "No sweeping lovely Pureblood ladies off their feet?"

Malfoy snorted. "Hardly. I don't care about blood status anymore, but love is not in the cards for me."

Harry frowned at that, confused. "What? Why wouldn't it be?"

Malfoy squinted at him, like he thought Harry was daft. "I'm a Malfoy, Potter." He said it like that was all the answer anyone should need, but that didn't really answer anything.

"So? You were married once; why wouldn't you be able to find love again?" he pushed a bit. The thought of Malfoy giving up on love, sentencing himself to a life of solitude, made his heart ache. He deserved to find happiness.

Malfoy sputtered, laughing a bit hysterically. "That wasn't love, Potter. Not even a little bit."

What?

Harry was bewildered. "But... you were married."

"Yes, and believe it or not, there are reasons to marry that have nothing to do with love," Malfoy explained bluntly.

"I don't understand," Harry said, genuinely confused. "Why get married at all, then?"

"I wanted a child, and I needed to be married to have one that would be magically recognized as a Malfoy heir. Astoria was basically a surrogate. We divorced shortly after Scorpius was born, and she relinquished her rights to him as we agreed upon, so I am legally his sole parent. I take care of her financially in return. It was a business transaction, nothing more."

A business transaction? What the fuck? What a depressing way to view something as emotional and serious as marriage! Harry was shocked that Malfoy could be so cold and clinical about it. He blinked, frowning even more deeply.

"That's actually really sad, Malfoy," he said quietly. "Couldn't you have done all that with a woman you actually loved and kept your wife?"

Malfoy snorted loudly, looking highly amused. "I'm a gay man, Potter, why on earth would I want a wife?"

I'm a gay man.

Harry was stricken. His heart began pounding so hard he was sure Malfoy could see it through his shirt, the sound of blood rushing to his ears deafening him temporarily.

Gay. He was gay. He wasn't straight; he liked men. Malfoy was gay.

Holy mother of God.

Hope flared up inside of Harry so quickly and so violently that he felt dizzy, stomach lurching dangerously. His jaw fell open and he gaped stupidly at Malfoy for so long that he'd be embarrassed if he had the capacity to feel anything other than shock right now.

"You're gay?" he finally managed to choke out, voice a bit higher than usual.

"Incredibly so," Malfoy said easily with a nod, like he hadn't just upended Harry's entire bloody existence, like that wasn't life altering news.

"I didn't know that," he said desperately.

"Why would you?" Malfoy replied. "We were a bit distracted in school, and we haven’t seen each other since. I don't go around announcing it, but I certainly don't hide it, either. I've known since Third Year. Snogged Theo Nott quite a bit in Fifth Year."

What?!

Wait. Hadn't Ron mentioned that a couple of weeks ago when Harry had barged into their house at night? He'd said he remembered hearing rumors about Malfoy and Nott. Harry had brushed him off, just like he always did when the topic of Malfoy's sexuality had come up in the past.

Ron had been right. He'd tried to tell Harry that Malfoy was gay, and he'd refused to listen. He could have asked him out in Eighth Year, before Harry had been... damaged. Back when his confidence was still fully intact and he was fun and exciting and adventurous; less... boring. They could have been together all this time. Years. Years wasted.

Then again, if they'd gotten together then, Scorpius wouldn't be here, so maybe it was better this way. Harry wouldn't wish that kid away for a lifetime with Malfoy.

Harry stared at him, mind a violent whirlwind of what ifs for so long that Malfoy looked mildly concerned about Harry's mental state, which admittedly was on the verge of collapse at the moment.

"Are you broken, Potter?" Malfoy asked eventually.

Yes.

"I am, too," he blurted out instead, desperate for Malfoy to know. "Erm. Sort of. I like both? But I prefer relationships with men."

"I know."

"What? How?" Harry asked, taken aback. How the hell had he known Harry was bisexual?

"Saw you snogging a bloke on the front page of the Prophet," Malfoy explained, and Harry blushed furiously, knowing the exact photo Malfoy was referring to.

He hated that photo, and he'd been so upset about that article at the time that he hadn't left his house for almost a month, but he wasn't upset by it anymore. Everyone he cared about had already known, and it had made coming out to the public a lot less stressful because the choice had been made for him, had been done for him instead of by him.

His fans had lost their minds over the news, but a lot of them had actually been really lovely about it, sending him supportive letters, and it did cut down on the number of women who would fling themselves at him. For a while, at least. That had picked up a bit more again as of late.

Besides, there were worse things they could have printed. Much worse.

"I was actually glad they printed that," Harry said, forcing himself to lean back and act casual. "I mean, I wasn't at the time, but looking back, I am. Made coming out much easier, and now I don’t have to hide it. Couldn't exactly lie about it after that, could I?"

Malfoy frowned. "I guess not. Did you even want to come out, though? I don't imagine you'd exactly be hard up for options even if you hadn't."

"I mean, yeah," Harry shrugged, unconsciously rubbing the back of his hand where the old 'I must not tell lies' scar had all but faded. "I don't like lying. After Ginny and I broke up, I got kind of swarmed by girls. Some people would like that, I guess, but it just made me really uncomfortable. After the article came out, a lot of the girls backed off, assuming I was fully gay. I never corrected it; Hermione told me I didn’t owe anyone an explanation. I wanted a real relationship," he said a bit wistfully, and once that was out, his alcohol loosened tongue just kept going, spilling something deeply personal and embarrassing that very few people knew about him. "I tried dating a bit, but none of them ever really got to know me. It was like they didn’t even want to. None of them actually liked me, they liked the idea of Harry Potter. I'm not- it's not the same. I'm not what the media portrays, you know? I'm just... Harry."

Malfoy looked at his lap, then slowly nodded, lost in thought. "I'm going to get another bottle, if you didn't need to get home," he muttered after a bit, and Harry nodded, more than willing to stay a bit longer. His mind and heart were still racing with the new information he'd uncovered, and he was suddenly grateful that Malfoy was going to the kitchen. Harry desperately needed a moment.

"Sure. I need the bathroom anyway," he lied, jumping up and heading down the hall to the little half bath off the dining room, while Malfoy slipped off into the kitchen.

When the door closed behind him, Harry leaned against it heavily, head falling back against the door with a thud.

Malfoy was gay.

He was gay, and he was divorced, and he was single.

Harry had been so hard on himself for weeks for liking Malfoy, for having feelings for what he had assumed was a straight man. He had felt so dirty for fantasizing about someone who would never like him back that he hadn't even wanked since he started working here, unable to keep images of Malfoy out of his mind when he'd tried, and the guilt always prevented him from finishing. He'd had to draw a line somewhere, and jerking off to thoughts of a straight man who would never want him back and would probably be disgusted to know what Harry was doing had been that line.

But he hadn't been a creep at all. Malfoy was attracted to men, and Harry was a man. Did that mean that there was a chance, however small, that he could possibly like Harry someday? As more than a friend; as a potential partner?

That same hope that had dulled to a low burn flared up inside of him once more, bright and overwhelming.

There was a chance, right? They were already friends; that meant Malfoy liked him at least a little bit already. Would it be possible to get Malfoy to see him as more than just a friend?

Harry may not be much to look at, and he may not have much to offer in terms of lifestyle, but he could take care of Malfoy; him and his son. He could make Malfoy so happy; he knew he could, because he wanted to. It was all he thought about. Everything he did these days was to make at least one of those boys happy, and he loved every moment of it; loved making them smile and hearing them laugh, loved seeing matching silver eyes lit up with joy or excitement or anticipation. He lived for it.

Of course, it wouldn't be simple. Malfoy was still very closed off, and he knew the man was highly protective of his son, naturally, but Harry already loved Scorpius, so much. Malfoy wouldn't have to worry about him, wouldn't have to worry that Harry wouldn't be good to him or that Scorpius might not like him in return, because he already did.

The thought of someday being more than just a nanny to him, of maybe getting to keep him, made his heart swell with so much joy he thought it might explode.

Maybe he could show Malfoy that Harry could be worth a chance. Just one chance; that's all he needed. He'd make sure Malfoy never regretted it.

You are worth loving, Hermione had told him.

The question now was, was he even going to try? Was he really going to put himself out there and risk getting hurt again, risk going through that kind of pain again if it didn't work out?

He barely had to think about it; the answer was yes.

Abso-fucking-lutely.

Resoundingly yes. If he didn't, he'd regret it for the rest of his life. He had to at least try.

He wanted this. Hermione was right. This- Malfoy wasn't like the others. He wasn't dazzled by Harry's name, or what he thought he might be like, or what he could get from him. Malfoy already knew him, knew all the best and worst sides of him. Hell, he'd been the target of a lot of Harry's worst moments growing up. And Harry knew him, too, in a way most people never would.

He was going to show Malfoy that Harry could be good for him despite all of that; could be everything he needed, if he just gave him a chance. They could be good together, he knew they could. This was a gift, and he wasn't going to let fear stand in his way. Not this time. Not anymore. Not with Malfoy.

He just had to get Malfoy to see him as a viable option.

Operation: Sweep Him Off His Feet was starting now. He grimaced slightly; hopefully he could come up with a better name than that soon. Priorities, though.

With fresh determination, Harry swiftly left the bathroom and snuck into the kitchen. He was going to start with tea. Show him consistency. It was just tea, of course, but by this point it was symbolic, proof that he could count on Harry to be dependable. And Malfoy always drank it, so Harry at least knew he liked it.

He quickly made a perfect cup of tea, using magic to heat the water up faster this time, and scribbled out 'Surprise! ;)' on one of the small pieces of parchment Malfoy kept in his 'junk drawer', before vanishing both items upstairs to Malfoy's bedside table. He'd done it so many times by now, he didn't even have to check to know it was properly in place.

When Harry made it back to the living room, Malfoy was frowning intensely down at his wine.

"What's got you all serious?" Harry said teasingly and Malfoy glanced up at him.

"Oh. Nothing. Just thinking about what I want to wear to my party on Sunday," he said.

"Party?" Harry questioned curiously, sitting back down next to Malfoy, closer than before, almost pressing their thighs together, testing the waters.

Malfoy shifted away slightly so they weren't quite so close, but two spots of pink appeared high up on his cheeks, and Harry mentally high-fived himself, pleased to see any kind of reaction at all.

"Yes, my birthday party. Twenty-five and all. My mother insisted. I should have told you sooner, actually. Scorpius asked me to invite you," Malfoy informed him. "He'd love it if you came, and I'd pay you extra, of course."

Harry frowned a bit at the mention of money, not appreciating the reminder that he was a paid employee. "What? No, you don't have to pay me, just. Do you want me to come?" he asked, biting his lip and hoping beyond hope for the answer he wanted to hear.

Malfoy nodded, and Harry melted, smiling a bit shyly at him. "I'll come, then. Where is it?"

Malfoy paled a bit, stammering. "Oh. It's um. At the Manor, actually. You wouldn't want-"

"It's alright," Harry interrupted softly. "I'll be fine. It's been years, Malfoy. I'm fine."

He was. The thought of Malfoy Manor didn't cause dread to course through him like it had for a few years after the war. It's been long enough. And besides, it looked like a completely different place now. The Malfoy's must have practically gutted that place after Voldemort died, probably wanting to get rid of any trace of him. It's what Harry himself would have done, too, if not moved entirely like Malfoy had chosen to do.

"Are you sure?" Malfoy asked him softly, like he genuinely cared that Harry was comfortable.

"I'm sure. It'll be nice to see it like this, anyway. I've seen photos of some of the Balls you've had there, it hardly even looks the same."

"It's very different," Malfoy confirmed.

"Okay, then. I'll be there," Harry said decisively.

They ended up draining the second bottle, and time slipped away. Malfoy had lit a fire about an hour before, and Harry was so warm and comfortable, he couldn't wipe the ridiculous grin off his face. This whole evening was incredible; spending so much time with Malfoy, getting to really talk to him, to get to know him... Harry felt closer to him now, like he understood him a lot more. Malfoy had actually begun to open up to him, talking to Harry about work and his friends, his parents and his son. It was fascinating, listening to him talk, his silver eyes shining, watching the firelight dance across his creamy skin, adding warmth to his face, making him look even more inviting.

Harry had drifted closer to him as the night wore on, and now had one knee pressed firmly on top of Malfoy's firm thigh and the toes of his other foot tucked underneath Malfoy's leg, arm draped casually over the propped-up knee of that leg. His fingers grazed Malfoy's arm every time the man moved, but he didn't move away this time, just let Harry basically cuddle up to him, let him touch.

Harry could feel excitement thrumming through his veins. He was allowed to look now, without feeling guilty, and he was taking full advantage. He couldn't tear his eyes away from his soft, shiny, hair or the intense look on his face as he got lost in his own thoughts.

"What are you thinking about now?" Harry asked him softly.

"Just thinking that I hate the color of this couch," Malfoy said unexpectedly, startling a laugh out of Harry.

"Well, I don't mind it. It looks good in here. Would look better in yellow, though."

"Yellow?!" Malfoy choked out, sounding scandalized.

"Mhmm. Mustard yellow. It's a happy color," Harry said, smirking and leaning in even closer to Draco.

"Do I look like I need happy colors, Potter?" He snarked.

"Yes."

Malfoy frowned at him, squinting, and Harry could almost see his hackles rise. "Excuse me?"

"You look sad, Malfoy. You're always so serious, or tired, or stressed, but you're sad under it, even now. I can see it. Why are you so sad?" Harry asked him quietly, placing a gentle hand on his knee, running his fingers in soothing little circles absent-mindedly.

"I'm not sad," he said.

Harry made a noise of protest, ready to dispute his claim, but Malfoy held his hand up to stop him before he could, and Harry let him continue, dying to know what he was going to say.

"I'm not. I understand the privilege I still have, despite everything; despite people not liking me. And I am grateful for everything I have. I love my son more than I ever thought humanly possible. I have a nice home and a good job; I have a few friends, who I enjoy spending time with when I do get to see them, and my parents are healthy. I am grateful for everything I have, and I know I don't deserve it. I feel guilty, but I try to appreciate it. I'm not sad. I'm-" He swallowed and looked away, then, an embarrassed flush creeping up his neck. "I'm just lonely, I guess. Being a single parent is lonelier than I expected, mostly for Scorpius. When he told me no one likes him on the day you first came, my heart shattered. No one wants their child around the Death Eater’s kid, apparently, and I can’t blame them. I know I'm failing him and I can't stand it. I'm trying so hard."

Harry felt his heart break at that, hearing how raw and vulnerable Malfoy sounded. He saw a tear slowly slide down Malfoy's cheek, and he couldn't stop himself from brushing it away gently. Malfoy felt his touch and quickly wiped his face dry. Harry couldn't stand it; couldn't stand seeing such a phenomenal person look so insecure, or think he was anything less than amazing.

"Malfoy, you're not- you're not a failure," he said quietly. "You're one of the most incredible fathers I've ever seen. You love him so much, and he idolizes you. You should hear him when he's with me; you're all he talks about. He knows how hard you're working for him, anyone with eyes can see it. You- you're incredible."

Malfoy stared at him, eyes wide and full of awe, like no one had ever once told him he was good enough or doing a good job. That thought made Harry's chest ache, but he was so mesmerized by Malfoy's pretty face; eyes practically glowing in the firelight like molten silver, his high cheekbones catching the light just right... he looked like a prince; a fairy-tale prince, straight out of one of Scorpius' books, breath-takingly beautiful and tragic. His full lips were slightly parted, slick and reddened from the wine and so, so inviting.

Harry wanted to kiss him. He needed to kiss him. If he didn't get to, he would surely die, and Malfoy... Malfoy looked like he wanted it, too, like he would let it happen.

Harry swayed forward the tiniest bit, almost as if drawn by a magnet, the wine making him feel heady. His breath hitched, anticipation thrumming through his body, but before they could meet, Malfoy pulled back, clearing his throat awkwardly.

Disappointment crashed over Harry like a bucket of cold water, dousing his desire immediately.

"It's late," Malfoy said quietly, and Harry searched his face, looking for anything, any teeny, tiny sign that he was as disappointed as Harry, that he'd wanted, but Malfoy had closed off again, shuttering his emotions from Harry's prying gaze.

Harry sighed quietly, then nodded, unable to swallow down the despair that was quickly morphing into humiliation at the obvious dismissal. He wanted to punch himself in the face or curl up in a ball and cry. He'd pushed too much, tried to go too fast, and Malfoy had reacted like a cornered animal. The man had just revealed that he was gay, and here Harry was, already trying to kiss him. What was he thinking?

He could only pray he hadn't ruined things irreparably already.

"Right. Of course. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to overstay," Harry stammered, getting up hastily so he could get home and give Malfoy his space back.

"Potter," Malfoy said quietly, putting a calming hand on his shoulder to still his frantic movements. Harry stared up at him nervously, having to tilt his head back quite far to meet Malfoy's eyes from this close. He could feel the heat radiating off the larger man, and he itched to reach out and cling to him.

"You did not overstay," Malfoy told him firmly. "This was actually really nice; I had fun. Maybe we can do it again?" He actually sounded hopeful at the prospect of spending more time together, and that alone made Harry's chest loosen, shoulders relaxing, tension and embarrassment slowly seeping out of him.

He gave Draco a small smile, and Malfoy shocked him when he reached up and pressed his finger into his cheek, right into where his dimple had been barely peeking out. Harry's grin widened at that, feeling Malfoy's finger sink deeper into his cheek and his dimple deepened. He couldn't stop himself from leaning into the touch, cherishing it, committing it to memory until Malfoy eventually pulled away.

That little flame of hope was back, burning brightly and persistently. He hadn't ruined everything after all.

"Of course we can, I'd like that," Harry breathed, not able to wipe the ridiculous grin from his face. “Maybe with less wine next time, though," he laughed, and Malfoy joined in. It had definitely made him... a bit too much.

"Definitely," he agreed. "I'll see you tomorrow, Potter."

"You know you can call me Harry, right?" Harry told him, quirking a brow. Truth be told, it was getting rather difficult to keep thinking of Malfoy as Malfoy instead of Draco, and he really wanted to hear Malfoy say his name in that posh voice. He bet it sounded lovely.

"No thank you, Potter," he said politely, shaking his head.

Harry's grin only widened. Leave it to Malfoy to be difficult. It was so him, though, Harry couldn't be annoyed.

"Okay, then, Malfoy," he said teasingly. "I'll see you bright and early, yeah? I'll just Apparate, if you don't mind. The Floo makes me ill when I've been drinking."

"Of course. Have a good night," Malfoy told him after he'd walked him to the door.

"Goodnight," Harry replied quietly, slipping outside and shutting the front door softly behind him.

Harry released a harsh breath, running a shaky hand through his already messy hair. Well, that had been a night. He needed to talk to his best friends, or maybe Neville, but it really was too late to go over there for something like this. He'd go over tomorrow. Or maybe call early. He’d figure that out later.

Harry Apparated himself directly to his bedroom, throwing himself down on his bed, fully clothed, as sleep tugged at the corners of his eyes, the events from the night replaying in his mind.

He'd learned a lot this evening, but the most important revelation was that he had a chance. It may be a small one, but it was still a chance, and it was far better than the zero chance he'd thought he had before. He was positively giddy at the possibility.

Malfoy hadn't seemed put off by him when he'd left, so Harry decided that the 'almost-kiss' had just been a bit of poor timing rather than disinterest or disgust.

It was understandable, really. Malfoy was... delicate. He needed to be pursued differently; subtlety wouldn't exactly work with him, but neither would being aggressive; moving too fast and scaring him off. Harry would have to walk a very fine line if he planned on pursuing him, and oh, he planned. His mind was made up, and he wouldn't be swayed once it was.

Harry knew that he could treat Malfoy so well, the way he deserved. The way they both deserved. He knew without question that if he were ever lucky enough to have the other man, he would never take him for granted or give up on him, not without fighting like hell. He'd make sure Malfoy never once had to regret taking a chance on him.

Harry yawned, pulling the corner of his duvet over top of his clothed body, letting his eyes drift shut.

If Malfoy decided he didn't want him, he could, and would, deal with that, but what he wouldn't do would be to miss out on this opportunity that fate so kindly bestowed upon him by not even trying. He may have mellowed out over the last few years, but he was still a Gryffindor. He could do this. He could win him over. And most importantly, he could be patient, for as long as it took. Malfoy was definitely worth the wait.

Harry fell asleep with a grin on his face and hope in his heart, visions of a tall, mouthy blonde dancing behind his eyes.

*

Harry showed up at Malfoy's the next morning energized and even more determined than he'd been the night before.

He'd decided to wait to talk to Ron and Hermione until he knew for sure that Malfoy wasn't put off by him and he had a more solid grasp on the situation, but he was dying to talk to them about this. Upon waking, he'd instantly wanted to call and ask Hermione if he was making a huge mistake by putting himself out there like this, sobriety bringing him back down to earth a bit, but not enough to make him change his mind. He still felt the same as he had last night, just without the liquid courage that had caused him to almost kiss Malfoy last night like a bloody fool.

There was still fear, of course; the last time he'd gone out on a limb for someone it had ended... well. He wasn't going to go there. This was different. He could feel it in his soul. Hermione had as good as said the same thing last time they'd talked about this, and he'd learned to just trust her disturbing intuition. She'd never given him advice that hurt him, but even if he did get hurt, he knew they'd be there to help him pick up the pieces, just like they always had.

He was going to tamp down his fear and go into this with full optimism, though. A good attitude brought about good things. Molly Weasley liked to tell him that, and he firmly believed it. Besides, he could use all the positivity he could muster right now.

Every ounce of worry that had been undesirably bubbling under the surface disappeared, however, as soon as Malfoy answered his door, looking every bit as gorgeous as he always did, giving Harry such a wide, open smile that Harry's heart throbbed.

Oh, he was definitely making the right choice.

*

They worked through the week easily, and Harry was delighted to note that Malfoy hadn't tried to withdraw from him again after their evening together. They interacted like actual friends, and Malfoy had finally stopped wearing that dreaded Malfoy mask around him all the time.

Harry had continued to stay for supper at Malfoy's insistence, and after a very stern talking to from Malfoy the following day, he stopped waiting for an invitation, just setting out a third place setting automatically every time he set the table.

It was wonderful, having supper with them instead of going back to Grimmauld to eat alone. Malfoy always ate whatever he cooked, and complimented him profusely, and Harry took the opportunity of having multiple people to cook for to try some new dishes he'd been wanting to for a while but didn't make sense to cook for only one person.

When he arrived to Malfoy's on Sunday, he was buzzing with excitement. It was party day, and he'd gotten Malfoy a gift he hoped he'd love; personal, but not too personal, and, if did say so himself, super fucking nice. He'd also gotten him a number of smaller gifts, but those were more fun, and more of a ‘family bonding’ gift than a personal one.

Malfoy greeted him at the door, already dressed in his Intern Healer's robes.

"Happy birthday, Malfoy!" Harry said enthusiastically, grinning widely at him.

"Thank you, Potter," he replied politely, amusement dancing in his gray eyes. "I wanted to head in early today so hopefully I won't be late getting home this evening. If that's alright, of course."

"Of course!" Harry said enthusiastically. "I'll have him home and ready by five, and we'll just go over with you whenever you're ready? It starts at six, right?"

"Yes, that's perfect," Malfoy said, flashing Harry a smile. "I'll keep you updated, Potter. Thank you again," and then he was gone through the Floo in a flash of green.

Well, that was quick. Harry would just have to give him his gifts later at the party. He patted the little packages that were tucked safely away in his pocket before wandering off to the kitchen to join Scorpius

Harry knew he was mostly going keep him home today since they had the party later, and he didn't want him to wear out too early and fall asleep at the Manor, and Harry had a few things to get done, starting with baking Malfoy a cake.

"Hey, buddy, guess what we’re going to do today?" Harry asked him.

"Go to papa's party!" He said excitedly, bouncing in his seat.

"Yes, but first... we're going to bake him a cake," Harry whispered, eyes wide.

Scorpius' jaw dropped.

"But...!" Harry interjected before Scorpius could say anything, "we have to keep it a secret, okay? I don't want your papa to know who made it."

"Why not?" Scorpius pouted.

"Because, sometimes it's nice to just do something nice for someone, and know that they enjoy it, yeah?"

It was the truth and a good lesson for Scorpius to learn, not to only do nice things to receive acknowledgement, but mainly, he just didn't want everyone at the party to know he'd made it. He didn't fully expect a four-year-old to be able to keep a secret, but he could try.

"Okay," Scorpius agreed after giving it some thought.

"Great," Harry grinned at him. "Do you want to help me mix the ingredients together?"

Scorpius nodded, and helped Harry get the chocolate cake batter mixed and into six pans, then Harry set him up with his drawing supplies at the island so Scorpius could draw his father a picture for a gift. He drew until the cakes came out of the oven, then showed Harry the picture of an Abraxen that he'd drawn.

"This is amazing!" Harry gushed. "You know what this needs?"

Scorpius shook his head.

"A frame," Harry said decidedly. "Definitely. Let's go pick one out."

Scorpius cheered, and Harry set the cakes on the counter to cool, and then took Scorpius to Diagon Alley to buy a picture frame. He also stopped and picked up a bottle of fancy, Elf-made wine to bring to the party for Malfoy’s parents. The shop owner had assured him it was excellent quality. He knew very little about wine himself, so he had to take the shopkeepers word for it.

It was a quick trip, and soon enough, they were back at Malfoy's house. Harry helped Scorpius get the drawing into the frame, and then he charmed it so that the Abraxen moved around the paper, which made Scorpius squeal with delight. They wrapped it in pretty blue paper, and then Scorpius wandered off to play while Harry stacked and frosted the cake with his favorite chocolate ganache recipe. Malfoy was a bit of a chocoholic; this cake would be right up his alley. He'd made the frosting last night and left it covered on the counter overnight, hidden under a Disillusionment Charm. Malfoy hadn't even noticed. As he decorated, his mind wandering to the party later.

Harry had thought he might be more nervous about seeing Malfoy's parents, but he just wasn't, at all. He actually found himself looking forward to seeing Mrs. Malfoy. He hadn't seen her since the trials, when she thanked him for speaking on their behalf.

He didn't know if his lack of nerves was because he didn't care what they thought about him, or about trying to impress them, or because he'd helped them stay out of Azkaban (well, mostly, in Lucius' case), or if his excitement for the party was dulling it, but it was kind of nice, not having nerves fluttering in his stomach at the thought of going to the Manor. He was just happy to be invited, to be a part of it.

The cake was finished, and right after Harry had finished getting Scorpius dressed and ready to go, he felt the little mirror in his pocket heat up. He pulled it out eagerly, but grew concerned at the sight of Malfoy's anxious face peering back at him, then frowned when he began rambling frantically.

"Potter, I'm stuck at work. There's an emergency, I can't leave. Please, can you please get Scorpius to the party so he doesn't miss it? I am so sorry, I don't want to send you there to face them alone, but I can't-"

"Hey, hey. It's alright, Malfoy. I don't mind taking him over at all, it'll be fine. Scorp will be with me, anyway, I'll hardly be alone," Harry reassured him softly.

"Are you sure? I feel terrible..."

"Well, don't. I promise, it's completely fine. It's work, Malfoy, it's not like you can help it anyway. I'll be glad to get him there."

"Thank you," Malfoy breathed out, still looking frazzled.

"You're welcome. Relax, it's your birthday," Harry told him, smiling slightly. "I have it under control."

"Alright. Thank you, Potter. I have to run, but I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Bye, Malfoy, good luck."

Harry snapped the little mirror closed, and turned back to Scorpius, wheels turning in his mind. Well, that worked out alright. Now he wouldn't have to figure out how to sneak the cake over early without Malfoy seeing it.

"Wanna go over early and help your Grammy decorate?" Harry asked him.

"Yes, yes, yes! I miss Grammy and Grampy!"

"I’m sure they'll be so excited to see you," Harry chuckled. He picked up the cake and frowned. He couldn't Apparate with the cake, but he couldn't Floo with Scorpius and the enormous cake. Okay. Two trips, then. He set the cake back down and picked up the wine instead, and made sure Scorpius was holding his gift tightly before he called out "Malfoy Manor!"

A House Elf popped up as soon as they stepped out of the Floo. "Hello, little Master. And Harry Potter!" The little Elf squeaked, bowing deeply to him.

"Hello...?" Harry greeted.

"Dandy!" Scorpius chimed in. "Harry, that's Dandy!"

"Ah. Hello, Dandy. Would Mrs. Malfoy be available, by chance?"

"Of course. Dandy will go fetch Mistress for Harry Potter."

The Elf bowed again, and popped out of sight, and soon, the click-clacking of heels on the marble floor rang out, and Mrs. Malfoy appeared in the Entrance Hall.

"Grammy!" Scorpius cried, running to hug her. Narcissa scooped him up with a laugh, kissing the top of his little head.

Hello, my darling," she cooed at him. "You're early!"

"Harry said we could come help!"

Her sharp eyes found Harry's, then, and he smiled at her, waving a little awkwardly.

"Hello, Mrs. Malfoy," he greeted politely. "You look lovely. Thank you for inviting me today, I hope it's alright that we came by early. I thought you might need some help setting up for the party?"

He suddenly remembered the wine in his hands and thrust it towards here. "Oh! I brought you some wine. I hope it's alright, I don't really know too much about these things, but the shopkeeper assured me it was a decent one."

Narcissa put Scorpius back down and smiled at him, coming over to accept the bottle, examining it closely. "Thank you, Mr. Potter. Of course, it's alright that you stopped by. This is excellent, welcome to our home," she told him with a kiss to the cheek. Harry tried not to let his cheeks heat up at her acceptance of him, but he failed.

"I've actually got to nip back to the house for a moment, but I'll be right back," he told her.

"Did you forget something?" she asked, surprised.

"I've baked a cake for the party," he informed her. Her eyes widened slightly, and he hesitated, suddenly feeling unsure about his decision. "Er. If that's okay? I suppose I didn't consider that you've probably already gotten him a cake, actually..." he said, heart dropping.

That was a foolish oversight. He'd let his excitement get ahead of him, and he was so focused on executing his plan, that he hadn't thought that there was no way she'd have made that kind of oversight, but she seemed delighted, not put off.

"Oh, how lovely!" she gushed. "Draco will be thrilled! We can just have the Elves put the one they've made aside for tea tomorrow, no worries at all, dear."

Harry smiled, relaxing. "Are you sure? I didn't mean to overstep..."

"Nonsense," she said firmly. "None of that. Go fetch it, and Dandy will take care of it."

"Thank you," Harry told her, and quickly Flooed back to grab the cake. When he returned, Narcissa was still waiting along with Dandy, but Scorpius had run off, apparently to find Lucius.

"Oh my!" she gasped when she saw the large, tiered chocolate cake. "You made that?"

Harry nodded shyly. "I don't want him to know, though. You can just tell him the Elves made it, if he asks?"

She studied him for a moment, then nodded, smiling warmly at him. "Whatever you wish, dear. Dandy, please take the cake to the Ballroom and display it. It's too lovely to be hidden away in the kitchens."

"Yes, Mistress," the small Elf squeaked. He snapped his fingers, and the cake levitated out of Harry's hands and floated behind the Elf out of the room.

"Come along, Mr. Potter," she said, taking his elbow and guiding him further into the house. "My husband is in the Ballroom getting ready; he'll be thrilled to be relieved of his duties, I'm sure," she laughed, a light, tinkling sound that matched her delicate appearance perfectly.

"I'm happy to help, and please, call me Harry," he begged. He hated being addressed so formally.

She smirked slightly. "Of course."

She led him to the Ballroom, where Lucius was paying close attention to whatever Scorpius was saying to him. Harry eyed the gift table that was already stacked high, and he immediately decided to keep his own gifts hidden for later, not wanting to embarrass Malfoy by giving him muggle gifts in front of all of his Pureblood acquaintances.

"Harry! Harry, Harry, Harry! You're back!" Scorpius cheered, running over to hug him like he'd been gone for five years, not five minutes.

Harry laughed, catching the small boy. "I'm back," he agreed with a laugh.

"Come meet Grampy!" Scorpius grabbed his hand and tugged him over to where Lucius was eyeing them carefully. "Grampy, this is Harry. He's my bestest friend."

"I'm... acquainted with Mr. Potter," Lucius said, giving Harry an appraising look. "Mr. Potter. Welcome," he greeted a bit stuffy. "Can I offer you a drink? Brandy, perhaps?"

"Er, sure?" Harry said with a shrug. One drink wouldn’t hurt.

Lucius summoned a bottle and two snifters, filling one about halfway before offering it to Harry and filling the other one for himself. Harry sipped at it politely, trying not to turn his nose up at the burning, bitter taste. It didn't leave him warm, like Firewhiskey, but it wasn't the worst thing he'd ever had.

"Thank you," he said, handing the empty glass back.

“You’re welcome. Enjoy the party,” Lucius told him, eyeing the empty glass before he vanished it and he excused himself, quickly disappearing from the room.

"Don’t mind him, he's an old grouch," Narcissa told him with a slight eye roll, waving her husband away. "Now, then. You can help me finish up in here, and then maybe Scorpius might like to give you a tour of the Manor?"

"Yes, please!" Scorpius chirped. “I can show him all the bestest hiding places!”

Harry helped Narcissa hang the remaining decorations and set out the food and drinks, watching in fascination as she carved a large snake from a block of ice and levitated it to float in an enormous punch bowl. She thanked him and excused them both before Scorpius dragged him away again, taking him around to every room in the Manor. It really was quite nice, definitely different than how he remembered it, less dark and depressing.

"Maybe we should head back downstairs, yeah?” Harry said when they’d gone a bit too far for his comfort. “The party has probably started by now, we can check to see if your papa is here."

"Okay! I hope he's here soon. He's going to miss his whole party!"

Harry laughed. "He will not, but hopefully he's here soon anyway," he conceded.

Harry spent the next hour or so chasing Scorpius around the Ballroom to say hello to guest after guest, all of whom were wearing fancy dress robes, and then back and forth from the Ballroom to the Entrance Hall every few minutes, where Scorpius kept wanting to check on Malfoy. Narcissa had offered to take over several times, and after what had to be the thirtieth time running back to the Floo, he finally relented, allowing himself to collapse in a chair and chug some water. Christ, did that child have energy.

Harry was able to relax for about fifteen minutes before Scorpius was running back to him. "Papa is here!" he squealed, jumping up and down. "Grammy is talking to him. I want to go say hi to the Elves now, please."

Harry wondered why they didn't do that while they were waiting for Malfoy, but he nodded anyway, letting the small boy drag him down to the kitchens to greet every House Elf that worked for the Malfoy's by name, then out to the gardens. Harry actually quite liked the rose garden; it was lovely, surrounded by blooming roses in every color, with a small table in the center for tea. It was definitely his favorite part of the Manor that he’d seen so far.

When they made it back inside, Harry could now hear stuffy, classical music floating in from the Ballroom. He nudged Scorpius, grinning. "Want to dance with me?"

"No," Scorpius pouted. "It's no fun dancing to this."

"Oh, I'll make it fun, just you wait," Harry promised him.

Scorpius eyed him skeptically, but eventually agreed. "Okay. Let's go dance."

Harry led him back to the Ballroom, noting that there were a few people out on the dance floor doing the waltz, but he ignored them, walking right to the middle of the floor where there was the most space, and holding his hands out for Scorpius to take.

He led them through a few boring steps before he grinned widely and snatched Scorpius into the air, spinning him around wildly until the little boy was giggling madly. Scorpius clutched his shoulders, clinging to him for dear life, and Harry laughed, ignoring the scandalized looks people were shooting them. He didn't care if these stuck up Pureblood aristocrats thought he was a fool or too wild, all he cared about was Scorpius having fun instead of being bored out of his mind at a party that was not geared towards children in any way.

They spun around until Harry caught a glimpse of white blonde hair, and he turned his head to seek out Malfoy, grin still plastered on his face, but he froze, smile slipping and spinning coming to a halt when he fully registered the other man.

He was suddenly very grateful that he now knew Malfoy was gay, because there was no way on God's green earth that he'd be able to stop himself from lusting over the sight of him like that.

He was- he looked unbelievable. He was wearing dark muggle jeans, so tight, clinging to his muscular thighs deliciously. He had that pretty, lavender button up on under a light gray blazer with the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up over the blazer and pushed up a bit, showing off his delicate wrists, resting just below where Harry knew his Dark Mark was. His hair was pulled back like it had been a time or two for work, up away from his face except for a few stray pieces that wouldn’t stay in place. He looked so sleek and put together, but still stylish and casual enough for a party, nothing like the guests surrounding them; it was enchanting. Harry felt his mouth going dry at how fucking edible he looked. He couldn't tear his eyes away.

Malfoy caught his gaze, and gave Harry a small smile and a wave, acknowledging his presence, before turning back to his friends, all of whom Harry recognized from school. Pansy Parkinson, Blaise Zabini, and Theodore Nott were gathered around him, laughing at something, while Malfoy's face went a bit pink at something Zabini said.

"Harry, come on," Scorpius whined, tugging on a stray lock of his hair, and Harry finally turned his attention back to the small boy. "Dance with me some more!"

"Alright, alright," Harry laughed, resuming his movements, but to a slightly less dizzying degree.

They danced for quite a while until Scorpius asked to be put down, and he ran right over to where Malfoy was having a conversation with his father. And Nott. Who had his arm slung around Malfoy's shoulders, his face far too close to Malfoy's face.

I snogged Theo Nott quite a bit in Fifth Year.

Malfoy's words from a few days ago bounced around in his head, and a flash of wild, suffocating jealousy flared up inside of Harry so quickly it almost scared him. That wasn't usually like him, but there it was, rolling around in his stomach menacingly, threatening to rear its ugly head.

Harry swallowed thickly, closing his eyes briefly to try and get himself under control before walking over to join Malfoy, unable to stop himself from trying to intervene, or at least sniff out more information on the status of their relationship. Malfoy hadn't mentioned that he was seeing anyone, in fact, he'd specifically stated that he wasn't, but that didn't mean that it hadn't or couldn't change.

Lucius had taken off somewhere with Scorpius, but Nott was still there, still touching him in a far too friendly manner.

"Hey, Malfoy," Harry said, giving Malfoy a slightly forced smile. His eyes were fixed on where Nott had his arm around Draco, and he silently tried to will that arm away, or burn a hole in it with his eyes.

"Potter. I hope you're having a good time," he said, and Harry looked up to meet his pretty, silvery eyes.

"Of course, I can have fun anywhere with Scorp," Harry chuckled.

"He's the best, isn't he?" Nott butted in, leaning heavily on Malfoy, a ridiculous, drunken grin adorning his face. "Miniature Draco if I ever saw one," he laughed.

Harry clenched his jaw, stepping closer to Malfoy a bit territorially, but his eyes were locked on Nott. "Yeah, he is, it’s adorable."

The conversation flowed, but Harry found himself edging himself closer and closer to Malfoy throughout, until they were almost touching without even realizing it until it was too late to stop himself.

Theo's eyes flicked over to him a few times, taking him and his stance in appraisingly. Harry mentally chastised himself for being so unnecessarily possessive. He had no right whatsoever, and he knew it. He had no idea what had come over him, he was never like this. No one had ever driven him mad like this, made him feel so out of control. He didn't know if he liked it, but he certainly wasn't going to back off and give Nott the impression that he wasn't interested in Malfoy, too.

It must have worked, because Nott finally withdrew his arm, grabbing another drink off of a tray from a passing Elf and turning his attention elsewhere, and Harry felt his whole body relax.

"So, where were you hiding when I arrived? I looked for you," Malfoy said, and Harry grinned at him.

"Around with Scorp. He wanted to show me the gardens and introduce me to the House Elves. You have so many," he responded.

"Not me. My parents. I just pay them," Malfoy told him.

Harry couldn't help the overly fond look that took over his face at that. "Do you?" he asked softly. Malfoy nodded.

"Hermione will be thrilled to hear that," Harry told him, biting his lip.

"You talk about me?" Malfoy asked, looking surprised.

"Of course I do," Harry laughed, reaching out to touch Draco's arm. "We’re friends, and you're fascinating. And you look incredible in those clothes, by the way." It was bold, but he had no intention of hiding his… well, intentions. He wasn’t about to pine after Malfoy in secret, not again.

Malfoy stared at him, an indecipherable looked on his face. Harry was about to ask him if he was alright, but just then, Narcissa came closer to them, carrying the chocolate cake Harry had made, twenty-five candles burning brightly.

"Make a wish, Malfoy," Harry told him quietly, and Malfoy softened, smiling slightly at Harry before turning to blow out his candles.

Harry watched him eat several pieces of cake, feeling incredibly pleased every time Malfoy gushed over how good it was. He watched him open his gifts, suddenly very glad that he'd decided to save his for later. He didn't exactly want an audience wondering why the hell the nanny got him such an expensive gift. He watched Malfoy thank Scorpius profusely for the lovely drawing he'd given him, and stood out of the way, holding a sleeping Scorpius as Malfoy bid his guests goodnight and thanked them all for coming.

Harry offered to help Malfoy get Scorpius home and to bed, but it was really just an excuse to give him his gift. Malfoy accepted gratefully anyway, and they Flooed back to Malfoy's house, working together easily to get the little boy changed into his pajamas and tucked into bed without waking him.

After his door was shut, Harry followed Malfoy downstairs, collapsing onto the couch next to the taller man, exhausted from the busy day.

"So, did you like your first Malfoy party?" Malfoy asked him,

"Of course. It was... nice," Harry said kindly.

It was nice. It was just... boring. And full of more middle-aged Pureblood couples than Draco's own friends. Not exactly what Harry would have done, but he supposed that that was just how things were done in Malfoy's circle.

"Nice?" Malfoy asked, smirking.

"I mean…" Harry trailed off, and shrugged, not wanting to be rude or insult Malfoy, especially on his birthday.

Malfoy just laughed, though. "It's alright, Potter, you won't offend me. I've been attending them my whole life, I know they're not exactly a blast."

"It was a bit stuffy," Harry finally admitted sheepishly. "It was nice, though. It was nice getting to celebrate you."

"Thank you?" Malfoy said questioningly.

Harry laughed. "I know, that was lame. Oh! But! I got you a gift!" he said excitedly.

“You got me a gift? Why?” Malfoy asked, looking inexplicably bewildered.

“Uh, because we’re friends, duh,” Harry said, giving him a look before digging around in his pockets and producing a handful of tiny, perfectly wrapped gifts.

Malfoy furrowed his brow in confusion. "What's in there, Potter? Furniture for ants?"

Harry burst out laughing at the ridiculous guess. "No, you tosser, what the fuck? They're just shrunken. I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable by everyone seeing you get a gift from your nanny at the party. How much did you have to drink?" he asked, looking at Draco with a fond smile. He waved his hand and the gifts enlarged until they were a more reasonable size and stacked them neatly on the small table in front of them, all but the main one.

Malfoy's cheeks pinkened up, but he ignored Harry's comment about his alcohol consumption.

"Why would that make me uncomfortable? And why are there so many? What is this?" Malfoy asked.

"Open them," Harry urged, ignoring his questions.

Malfoy hesitated, looking torn between guilt and excitement.

"It's okay," Harry assured him softly. "I promise, they weren't expensive, and I wanted to do this."

"Okay," Malfoy agreed quietly, carefully opening the first one. It was a board game; Scrabble, Harry's favorite. He looked confused, like he'd never seen a board game before, and opened the next one, Monopoly. The third was Twister, and the fourth, Sorry.

"What are these?" he asked. Harry felt like he was about to burst out of his skin from excitement. He had plans for these games. He wanted Malfoy to have a game night with his son, and hopefully with Harry, too. It was a fantastic way to bond, and so much fun. Harry had hoped he'd be open to it, but apparently the sheltered man didn't even know what they were!

"Malfoy! Are you serious? They're board games!" he laughed, grabbing Scrabble and opening the box and showing him the little wooden squares with letters on them. "Muggle games. These are so much fun. I have some at home, but I thought you might like to play these with Scorpius. Except this one,” he said, tapping the Scrabble box, “it's a bit advanced for a four-year-old, but maybe you could play with me. There’s one more," he said quickly, pulling the final box out of his pocket and shoving it into Malfoy's hands before he could change his mind.

He didn't argue this time, just opened the gift obediently, revealing the gorgeous watch Harry had chosen for him to replace the one he'd broken. Harry hadn't been able to repair Malfoy’s, but hopefully he liked this one, too. It had a silver face with tiny numbers and ticking hands carved from emeralds, the band a matching, deep green that would look stunning against Malfoy’s pale skin.

Malfoy gaped at it, and nerves swirled up in Harry's stomach.

“Potter, this is too much, I can’t accept this,” Malfoy said quietly, not taking his eyes off the watch.

“Don’t be ridiculous. That was practically made for you. You’ll keep it,” Harry said decisively. He'd spotted that watch and immediately known that it was meant for Malfoy. He had to keep it.

Malfoy stared at him, emotions dancing through his gray eyes so quickly that Harry didn't have time to pinpoint them.

"Thank you so much," he finally whispered, eyes taking on a wet sheen. "I love it. This is stunning. And these," he said, brushing his hand reverently along the game boxes, "Potter, thank you."

Harry released a shaky breath and a grin broke out over his face. He liked them. Thank God.

"Come on, Potter, I'm off tomorrow, and so are you. Let's play," Malfoy said, grabbing the game of Scrabble and dumping the pieces out on his coffee table.

Harry’s heart picked up, elated, partly that Malfoy actually wanted to play, and partly because it was another invitation to stay, to get to spend more time with him. Harry would win him over yet; he felt more confident about it than ever.

"You'll love this," Harry told him excitedly, setting up the game. "You'll be great at it, you're so smart. I love playing, but no one ever wants to play these with me," he said with a self-deprecating laugh.

Harry had been right. Malfoy was so good at this game. They played round after round, Malfoy winning most of the time, but Harry managed to win a couple of times, and he suspected it was because Malfoy let him win. He didn't care about winning, though, and as a result, his words got more and more ridiculous as they went. He would argue his case to get Malfoy to count every word Harry made up, and Malfoy just let him have it every time with a laugh and an exasperated head shake. It was exactly what he’d wanted; for Malfoy to just relax and have fun, to let go of whatever was weighing him down on a regular basis, just for a little while.

Harry managed to sneak off once with the excuse of needing the bathroom to quickly make Malfoy a cup of tea, scribbling out a little Scrabble board on a scrap of parchment with the words ‘thanks for playing with me’ in little tiles and vanishing both items up to Malfoy's room before hurrying back to the game.

Harry was in heaven. He hadn't had this much fun for ages, and it was late when Harry finally left through the Floo.

He collapsed into his bed, unable to wipe the grin off of his face. If being with Malfoy was even a fraction of what tonight had been, he'd risk everything he had to make that man his. It was definitely worth the risk.

Notes:

I'm actually a baker, so I always like to have my characters bake lol. It's one of the few things I know more than an average amount about, and it's so relaxing. I love having Harry show his affection through food, and he will be stress baking, too, at some point.

I hope you're enjoying reading Harry's point of view as much I'm enjoying writing it! I wrote a lot of Room for Two with his viewpoint in mind, so a lot of this story and random scenes have already been fleshed out.

As always, any feedback or commentary is more than welcome! Thank you so much for sticking it out with me. :)

Chapter 4: CHAPTER 4

Summary:

The pub and Harry's birthday!

Notes:

Hello! I'm so sorry for the longer wait, I had a few personal issues come up last week, but this chapter is quite a bit longer than I expected, so hopefully it was worth the wait!

Harry cursed as he dumped his fourth batch of batter in the bin.

He wanted to do something to surprise Malfoy, and Scorpius had told him that Malfoy really liked the macarons they'd get from a specific fancy patisserie every time they visited Lucius and Narcissa's villa in France. The recipe seemed simple enough, only needing four ingredients, but he had massively underestimated it. These were not bloody easy to make.

His first try, his batter had been too loose, overmixed and unsalvageable. The second try, he'd gotten distracted with Scorpius and overbeat his egg whites until they were unusable. The third try, he'd actually gotten them in the oven, but they'd come out mostly hollow and ruffled around the edges. This past time, he'd apparently under mixed his meringue, because the batter was not coming together properly again, looking far too thin.

There were very few things in the kitchen he wasn't able to master, and he was not going to admit defeat over a pretentious cookie.

Scorpius had gotten bored helping him after his second failure and wandered off to play in his room, where he'd fallen asleep. Harry wasn’t going to quit until he had to, though, and so he washed the bowl and whisk to continue on.

He'd already made a batch of perfectly silky ganache with Scorpius early in the day, he had pink food coloring that he'd picked up at a muggle shop set out, along with the bag of almond flour, a sieve, granulated and powdered sugar, and a scale. He frowned down at his remaining ingredients. Out of eggs. He sighed, glancing at his watch. He had to wake Scorp up anyway and shop for supper.

He set everything aside under a Disillusionment Charm, just in case Malfoy got home early, and hurried upstairs to go wake Scorpius. He roused easily, but asked Harry to carry him until they got to the shops. They roamed the aisles, picking out a few things for supper and more eggs, and as they were heading to the checkout, Harry passed a display of beautiful, fresh strawberries and grabbed them on a whim, thinking they would taste amazing with the dark chocolate ganache and overly sweet macaron shells.

Or they would, if he could ever get them right.

"Did you finish the mac'roons?" Scorpius asked when they got home, and Harry shook his head.

"Mac-a-ron," Harry pronounced for him slowly. "I didn't. They're harder than I thought they'd be. I'll get it right, though, don't worry."

"Good, because papa loves those. He'll be sad if you can't make them," Scorpius said, perching on one of the stools at the island to draw while Harry put away the groceries.

Well, nothing like a little guilt-inducing pressure from a four-year-old to light a fire under your arse. Never mind that Malfoy didn't even know he was making these, therefore couldn't be sad about it if he failed.

He checked the clock again. He had enough time to try one more time before starting supper, so he set about weighing out the ingredients. He carefully separated the eggs, setting the yolks aside to use for something else, then beat the whites just until stiff peaks formed, and he added the remaining ingredients, along with a bit of pink food dye to make them pretty before beginning to fold the batter, counting each turn carefully. Exactly fifty strokes later, the appropriately thick batter ran off the spatula like a ribbon, and Harry grinned. That looked much better.

"Think we got it, Scorp!" He announced, and Scorpius clapped.

"Yay! Finally," he said dramatically, and Harry just laughed as he piped the batter onto a tray and set it aside to rest while he started supper.

By the time supper was ready, he had a box full of pretty, perfect little macarons, filled with dark chocolate ganache with a slice of strawberry in the center.

"Can we eat them?" Scorpius begged, but Harry shook his head.

"Nope. They have to mature for a few days before we can eat them, or they won't be as good. I'll bring them back at the end of the week and we can give them to papa then, alright?"

"Oh, fine," he pouted, but Harry gave him a little bowl with extra strawberries and let him lick the ganache spoon before supper, so he was happy again soon enough.

*

The following day, Harry had plans to meet up with his friends after work. They usually met up every other Friday, but he'd missed their last outing because Malfoy had gotten home so late, so they'd arranged to meet up at their preferred pub, The Wobbly Broomstick, on a different day to catch up.

He appreciated their flexibility with his new schedule, and appreciated even more their willingness to still make time for him, even when he missed their standing 'get togethers', instead of waiting for the next one to roll around and forcing him to go all that time without seeing them.

When Harry arrived at the pub, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and to his surprise, Ginny, were already gathered around their usual table off to the side. The pub was still pretty quiet, which was not unusual for a Tuesday, he presumed, and he waved at them before going up to the bar.

"Harry! I was wondering if you'd be coming. We haven't been seeing you as much," the barmaid, Audrey, greeted him cheerfully in a lilting Scottish accent.

Harry adored her. She had masses of dark, wavy hair, usually tied up in some kind of ribbon or scarf, and bright blue eyes that always seemed to be laughing. She was delightful, and so sweet. "Sorry about that," he smiled sheepishly at her. "The new family I nanny for sometimes keeps me late. The father is training to be a Healer, so he works unpredictable hours."

She patted his cheek. "That's alright. You'll just have to stop in and see me occasionally. It's not the same without you, love."

Harry smiled warmly at her, his cheeks heating up. "Thanks, Audrey," he said softly. "I'll be sure to do that."

"Good lad. You're still wanting Butterbeer?"

He nodded. "Yeah, please."

She filled a mug for him and slid it over to him. "Be careful tonight," she warned. "You're here early, but the Tuesday crowd gets a bit... rambunctious, shall we say," she told him lightly, but her eyes were serious.

"Er. Alright," Harry replied, brown furrowing in confusion. "Thanks?"

She didn't clarify what she meant, just smiled and waved him off. He took his drink with an internal shrug, and went over to join his friends, but before he could sit down, he had an armful of flaming red hair attached to a tiny quidditch player squeezing the life out of him.

"Harry!" Ginny laughed, finally releasing him. "I'm so glad you made it!"

"Gin," Harry greeted her with a grin, kissing her on the cheek and taking the empty seat at the end of the square table, between her and Neville. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd left for training?"

"Got pushed back to next week," she smirked. He opened his mouth to ask her how she's been, but she cut him off. "No, nothing has changed with me, yes, I'm excited for the new season, and no, I'm not seeing anyone, but I was sleeping with one of the Beaters for a while. Great fun. Great cock, too. Alright, that's enough about me, tell me what's going on with you, right now."

Ron paled next to her before going bright red, sputtering in indignation at the unwanted details about his little sister's sex life, and Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Honestly, Ronald, grow up. I'm twenty-three. I have sex. Get over it," she snipped dismissively, ignoring his pained whine and Hermione's laugh before turning expectant eyes back on Harry.

"Erm. Well, you know I started working for Malfoy," he said, but she just huffed.

"I already know that," she complained. "How's it going? Is his kid good? Is he cute? Did you finally stop your ridiculous self-imposed exile and start dating yet? Even a hint of a crush? Give me something juicy, Harry, while I'm young."

"Um. It's going well. Really well," he said. "Scorpius is amazing. I'm already crazy about him. He's like, scarily smart, and funny, and adorable. I'm really glad I took the job."

"And Malfoy?  How's old ferret face doing?"

"Don't call him that," Harry frowned at her, but she just smirked. "He's good, though, he's in Healer training. And um. Really tall."

"And sooo pretty," Ron cooed, batting his eyes at Harry, making him blush even deeper. Hermione elbowed her husband disapprovingly, but Ginny's eyes glinted.

"Pretty?" She asked amusedly.

"What? He is pretty," Harry pointed out. "It's just a fact!"

"Oh my God," she laughed. "Harry!"

"What?" He said, defensively.

"You're still hung up on him! Or hung up again. Whatever," she said, waving her hand. "The point is, you have a crush!"

Neville snorted quietly next to him, and Harry opened his mouth to argue, but hesitated, closing it again slowly. Why deny it? It was the truth, and he'd wanted to talk to his friends about it today anyway, fill them in on his plans to pursue Malfoy now that he knew he was gay, get their opinion. Why should that change just because Ginny was here? Sure, she gave him more shit than any of them, but it was only because they were so close. He knew she didn't mean to be rude, she was just really, really protective of him. For good reason, honestly. She'd been the one who helped him pick up the pieces after... well. He just knew she'd be supportive.

"It's not a crush," Harry said quietly. It wasn't, not anymore. It was so much more than that.

"Bullshit," she scoffed.

"Mate, she's right. You definitely have a crush," Ron chuckled.

"It's not," he argued. "It's... He told me he's gay," Harry said, glancing at Ron and Hermione.

Ron choked on his Butterbeer, coughing loudly as his eyes practically bulged out of his head. When he got it under control, he slammed a hand down on the table triumphantly.

"Ha! What did I tell you!" He crowed excitedly, voice far too loud. "I knew it! That poncy fucking hair of his gave it away. And the fancy shoes. I told you he was bent!"

"Ronald! Say it a little louder, why don't you?" Hermione hissed at him, kicking him under the table when a few heads turned towards them.

"Maybe you like men, Ron, since you actually noticed his shoes," Ginny said, lifting an eyebrow at him.

"What? No!" Ron said, horrified. Hermione rolled her eyes and Neville and Harry both chuckled at him.

"When did you find out, Harry?" Hermione asked him.

"Last week. He asked me to stay late one night, and we had wine, got to talking about relationships and his marriage. He told me that they'd never loved each other, which was a bit shocking to hear, really, so I kept pushing about him finding a new wife until he told me he was gay and didn't want a wife."

"Bet you about shit your pants," Ron cackled.

"Sort of. I definitely had a bit of an existential crisis," Harry said with a shrug.

"That's good news, though, isn't it, Harry?" Neville said quietly, looking at Harry earnestly.

"Yeah," Harry agreed softly. "It is. I'm going to pursue it. I already started, actually. Sort of."

"Fuck yeah!" Ron cheered, raising his glass. "About bloody time you go for it."

"Are you sure about this, Harry?" Ginny asked him. She'd been uncharacteristically quiet since he revealed the news, and she was looking at him seriously. "You don't think it's maybe just... convenient for you to like him? I mean, you spend almost every day there, and he's attractive and comes with a ready-made family. Are you sure it's him you like, not just what comes along with him?"

The ‘are you sure it’s not just his kid you want?’ went unspoken, but Harry knew what she meant. She knew how badly he wanted children. He thought he’d have them by now, but life just hadn’t panned out that way.

"What the fuck, Ginny?" Ron said, looking offended. "Why would you say that? Harry isn't like that, and you know it."

"I'm not saying anything negative about Harry!" She snapped back. "It's just a question, Ron."

"I..." he trailed off, chewing on his lip self-consciously.

Was that what he was doing? It couldn't be. He liked Malfoy. Of course he loved Scorpius, but he didn’t feel this way because of him, he was just an added bonus. He'd liked Malfoy when he thought he was straight, when he thought he was married, back in school, before Scorpius even existed. He wanted a family, absolutely, but he was so careful about who he let in now. He hadn't liked anyone in ages. This wasn't a means to an end.

"I'm sure, Gin," he told her softly. "This isn't- he's-" he made a frustrated sound, running a hand through his hair. "It's different with him."

She softened at that. "You know I didn't mean that how it sounded, right? I just don't want to see you get hurt again. I'm still pissed that you never let me get at Owen properly after what he did to you."

Harry let out a dry laugh. "I know you don't mean anything bad, but really, I don't think you need to worry. This isn't a passing thing; not with him. We just- we click, yeah? I really think if I can get him to give me a chance it could be... he could be The One, you know?"

The whole table quieted down when he said it, but he didn't want to take it back. He’d never said that about anyone before, he wouldn’t, not unless he was really sure.

"You deserve that, Harry. You deserve love. You know that, don't you?" Hermione said quietly, her eyes glassy. "You deserve whatever makes you happy."

He didn't know about that, but he was still going to try. Couldn't not try, not now. "Thank you," he whispered.

"Alright, enough with this sappiness!" Ginny declared, her eyes bright. "How are you going to win him over? Tell us what the plan is."

Harry did. He told them about his determination to pursue this, and how he planned to go about it. He couldn’t just come out and say it, he needed Malfoy to be open to the idea first, or he’d just be risking his job for nothing. They threw in a bit of advice, here and there, like Ron telling him to keep feeding him, because, "the way to the heart is through the stomach, mate, I'm telling you."

Neville suggested trying to get Malfoy to hang out with him and Scorpius more often, or even go out with them, in the evenings or on his day off. "If you're friends, it's not weird to make plans on your off days," he'd justified. "Maybe try getting him somewhere romantic, even."

Hermione told him that his plan to show consistency was a great idea, and probably really important, considering Malfoy was a parent and would value stability.

"Just be you, Harry," Ginny eventually told him quietly after the conversation had finally shifted elsewhere. She'd scooted closer to him at some point and was on her fourth drink or so, so her words were a little slurred, but her eyes were clear. "You're total husband material, you know. He'd be a fool not to like you back. You don't need to go overboard to impress him. You're already the best. If he can't see that, then he doesn't deserve you."

"Thanks, Gin," he said softly, pulling her into his side.

Sometimes he wished that things between them had worked out; mainly because she understood him on a level no one else did, and her bold personality complimented his softer one, but really, she was right when she'd told him they wouldn't work. They wanted entirely different things from life. He'd wanted to settle down and get married and start having children right away after the war, but she wanted to travel, explore the world, be young.

He'd tried to convince her they could still make it work, that he'd wait for her for as long as she needed, but she'd refused, claiming she didn't want to hold him back like that. When she'd finally broken down and told him she didn't think she ever wanted children, Harry had finally accepted that it was over. As much as he cared for her, he wasn't willing to sacrifice being a father, not even for her.

It had all worked out for the best, though. Their breakup was surprisingly amicable; they'd simply fallen back into friendship without a hitch, and she was so much happier now, being free to live her own life the way she wanted. She'd made the right choice by ending things.

That all happened over the summer right after the war, and it didn't take him long after to discover that he was also attracted to men. When he returned to school for Eighth Year, he'd been too focused on Malfoy to really do anything about his newly discovered bisexuality, and he'd had this foolish fantasy that Malfoy might be the one to take his virginity, but Harry had truly thought he was straight, and didn't want to make him uncomfortable by approaching him.

There were a few times he did try to get closer, to at least talk to him, maybe forge a friendship or move on from the past, but each time, something interrupted his attempts. Either one of their friends would swoop in unwittingly any time he got close, once or twice a professor would ask Malfoy to stay after class, but the time he got the closest was when he caught a group of younger Gryffindors intentionally trip him down a flight of stairs.

Harry could still feel the way his heart had leaped into his throat in alarm, could still hear the sound of Malfoy's ankle snapping on the way down, how the sound had bounced off the stone walls like a gunshot, and the pained whimper that had followed.

He'd completely lost his temper, shouting at them for being so despicable, calling them exactly what they were, cowards. Cowards for constantly tormenting Malfoy when they knew he wouldn't fight back, partly out of fear of getting expelled, but also because he knew Malfoy felt like he deserved it. He didn't deserve that, though, especially not when he was working so hard to try and make up for what he'd done, and Harry was so, so sick and tired of the unnecessary hate and violence.

He'd wound up hexing his own housemates until they screamed and scurried away in fear before he turned his attention to Malfoy. The boy had been crumpled up at the bottom of the stairs, trying to heal his own ankle enough to walk, a small trickle of blood running down his temple, darkening his white blonde hair around his hairline, but the break was too severe and he couldn't do it, especially not with how badly his hands were shaking, and how ragged his breathing had been as he tried desperately to keep his composure.

It had torn Harry's heart to shreds seeing him like that, and he had just whispered, "come on, Malfoy," before he picked Malfoy up and silently carried him to Madam Pomfrey. Harry remembered how light he'd been; unnaturally light, almost scarily light, like he'd lost far more weight than it looked like. He'd realized Malfoy was probably using Glamours to hide the worst of it, just like he used them to hide his Dark Mark. It had made him absolutely sick.

Malfoy had quietly thanked him once they arrived, but wouldn't meet Harry's eye. Harry had wanted so badly to just spill everything right then and there, but he just couldn’t do that to him when he had already been so much, couldn’t add that to his plate, or worse, upset him even further. In the end, he had just slipped out, not wanting to make Malfoy uncomfortable by staying when the boy was clearly mortified that Harry had seen what happened.

He had gone straight to McGonagall and told her what happened, though, then went back to his own common room and basically threatened all of them to leave Malfoy alone or they'd have him to deal with. He didn't know if Malfoy would appreciate that, but it worked. The Gryffindors at least stopped tormenting him, and no one else dared to hurt him like that again.

He'd tried to find Malfoy after the incident, just to talk, but the other boy had avoided him like the plague for the remainder of the year. Harry never saw him outside of class, and Malfoy refused to even look at him in class or the Great Hall during meals. He'd been incredibly disappointed, but he wasn't going to force his presence on someone who so clearly didn't want to talk to him, so he'd let it go.

Harry vaguely wondered if that had been when Malfoy had decided he wanted to be a Healer, or if he already knew. He wondered what might have happened if he'd gone after him anyway, tried just a little harder to talk to him. He sighed. No use dwelling on what he couldn't change.

"Harry Potter?" An unfamiliar voice chirped next to him and he startled slightly as he was jerked out of his thoughts. Ginny had gotten up to go to the bathroom, or get more drinks, and he looked up to see a small group of girls hovering near him, whispering and giggling. They looked young, very young. Maybe just out of Hogwarts, if not still in school.

"Yes?" He said questioningly, offering them a small, polite smile.

One of them, a girl with dark hair pulled back in a ponytail, squealed, her face going red, and another one, this one with dirty blonde hair and murky green eyes, pinched her and hissed at her to be quiet, and he resisted the urge to bang his head on the table. This had to be what Audrey was talking about, then. Fans.

Harry hated when this happened. Not that he hated his "fans", necessarily, he just hated everything that went along with having them, including never being able to go anywhere and just be.

He was never rude; it wasn't their fault, after all, they didn't know he despised being recognized or approached by strangers, but he still felt dread pool in his stomach every time a fan would get a flirtatious gleam in their eye, especially in a group. He felt cornered, but they were clearly excited to meet him and he didn't want to hurt their feelings or give them a negative experience.

"Did you need something, love?" He asked them politely when they didn’t initiate conversation.

"Hi, Mr. Potter. Harry. Can we call you Harry? You look so handsome this evening."

Harry glanced down at himself, wearing the same old jeans and t-shirt he wore all the time, and he knew his hair was sticking up oddly. "Thank you?"

She grinned widely. "My friends and I were just wondering if you'd maybe want to come sit with us? We have extra drinks. Or we could maybe get out of here... we can show you a very good time, I can assure you."

He heard Neville next to him choke on his drink, and Harry's eyebrows shot up in shock. That was disturbingly forward from these girls who were visibly girls. A shudder of disgust ran up his spine.

"Er. No, thank you. I'm already having a good time, right here," he turned her down as gently as he could. He didn't want to hurt their feelings, but there was no fucking way that was happening. No way was he going over there, let alone leaving with them.

Harry glanced sideways and noticed that Neville was watching the exchange carefully, his jaw tense, shoulders hunched up as he scooted closer to Harry protectively, and Harry felt incredibly relieved that his friends knew how much he hated this and always had his back.

He always avoided making a scene, not wanting to draw even more attention to himself when this happened, especially since it had been happening with increasing frequency lately, ever since Witch Weekly had, most unwelcomely, named him as Wizarding London's 'most eligible bachelor' in their February Valentine's Day edition. It was mostly women who read that rag, and it had caused a revitalized frenzy around him, women coming up to him nearly anytime he stepped foot in public.

He hadn't been able to go anywhere for several weeks after the article came out without getting absolutely swarmed, but they did tend to leave him alone when he had one of the children with him, for the most part, and for that, at least, he was grateful. It still happened sometimes, but the interactions tended to be far less... lewd when he had a small child with him.

Thank God for that, because he had no idea how he'd react if someone blatantly propositioned him like this in front of Teddy or Scorpius, but he knew it wouldn't be with grace. He didn't care so much about himself, but he wouldn't tolerate his kids being exposed to that kind of behavior.

He didn't have any children with him now, though, so apparently all bets were off.

"We'd make it worth your while," she sing-songed, licking her lips suggestively and throwing him a wink.

If he'd been unsure of her meaning earlier, there was no mistaking it now. Jesus Christ. He'd be more horrified if he hadn't heard much, much worse in the past.

"Oh, that's classy," Ginny's voice said in annoyance as she plopped back down in her seat and glared at the blonde girl. "Go away." Harry's eyes widened at her bluntness.

"Excuse me?" the girl said, crossing her arms.

"I said go away," Ginny repeated, raising an eyebrow. "You're bothering me and interrupting our night out."

Ron and Hermione had now also turned towards the display at Ginny's tone. Ron looked almost laughably annoyed, and Hermione was frowning at the group like a disapproving mother.

The girl, whose name he still didn't know, looked incredibly offended, then looked to Harry expectantly, like he might actually take up for her over one of his best friends. It was baffling, and he just blinked at her.

"Hi, over here. I'm the one talking to you right now, not him," Ginny said loudly, snapping her fingers at the girl. "Let me make this simple for you; you're cute, but you look twelve, and he doesn't want to fuck you. Now run along."

"Christ, Ginny," Ron muttered under his breath, looking mildly ill.

"I'm eighteen!" the girl replied indignantly, voice shrill as her face turned bright red. "And that's not any of your-"

"Do you need help finding your parents?" Ginny asked her, eyes wide with false concern. "It must be getting close to your bedtime."

"Gin, stop," Harry told her quietly before turning to the girl apologetically. "I'm sorry, but I'm not really looking to leave my friends tonight."

Her eyes lit up. "Just tonight? What about-"

"I don't think so," he said gently, but firmly. "I'm sorry, but no."

They all looked incredibly disappointed, and he felt a strange combination of guilt and disgust rolling in his stomach.

"Bye, now," Ginny said sweetly, wiggling her fingers at the girls until they finally turned and sulked away.

"That was mean, Ginny," he scolded her, but he wasn't exactly upset. He did appreciate the help, and he hated having to embarrass anyone like that, but there was no fucking way that was ever going to happen, even if they'd been older.

He wasn't a prude by any means, he's had his fair share of wild experiences, but that was not his idea of a good time, even when he had been in his more... feral phase back when he was twenty, twenty-one, but the only person he had any desire to be intimate with lately was a taller, much paler blonde. 

"Whatever," she snorted. "That was gross, and you know you wouldn't have touched any of them with a ten-foot broomstick, even if they hadn't nearly been fetuses."

"I know, but you could have been nicer about it," he said to her.

"You're too nice about it," Ginny said pointedly.

"She's right, mate," Ron piped up. "You are. They'd back off faster if you'd just shut them down right off the bat. Most of them are nutters, anyway."

"No, they're not," Harry frowned. "They're just excited. It's uncomfortable, but they aren't all awful. I don't need to ruin someone's day because I want to be left alone."

"See? Too nice," Ginny said flippantly.

"Well, I don't think there's anything wrong with Harry wanting to be nice to his fans," Neville defended. "He doesn't exactly need to give the press a reason to have a go at him."

"Thanks, Neville," Harry told him.

"Fine, fine, be all soft," Ginny said, sticking her tongue out in a fake gag before bumping his shoulder with hers and giving him a much softer look. "You wouldn't be you if you weren't, would you?"

He shrugged, only slightly self-conscious. He knew he'd gotten soft, but he didn't hate it. He didn't miss how angry he'd been when he was younger, but he did miss the easy confidence he used to carry. Oh well, that wasn't worth dwelling on.

Ginny must have noticed his slightly glum demeanor, because she just elbowed him again, a wicked grin on her face.

"Watch this," she told him quietly, brown eyes sparkling mischievously. She leaned in close to her brother and uttered the word, "cock," then threw her head back in laughter when he reacted violently.

She winked at him, and Harry couldn't help but laugh with her. God, he'd missed her.

*

Things had been going well since his night out with his friends, but he was ready to step it up a bit.

"Scorp, you want to make your papa a surprise fancy supper tonight? I thought it might be nice to let him relax after work," Harry asked Scorpius a few days later when they were on their way out of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. They'd stopped by to visit after spending the morning at the park. Ron and George had grown quite attached to Scorpius, always taking him in the back of the shop with them to experiment on some of the new products. Harry appreciated them so much for making him feel so welcome and always making sure he had a great time when Harry brought him around.

"Yeah!" the little boy chirped, jumping around excitedly, and Harry grinned at him.

"Perfect. Let's run to the shops. We can give him the macarons tonight, too."

"Finally," Scorpius said dramatically.

They shopped for supper quickly, Scorpius picking out some very nice pork chops to make his father, and he and Harry got started in the kitchen.

Too soon, however, they heard the rush of the Floo, and Scorpius gasped loudly, looking horrified. "Oh no! He's home early!"

Harry made his eyes go wide. "Uh oh. You better go hold him off, then, so he doesn't ruin the surprise," he said seriously. It didn't matter if Dra- Malfoy saw what they were doing, but it was fun pretending it was a secret.

Scorpius lit up, and ran off to go stall Malfoy. He was gone for barely a few seconds before his voice rose in pitch, ending in a loud, "me first!" He tore into the kitchen, looking frazzled. "He's coming! We have to hide everything!"

"We can't hide everything, buddy," Harry chuckled. "It's alright if he sees."

"No, it's not! I can hide the stove!"

Scorpius jumped in front of the stove, edging Harry out of the way, and spread his little arms wide like he could actually prevent Malfoy from seeing anything that was on it with his tiny body. He looked so serious, and it was so comical that Harry couldn't stop the loud snort of laughter that escaped him. Scorpius shot him a dirty look, and Harry snatched up a tea towel and buried his face in it to hide his laughter.

Malfoy must have entered the room, because he heard Scorpius cry out, "stop, papa! Don't look! Don't ruin the surprise!"

Harry lowered the towel and wiped his eyes, suppressing another bout of giggles when he saw Malfoy with his back turned to them so he wouldn't see anything.

"I can't see anything, I swear. Potter, I'll be in the shower, if that's alright," he said, still not turning around.

"Go on," Harry laughed.

"Take a long time, papa," Scorpius added.

"Whatever you say," Malfoy mused before slipping back out of the room.

"Alright, we can finish up now, right?" Harry asked Scorpius, who nodded happily, pleased that he'd 'saved' the surprise.

Harry quickly finished up the meal, and Scorpius helped him set the table for three with the good china Malfoy kept on display in his dining room. When they had finished, Harry got an idea. Malfoy was home early. It was time to implement another one of his ideas; spending time together outside of work hours, and he had the perfect idea on how to do that. He slipped into the living room and set out the games he'd gotten Malfoy for his birthday that they haven't gotten a chance to play with yet before returning to the dining room. Harry flicked his hand and lit a few candles before bringing the food in.

Malfoy finally entered when he was setting the last dish down, freshly showered and smelling deliciously of grapefruit and broomstick handles, the intoxicating scent even overpowering the meal. It was definitely Harry's favorite smell.

"Well, this looks amazing, as always," Malfoy stated, and Harry felt his face heat up at the compliment. He said it every time, but it never failed to make Harry want to preen.

"Thank you," Harry replied, smiling. "Pork chops. And we made you a special dessert, right Scorp?"

"Right!" Scorpius parroted.

"I can't wait," Malfoy said.

Dinner was good. Really good. The food was good, but just being there, with Scorpius and Malfoy, was even better. He loved that he was allowed to stay and eat with them now, it was so much better than going home.

When supper was devoured, Scorpius bounded into the kitchen to carry out the plate of pretty pink macarons they'd made a few days prior. They had matured and were ready to eat. Harry had tasted one to be sure, and it was definitely tasty, but even with the dark chocolate cutting down on the cloying sweetness of the shells, they were just too rich for him. It made sense that Malfoy would like these, though, his sweet tooth was the size of Australia.

Malfoy's jaw dropped when he saw what Scorpius was holding, his eyes lighting up with excitement. Harry quickly explained that they weren't exactly what he was used to, as he used ganache instead of a more traditional buttercream, but hopefully he'd like them anyway.

"Potter, you made these?" he asked, flabbergasted.

Harry shrugged nonchalantly. No way in hell was he going to tell Malfoy how many tries it had taken him to get them right.

"Yeah, we made them a few days ago. They taste better after they mature. They're your favorite, right?"

"I helped with the chocolate!" Scorpius spoke up proudly.

"How did you know that? How did you learn to make them?" Malfoy asked, confused, as he gently pulled his son onto his lap.

"I told him, papa! You buy them for me when we go to Grammy and Grampy's other house."

"And do these taste as good as the ones from the French patisserie, my little star?" Malfoy asked, picking up one of the little sandwich cookies and examining it closely. Harry felt his stomach clench in anticipation.

"Uh huh!" Scorpius said, picking up one of his own and shoving it in his mouth.

"One day, I'm going to find out where you learned to cook so well," Malfoy said, arching an eyebrow at Harry before taking a bite.

Harry sucked in a breath when Malfoy moaned quietly at the taste, his eyes falling shut as he chewed. Harry's eyes were glued to his mouth, to the little tip of pink tongue that kept darting out to catch any stray crumbs and a tiny bit of chocolate. He wanted to lick that chocolate off his bottom lip, to suck it into his mouth until it was red and swollen, and taste that damn dessert he'd worked so hard to make on Malfoy's tongue.

"Oh, my Gods," Malfoy moaned out. "And apparently bake."

"It's good?" Harry asked stupidly, not knowing what else to say when all of his attention was on Malfoy's mouth.

"Fucking amazing," Malfoy breathed.

"Papa! That's a bad word!" Scorpius cried, scandalized, snapping Harry out of his lust induced haze, and he burst out laughing.

“Never did outgrow that sweet tooth, did you, Malfoy?” he asked fondly.

Malfoy ignored him. "Sorry, love. I won't do it again," he murmured to Scorpius distractedly, attention still on his macaron.

"That was naughty," Scorpius whispered, huffing and wiggling off his dad's lap and wandering off. "Papa, what's this?" he called out from the living room.

Harry briefly wondered, not for the first time, why Scorpius called Malfoy 'papa' instead of 'daddy'. It was cute, but unusual. He'd have to wonder about that later, though. He and Malfoy exchanged a confused look, then got up to join Scorpius in the living room, where he was pointing at the stack of games.

"Oh! Games! I almost forgot. Since you're home early, we're having a Game Night," Harry announced enthusiastically.

"Game night?" Malfoy asked.

"Games!" Scorpius cried, clapping happily.

"Yep! Once a week, starting today. It'll be fun, and it'll help you relax," Harry said firmly. It's also the perfect excuse to spend more time together, he thought. "And we're starting with this one," he said, holding up Twister.

He waited with bated breath, hoping Malfoy wouldn't reject his idea, or tell him that they'd play without him. He didn't.

"Well, go on, Potter. Show us how it's done," Malfoy said with a quirked eyebrow, and Harry's grin widened.

He quickly sent the furniture to the sides of the room and set up the huge game mat on the floor before explaining the rules. Both boys seemed to understand, so he put the spinner near the mat.

"I'll spin it with magic so we can all play," he explained, flicking his wrist towards the board so it would spin. "Okay, it says 'left foot blue'. So, we all put our left feet on an empty spot," Harry instructed, placing his own left foot on the nearest blue circle to him in demonstration.

Malfoy and Scorpius both mimicked him on their own blue circles to Harry's delight. Malfoy looked half confused, half amused, and Harry bit back a grin. He was in for a treat.

Twenty minutes later, Malfoy was flushed and slightly sweaty, laughing openly and bloody gorgeous as he tried to keep his balance while Harry determinedly contorted himself over Malfoy’s back to reach the green circle just ahead of him.

"Potter, what is this ridiculous game?" Malfoy cried out, laughter coloring his voice.

"It's Twister!" Harry exclaimed. Obviously. You have to twist; it made total sense.

Malfoy apparently couldn't reach his own green circle after Harry took the one closest to him, and he gave up, collapsing in a heap on the mat. His sudden downwards drop dislodged Harry, who had been using Malfoy’s back to stabilize himself, and he lost his balance immediately, collapsing on top of the taller man with a loud, "oof!"

"I win; I win!" Scorpius cried, but Harry's attention had shrunk down to the point where his hips were now nestled up against Malfoy's perfect, firm arse. His cock was nestled up against Malfoy's perfect, firm arse. Every tiny shift Malfoy made jolted through him like electricity, lust quickly clouding his mind. He needed to pull away, but this was exactly where he'd been dying to be for weeks and he couldn't make himself move.

Well, this would certainly be one way for Malfoy to find out how he felt about him. It was going to become very obvious, very soon. Harry briefly wondered if that was really the worst way to... progress their relationship. It might be embarrassing, but at least it would leave no room for doubt on Malfoy's end, if the proof of how attracted Harry was to him was digging into his backside.

Malfoy looked back at him over his shoulder, eyes wide, and Harry's grin only widened.

"We lose," Malfoy said, a flush slowly crawling up his neck to his cheeks.

"Not the worst way to lose," Harry replied quietly, a slight chuckle escaping him as a moment of uncharacteristic boldness overtook him. Malfoy hadn't pulled away from him yet, and there was no way he wasn't aware of their position, not if that pretty blush was any indicator. If he was going to go for it, he might as well go all the way.

He shifted slightly to settle more firmly against Malfoy, reveling in how his cock seemed to rest perfectly in the crease of Malfoy's glorious arse, and his heart sped up when Malfoy made a strangled sound in the back of his throat, and that was definitely a reaction Harry didn't hate; Malfoy was affected. By him. Harry was thrilled.

At least until Malfoy quickly rolled to the side, dislodging Harry so suddenly he fell to the ground with a thud, a burst of unexpected laughter pealing out of him. That was fine. This was not the best place for this, anyway; he'd almost forgotten that Scorpius was present, but he had definitely not imagined Malfoy’s reaction, and his mood couldn't be dampened now.

"Help, I've fallen and I can't get up," Harry said dramatically, stretching a hand out to Malfoy to help him up off his back.

"Oh no, I guess you live there now," Malfoy deadpanned, and Harry's jaw dropped in mock offense before he put on his most convincing pout, the one Hermione had banned him from using in her house.

As he hoped, it worked. Malfoy snorted, but he did reach down and hauled Harry to his feet.

"Again, again!" Scorpius chanted before Harry could tease Malfoy for being soft.

Malfoy looked at him, eyebrow raised in challenge, and Harry met his gaze steadily, smirking. "Scared, Potter?"

Butterflies erupted in his stomach as Harry was thrown back to their Second Year dueling club, when Malfoy had said those exact words to him. This felt so much different than it had back then, though. It was so much different.

I'm not, he thought. I'm not scared at all, just ready.

He didn't say that, though, just lifted his chin in challenge. "You wish."

So, they played. They played until Harry was slightly sore, and Harry managed to convince Scorpius to play a different game. They played a few rounds of Sorry!, which seemed to infuriate Malfoy and amuse Harry to no end until Malfoy called it a night when Harry claimed victory yet again.

"Whatever, Potter. It's about time for this little one to get to bed, anyway," he said, pretending to be annoyed and ruffling Scorpius' hair.

"Nooooo, I don't want to go to bed!" he pouted.

"Well, that's unfortunate," Harry interjected. "I was going to make you the coolest tent to sleep under tonight, with stars and everything, but if you don't want it-," he trailed off.

"No, no, I want it! I want that!" Scorpius said, popping up and running to his room. "Harry! I'm ready!" he called out thirty seconds later.

Malfoy blinked; jaw dropping. Harry just winked at him before heading up the stairs.

"You sure you’re ready?" he asked Scorpius, who nodded eagerly.

Harry pulled out his wand, knowing he'd need it for the type of magic he was about to do. He conjured up a navy blue and silver gauzy canopy to drape over Scorpius' bed like a tent, enclosing it entirely, then climbed inside, casting a complicated spell up at the inside of the canopy that made a replica of the night sky appear, very similar to the enchanted ceiling in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. He'd been practicing this for days, with a bit of help with Hermione, and he grinned when he saw stars burst to life above him. Perfect. He climbed back out and tied the front panel to Scorpius' bedpost so it was open.

"All ready for you, buddy," he announced, and Scorpius climbed inside, staring at the inside of the canopy in awe.

"Wow," he whispered.

Harry bit back a smile at how happy he looked until he heard Malfoy on the stairs.

"Papa! Look at my tent!" Scorpius said when he spotted his father hovering in the doorway. "Harry put stars inside!"

Malfoy peeked inside, gaping at Harry's spellwork. "How did you do that?" he demanded.

"It's just a Charm," Harry shrugged, smiling mysteriously, and Malfoy scoffed.

"Of course," he said sarcastically.

Harry smirked. "Can't reveal all my secrets, Malfoy. Gotta keep you on your toes somehow."

It was true, but he also wanted to make sure that Malfoy saw that Harry could be fun and good at things; worth keeping around.

Malfoy looked at the ceiling, huffing out an exasperated laugh. "Whatever you say, Potter. Scorpius, do you want me to read to you?"

"Harry can do it," Scorpius said. "But I want you to sit with us."

Harry did, taking the book the small boy handed him, thinking about how he'd love nothing more than to do this forever.

*

The remainder of June and July passed in a blur. Harry was happy. Happier than he may have ever been before. He'd fallen into a routine, and now he and Malfoy hung out more evenings than not. The other man was loosening up around him, and Harry felt closer to him than ever, but he still hadn't been able to make a move. Malfoy was so hot and cold sometimes; it was hard to explain.

Sometimes, Harry was sure, absolutely certain, that he felt the same way, that he might finally be breaking through that final barrier, but Malfoy always pulled himself back before anything happened, and he'd be more distant afterwards for a few days. It was frustrating and confusing. Harry needed to get him out of the house, spend time with him in a different environment so Malfoy could see him more as Harry, less as the nanny.

His birthday was coming up this Sunday, and Harry wanted to spend it with Dra- Malfoy and Scorpius, it was all he wanted. He had made Malfoy's favorite meal to hopefully sweeten the deal, and he was going to ask him tonight, if he ever got home from work.

He'd fed Scorpius earlier, and he was reading him his bedtime story while he tried to keep his eyes open, when Malfoy finally appeared next to them.

"Hi, papa," Scorpius said sleepily, reaching up for a hug.

"Hi, love. Go on to sleep, I'll see you in the morning, alright?" he said, running his fingers through white blonde hair.

"Kay," Scorpius replied.

Malfoy looked at Harry, eyebrows raised, silently asking if he was alright.

"I'll be out after I finish the story," Harry assured him, showing that he only had a few pages left. Malfoy went downstairs to eat, Harry presumed, and he quickly finished the story, kissing a now sleeping Scorpius on the forehead before going down to eat his own meal.

"Finally," Malfoy breathed when Harry made it down to the dining room. He was surprised to see both plates still untouched. "Didn't you eat earlier? There are two plates here," Malfoy said.

"Oh. Um. No, I waited for you. Didn't want you to eat alone," Harry said sheepishly, taking his own seat. “You didn’t have to wait for me, though, I’m sure you’re starving by now.”

Malfoy squinted at him. "You didn't have to do that," he said, bewildered.

"I know, I wanted to, though. Thought it'd give us time to talk. You've been pretty busy all week."

"Oh. Okay," he said softly.

They briefly touched on Harry's day with Scorpius, then Malfoy told Harry that his first rotation was over, and the Lead Healer had basically requested that Malfoy come work for him when his internship was over at his performance review this afternoon.

"Malfoy! That's amazing! He basically asked you to pick his ward!" Harry said excitedly.

"I know. I still can't believe it. You picked the perfect day for lamb, it's like a celebration," Malfoy laughed.

Harry squirmed a bit, feeling rather guilty that he had an ulterior motive for making this particular meal. "Actually, I had a reason for that," he said awkwardly.

"Oh?" Malfoy said, arching an eyebrow at him, and Harry decided to just go for straight honesty.

"You know, my birthday is this weekend... and I was actually hoping if I made your favorite meal, you might be more open to maybe agreeing to spend some of it with me? After work, of course!" he rushed out when Malfoy's eyebrows shot into his hairline. He didn't want this to be a burden to Malfoy, or add stress to his busy schedule. "I know you work weekends. We could even do it on your next day off; it doesn't have to be Sunday, of course. I just thought it would be fun if the three of us could do something, maybe grab dinner, or just take a walk-"

"Potter," Malfoy interrupted, looking inexplicably fond, and Harry froze mid-sentence. "Of course we will, if that's really what you want."

Harry released a breath of relief, grin overtaking his face, making his dimple pop into place. "Great! That's great. It'll be great. I'm excited. Yeah," he babbled excitedly. "What day were you thinking? I don't want to interfere with your schedule."

Malfoy looked thoughtful for a moment, then gave Harry a breathtaking grin. "How about Sunday?"

On his actual birthday? That was better than he'd dared to hope for. "Are you sure? I don't want you to be too tired. It's really alright if we push it back," Harry said earnestly.

"Well, lucky for you, I have the weekend off. Whitlock told me today."

Harry perked up at that. "Well, alright then. That's lucky timing," he laughed.

"I thought so, too."

*

Malfoy had the whole weekend off, which meant Harry also had the whole weekend off, unfortunately, but it did give him the entirety of Saturday to spend time with the Weasley's and Teddy, at least, so he could spend all of Sunday with Malfoy and Scorpius without feeling guilty. He'd had a great time with them, too, as always. Ginny had come in from quidditch training, Molly had made all of his favorite foods, and he ended up spending the night at Ron and Hermione's and having breakfast with them.

He'd owled Malfoy yesterday, letting him know that he'd be by to pick them up around noon, and Harry was already dressed and ready, itching to leave well before then. He'd painstakingly come up with several ideas, as well as backup ideas for the day, wanting to make sure that they both had fun with him today, and he was dying to take Malfoy to that fancy new Italian restaurant in Diagon.

He'd taken Hermione's advice and dressed in green after she told him how much it brought out his eyes, and he'd begged her to help him tame his hair to a more manageable level. If he was going out in public with Malfoy, he wanted to at least look halfway decent, considering that Malfoy never looked anything short of stunning. It didn't hurt that his flannel was the perfect shade of Slytherin green, either, perfect for going out with a Slytherin.

"Would you relax, mate?" Ron laughed at him after Harry checked the clock for the twelfth time that morning. "The clock is going to start moving backwards if you don't quit pressuring it to go faster."

"Well, I'm nervous!" Harry exclaimed. "It's my first time going in public with Malfoy, Ron, I want him to have a good time."

"It's your birthday, shouldn't he be making sure you have a good time?" Ron asked skeptically. Harry just stared at him until Ron rolled his eyes. "You're mental," he chuckled.

"Ron's actually right, you know," Hermione said softly. "You should want to be with someone who wants to make you happy, too. I hated that about Owen-"

"Hermione, don't," he said, looking away uncomfortably. He didn't want to talk about him, especially on his birthday.

"No, please listen. You know he used you, Harry. One of the best things about you is how giving you are, and I would love to see someone want to give to you for once. You don't have to let people take advantage of you to prove that you care about them. You deserve to feel special, too."

Harry had his eyes fixed on his lap. He knew she was right. He hated thinking about how horribly wrong things had gone with his ex, it made him physically ill to think about it, but she was right. He hadn't been able to accept it for a long time, but he knew now that Owen had taken advantage of him. He'd used Harry, for his money, for his fame, even after he'd left Harry because he wasn't 'exciting' enough. It had been bad when they were together, but it was after that had broken him. That, he really didn't want to think about; not today.

Malfoy... he wasn't like that, though. He was nothing like Owen. He appreciated everything Harry did for him, and he didn't expect anything from him.

"I know," he said softly. "He's nothing like that, though."

"Okay," Hermione acquiesced after studying him for a long moment. "I trust your judgement; of course I do. We just worry about you because we love you, you know that, right?"

"I know," he repeated, squeezing her hand to let her know he wasn't upset with her for prying. He knew his friends worried about him, but they'd seen how he'd been when things had gone south. That had been rock bottom for him; apart from the war, obviously. This wasn't like that, though, he was sure of it. This wasn't even a date, for one, but he still wanted Malfoy to enjoy spending time with him so he'd maybe agree to do it again in the future. "Thanks, Hermione. I appreciate you looking out for me."

She smiled at him, then glanced at the clock behind him. "It's time to go, and Harry, I hope you have the best time today, I really do."

"Happy birthday, mate. Enjoy yourself," Ron added. "Tell that little one I said hello."

"I will," Harry said, grinning now. He had butterflies swirling in his stomach in anticipation at the thought of getting to spend an entire day with both Malfoy boys. "I'll be great. I'll Firecall you later, or tomorrow, if it's late."

Ron waved him off. "Call tonight, yeah? Or just come over. We'll be here."

Harry agreed, quickly hugging them goodbye before Flooing over to Malfoy's house. He had barely stepped out of the grate when a little ball of energy was running at him.

"Harry! Harry, happy birthday, Harry! I get to see you and papa today! It's the best birthday ever!" Scorpius was crying out as Harry caught the tiny blonde tornado, laughing brightly.

"Well, I have to agree there," he said, hugging Scorpius tightly.

"You look awfully Slytherin today," Malfoy said with a smirk, eyeing his green flannel and matching green converse.

He shrugged. "I figured I'd be out with one, and I wanted to fit in. And Hermione told me the green made my eyes stand out, so," he grinned cheekily.

"It does," Malfoy said, and Harry's heart skipped, a pleased flush crawling up his neck immediately. Was- did Malfoy just compliment him? He definitely did. That was- Harry was beyond thrilled.

Malfoy's cheeks were dusted pink, clearly realizing what he'd said, but Harry was too busy taking in his appearance to tease him. He was wearing a pair of light khaki trousers rolled up at the ankle and pristine white boat shoes, as well as a flowy, white linen shirt, tucked in at the front and open at the top, his collarbones peeking out deliciously. His hair was down, flowing around his shoulders. He looked like a bloody supermodel, or a super sexy prince. Good grief, Harry might not make it through this day.

"Thanks," he replied quietly, unable to take his eyes off of Malfoy's creamy skin.

"So! What are we doing?" Malfoy said enthusiastically.

"Wait!" Scorpius shouted. "I have a present for Harry, remember?" He ran to grab a small gift that he'd obviously wrapped himself and proudly thrust it at Harry.

"Thank you so much!" Harry gushed, opening the gift to reveal a beautifully drawn picture of a Hippogriff. How appropriate.

"Scorp, I love it! I'm going to put this right on my mantle at home. Did you know I rode a real Hippogriff once?" Harry asked, and Scorpius' eyes grew enormous.

"No way," he whispered in awe, and Harry laughed, nodding.

"I sure did. My good friend Hagrid still has him, actually. Maybe when you're older, I can introduce you. If your papa says it’s okay, of course," he added, knowing exactly how Malfoy felt about Buckbeak.

As predicted, Malfoy shuddered. "We'll revisit that later," he said evasively, and Harry smirked knowingly.

"I thought we could see a film first, actually. There's a new Willy Wonka movie that just came out, and I think Scorpius would love it. Very child appropriate," Harry said. He'd made sure to pick one both of them would enjoy, didn't want Malfoy thinking he'd take his son to see anything inappropriate.

"What's a film?" Scorpius asked curiously, and Harry gaped at him.

"Has he never seen a film?" Harry asked, scandalized.

Malfoy shook his head. "Neither have I, to be fair. We don't often venture into muggle London. Their money is confusing," Malfoy admitted, looking embarrassed.

"Oh my God," Harry said with an incredulous laugh. "We are definitely doing that. It's so fun."

Oh, this was going to be even better than he expected. Ron had been hilarious the first time Harry and Hermione got him in a theater, he couldn't wait to see how Malfoy would react.

"Okay," Malfoy agreed easily, and Scorpius cheered. "What's it about?"

"Oh, it's a whole movie about candy. You'll love it," he laughed. It was perfect for Malfoy and his sweet tooth. "Did you have lunch yet?"

"We did," he confirmed.

"Excellent. I had a big breakfast at the Weasley's, but we can do popcorn at the theater, and I thought we could visit some of the shops in Diagon Alley, and then do supper and maybe even I-C-E C-R-E-A-M later on, if you're up for it," Harry babbled, spelling out the words ice cream so Scorpius wouldn't have a fit if Malfoy said no.

"Potter," Malfoy chuckled, "It's your birthday. We can do whatever you want. I'm not going to say no."

Harry's heart swelled almost painfully at that, and he beamed at Malfoy. They could do whatever he wanted. He was right, this was absolutely nothing like before. "Great. Let's get going, then, the film starts in twenty minutes, and I want popcorn and good seats. It's faster if we Apparate."

Harry Apparated them side-along to an Apparation point in London before hurrying them along to the theater. Harry quickly paid for the tickets, then led them to the snack counter to buy popcorn and every candy that he thought they might like, having a feeling they'd not experienced many muggle sweets either, if Malfoy avoided muggle shopping areas.

The theater was somewhat crowded, and Harry had them sit near the back so they'd be less disruptive to the other patrons. He doled out the candy, and Malfoy jumped in fright when the movie started, shocked by how loud it was.

Harry ended up casting stealthy Silencing and Notice Me Not Charms around them once it really got started and Malfoy began asking question after question, completely engrossed in the film.

“Why are all those old people sharing one bed?”

“Is that an entire room of candy? How do you grow edible grass?”

“Potter! How did they get so many identical little men? Are they part dwarf?”

“How did he figure out how to Apparate someone without magic?!”

“That lift can fly? He has to be a wizard, and he is most definitely breaking the statute of secrecy!”

Harry barely paid any attention to the movie, too focused on how delighted Malfoy was. He was so into it, and it was one of the most hilariously endearing things Harry had ever seen. He'd thought Scorpius might be the one who enjoyed it the most, but it was definitely Malfoy. Harry spent the movie answering his questions the best he could, and when it was over, they both chattered about it incessantly. This had been the perfect idea, Harry thought, pleased with himself.

"Where now?" Scorpius finally asked, tugging on Harry's sleeve.

"Diagon Alley?" he suggested. "We could just window shop. Scorpius and I do it once a week, but you've never been with us," he said pointedly to Dra- Malfoy.

"Ooh yes!" Scorpius said. "I like the owls!"

Malfoy looked nervous for a split second, but it was gone before Harry could worry, and he was nodding his agreement. "Alright, then, Diagon it is."

Harry Apparated them there, and Scorpius practically dragged them to the Magical Menagerie, pointing out his favorite owls to his father, pouting if any of the ones he liked had been purchased since he'd last been here.

Harry led them to store after store, and he waved at Ron when they passed Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, who was tending to customers behind the register.

Malfoy turned to him, confused. "You don't want to stop in and say hi?" he questioned.

"Nah. I saw him yesterday and this morning. I figured maybe we could visit another time, but not today," Harry explained, gently guiding Malfoy towards Sugarplum's Sweet Shop instead, knowing Scorpius loved it there.

Malfoy allowed it, but he frowned heavily, looking bothered. Harry could practically hear his brain going a million miles a minute. "Hey," he said softly, halting them outside the candy shop, keeping Scorpius' hand locked tightly in his so the small boy didn't run off. "Whatever you're thinking, stop. I promise, it's not because of you. I just don't want to share you today, yeah? It's nothing negative."

Malfoy searched his face for a moment, looking insecure, before he finally nodded hesitantly. "Okay."

Harry reached out and squeezed his hand reassuring, unable to resist trying to soothe his worry, before pulling them both into the shop.

Harry let Scorpius look at everything inside, buying him the box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans he'd grabbed, pouting at Harry with huge eyes in askance, like he'd be able to resist that face. While they checked out, Malfoy had disappeared, only reappearing once they'd gone outside to wait for him, with an enormous bag of his own. What the fuck? What on earth could he have bought that needed a bag that large? It was so comical that Harry could barely stop himself from laughing.

"What's in the bag, Malfoy?" Harry asked him, smirking.

"Nothing," Malfoy said too quickly, the tips of his ears going red, a sure tell that he was lying, Harry had discovered quite quickly. "Liqueur," he amended.

"Pretty big bag for just a tiny bottle of alcohol," Harry pointed out, inching closer to him, hand twitching in anticipation. He was going to find out what was in that bag.

"They were out of small bags," Malfoy tried.

Harry pointedly looked at the much smaller bag that Scorpius was holding, then quick as a flash, reached out and snatched Malfoy's bag, spinning around to peek inside, unable to stop the loud bark of laughter that escaped him when he finally saw what Malfoy had been embarrassed about buying. No wonder he'd been so weird about it.

"Malfoy, what the hell? Why did you buy like, fifty Chocolate Frogs?" Harry asked, his voice dripping with fondness. He knew the man had a sweet tooth, but this was ridiculous.

"Bad word!" Scorpius shouted. "And papa, you lied!"

"I'm sorry," they both said distractedly at the same time, which made Scorpius giggle.

"I collect the cards," Malfoy said hastily, snatching the bag back and vanishing it, his cheeks going pink.

"Nuh uh!" Scorpius chirped. "You only keep the Harry ones."

Malfoy's face immediately went bright red, but Harry was absolutely delighted. Malfoy collected his cards? Why? Hope welled up inside of him, and he turned to Scorpius, knowing he'd get a more honest answer out of him than his father.

"And what exactly does he do with them?" he asked sweetly.

"Nothing! I do not collect your cards, Potter!" Malfoy said, his voice unusually shrill, and Scorpius answered with what was possibly the very last thing Harry ever expected to hear.

"He hides them at Grampy's house!" Scorpius said, excitedly. "He said Grampy loves you so much that it makes him happy to find the cards. I want him to be happy. Papa must be right, because Grampy gets a funny look on his face when he finds them!"

Harry's jaw fell open in shock, staring at Malfoy in disbelief before he absolutely lost it. He guffawed loudly, laughing so hard he had to double over, clutching his stomach as he gasped for air between fits of laughter.

That was completely unhinged, and so Malfoy, and he was helplessly endeared. Fuck, Harry loved him. Actually loved him.

The realization hit him like a ton of bricks, but it didn't frighten him, not one bit. It excited him. It wasn't a crush, not anymore. He loved Malfoy, loved Draco, and he was so, so going to date this ridiculous man. Probably marry him, because if he was ever lucky enough to get a chance with him, he would never let him go. Fucking hell.

"Oh, my God," Harry wheezed, finally straightening up, wiping tears from his cheeks. "That may be the absolute best thing I've ever heard."

"Shut up," Malfoy mumbled, his face still bright red, and he was so pretty, all flushed and shy, and Harry wanted to kiss him so badly it was almost painful. He didn't, though, he just grinned wider.

"Never. That's absolutely brilliant," Harry laughed. "You are amazing."

"We're never talking about this again," Malfoy grumbled.

"Does me finding out mean you're going to stop?" Harry asked, cocking his head, stupid grin still glued to his face.

"...no."

"Yay!" Scorpius cheered.

Another bark of laughter escaped him. "Come on, you absolute lunatic," Harry said fondly, placing a gentle hand on Malfoy's elbow. "I'm hungry, and there's a new restaurant I want to try."

Harry led them to Osteria Della Bacchetta. "Do you like Italian?" he asked when they stopped out front. "I think that's what they have here. We can go somewhere else, if you want."

"Italian is fine," Malfoy assured him, and Harry held the door open for them, then approached the hostess stand. The restaurant was packed. Far more packed than he had expected, witches and wizards lining the walls to wait their turn, and Harry frowned a bit, ducking his head to hide his face, praying no one would recognize him. Why hadn't he called ahead to book something? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

The young girl who was taking names didn't even glance at him, at least, her eyes were fixed on her hand, examining her nails as she snapped her gum. "There's an hour wait," she informed him in a bored tone.

"Oh," he said, glancing back at Malfoy to see if that was alright. If they were too hungry, they could go somewhere else and try here another time. Malfoy nodded, though, letting him know it was alright to wait.

"That's fine," Harry told her politely. "We can wait."

"How many?" she asked.

"Three."

"Name?"

Harry froze, shoulders stiffening. He couldn't say Potter, there was no way. "Black," he blurted out instead.

"Place your wand here," she gestured to a small rectangular box lined with black velvet. "We'll scan your Magical signature and send a signal when your table is ready."

Harry set his wand in the box for a moment, then pocketed it again when the light faded.

"Thank you, Mr. Bl..." she finally looked up at Harry, and he watched in horror as her dark brown eyes widened, recognition setting in, her jaw hanging open.

Harry reacted without thinking, pulling a handful of gold out of his pocket and setting it on the stand she was standing behind.

"Mr. Black," he said emphatically, looking at her with wide, pleading eyes.

Her eyes darted down to the gold, then back up to him in understanding, and her jaw snapped shut.

"Of course. Mr. Black," she said shakily. "Thank you. Thank you."

Harry just smiled at her, and she squeaked. "Wait!" she called out when he turned away. "Actually, Mr. Black, we have a table ready for you now," she rushed out, writing something hastily on the parchment in front of her. "You didn't mention that you had a reservation."

"Oh, no, that's alright," Harry protested. He absolutely did not want to skip the line just because of who he was. "We can wait."

"I insist," she urged.

Scorpius, who had been very quiet up until this moment, chimed in. "But Harry, I'm hungry now," he whined.

"Scorpius!" Malfoy hissed quietly. "We have to wait our turn, love."

The little boy pouted. "But why? She said we can eat now."

Harry softened. If he was hungry, he couldn't make him wait. He gave the girl a quick nod, and she practically tripped over her own feet, trying to get out from behind her post. She was clearly nervous. Harry helped steady her, leaning closer to her. "Relax, love, you're doing just fine. I'm just a person, yeah?" he whispered to her. She released a shaky breath, nodding minutely, and visibly relaxed.

Harry kept his head down as the hostess led them to a fairly secluded table on the second floor, near a window with a gorgeous view. "This is the chef's table," the young girl explained. "Thank you for choosing to dine with us tonight, Mr. Black. I hope you and your companions enjoy your meals."

As she finished her sentence, she placed the small pile of gold Harry had given her back in front of him. He stared at it, dumbfounded, not at all used to anyone not taking his money in exchange for keeping his privacy, but she was already gone by the time he turned to thank her.

Once they were seated and alone again, Malfoy released a shaky breath, and Harry felt guilt bubble up in him. Going anywhere with him was such a nuisance.

"I'm sorry about that. It happens, and I can't really stop people from recognizing me, but I do try to keep it quiet," he said softly. "We should have gone somewhere muggle."

"It's alright, Potter. I'm not upset with you," Malfoy said. He looked like he genuinely didn't mind, and Harry allowed himself to relax a bit. "This place is lovely," Malfoy commented, kindly changing the subject, and Harry offered him a weak smile.

Scorpius chatted up a storm, after that, enthusiastically listing every building he could see from the window until a waitress came to take their order. She had obviously been warned who was at the table, because she kept bursting out in giggles when she looked at Harry, and Harry ignored her outbursts with practiced ease, turning instead to help Scorpius order his meal. He close spaghetti Bolognese, and Harry ordered Ravioli Carbonara for himself.

When the waitress, who had introduced herself as Eileen, turned to Draco, it was with much sharper eyes, glancing in disgust at his concealed Dark Mark. Judgement and disdain rolled off of her in waves, and Harry tried not let his irritation with her show, not wanting to call attention to the difference in her attitude in front of Scorpius.

"I'd like the Veal Parmigiana, please," he said politely.

"I apologize, we're out of veal," she said in a sickly-sweet voice.

Harry's lips thinned, posture stiffening. She was lying. He knew she was lying, and Malfoy knew it, too, but he didn't appear phased at all, just requesting Eggplant Parmigiana instead. She glanced back at Harry, like she needed his permission to get Malfoy what he wanted to eat, and he frowned before she quickly nodded and mercifully disappeared again until she brought their drinks.

She was flirting with him, shamelessly, but Harry couldn't have been less interested if he'd tried. He just politely thanked her for his drink, ignoring the pang of guilt at the way her face fell, and turned to Scorpius. He hated hurting anyone's feelings, but the last thing he wanted was for Malfoy to think he was even vaguely interested in anyone else when Harry was actively trying to date him, and entertaining her advances with niceties would only hurt his chances with the blonde he actually wanted.

"Bet I can draw spaghetti the best," Scorpius challenged.

"Oh, you're on," Harry grinned at him, snatching up a crayon and duplicating the blank paper he had in front of him so they could both draw.

They drew for a few minutes, until Scorpius declared them both done, then himself the winner. Harry laughed, knowing his drawing was awful, but he didn't care, especially when Malfoy made a show of collecting both drawings, announcing he'd be framing them both and hanging them on his bedroom wall. Harry could only laugh helplessly, and let him do it.

They were still laughing when their food came, and the waitress narrowed her eyes at them in annoyance. She handed Scorpius and Malfoy their food, but she refused to leave after setting Harry's plate down, asking him about six times if he needed anything at all from her while standing far too close.

"We'll signal if we need anything, thank you," Malfoy snapped at her, clearly having had enough, and Harry wondered if he was annoyed at the blatant flirting, or her presence in general.

She did take the clear hint, but ghosted her hand along his shoulder as she flounced away. He tensed, now very uncomfortable. He didn't like being touched by strangers like that. There was no reason for it, and was always confused as to how people felt so comfortable treating him like a commodity instead of a person.

Malfoy cleared his throat before smiling pleasantly. "How's your food?"

"Really good," Harry had to admit, giving Draco a small smile. "Want to share?" he asked, sliding his plate of Ravioli Carbonara towards Malfoy, and reaching over with his own fork for a bite of Malfoy's eggplant, but he furrowed his brows when he saw that it was decidedly not eggplant parmigiana on his plate.

"What is this? This isn't what you ordered," he said, studying his fork. "Is that Alfredo sauce?"

"It is what I ordered," he lied, taking a bite.

Harry gasped. "Malfoy! No, it isn't. Don't do that. We can send it back-"

"Potter, it's fine."

"That's not okay," he argued, reaching for his wand to signal their server, but Malfoy quickly covered Harry's hand with his own much larger hand, effectively stopping him, and Harry felt like he couldn't breathe the second that hand settled on top of his.

"It's fine," he stressed, glancing towards Scorpius, who was now looking at them curiously.

Harry froze, gaze darting between Malfoy, Scorpius, and their combined hands. He wanted so badly to flip his hand over and intertwine their fingers, to actually hold his hand, but he couldn't, not now. Now, Malfoy was worried about his son possibly noticing that his father was being treated like shit, and Harry needed to focus on that first.

He clenched his jaw and nodded stiffly once. Malfoy relaxed, but regrettably pulled his hand back slowly, and Harry tried to ignore the way his fingers were tingling.

"I'm happy to share with you," Malfoy murmured, and Harry felt just a touch of tension seep out of his posture. Malfoy split their food between their plates, and they both ate while keeping up a much lighter stream of conversation until Scorpius began to look sleepy.

The waitress popped back up, asking if they needed dessert or boxes. “No, thank you,” Harry told her, his voice chilly, glancing deliberately at their empty plates. They had no food left to take home. Why she thought they might need a box was beyond him.

She looked disappointed, but didn't press further, dropping off the check, which Malfoy snatched up before Harry could even reach for it.

Harry tried to protest, this had been his idea, after all, and he certainly didn't want Malfoy paying when he’d been treated so poorly, but Malfoy shot him a withering glare. "No. It’s your birthday. I'm paying," he said firmly, placing down a handful of gold to cover the cost. It wasn't up for debate, apparently.

The waitress reappeared to grab the money, and Harry was shocked to see that she had undone several buttons on her top, and had applied heavier eye makeup in the five minutes she'd been gone. He turned startled eyes to Malfoy, who looked well beyond irritation at this point, but actually livid, his face pinched.

"Thank you so much for dining with us, Mr. Potter. I do hope everything was to your satisfaction. If it wasn't, I would be happy to personally make it up to you," she purred suggestively.

Harry felt his jaw drop in shock before he straightened his posture. He opened his mouth to finally say something to her, but Malfoy beat him to it.

"Thank you, Ellen, but everything was fine," he snapped at her, then stood from his chair without waiting for a response, and Harry didn't wait, either. He just picked Scorpius up from his seat, propping the boy up on his hip with one arm, and followed Malfoy back downstairs, trying not to be too upset.

"I hope you enjoyed your date, Mr. Black," the young girl at the hostess stand called out as they passed her.

Harry's breath hitched, his gaze instantly flicking to Malfoy to judge his reaction to the implication that they'd been on a date. He looked startled, but not upset. Harry's heart raced. That was a good sign, wasn't it? He didn't correct her assumption. That was definitely a good sign.

He quickly schooled his face into a neutral mask before Malfoy noticed. "The food was delicious," he told the hostess with a small smile. It was. The service had been terrible, but he didn't want to say that. Hopefully she'd catch the meaning in his cryptic answer.

"So, ice cream?" Harry asked tentatively, unsure if Malfoy would want to continue after that whole debacle.

"Ice cream, ice cream!" Scorpius squealed, clapping.

Malfoy swallowed thickly before he broke out into a lovely, warm smile and nodded. "Ice cream."

Relief flooded through him, and he returned the smile before leading them over to Fortescue's. Harry held the door open, and Scorpius skipped inside, waving excitedly at Florean.

"Hello, Harry, back again?" Mr. Fortescue greeted him pleasantly.

"Hey, Mr. Fortescue. You know we can't stay away," he laughed.

"Well, I'm not complaining. But I've told you a hundred times to call me Florean," the man chided, glancing at Malfoy and nodding hello, cheerful grin not slipping for even a moment.

"It feels weird, though," Harry argued good naturedly.

"You young ones never learn. No matter. What would the little man like today?"

"I'm still looking!" Scorpius said, working his way down the glass case.

The man chuckled. "Alright, then. What about you two?"

Malfoy ordered earl gray and lavender, which shouldn't surprise Harry. He really loved his tea. Harry got his usual mint chocolate chip, but Scorpius piped up with an addition to his order.

"Harry! You have to get sprinkles today, it's your birthday!" he demanded.

Mr. Fortescue grinned down at him. "You are absolutely right, Scorpius, the number one rule in my shop is that sprinkles are mandatory if it's your birthday."

Harry laughed as he then proceeded to add a ridiculous amount of sprinkles to his ice cream, but accepted it graciously nonetheless. Who didn't like sprinkles?

"Did you decide yet?" Mr. Fortescue asked Scorpius, and he nodded.

"Chocolate! With chocolate chippies and sprinkles. Please," he tacked on at Malfoy's stern look.

Harry smothered a laugh as Mr. Fortescue handed over a cone that he already had made up.

Scorpius took his cone from Mr. Fortescue, thanking him politely, then he begged to sit outside. The heat had let up a bit now that it was later in the evening, so Malfoy agreed. Mr. Fortescue had refused to accept payment from them, claiming it was a birthday special. Harry thanked him profusely, and they all went to eat on the small patio outside, the same table Harry had sat at when he was thirteen.

"How does he know Scorpius' name?" Malfoy asked when they sat down. "And his order?"

Harry chuckled. "We're in here every week, and every time, he examines that ice cream case like he's going to try something new, but he ends up getting the same thing. Every time."

Malfoy laughed. "He's nice. Seemed to know you quite well," he said.

"He does," Harry answered with a nod. "I spent a lot of time in his shop the summer before Third Year. The Ministry had me staying at the Leaky, and Mr. Fortescue gave me a ton of free ice cream. Even helped me with my schoolwork. I come back here a lot now; he's the best."

They sat outside the Ice Cream Parlour long after their ice cream had been devoured and the sun had begun to sink lower in the sky. Harry was in no hurry to leave; he was having a fantastic time. Scorpius had been right earlier; this was the best birthday ever, restaurant fiasco aside. He never wanted it to end.

Their peace was disrupted, though, by a gut-wrenchingly familiar series of flashes and a loud shout.

"Potter! Harry Potter!"

Malfoy startled badly, and Harry's head snapped up, stomach dropping. His jaw tensed when he spotted the three reporters approaching them, cameras already out.

Not today, please, for the love of God, not today.

Scorpius stood up, waving at the three strangers, but he looked confused. He hadn't encountered any reporters close up like this before, and he obviously thought they were just being nice.

"Fuck," Harry whispered under his breath, then quickly pulled Scorpius behind him, shielding the small boy with his body entirely. "Stay behind me, Scorp," he muttered, then he straightened his back, meeting the reporters gaze head on.

"No, no, no. No pictures, not today," Harry said firmly, tone leaving no room for argument, but they didn't seem deterred at all. It had been too long since they caught him out unaware, and they wouldn't be scared away so easily.

"Harry, what's your favorite flavor of ice cream?"

"Potter, what brings you to Diagon Alley today?"

"Harry, can you confirm that the boy is your illegitimate child with Ginny Weasley?"

Harry felt anger flare to life in his chest. Scorpius looked exactly like Malfoy, obviously he was his, not Harry's. They asked that just to get a reaction out of him, and he knew it.

"Leave, now. I don't know how you knew I was here, but you can’t be here. I'll call your office and set up another time for this, but that time is not now, and the child is off limits. I mean it," Harry said harshly, clenching his fists.

They had a deal. He had a deal with Cuffe, the editor in chief at the Daily Prophet. They didn't go after the kids, period. Sometimes he had to bribe them, or give them something in exchange, but they did not print photos of his kids. He wouldn't stand for it.

"We received a tip," one bolder man said, smirking.

He saw two of the reporters back off, but one exceptionally obstinate one totally ignored his warning, and Scorpius poked his little head out from behind Harry at that moment. He couldn't see it, but he could feel him move to the side, and the last reporter looked delighted, raising his camera.

"I said NO!" Harry shouted, pulling Scorpius further behind him on instinct, but the man ignored him, snapping photo after photo.

He was furious. He barely registered Malfoy scrambling out of his seat to grab his son, trying to get him back inside to shield him from the sudden onslaught.

"Hey, kid, over here!" the idiot man shouted, clearly undeterred by the commotion. "Potter, what drove you to be seen out in public with a Death Eater? Are you doing charity work? Mr. Malfoy, can you show us your Dark Mark?"

"Papa, what's a Death Eater?" Harry heard Scorpius ask, sounding confused.

Rage like he hadn't felt in years roared to life inside of Harry. How dare he ask that, especially while there was a child present, a child who hadn't even been alive during the war, who would obviously have no fucking idea what that meant, what that had to mean to Malfoy. The man smirked, apparently sensing that he'd hit a nerve, and Harry acted without thought.

He was up out of his chair before he could blink, ripping the camera out of his hands and smashing it on the ground, ignoring his shouted protests.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind, saying something like that? I said fuck off," he growled, then lowered his voice to a menacing whisper. "If you come near me, or either one of them ever again, your camera won't be the only thing that gets broken. Do I make myself clear?"

The man looked genuinely scared now, nodding meekly.

"Cuffe will be hearing about this," Harry spat through clenched teeth, but before he could elaborate on that, Mr. Fortescue appeared, pulling Harry back from the reporter.

"You're on private property. I don't allow press here to harass my customers. I suggest you leave before I call the Aurors. Harry," he said sharply, "get them out of here, I'll handle this."

Harry didn't even question him. He knew Florean would take care of it, and if he stayed, he was going to do a hell of a lot worse than spit out threats. He nodded once stiffly, then spun around quickly and made his way back to Draco, fuming.

"We're leaving," Harry informed him, not waiting for a response before picking up Scorpius and gripping Malfoy's arm tightly, Apparating them away to safety.

Malfoy stumbled when they landed from the unexpectedly fast Apparation, but Harry held him steady, hand still gripping his upper arm tightly.

"Where are we?" Malfoy asked, confused.

"The park!" Scorpius said excitedly, pointing at a small play area off to their left, like he wasn't at all affected by what had just happened. God, Harry hoped he wasn't. He'd never forgive himself if Scorpius ended up traumatized because of him. Malfoy would never forgive him.

Harry led Scorpius and a very shaken up Dra- Malfoy to a nearby bench, and Malfoy grabbed his son, pulling him into a tight hug, like he needed to know he was alright, that he was safe.

"Papa, you're crushing me too tight," he complained, and Malfoy loosened his grip.

"I'm sorry, love. Are you okay?" he asked shakily. Scorpius just looked at him in confusion, and Harry hovered off to the side a bit, wanting to give them some space.

"Uh huh. They took my picture. I like having my picture taken," he giggled, and Malfoy visibly relaxed, glancing at Harry. Harry didn't feel alright, though, he felt terrible, but they needed space. He wanted to give Malfoy space to cope with what had just happened.

At least he did until he heard the next thing that came out of Scorpius' mouth.

"Papa, what's a Death Eater?" he repeated his question from earlier, cocking his little blonde head to the side.

Malfoy looked like he'd been slapped

"I-," he croaked out, but he clearly didn't know how to answer without scaring his son. He looked so lost, and Harry couldn't stand it.

Harry sat down next to Malfoy, pulling Scorpius between his legs.

"They're very bad men," he said softly, keeping it as simple as possible. "They're all gone now, though."

Scorpius frowned. "Why did he call papa that? He's not bad."

"No, he's not," Harry said, meeting Malfoy's eyes and holding them steady, trying to will the man to really hear what he was saying. Malfoy was not a bad person. He wasn't like them; he never had been. "That man had no idea what he was talking about, okay? Your papa is one of the best people I know."

Scorpius seemed satisfied with that explanation for now, and let it go, begging to go play. Malfoy absently nodded his permission, and stared as his son ran over to the swings.

"I am so, so sorry," Harry said lowly, unable to stand the silence for a moment longer. He needed this to be okay, he needed Malfoy to know that he'd always do everything he could to protect them, to protect his son. Harry didn't even want to think about how wrong that could have gone. "I swear, that's the first time that's happened while he was with me."

"Don't apologize," Malfoy told him softly after a moment. "You can't help it, and no real harm was done, was there? It’s just a picture. He's fine."

He sounded like he meant it, and Harry stared over at where Scorpius was swinging happily by himself, kicking his legs, mouth moving like he was singing to himself.

"Yeah. Yeah, he's fine," he agreed, letting out a shaky exhale. He was okay.

"Harry, papa, come swing with me! I can go highest!" Scorpius called out happily.

Malfoy looked at Potter, a slight smirk ghosting over his lips. "Bet I can go highest," he challenged, and Harry couldn't help but huff out a quiet laugh, but didn't move, thinking Malfoy was kidding until he arched a questioning eyebrow at Harry.

"Scared, Potter?"

Every bit of fear and tension left him at the familiar words, slow smile creeping onto his face. They were okay. "You wish," he replied, then took off in a run towards the swings, not waiting for Malfoy to catch on. His legs were a lot shorter than Malfoy's giraffe legs, and he needed a head start.

Malfoy sputtered indignantly, but got up and chased him, sitting on his own swing. The two men pumped their legs furiously, going higher and higher, while Scorpius squealed with laughter between them, egging them both on.

It was dark by the time they left the playground, Malfoy carrying a half sleeping Scorpius on his back while Harry opened the door for them.

"Don't leave yet," Malfoy murmured quietly. "I'll be back after getting him down."

"Night night, Harry, love you," Scorpius slurred out, not opening his eyes. "Happy birthday."

Harry melted, and he ran a gentle hand through Scorpius' hair. "Goodnight, buddy. Love you, too."

Harry felt fresh nerves bubble up, and he needed to clear his head. He headed for the kitchen, grabbing the first thing he spotted to clean with, a broom, and started sweeping, even though there was nothing to even sweep up.

"What are you doing?" Malfoy asked bemusedly when he returned a few minutes later, leaning against the doorway and crossing his arms.

"Erm. Sweeping?" Harry said stupidly, showing him the broom.

"I can see that," Malfoy chuckled, "but why? You didn't even use the kitchen today."

"Just needed to be doing something," he shrugged, slowly setting the broom aside while Malfoy uncorked a bottle of wine, pouring it into two glasses before offering Harry a slice of treacle tart, his favorite.

"Come sit down, Potter. Relax," Malfoy urged him, shooing him out of the kitchen. Harry went obediently, and sat on the boring gray sofa, accepting the glass of wine Draco handed him. "Figured this would be a nice way to end your birthday," he explained.

"Thanks," Harry said quietly, quickly draining half the glass. Merlin, did he need a drink. Malfoy raised his eyebrows, but Harry just smirked, taking another large drink, then a bite of the tart. “This is good!” he said, impressed. “Where did you get it?”

“We made it,” Malfoy shrugged, and Harry grinned widely. They'd made it. For him. He knew Malfoy didn't bake, but he did it anyway, for Harry. That was incredible. He didn’t even know how Malfoy knew he liked treacle tart.

“Well, you did an amazing job. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

"So, what did you need to talk about?" Harry prompted nervously, one leg shaking madly.

"Oh. Nothing, really, I just wanted to give you your present," Malfoy said, surprising Harry. He grabbed a gorgeous red package from under the coffee table and handed it to Harry.

"You already gave me a gift," Harry reminded him of the drawing they'd given him earlier, but he took the gift anyway.

"That was from Scorpius. This is from me."

Harry smiled, heart fluttering, and carefully peeled the wrapping away. He froze when he saw what was inside, and just sat there, dumbfounded, eyes glued to the two pictures in his hands. Real pictures, both of which had been taken with Harry's magical camera. He remembered the exact moment both of these had been taken.

The first one was a picture of Harry and Scorpius taken by Malfoy one rare evening while they all had cooked together. Scorpius was standing on a stepstool so he could reach the counter, and Harry stood behind him, showing him how to mix eggs into flour to make homemade pasta. The photo showed Scorpius reaching a small, egg covered hand up, and poking Harry's nose with it. Harry had pulled back, jaw dropping open as egg dripped off the end of his nose before he lunged forward, attacking Scorpius with tickling fingers while the little boy screamed with laughter.

The second photo, though, made his breath catch in his throat, tears immediately springing to his eyes. It was a photo he'd never seen before of himself with Victoire at the muggle zoo, feeding the elephants, the little blonde girl grinning so widely as she handed the baby elephant a leaf that you could see her missing front tooth while Harry hugged her from behind, all eyes on her. It had been the summer before she'd moved away, and he still remembered that day, how happy she'd been to see the different animals. Bill must have taken that one, having decided to tag along with them last minute. Harry never knew he'd done that. He had a memory of that day, now, that he could keep forever.

Malfoy had put each picture in an ornate gold frame, and he ran his fingers reverently over the engraving at the bottom of each frame, one after the other.

The one of him and Scorpius said:

My bestest friend

Harry and Scorpius, July 2005

While the one of him and Victoire said:

My little princess

Harry and Victoire, August 2004

He'd called her his princess. He always had, because she looked like one, all blonde curls and big blue eyes. How did Malfoy know about that? How did he even get this picture? Had he actually reached out to Bill for this? Harry was beyond touched, touched at the amount of thought that had gone into this gift, but also at the fact that he'd included Victoire. That was- that meant more than he could even articulate.

"Malfoy..." he whispered thickly, a tear sliding down his cheek as he hugged the photos tightly to his chest. "I love them. So much. Thank you," he said, voice shaky with emotion.

Malfoy bit his lip. "You're welcome. I suppose that means I don't have to give you the backup gift, then."

Harry let out a wet, confused laugh. "Why did you have a backup gift?"

"In case you thought this was lame."

“It’s the opposite of lame. This was the most thoughtful gift I’ve ever gotten,” Harry said sincerely.

Malfoy dragged the other gift out from under the table anyway and handed it over. “I’m glad, but you can have it anyway."

Harry laughed brightly, opening this gift with much less care, grinning when he saw the game inside. "Oh my God, I actually don't have Pictionary," he said, shaking his head. "Scorpius would really like this one."

"I know," Malfoy agreed. "Since you keep insisting on having Game Night, I thought we could switch it up a bit."

"What an excellent idea," Harry said softly.

The both finished their wine quickly. Harry didn't put the photographs down the entire time he stayed, only shrinking and tucking them away carefully in his pocket when he got up to leave, not wanting anything to happen to them when he Apparated.

“Goodnight, Potter. Happy birthday,” Malfoy said quietly, standing with Harry in the foyer.

Harry bit his lip, a muscle in his jaw twitching uncontrollably as he stared intensely at Draco, trying to decide whether or not to do what he desperately wanted to do; what he needed to do. It didn't take long to make up his mind.

"Thank you so much for spending the day with me," Harry said softly before lunging forward, wrapping his arms around Dra- Malfoy's neck while he balanced on his tiptoes, hugging him tightly. The smell of grapefruit and cedar enveloped him in the most comforting blanket of his life, and he sighed, nuzzling his face into Malfoy's throat in an effort to get closer to that scent, wanting to take it home with him.

Malfoy was stood stock still, frozen in surprise, but he didn't push Harry away, so Harry didn't let go, and when he felt hesitant arms finally, finally wrap around his own waist to return the hug, holding Harry close to him like he was something delicate and precious, he couldn't stop the giddy little sound that escaped him, and he just hugged the taller man even tighter, absolutely reveling in the feel of him pressed up against Harry. It was probably the best hug of his entire life.

His heart rabbited in his chest, doing an occasional flip, and he realized he didn't care one single bit about anything that had gone wrong today, all he cared about was right here, in this house, in his heart, in his arms.

When Harry finally pulled back, goofy grin plastered to his face, dimple digging deeply into his cheek, all he could think about was how much he wanted this, preferably for the rest of his life. His poor, overly romantic heart had taken so much abuse in his lifetime, had been through so much torment, but he couldn't help but think that maybe it was all worth it, if it led him here, to this exact moment.

This was where he was meant to be. He could feel it in his soul. Looking at Malfoy- no, Draco's beautiful face, flushed pink, silver eyes practically glowing with fondness, he knew that he was meant to love this man, and his son, for the rest of his life.

He couldn't think of a single thing he'd rather do.

Notes:

Hopefully you enjoyed this one, lovely readers! I have mixed feelings about a few parts, but overall, I'm happy with it. Thank you for your patience with me with this one. I struggled with the timing, but the next few should be out quicker!

As always, I greatly appreciate any feedback. <3

Chapter 5: CHAPTER 5

Summary:

Enter nurse Harry.

Notes:

Much quicker update today! I had a lot of this one and the next couple chapters fleshed out in advance, so they should all be up relatively quickly. Hopefully you're still enjoying! We will be getting a good bit more into Harry's past in the next one.

I'm not sure if my last chapter posted properly, or if maybe emails didn't go out, or there was an error of some kind, but it was showing me the wrong upload date, and the hits hadn't moved at all on my end, so hopefully this one goes out correctly and you saw the last update!

They did print a picture from Harry's birthday, a picture that Harry hated that he loved as much as he did. It was one he'd personally picked of himself and Draco.

He couldn't think of him as Malfoy anymore, not in his own head, not with how he knew he felt. He did still respect Draco's wishes for Harry to call him Malfoy out loud, but in his head, he couldn't do it anymore. It felt dehumanizing, and it was too weird for him.

In the photo Harry had chosen, they were outside at Fortescue's with their ice cream, with Scorpius cropped out. It showed Harry laughing at something Draco said, his head thrown back in delight, while Draco watched him with an indecipherable look on his face, one that he got around Harry sometimes that made him look unbearably soft. That look never failed to make Harry’s heart flutter wildly in his chest; it was the look that made him think that maybe he actually had a real chance.

Harry had gone down to the Daily Prophet office the very next morning after his birthday with Hermione, who had recently begun working as a deputy Head at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, in tow. He knew he had to head off the story, and she’d insisted that she join him as ‘legal backup’. It was a good thing she'd insisted on coming with him, though, because Cuffe simply refused to converse amicably, and after nearly an hour of getting nowhere, Harry had exploded on the man, stopping just short of hexing him and his stupid smug face.

Hermione had handled the real threat for him, presenting him with a cease and desist she'd obtained from Pansy Parkinson, who worked in the DMLE's legal department, at the crack of dawn.

Harry knew Hermione had become friends with her a couple of years ago when Pansy had joined her book club on accident, not realizing that Hermione had started the club. It had been tense at first, but the two had worked through it and were good friends now, and Pansy had even donated quite generously to Hermione's Victims of War charity fund when she'd started it, which really helped it get off the ground. She'd come to the Wobbly with them a few times, and she was the one who told Hermione that Astoria was looking to hire a nanny. He might not call himself and Pansy friends, exactly, but they were certainly friendly, and he owed her a lot.

The cease and desist basically stated that if they printed a photo with Scorpius in it, Harry and Draco would both have grounds to sue the newspaper blind for not only breach of contract and privacy, but for endangering a minor. There was no telling what some of the crazier fans out there might do, and he would not stand for Scorpius becoming a target, not while Harry had breath in his body.

In the end, Harry had agreed to uphold his end of their bargain, as long as all photos of Scorpius were destroyed, and he chose a picture they would be allowed to print, after they cropped the little boy out of it.

He didn't care what they said about him, as long as the children remained off limits, and Harry was nothing if not a man of his word, no matter how much he despised the wanker. There was nothing else they could take from him now, anyway, they'd already done the worst. In fact, if it weren't for his kids, he'd never give Cuffe or the paper the time of day after what they'd done. It couldn't be helped, though; Harry wanted a guarantee that the people he loved wouldn't become targets, and he'd suck it up and do whatever needed to be done to ensure that.

Harry had taken Hermione out to lunch with Scorpius later that day to thank her, and sent Pansy a huge bouquet of thank you flowers from Neville's greenhouses for waking up so early to handle that for him. He knew she was Draco's best friend, so she really had an invested interest in the cause, and she assured him that she was more than happy to help keep Scorpius safe. 

Harry had been extremely worried that Malfoy would be upset that he'd had to give them something to print, and even more upset with the headline they'd decided to go with, insinuating that Harry was under some kind of spell by him, but he never once mentioned it, so, relieved that it hadn't caused an issue, Harry chose to just let it go. It was handled, it was over, there was no point in dwelling on it any longer.

*

August drew to a close, and Draco's new rotation seemed to be going... well. Going.

It wasn't difficult work, apparently, just disgusting. He had been on the Magical Bugs ward for over a month, and he always came home and took quite a long shower, grumbling under his breath about snotty noses and pus. Draco had always been a clean freak, so it didn't surprise Harry at all that he wasn't exactly enjoying being around sick people all the time.

He still studied like clockwork, though, and Harry swelled up with pride every time he saw the man curled up with a textbook in the evenings, memorizing symptoms. He loved that even though he obviously didn't enjoy it, he was still taking it seriously and giving it his best. It was one of Harry's favorite things about him, how he never did anything halfway.

"Anything worth doing is worth doing well, Potter, even if I have to stock up on Nausea Potions to get through it," he'd said with a smirk when Harry asked him about it one day.

Harry hadn't gone home before Scorpius' bedtime in weeks. It had just become part of the routine, and Draco never asked him to leave. It worked out quite well, though; Harry got to spend more time with both of them, and Draco had time to study in the evenings. Harry always made sure he took breaks to actually relax or have fun with them, too, and Draco seemed happier. It was so domestic, and Harry felt like he was in heaven. They all clicked so well together, that sometimes, he'd forget they weren't actually a couple because they kind of just... acted like a family. It was all so seamless, and it was like Draco didn't even notice the change, that's how well they all fit, how well Harry fit with them. He loved it so much.

Harry was taking the day to teach Scorpius how to bake bread for supper. Scorpius wanted spaghetti, and Harry thought homemade garlic bread would be great with it.

"Why does it have to rest, Harry? Does the bread get tired?" Scorpius asked him, poking at the little ball of dough that was resting under a towel.

Harry barked out a laugh, drying his hands on the apron he had wrapped around his waist. "No, bread doesn't get tired, buddy."

"But you put it to bed!" he argued. "You gave it a blanket and everything."

Harry blinked. It did look a bit like he put the dough to bed inside its bowl, covered with a towel like a blanket. "I suppose I did," he chuckled. "The bread has to rest so it can rise, and get bigger. Just like you when you sleep," he said, tickling Scorpius, who giggled.

"I get so much bigger when I sleep, I'm almost bigger than you now!"

Harry arched an eyebrow at him, looking down at the boy who was absolutely not almost bigger than him. "Not quite yet, but I'm sure you'll pass me up soon enough, if you're anything like your dad," he laughed.

"No, no, my papa," Scorpius corrected. "Can we make cupcakes?"

Harry was about to finally ask him why on earth he called Draco papa instead of daddy, but before he could, they heard the Floo roar to life. Harry frowned, glancing at the clock. It was barely four o'clock. Draco was never home this early.

"Papa's home!" Scorpius cried out, immediately jumping off his stool to run and greet his father.

Harry chuckled, grabbing a wet cloth to start wiping down the island where they'd been working. He was home early enough that they could definitely do game night tonight.

He startled badly, however, heart jumping into his throat in fear when he heard a loud shout.

"No! Potter!" Draco yelled out, sounding panicked.

Harry dropped the rag and bolted into the living room without hesitation, wand already in his hand, unsure what he would find when he got there.

"What?! What's wrong?" he asked frantically, looking around for whatever the threat was. All he saw, however, was Scorpius standing near the doorway and Draco pressed up against the far wall, sleeve of his forest green intern robes pulled up over his hand, covering his nose and mouth.

Scorpius burst into tears, clinging to Harry is distress. "Papa yelled at me," he sobbed, and Harry looked up at Draco in shock.

What?! What on earth for? Harry had never once heard Draco raise his voice at his son, not one time since he'd started working there. He'd get stern when it was warranted, but he never yelled.

Harry was going to ask him what Scorpius had even done wrong, but his eyes locked on Draco's pale face, looking far more pale than usual, his wide eyes rimmed in red, hair uncharacteristically disheveled. He... did not look well at all. Confusion was instantly replaced with concern.

"Hey, are you alright? You look dreadful," he said softly, squeezing Scorpius' shoulder before stepping closer to check on Draco.

Draco held his hand up in a halting motion, though, pressing himself even closer to the wall, and Harry froze. "Stop! Don't come any closer, Potter," he said, before shifting his eyes back to Scorpius and softening his voice. "Scorpius, I wasn't yelling at you, love. I just didn't want you to get too close to me. I'm sorry I raised my voice."

"Why don't you want to hug me?" Scorpius said, sounding heartbroken, and it made Harry's heart break right along with him.

"I do want to," he said softly, and Scorpius perked up. "But I can't." His face fell. "I'm sick."

He was quite obviously sick. He was looking worse by the minute.

"You're sick?" Scorpius said, wiping his face, and staring at his father in concern. "You take care of me when I'm sick. I can take care of you!"

"Oh, love," Draco said, silver eyes filled with emotion. "I would love that, but you can't. It's really contagious, and I don’t want you catching it. My boss sent me home. Potter," Draco said, looking to Harry, and Harry perked up, dying to know how he could help. "Could you please take him to my parents? I don't know what else to do yet, but he can't be here while I figure it out. Tell them I'll Firecall later tonight after I've had time to think."

"Of course I will," Harry said immediately, voice quiet. "Go lie down, Malfoy, I'll pack him a bag and take him over right away."

"Thank you," Draco said, not moving from his spot until they had retreated upstairs.

"Papa is sick," Scorpius said sadly. "I don't want him to be sick. I don't want to leave him."

"Neither do I, love, but he's right," Harry told him as he summoned the small travel bag out of his closet, "it's not safe for you to be here if he's contagious. He'll feel a whole lot worse if you end up catching it, yeah? He just wants you to be healthy."

Scorpius pouted, crossing his arms while Harry packed his toothbrush and a few changes of clothing in his bag, probably more than he'd need, but he had no idea how long this would last.

Scorpius was still pouting when he zipped up the bag, and he smiled at the small boy. "You know," Harry said, crouching in front of him, "I bet you're going to have way more fun at your grandparents big, fancy Manor than you would have here, stuck inside without anyone to play with. I know your Grammy misses you so much, she'll be so excited to see you, and so will Grampy and Dandy."

"But I'll miss you," Scorpius cried, and Harry's heart melted.

"I promise, I'll call you every day, okay? I'll let you know how your papa is doing, too. Maybe you can even come have a sleepover with me at my house one day," Harry said, waggling his eyebrows to hopefully make that sound more enticing. His house wasn’t great, but one night wouldn’t hurt.

It worked. Scorpius lit up like a Christmas tree. "Really?"

Harry nodded. "Yep. I know I can get your papa to say yes, too. I have a secret weapon."

"What weapon?"

"I just have to look at him like this," Harry said, then put on his best puppy dog pout, the same one he'd used on Draco before, and Scorpius gasped, then giggled wildly.

"That's a funny face!"

"Yep, and it works every time," Harry told him with a wink.

Scorpius seemed to consider what they'd talked about, and then he nodded decisively. "Okay. We can go. I want papa to get better."

"Me too," Harry said, slinging the bag over his shoulder and holding his arms out for the little boy to jump into.

When they left the room, Malfoy's door was shut, and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He must be in bed, then. Great. They Flooed over to the Manor, and Dandy popped up to greet them immediately, bowing low at Harry.

"Harry Potter is here with the little Master unannounced," he croaked. "Is you needing anything?"

"Hello, Dandy," Harry greeted him. "Is Narcissa home? Or Lucius, I suppose." The Elf nodded. "I need to have a word with her, tell her it's a minor emergency, please."

Dandy bowed again, then disappeared, and it was barely a minute later when Mrs. Malfoy swept into the room, looking mildly alarmed.

"Grammy!" Scorpius shrieked, running at her. She smiled at him, catching him up in a hug before she turned concerned eyes to Harry.

"Harry, dear, what's wrong?"

"Draco is sick," he explained. "He didn't say with what, but he looked terrible, and it must be bad or he wouldn't have had Scorpius leave."

"Oh, no, my poor dragon," she said sadly. "Is he alright?"

"He was in his room when I left. Would you be able to keep him for the evening while we work something out? I'd keep him with me, but I need to go back and check on him. I'm worried about him being there alone."

She gave him such a warm smile at that. "That's so kind of you, darling. Of course we can watch him, for as long as needed."

"Thank you," Harry told her softly. "I'll be in touch soon when I have an update. I'd better get back now."

"Please do. I'll speak with you soon. Scorpius, my darling, I believe the House Elves are making creme brûlée tonight for dessert, would you like to go help them?"

"Yes! Bye bye, Harry, I'll miss you. Give papa a kiss for me. And tell him to feel better. Please?" Scorpius asked with big eyes.

Narcissa hid a laugh behind her hand, eyes glittering in amusement, and Harry choked out a laugh at the very inappropriate request. "Sure, Scorp, I'll do that," he agreed with a chuckle. "Have fun, okay?"

Scorpius nodded, and Narcissa led him out of the room, leaving him alone. His mind was spinning, trying to figure out what to do. He was definitely going back; he couldn't leave Draco alone in that house, at least not until Harry knew if he was okay and sure plans for Scorpius’ care were in place. He'd gladly keep the little boy with him if needed.

Making a split-second decision, Harry Apparated home to Grimmauld, running up the stairs to his bathroom. He gathered up a few items that he tended to use whenever Teddy was sick, just in case. Draco was a Healer, so he probably had plenty of potions on hand, but he definitely wouldn't have VapoRub at his house, it was a muggle remedy. He headed back towards the stairs, but doubled back last second, grabbing himself a few changes of clothing as well, just in case, and stuffing them into his bag. Satisfied, he Flooed back over to Draco's.

Harry set his bag down on the couch and then headed straight upstairs to check on Draco, but frowned when he saw that his door was open, room empty, bed clearly unslept in. What the fuck? He checked Scorpius' room, but that was also empty, and so was his study.

He was beginning to actually worry by the time he made it back downstairs, but he relaxed when he passed the kitchen and saw Draco sitting on the floor, one leg bent at the knee, one leg splayed out, back propped up against the cupboards, sound asleep while the kettle steamed away on the counter in front of him. He'd changed his clothes into a pair of gray muggle joggers and a soft white tee shirt, and his hair was a mess, sticking to his temples and neck where a light sheen of sweat coated his skin.

His heart clenched, seeing Draco so obviously ill, and he wondered briefly again exactly how bad this illness was going to get. He crouched down in front of the man, leaning in close and gently brushing some of the sweat dampened hair off of his neck and forehead.

"Malfoy," he said softly, repeating it a few times until he got a response.

It took a moment, but Draco's eyes fluttered open, red rimmed and unfocused, like he couldn't pull himself out of his sleepy state. Christ, he looked even more unwell than when Harry had left him half an hour ago.

"Malfoy, are you alright?" he asked, feeling incredibly worried.

Draco hummed softly in response, his eyes locked on Harry's, his face taking on a dreamy look. "Mmmm, pretty," he breathed, swaying closer to Harry.

Harry's eyes widened in shock, having no idea how to react to what was happening. Did he just call Harry pretty? Draco was clearly in a delirious state, but he was leaning in like- like he wanted to kiss Harry, or something. But he was ill! There was no way he was in his right mind, and Harry made an involuntary sound of distress in the back of his throat, trying to force himself to back away, now.

He didn't have to pull away, though, because a split second later, Draco seemed to realize what he was doing and he jerked backwards, looking horrified and confused. He tried to scramble further away, but his back was already against the cupboards, leaving him nowhere to go.

"Potter?" he asked in a confused panic, quickly covering his lower face with the neck of his shirt, scooting himself to the side to put more distance between them. "What the fuck are you doing here? You can't be here!" he hissed.

"I needed to check on you," Harry said, trying to move closer, needing to soothe his panic. "You're awfully ill, Malfoy; you shouldn't be here alone."

"Stop!" Draco rasped. "Potter, I appreciate your concern, truly I do, but you can't be here."

Like hell he couldn't be. There was no way, no way in hell, he was going to leave Draco alone in this state, to sleep on the floor and hallucinate.

"Malfoy-"

"No. I have Scrofungulus, it's not like a common cold, Potter. You don't want to catch this-" he tried to explain, attempting to stand up, but it seemed to be too much for him, and he gave up with a groan.

Harry had no idea what Scrofungulus was. He'd never heard of it before, but it sounded unpleasant. He wasn't leaving, he didn't care what Malfoy said. He never got sick anyway; the last thing he was worried about right now was catching... whatever that was. Scrofungulus.

"Malfoy," Harry said sternly. "I'll be fine. Really. I never get sick. I haven't been sick in twenty years, at least. Not even a sniffle. You need help," he said, moving slowly towards Draco like he was a caged animal. "You can't even get up, let me help you."

"I-" Draco started, eyes darting around in fear when Harry knelt back down in front of him again.

"Shh," Harry soothed, brushing his hair back out of his eyes. Jesus, he was so warm. Uncontrollable protectiveness reared up in him. Harry wanted to wrap him up and rock him and keep him safe and comfortable, needed to take care of him until he felt better. He'd do it for any of his friends without a second thought, but it was even more important to him now because it was Draco. His heart throbbed painfully at how exhausted Draco looked. "You're fevered. I'm taking you to bed," Harry said firmly.

Draco didn't fight him. He refused to lower his shirt away from his mouth and nose, but he let Harry scoop him up, exactly like he'd done back in Eighth Year when he'd taken Draco to the Hospital Wing, and carry him up to bed.

Harry was short, but he was strong and sturdy. Malfoy may be tall, but he was still quite trim, willowy. Lifting him hadn't been any more difficult than it was years ago. Harry laid Draco gently in bed on top of his duvet, and he curled up on his side right away.

"I'll be right back," Harry told him before jogging back downstairs. He quickly made Draco a cup of tea, wet a clean flannel, and grabbed several potions from the bathroom, along with a few items from his bag and carried everything back upstairs, setting the tea down carefully before arranging the rest of the items on Draco's bedside table.

Harry noticed Draco trying to sit up, so he quickly moved over to help him, handing him the tea and a small vial of Fever Reducing Potion. Draco grimaced, but dutifully drank the potion down, making a face as he handed Harry the empty vial back and chased it with his tea.

Harry sat on the end of his bed, pulling Draco's feet into his lap, stripping off his socks. It was a testament to how lousy Draco was feeling that he didn't even protest, just let him rub a thick layer of VapoRub on the bottoms of his feet and replace his socks when he'd finished, casting an easy Tergeo on his hands to get the remaining greasy layer off.

"What was that?" Draco rasped.

"Muggle stuff," Harry told him. "VapoRub. I brought it from home. It'll help you sleep a bit better while you're fevered. I use it on Teddy when he's ill."

"I'm supposed to be the Healer," Draco grumbled.

"Of course you are," Harry soothed gently, "but right now, you're the patient."

Please, please let me take care of you.

"I have to call my parents," Draco said suddenly. "Pansy is supposed to pick up Scorpius. I need the Floo."

Ah. That was why he was downstairs, then. He'd been making arrangements for Scorpius to stay somewhere that wasn't the Manor. Harry didn't realize he worried about his son being alone with them that much. No matter. He'd Firecall Pansy later and make sure they were both on the same page with plans. Right now, Malfoy was exhausted and he needed to get some sleep.

"I'll call them and let them know, don't worry about it. Let's just get you under the covers so you can sleep."

Draco didn't argue further, wiggling around a bit so Harry could pull the duvet out from under him before tucking him in snugly. He didn't want Draco to get too hot under the thick blanket with his fever, so he grabbed the cool, damp flannel and placed it on the back of his neck. Draco hummed contentedly.

"You should go home, Potter," Draco slurred out, closing his eyes.

Harry just sat there on his bed, tracing his fingers gently over Draco's brow, brushing his damp hair back to keep him a bit cooler. "We'll see," he replied, but Draco was already fast asleep.

Harry watched him for a long minute, watching the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. Even ill, he was so, so lovely. He sighed, forcing himself to get up and let the man sleep. There were other things to attend to now that he had Draco squared away. First order of business was to hunt down Draco's Healer textbooks and see if he could figure out what exactly Scrofungulus even was, so he'd know how to help Draco get through it. All he knew was that it must be unpleasant, or people wouldn't be admitted at Mungo's with it, and Draco wouldn't have been so insistent on being alone while he suffered through it.

He finally found the correct book on magical bugs in the living room, set haphazardly on the small table next to the sofa, the side Draco was always curled up on when he studied. He flipped through it until he found the correct entry, frowning at the clinical description of the illness.

Scrofungulus (tuberculous cervical lymphadenitis)

A type of fungal tuberculosis that starts in the neck, caused by contact with rare magical fungi.

Scrofungulus is highly contagious, and can also infect Goblins and House Elves. Patients should be housed away from non-infected persons, but infected persons may be housed together, as risk of reinfection is extremely rare.

Symptoms will present with a sore throat and fever, followed quickly by pain, headache, exhaustion, delirium, and finally, itching, accompanied by a rash that looks like algae, or tentacle-like growths on the face, neck, extremities, and torso.

Sickness typically lasts 4-10 days. If symptoms become severe or are left untreated, rash can spread to internal organs and result in hospitalization, or even death in rare instances.

Harry paled. Death?! This could be fatal? That was more than a little concerning! There was no way, in any of the seven circles of hell, that Harry would be going home now. Not a chance. He'd stay and make sure Draco was treated and cared for, kept safe. Nothing was going to happen to him. He forced himself to keep reading, scanning down the page until he found the section for treatment.

Treatment can include: mild Pain-Relieving Potions, Immunoelixer, Wound Cleansing Potions, and bandages soaked in Essence of Murtlap applied to the rash. Keep all affected areas clean and dry, and try to prevent itching, as that can cause the rash to spread further. Hospitalization recommended if the patient cannot wake, experiences shallow breathing or episodes of not breathing, coughs up blood, or develops a fever over 40° that does not come down with traditional methods.

Okay. He could handle that. The treatment was doable, and he could always have Hermione owl him the correct potions, if Draco didn't have them on hand. He was going to be okay. He'd be fine.

He called Hermione anyway in a slight panic, and she'd assured him that Draco would be alright. Ron had even popped his head in and told Harry that his family had all had it once when he was a kid, and obviously no one had died, or even ended up in the hospital. It hadn't been pleasant, but it was far from the worst magical disease out there.

Hermione had talked to him a few minutes longer after he'd calmed down, and promised to owl over enough potions for ten days and some Essence of Murtlap as soon as possible, before reminding him that he'd read a giant medical text, so of course it sounded clinical and scary; it was meant to be informative, not comforting. He certainly felt informed.

He ended the Firecall with her, and nipped upstairs to check on Draco again, who was still sound asleep, then called Pansy.

"Potter?" she said in confusion when she'd popped her head into the fireplace. "Are you still at Draco's? He's ill, you shouldn't be there," she scolded him.

"I'm staying with him," Harry told her. "I can't leave him alone like this. I'll be fine, though, I don't get sick."

"Of course you don't," she rolled her eyes good naturedly. "What did you need, then? Is he alright?"

"He's asleep. He's feeling pretty rough, though, and worried about Scorp. The book I read said he could be out for up to ten days, and I just wanted to make sure that care for him was lined up. He said you're to pick him up later?"

"I told him I could pick him up this evening and keep him until Sunday, but Blaise and I have a trip booked for our anniversary that I can't cancel. So, I have four days covered. Does he have enough with him at the Manor for that long?"

"He does, I packed his bag for a few days. What about Sunday, where are you supposed to bring him if Draco's still not well?"

"He didn't say," she said, frowning a bit. "I know he doesn't want Scorpius staying at the Manor, though; he's so worried that his father will try to corrupt him or something, but truly, he'd be fine there. He's just afraid of his son turning out like... well, like he had been."

Harry bit his lip. He had a feeling Narcissa would flay her husband alive if he tried anything like that with her grandson, but Draco was his father. If he didn't want Scorpius to spend the night alone there, then Harry would respect his wishes without question.

"Well, let's wait and see how he's doing, and maybe I can have Andromeda keep him. She loves having him round, and I'm sure he'd be thrilled to stay a few days with his cousin. At least it's an option," he tried.

Pansy's whole demeanor softened. "I think that's a perfect plan," she said softly. "Thank you for staying with him, Harry. For being so good to him. I hope you know how much he appreciates you."

Harry felt his face heat up, at the compliment and at her use of his first name. "I'm happy to help," he replied quietly, giving her a small smile.

"I know you are, darling. Don't worry about Scorpius, I'll pick him up tonight and I'll just call you on Sunday morning before our flights to see where to bring him. How does that sound?"

"That's perfect," he grinned, breathing a sigh of relief. That was handled, hopefully in a way that Draco would be satisfied with. "I promised him I'd call him every day since he's worried about his father, but I won't intrude too much," he assured her, and she just rolled her eyes again, laughing. 

"Intrude? That's a funny way to say 'care'," she said with a smirk. "You call as much as you like. He'd be lost without hearing from you anyway, that child idolizes you."

Harry dropped his gaze, a shy grin spreading across his face. "I love him, too, more than I ever imagined."

They ended the call quickly after that. That was Scorpius squared away. Harry sat back on his haunches, glancing around the room. He'd have to sleep down here. Scorpius' room was closest, but he felt weird sleeping in his bed, especially without actually being invited to stay; he'd kind of invited himself. Draco's bed was out of the question for obvious reasons, so, couch it was. It was a bit hard, but Cushioning Charms existed. He'd set up a ward to alert him if Draco got out of bed, but he doubted he'd be sleeping much anyway.

Harry dug through Draco's hall closet to find an extra set of sheets and a blanket, and set himself up a makeshift bed on the couch before making more tea to take upstairs.

Draco was still dead to the world, so he just left the tea under a Warming Charm and set the ward before his stomach growled, reminding him it was way past supper. He headed back down to clean up his mess from the kitchen earlier, and make something quick to eat. That bread had to be way over proofed by now, and would have to be tossed out, but he would just make himself a cheese toastie or something, now that it would be just him eating. He wasn't going to wake Draco up to eat while he was sick. Not yet, anyway.

He'd finished eating and reapplied a new cool flannel to Draco's neck by the time he heard Ron and Hermione's owl at the window, carrying quite a large package. Harry grinned when he opened it, finding not only the Potions and Essence of Murtlap he'd asked for, but a note detailing how often each potion could be given, several rolls of bandages, an extra box of tea, more clothing of his that she'd clearly stopped and grabbed from Grimmauld Place, a deck of playing cards, and a book of crosswords, 'for when he inevitably got bored'. She really was the absolute best.

*

Harry was jolted awake by a loud bang, and he was momentarily disoriented by where he was until he recognized the ward he'd set going off. Draco was out of bed, and judging by that loud crash, had most likely fallen.

He was off the couch and up the stairs before he could blink, gasping when he opened the door and saw Draco on the floor, trying to crawl to the bathroom. Harry was by his side in an instant. He reached down to gingerly lift him off the floor and helping him to his feet, but he was hot. Unnaturally hot. "You should have called for me," he gently chided. "Fuck, you're burning up, Malfoy."

"Have to piss," Draco grunted out, clearly in a lot of pain, and Harry helped him to the bathroom, leaving him long enough to do his business in private before helping him straight back to bed.

"Call if you need anything, I'll be right downstairs," Harry told him, wanting to make sure he heard before he fell back asleep. There was no need for him to try and get up by himself when he could obviously barely function. It was dangerous.

Harry cast a quick spell to check his temperature, chewing on his lip nervously when it told him 40.3°. That was really bloody high. He hurried to re-wet the now very warm flannel that had been on Draco's neck before, casting a Cooling Charm on it for extra measure before re-applying it to his neck. Draco shivered when it touched his skin, but he didn't wake up, and Harry summoned the potions Hermione had sent over, setting the whole box on the bedside table Draco didn't use to sort through them. He double checked her list, and grabbed the appropriate potions before sitting next to Draco and trying to prop him up enough to swallow without choking.

"Malfoy, can you wake up enough to take these for me?" Harry asked him softly.

Draco just groaned softly, eyelids fluttering but not opening. Harry stroked his throat gently as he held the vial up to his lips, trying to get him to rouse just enough to drink it. "Come on, darling," he murmured, the term of endearment slipping out on accident. Draco whined, clouded eyes blinking up at him in confusion. He looked so miserable, and Harry's heart clenched. "I just need you to take a drink for me, then you can go back to sleep," he promised.

Draco fussed a bit more, but did eventually drink all three potions down, and Harry laid him gently back on the bed, staying with him until the fever came down to a less frightening temperature. He cast another Warming Charm at the tea, just in case he woke up again well enough to drink it and reset the wards before heading back down to the couch.

The entire next two days passed without Draco gaining any type of lucidity. Harry was able to rouse him enough to take his potions, and chuckled as he grumbled nonsensically about them tasting like a Hippogriff's arse, but he hadn't even had to go to the bathroom again, probably dehydrated. He started having Draco take sips of water when he gave him his potions, just to keep some fluid in him, and he carefully checked his skin every time he went up, looking for any sign of the rash popping up, hoping that maybe he'd get lucky and wouldn't get it.

Draco had taken to shivering, the high fever making him feel cold and clammy, and all Harry could do was bring him extra blankets and try to keep the sweat wiped off his skin and his clothing clean, feeling helpless.

He stress-cooked quite a bit on the third day, prepping meals that mostly consisted of soup in advance for when Draco could eat again. He checked on the other man every hour, terrified that the fever was still so high, just lingering and refusing to stay gone. The potions gave him a bit of a reprieve, at least; Draco seemed to sleep less fitfully after he'd taken them.

He called Pansy that evening and let her know there was no way Scorpius could come home the next day, and then he'd called Andromeda, making sure that it was still alright if Scorpius could come stay with her until Draco was feeling better. She'd easily agreed, and Harry told her that he'd drop him off in the morning when Pansy brought him by Grimmauld.

Early on the fourth day, he had to meet Pansy to get Scorpius and take him to Andromeda's. He fretted over leaving Draco alone in the house, but he had no choice. No one else could be around him, and Pansy didn't have her Floo connected to Andromeda's to take him herself. So, Harry made sure Draco was still sleeping soundly, cast a strong Sanitizing Charm on himself, then quickly Flooed over to Grimmauld. Pansy and Scorpius were already there, and the small boy greeted him enthusiastically, and he quickly filled her in on Draco's state.

"Pans, would you stay on Firecall with Malfoy's house? Just in case he wakes up, I need someone listening, please. I promise I'll be quick," he asked pleadingly.

"Of course, go on and take him now, I have some time before I have to leave," she'd agreed.

He'd thanked her, and Apparated directly to Andromeda's living room with Scorpius, thanking her profusely and giving Teddy and Scorpius both an extra tight hug.  "I'll be checking in," Harry assured her, but she waved him off, telling him to get back before he worried himself into a tizzy.

He Apparated back to Grimmauld, thanking Pansy again for keeping an ear out, and she'd assured him she hadn't heard a sound before kissing him on the cheek and Apparating back home.

When Harry returned, sure enough, Draco was still sound asleep, but his skin... the rash had come, blotchy redness spreading on his neck, face, torso, and arms. It didn't appear to be on his lower body, but it was clearly bothering him. Harry could see his arms twitching and spasming, trying to scratch the parts of himself he could reach.

Fuck. He couldn't scratch like that; he'd only make it worse.

Harry wracked his brain, trying to think of what he could do to help. He had the Essence of Murtlap, but Draco was still so sweat sticky from the fever, shivering until his teeth chattered. He needed a better cleaning that just Cleaning Charms and wet flannels, and Harry knew just how to soothe his skin.

He slipped into Draco's bathroom to start running him a warm bath before he ran downstairs, grabbing a cannister of oats and some milk and taking them back up to the bathroom. He poured most of the milk into the tub, followed by a few handfuls of the oats, stirring it around with his hand.

His cousin Dudley had the chicken pox once when they were young, and he remembered his Aunt Petunia giving him a milk and oatmeal bath to stop him from itching, and to keep the spots from getting too dry and sore. There were few, very few, things he was grateful to have learned from her, but this was one of them. He tried not to remember how angry she'd been at him for not catching the chicken pox himself.

He added a few drops of lavender oil to the water, hoping it might help soothe him back to sleep and mask some of the oatmeal smell. Draco was so finicky, Harry didn't know if he'd particularly enjoy knowing he was bathing in food. It would be good for him, though.

When the bath was ready, he went back to Draco, running fingers through his sweat dampened hair, carefully avoiding any red areas on his face.

"Malfoy," Harry whispered, hating to wake him up. No reply. "Malfoy, come on," Harry repeated.

Silver eyes fluttered in confusion, still so unfocused. "You're shivering. I ran you a bath, I thought it might help you warm up and help the pain a bit," Harry said softly.

Draco whined piteously, struggling to even lift his head, and Harry's heart clenched painfully.

"Come on, darling, I've got you," Harry whispered, barely audible, and bent down to scoop Draco up into his arms, carrying him carefully to the bathroom.

"Harry?" Draco rasped groggily.

Harry's heart skipped a beat at hearing his name, his actual name, come from Draco's mouth. He was half out of it, and Harry didn't know if that meant he didn't know what he was saying, or if it meant he thought of Harry as Harry, but it didn't matter right now. It was not the time to get caught up in it, not while Draco needed him. He had a task to focus on.

"I'm here," he reassured Draco, carefully setting him down on the closed toilet. "I'm going to help you undress, alright? I'll leave your pants on, I promise."

Draco nodded faintly and let Harry undress him, which he did as carefully as possible, vanishing his damp clothing to the laundry to deal with later. Harry left Draco's briefs on him and kept his eyes carefully averted as he helped lower him into the water, smiling when Draco sighed contentedly and sank deeper into the water.

Draco drifted off while Harry bathed him, lifting handfuls of water over his neck and shoulders to help soothe the itch, gently washing the dried sweat from his skin, massaging his sore limbs and rubbing grapefruit and cedar scented shampoo and conditioner into his hair.

Harry let him doze for a few minutes, just long enough to go change his bedsheets, then came back and wrapped Draco in a fluffy towel that he'd cast a Warming Charm on and carried him back to bed. He didn't stir, even when Harry brushed his hair back from his face. 

"I'll be downstairs, alright? I'll come back to check on you soon," he murmured, not expecting an answer as he stood up to leave, but Draco whimpered, blinking sleepily up at Harry. He reached out towards Harry like he wanted to grab onto him.

"Stay," he muttered, eyes falling shut, breathing evening out in sleep.

Harry didn't know what to do. He wanted to stay. He wanted nothing more than to hold Draco while he slept, but that was why he probably shouldn't. Draco wasn't lucid, probably didn't even know who he was talking to.

But he said your name, a small voice in the back of his mind reminded him. He was aware of who Harry was, and he'd asked Harry to stay. He didn't want to be alone. Harry bit his lip, torn. Maybe it would be alright. It's not like he'd be doing anything inappropriate; it was just sleeping. He cuddled with Teddy and Victoire when they were sick, and he'd done it with Ginny, too, even after they'd broken up. And it would certainly be more comfortable than the sofa.

Mind made up, he sat back down on the bed. "Okay," he whispered, toeing his socks off and shifting under the blankets. He pulled Draco close to him until his chest was pressed to Draco's burning hot back, and buried his nose in masses of sweet smelling, white blonde hair. "You're going to be just fine," Harry whispered with a yawn. It was so warm and comfortable, and his lack of sleep was already beginning to catch up to him. "I'll take care of you."

*

On the fifth day, the rash had gotten worse. Poor Draco was now covered in red, painful looking lesions and strange, scaly, algae-like growths. At least he didn't have tentacles sprouting out of his body, but it still looked miserable. Harry spent most of the day wiping him down with Essence of Murtlap and monitoring his fever, which was finally starting to go down a bit, to his immense relief.

It was getting dark out, and Harry had gone downstairs to refill the bowl of Murtlap and fetch clean rags from the laundry. He had also heated up some of the soup he'd made. It had been too long since Draco had eaten, and Harry was determined to get some food into him.

When he was almost back upstairs, he heard a faint call of, "Potter?" Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He was awake, and he sounded aware. Thank fuck.

"I'm here," Harry told him, bustling into the room. Draco was partially sitting up in bed, watching Harry with confused eyes, but they were much clearer than they had been for the last several days.

Harry carefully set the Murtlap and the pile of rags on the bedside table before sitting on the bed near Draco's head, keeping the soup in his lap. He pressed the back of his hand to Draco's forehead, then the back of his neck to check his temperature. Normal.

"Oh, good! The fever finally broke," he said in relief, grinning at Draco. "That was a bad one, I was getting worried I'd have to take you in to Mungo's." That was putting it mildly. He'd been terrified, but he didn't need to scare Draco by going into detail about how bad he'd been.

Draco stared at him before lowering his gaze to his lap. "You shouldn't be here," he said softly.

"We've already been over that. I made you soup, you should try to eat," Harry said, dismissing his concern and lifting a spoonful of soup to Draco's mouth. He didn't take it.

"Why are you still here?" he asked instead.

"To take care of you. Eat, please," he said softly, but Draco ignored him again.

"I'm disgusting," he whispered miserably, face scrunched up like he wanted to cry.

"You're ill," Harry corrected him gently. "Eat."

Even covered in unsightly sores, Draco was still the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

Draco finally accepted the spoon into his mouth, allowing Harry to feed him until the entire bowl was gone.

"You could never be disgusting," Harry murmured when Draco had finished the bowl. He couldn't stand the thought of him thinking that about himself, didn't want him to think that Harry thought that, even for a second. Draco frowned a bit, a small crease forming between his brows, but he didn't argue.

"What time is it?" He asked instead.

"Around six."

"What? That can't be right. I didn't get home that much before six," Draco protested. Did he still think it was Wednesday? "What day is it?"

"It's Monday evening," Harry informed him gently.

Panic overtook Draco's face, then. "Oh, my God," he said, throwing the blankets back to try and stand on shaky legs. "Scorpius-"

"Is just fine," Harry interrupted him, guiding him back under the covers. "I've been handling it. I talked to Pansy. He's fine."

"Where is he? Is he at the Manor? Can you check on him? Please. I know they'd never hurt him, but I don't trust that father won't say..." Horrible, despicable things, went unsaid.

"Pansy said you weren't crazy about him staying with your parents, so I had her bring him to mine last night instead, and I Flooed over and took him to stay with Andromeda and Teddy. Pansy stayed on Firecall here while I was gone in case you needed anything, but you slept right through it. I've been checking in on him regularly, he's having a blast; seems to really love having someone around his age to play with. I hope you're not angry that I took liberties..." Harry trailed off, realizing how controlling that sounded, suddenly afraid that Malfoy might be upset with him now that he was awake. "Are you angry?"

"Merlin, no," Draco breathed, and Harry instantly relaxed. "My aunt was okay with that? My parents were okay with it?"

Harry had already handled that as well, not wanting to hurt Narcissa's feelings by telling her that Draco didn't want Scorpius to stay with her. He shook his head. "Andy adores him; she loves when I take him to visit. He's such an easy kid, really, and Teddy is loving having his cousin stay with him. I told your mum that her sister really wanted to get to know him, and she seemed to like that. I think she actually went and had tea with them this afternoon."

Draco stared at him in wonder. "I can't believe you did all of this. Why? You shouldn't even be working at all."

"I'm not working," Harry shrugged. "I'm helping out someone I care about." That was putting it mildly. "Now, lean back so I can take care of that rash."

Draco studied him for a moment, then finally complied, relaxing against the pillows, trusting Harry. Harry gave him a small smile and began carefully wiping his rash down with the Murtlap Essence before handing him his potions to take, which he did without a fuss this time.

"You fought taking those a lot while you were out of it, you know," Harry chuckled.

"Did I?" Draco asked, sounding surprised.

"You did. Said they tasted like the back end of a Hippogriff, actually. Not a terribly far off assessment, if you ask me."

"I don't remember that at all," Draco said, sinking lower into his bed and pulling up the covers.

Harry hesitated, last night flashing back to him, sleeping in Draco's bed, holding him tightly while he sweated out the fever. "What do you remember?"

"Being miserable, mostly. I remember falling out of bed and you- did you give me a bath? I remember being in water," Draco said, perplexed.

"I did," Harry admitted. "A milk and oatmeal bath. You were scratching so much in your sleep; I thought it might help the itch. I left your pants on, if you're worried about that," he added hastily, the tips of his ears heating up in embarrassment.

Draco blinked at him, like the thought of himself being naked in front of Harry hadn't even crossed his mind and didn't concern him in the least. Which, fair, because he was gorgeous. What did he have to be ashamed of? "Oh. No, I wasn't thinking about that at all. Are you having any symptoms? No exhaustion or headache?"

"None whatsoever," Harry said, cracking a smile. "I told you; I don't get sick. Neville got Dragon Pox a couple of years ago, and I was the one who took him in to Mungo's. They made me isolate in the Hospital for two weeks afterwards because they were sure I'd catch it, too. Never did, though."

"Count yourself lucky, then," Draco said seriously. "Is Longbottom alright?"

"Oh, he's fine now. Was down for about a month, but he made a full recovery. Too bad you weren't working there then; we could have reconnected ages ago," Harry said with a laugh. Wouldn't that have been something.

"Yeah," Draco said quietly. He suddenly looked exhausted.

Harry's face softened. "Get some more sleep, Malfoy. I'll still be here if you need anything," he told Draco gently, getting up from the bed and slipping out of the room, trying not to think about what might have happened if he had met back up with Draco years ago.

*

Harry had checked back in on him a few times through the night. His rash had almost completely faded by morning, and when he popped in the last time, he'd left a fresh cup of tea and a bowl of soup out for him for when he woke up. He went back downstairs to fold up his blankets and pack his bag away, figuring he wouldn't need to stay another night, then Firecalled Andromeda to update her.

Harry had just finished up when he felt his ward alerting him that Draco was out of bed, and he hurried upstairs to check on him. He wasn't in bed, but the tea and soup were both gone, and the bathroom door was shut, a tiny bit of steam escaping under the door. He knocked on the door softly.

"Malfoy?" Harry called out to him. "Are you alright in there?"

"I'm fine, Potter," Draco responded, sounding much better. "Just had a shower, I'll be out shortly."

"Okay," Harry replied, slipping back out of the room. He went straight to the kitchen, picking up a rag and violently scrubbed the island top, like he was could scrub the image of Draco in the shower away with it.

"Hi," Draco said quietly, taking a seat at the kitchen island. Harry snapped his head up, startled, and dropped his rag on the ground.

"Hi," Harry rasped back, picking up the rag hastily and wringing it in his hands, feeling inexplicably nervous.

Draco frowned at him, eyes darting over Harry's appearance. "Are you sure you're not ill? You don't look too well."

He tried not to feel self-conscious. He knew he looked a fright; six days of hardly any sleep and worrying himself ragged hadn't done him any favors.

"Nah, just a bit tired. Your couch isn't the most comfortable one I've ever slept on," he smiled wryly.

Draco blinked, frowning harder and crossing his arms. "You didn't have to sleep on the couch," Draco said. "You could have gone home, or stayed in Scorpius' bed, at least."

Harry shrugged. He knew he could have, but it felt wrong. "It was fine. You definitely shouldn't have been on your own during that, it was pretty bad. I could hear you easier from the sofa," he lied, trying not to cringe. He was a horrible liar, and he knew it. So did Draco, if his unimpressed face was anything to go by.

"You're a terrible liar, Potter," he said not two seconds later, and Harry smirked. He was getting much better at reading Draco.

"I still think that couch would look better in yellow, by the way," he said, turning to put the kettle on and pull down two mugs.

"What is with you and yellow?" Draco asked, amused.

Harry shrugged again. "I like yellow," he said simply. It was his favorite color. It was a happy color.

"Maybe you should’ve been a Hufflepuff," Draco chuckled.

"You know, that's actually the only House the Sorting Hat didn't consider me for," he said, turning to slide Draco's cup of tea across the surface of the island.

"What? You mean it thought about putting you in Slytherin?" Draco asked, taken aback.

"Yup. I asked for Gryffindor, though," Harry told him.

"You could have been in Slytherin? Why didn't you want to be placed there?"

Harry hesitated. This could go very badly, but he really didn't want to lie to Draco, especially about something like this. It was something they’d have to get past eventually, anyway, might as well get it over with.

"Er. Because of you, actually," Harry said, sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck.

"Me?" Draco asked in surprise, eyebrows furrowing in confusion for a moment before his face fell in disappointment. "Was I that awful on the train?" he asked quietly.

Harry felt awful. "Well, yes, but it wasn't just the train. We met in Madam Malkin’s first, actually," Harry told him slowly. That didn't sound any better, but it was the truth.

"I don't remember that," Draco admitted. "What happened?"

"We were both getting fitted for robes. You weren't rude, per se, not for you, at least," Harry smirked, hoping to soften his words, "but you were going on about blood purity, and asking me about my parents, and I didn't know much about them at the time; it got under my skin. So, I already didn't like you when you introduced yourself on the train."

Harry took a deep breath, debating whether or not to continue. He hadn't told anyone anything about his family since... well. He felt anxiousness rolling around in his stomach. This was Draco, though. He wasn't Owen, and he deserved to know why Harry had been so resistant to him back them. It was part of their history, and Harry desperately wanted to clear the air, to get everything on the table, no hiding. If there was anything he’d learned from his failed relationships, it was that communication was so, so important.

"You reminded me a lot of my cousin," Harry admitted, "spoiled, judgmental, and egotistical, and I wanted to be as far away from people like him, my aunt, and my uncle as possible. Then you insulted Ron and Hagrid in one breath, the only two people I knew so far, and the only ones who had ever been nice to me, really, and it just kind of... sealed the deal."

Draco looked stunned, several emotions flickering through his eyes too quickly to pinpoint.

"I can practically hear you thinking," Harry laughed. "It's fine, really. We were eleven, not exactly the best versions of ourselves, yeah? I quite like you now," he assured him earnestly.

Draco didn't smile. He didn't look relieved at all; in fact, he looked even more upset. Oh no. Had this been a mistake? Was he angry that Harry had judged him as a child? Maybe he shouldn't have said anything.

"What are you thinking?" Harry asked softly, hoping he could clear up any misconceptions Draco was having.

Draco studied him in silence, looking like he was fighting some kind of internal battle, like he was holding himself back.

"If you have questions, you can ask," Harry told him, leaning against the small island with his elbows, trying to keep his posture open, tea sitting untouched next to him. "I'll answer whatever you want to know."

"I don't even know where to start," Draco mumbled, playing with the handle of his mug.

He was silent for another long moment for he finally spoke. "I always thought you grew up knowing who you were, and rather spoiled because of it. You didn't, though, did you?" he asked, glancing up at Harry, silver eyes practically boring into Harry's soul. Harry shook his head slowly. He could talk about this. He could trust Draco, he could.

"Nope. I had no idea magic even existed until Hagrid broke down our door on my eleventh birthday."

"Why, though? You lived with family. I know they're muggles, but surely they knew about magic?"

"Oh, they knew," Harry grimaced. "But they hated it. They thought they could keep me away from it. I got in so much trouble for performing accidental magic. I never knew what it was, though, I thought I was just a freak."

Draco appeared to digest this, looking troubled. "When you said no one was ever nice to you..." he trailed off uncomfortably, but didn't look away.

Harry shrugged, trying to look unbothered, keeping his voice light. "I meant just that. They didn't like me. They never wanted me, but Dumbledore basically guilted my aunt into taking me in. They never treated me like family, though, I guess you could say I was neglected."

"How bad?" Draco asked abruptly.

"Not that bad," Harry said evasively.

He picked up his rag again, wiping the counter so he had something else to focus on, needing to do something with his hands. It made it easier to talk about, and if he wanted to date Draco, if he wanted this to ever work, Draco needed to know about his past, at least to some degree. He knew it with Owen, and he knew it now, no matter how painful it was. He had to talk about it, and really, he wanted Draco to know, but he hated how uncomfortable this topic still made him, all these years later.

"I wasn't abused, just not really taken care of. They did let my cousin beat me up, I suppose, but I was more of a servant than anything. I did all the cooking and cleaning, and I got in trouble if I made any mistakes. All my clothes were Dudley's hand me downs, and he was quite big, so they never fit me properly. My bedroom was the cupboard under the stairs until I was ten. I was locked in there a lot, and not fed very often. They moved me to a bedroom after my Hogwarts letters started arriving, though. They were scared, I think."

He'd tried to make it sound... less awful, but Draco was silent for a long time. So long, that Harry finally glanced up at him nervously. He was staring at Harry with so much emotion, so much fury, that Harry was taken aback.

"Potter, that- that's abuse," he said quietly.

"No, it was-"

"Yes, it is," Draco ground out, cutting him off, jaw muscle twitching in anger. "It absolutely is. Don't make excuses for them. You were a little kid, an orphan, a bloody hero, even as a baby. The bare minimum you deserved was love."

Harry stared at him, hand finally stilling on the counter.

You deserved love.

And he knew that, didn't he? Hermione had certainly told him enough times, so did Ginny, and Ron, and Mrs. Weasley. He knew he hadn't deserved the way he'd been treated, but it was different hearing it from Draco. Maybe... maybe this wouldn't ruin his chances after all.

"I know," he said softly, eyes not leaving Draco's, "but it's easier if I don't think of it that way. They were miserable people. Still are, honestly, but I do get along more with my cousin now. I see him and his wife around the holidays," Harry told him. It was true. He'd never see his aunt and uncle again, but Dudley had grown up, changed. He'd apologized. He wasn't responsible for being born into a life of bigotry and hate any more than Draco had been.

"He was a lot like you, you know," Harry told him quietly. "Raised by bigots, not able to really think for himself until he was out from under their thumb. I think that's why I was able to forgive you so easily. In school, that wasn't really you, it was a mirroring of your upbringing. Who you are now, this Draco Malfoy,” he said, touching Draco’s hand, “who is smart and caring and a fantastic father, this is who you are."

Draco still looked distressed, but it had mostly faded into sadness. "I'm so sorry I was such a little arsehole," Draco whispered. "I was awful. How can you stand to be around me? Why are you nice to me?"

"Because you've grown up, Malfoy. People change. You certainly have, and so have I," Harry told him honestly. He'd let go of the past ages ago, before he even returned for Eighth Year. He'd forgiven Draco before he even spoke at his trial. He didn't want to be angry or hold grudges anymore. "What good would it do to hold a grudge forever when I can know you and enjoy you as you are now? You were a kid, parroting shite you were taught. It's not like you still think that way now that you know better, you know? And besides, life would be a lot less interesting without you and Scorpius in it."

Draco blinked rapidly, looking down at his lap. "I don't understand how you can be so forgiving to everyone," he said, "but I'll let it go for now."

Harry knew he still had more questions, questions that Harry would answer without hesitation, but he was relieved that Draco was willing to drop it for now. This topic always took a huge emotional toll on him.

Harry smiled at him gratefully, ready to find something else to do to take his mind off of it. "Are you hungry? You must be hungry."

Harry didn't wait for an answer, just pulled out pots and pans and a few ingredients to start cooking something. Draco had gone too long without food; he needed to get his strength back up. Cheese toasties and tomato soup. Hearty, but shouldn't be too heavy on his stomach.

"Potter, stop," Draco said abruptly, causing Harry to freeze in the middle of slicing a loaf of bread, looking up at him in confusion.

"That's where you learned to cook."

He meant from his aunt and uncle. "Yeah?" Harry confirmed, still confused.

"Why would you- you don't have to cook for me. Why do you cook for us so much? And clean the house? How can you stand it? You don't have to do any of this," he said desperately, looking genuinely distraught at the very thought of Harry doing something that reminded him of his childhood. It was so thoughtful and so sweet that he actually cared, and Harry couldn't stop the happy smile from stretching his cheeks.

"I love cooking. I didn't as a kid because I had no choice, but I love it now. It's relaxing. I don't think about them when I'm cooking. Or cleaning, for that matter," he said gently, answering the silent question in Draco's eyes. "I promise. I wouldn't do it if I didn't like it, okay?"

Harry wanted to do these things for Draco. For anyone he cared about, really, but the joy he got out of taking care of Draco and Scorpius was worth the effort, every single time. He didn't want to lose that.

Draco swallowed, still looking incredibly tense, but he gave a small nod. "Okay," he whispered. "If you're sure."

"Totally sure," Harry winked, going back to his bread, feeling much lighter now.

Once he'd set the food down in front of Draco, he filled Draco in on what Andromeda had been reporting about Scorpius and Teddy.

"Since you're feeling so much better, I thought Scorp might like to have a sleepover with me tonight," Harry told him as he washed up the dishes. "He's been asking, and I thought we should give you one more day to make sure you're not contagious anymore before bringing him home. If it’s alright with you, of course. And if you think you'll be fine by yourself. You're probably sick of me," he laughed.

"Oh," Draco said, looking slightly disappointed. He probably missed his son terribly and wanted him back, but Harry was prepared to argue his case. He really did think Draco needed one more night to recover, and he knew Scorpius would be so disappointed if he didn't get to stay at Harry's house after he’d brought it up.

"You don't have to do that; you've already done too-"

"I want to," Harry cut him off. "Do you want me to beg?" Harry put on his best pout, falling across the island dramatically, hands clasped together in a praying gesture. "Please, Malfoy, pretty please, let me have a sleepover with my bestest friend? He promised to braid my hair!"

Draco burst out laughing at Harry's ridiculous antics. "Braid your hair?"

Harry straightened up, laughing. "He actually did promise that. Apparently, Andromeda has been teaching him. He asked to learn after watching her braid her hair before bed. Better watch out, he'll want to do that long, pretty hair of yours, too."

"Ridiculous," Draco choked out, cheeks going pink. "If you really want a sleepover, that's fine, but you're not obligated to do so."

"I'm not obligated to do anything, Malfoy. You’ll learn eventually that I don't do things I don't want to do," Harry said, chuckling. "But thank you, I'm actually excited. It'll be fun, and I'll bring him home tomorrow morning. Will you go back to work?"

Draco nodded. "I think so. Once the rash is gone, it's not contagious anymore. But you will let me know if you feel even slightly off in the next week. I mean it, Potter, one ache, one tickle in your throat, one single itch, I need to know."

"Yes, sir," Potter said seriously, saluting him. He knew he wasn't going to get sick. Draco snorted.

Harry left to go get Scorp shortly after that, leaving Draco another cup of tea with a silly note that read, eat please, you need to get your strength back. And no feeling guilty allowed!

He hated to leave, but Draco really was feeling much better, and he was probably desperate for some privacy. Harry would have a blast with Scorpius, at any rate, he always did. He loved that kid so much.

*

Harry had been right. The sleepover was wonderful. He'd let Scorpius stay up late, building a giant fort in Harry's bedroom, trying to keep him as occupied in the best room of the house as much as possible. They did venture downstairs to bake cookies, though, and Scorpius had spent an inordinate amount of time trying to braid Harry's hair, which wasn't quite long enough to get the job done.

When he brought the small boy home the next morning, he immediately jumped on his father, chattering away about how much fun he'd had with Harry, Teddy, and Pansy.

The only concern Harry had was how often Scorpius had mentioned missing his grandparents. He'd apparently been very distraught about leaving the Manor when Pansy showed up, and when Narcissa had joined them for tea, Andy told him that Scorpius had clung to her like he was afraid he'd never see her again.

He'd also brought it up an inordinate number of times while he was with Harry, lamenting about being lonely. He'd mention how Narcissa would have done something this way or that instead, how Lucius always let Scorpius into his study, how much he wished he had more friends like Teddy, even asking if Teddy could come live with them instead.

Harry knew he had to bring it up with Draco, but he wasn't quite sure how to go about it. When Scorpius finally wiggled out of his father's arms to go check on his toys, Harry figured it was as good a time as any.

"Malfoy, can I talk to you about something?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"Of course," Draco said, eyebrows slightly raised in curiosity.

Harry sat down at the island and took a deep breath. "Scorpius talked to me a lot last night. Mostly about how much he wants other kids his age to be his friends after spending time with Teddy, but more worryingly, he talked quite a bit about missing his grandparents."

Draco's eyebrows furrowed, but Harry barreled on. "I wouldn't have said anything about it, but he kind of talked about it a lot? Just passing comments, mostly, but Andromeda told me he clung to your mum like crazy when she came to tea while he was there. I know this truly isn't any of my business... I'm just the nanny, obviously, but I didn't know if there was a chance you would be willing to let me take him back to playgroup, and maybe let him visit your parents more? Or at least your mum? I know you're worried about exposing him to them, and trust me, I get it, but she seems to really miss him, too. Andy said she kept getting teary eyed while she was there, and clung to him as much as he did to her..."

Harry was rambling by now and he knew it, trailing off uncertainly.

"He hated playgroup, though," Draco said, perplexed.

"I know," Harry said gently, "but, well, I kind of hoped that maybe if he went with me..."

He hated to bring it up, but he knew he was less likely to be ostracized if Harry was there. He knew those kids heard it from their parents, and they wouldn't dare do the same to him that they did to Draco. He thought that maybe finding a different playgroup would be for the best, too, give him a clean slate to start with, instead of trying to change other children's already formed opinions of him.

Draco closed his eyes in contemplation, inhaling deeply. "I always want to do whatever is best for my son. If he wants to go back to playgroup, of course he can. And if misses my parents, I want him to see them. Just... maybe in small doses at first. Start with just a single afternoon visit to the Manor without me, or maybe one sleepover, where I drop him off late and pick him up early."

Harry was so proud of him. He knew it wasn't easy for Draco, risking his son's feelings like this, but he couldn't shield him from everything. He had to give him freedom to grow, to explore new things, and just handle the hurdles as they came. He seemed to understand this, and Harry wanted to hug him, so much.

"I think that's a great idea," Harry said instead, smiling softly at him. "I know you're worried, but if there's even a hint of trouble at playgroup, we'll leave right away. And I think you already know your mum would rather die than hurt him."

"I do know," Draco admitted. "I need to get to work, but we can work out the details later?" Draco said, checking his watch.

"Yeah, whatever you want. I wanted to take him to indoor mini-golf today, but we won't be out long," Harry told him, popping his dimple.

"Have fun with whatever that is," Draco said, smirking.

"Oh, we totally will," Harry winked, wandering off to find Scorpius, smiling at the sound of the Floo roaring to life. It meant Draco was healthy again.

Everything was going to be just fine.

Notes:

If any of the chapters are a flop, or if you notice any big timeline or plot errors, please let me know so I can rework it! There's a LOT in these stories, and sometimes I miss something or forget that I wrote something a different way further into Room for Two, and I'm trying to build Harry's own story and past around what already exists. I do try my best to look through everything and make sure it lines up, but mistakes can definitely happen. I am never offended by constructive criticism or negative feedback, I just want everyone to enjoy the story. I appreciate you all so much! <3

Chapter 6: CHAPTER 6, PART I

Summary:

Scorpius starts playgroup, and we dig into Harry's past.

Notes:

Hello! So, we have a double upload!! This one was way too long, and I had to split it up into two chapters, so I've added a 19th chapter. If you're reading in tandem, this part is the first half of Chapter 6, and the next one will be the second half: the day of the pub. As always, please let me know if I messed anything royally up.

TRIGGER WARNING! Descriptions of verbal and emotional abuse at the end of the chapter. If you prefer to skip that, you definitely can! It can be summed up with 'Harry's ex is an absolute piece of shit.' I've added a tag for this as well.

Harry was worried about Draco. He'd been back to work for three weeks, but he looked worse than before, not better. He'd mentioned a few times that they were short staffed at work with Scrofungulus still making its rounds through the department, and Draco was working even harder, making sure the patients were being properly cared for and trying to catch up on paperwork.

He wasn't eating or sleeping properly, though, and Harry was beside himself, trying his best to subtly slip him extra dessert, giving him tea spiked with Nutrition Potions or sometimes a bit of Calming Draught to just try and get him to get some sleep. It couldn't go on forever, though, and Harry told himself that if this pattern went on for another week, he'd have to say something to him about slowing down.

In the meantime, he had Scorpius' first day at his new playgroup set up for tomorrow.

Draco had agreed that it would be best to start him somewhere new, and had let Harry take the reins on finding the right place. It was quite a lot of pressure, but Harry had spent hours poring over pamphlets and recommendations, and finally found one he thought would be best for him.

He’d chosen a smaller group that took place once a week inside of an early level school for magical children. If Scorpius stayed in this group, it would be the perfect transition for when he started school next year, allowing him to keep the same friends. The building was lovely when he'd toured it, and he was excited for Scorpius to start. He was going to love it this time. Harry would see to it.

Scorpius had been in somewhat of a slump all day, quieter than usual, but wouldn't open up about why. It wasn't super noticeable if you didn't see him every day, but Harry definitely could tell something was bothering him. Harry suspected he was having a bout of nerves about playgroup, so he'd come up with an idea to hopefully help get him more excited.

"Hey, buddy, want to make some cupcakes with me?" Harry asked, waggling his eyebrows to try and draw a laugh out of him.

Scorpius was sprawled out on the living room floor, flipping through his big book of magical creatures, looking somewhat bored. He glanced up at Harry. "What for?"

"Well, I thought you might like to take them to your first day at playgroup tomorrow. Everyone likes cupcakes, right?"

Scorpius shrugged, but he did get up. "Okay. Can they be chocolate?"

"Of course they can. Whatever you want," Harry said, leading him to the kitchen and pulling out a bowl, whisk, and a few tools they'd need while Scorpius dragged his little stepstool over.

Harry carefully weighed out the ingredients and let Scorpius stir them together. It was all going quite well, until it was time for the eggs.

"Okay, want to help me count the eggs?" Harry asked like he always did.

"I want to break them open," he stated. "Please?"

"No problem," Harry smiled at him. He grabbed a second, smaller bowl to Scorpius to crack the eggs into so he didn't get shells in the batter, but the little boy shook his head.

"No, no! I want to do it like you. I can do it. I don't need a baby bowl," he pouted, crossing his arms.

"Alright, we can try it that way," Harry relented. It couldn't hurt anything, really.

Harry showed him how to hit the egg on the edge of the bowl to crack it, then let him try it himself. Scorpius smacked the egg on the bowl way too hard, breaking it completely down the middle, half the egg falling to the counter, half sliding into the bowl, along with a bunch of the shell. Okay, then.

Harry quickly vanished the mess and had him try again, telling him to try more gently. He tried again, hitting the egg harder, not softer. "Okay, that was kind of the opposite of gentle, buddy," Harry said with a quiet laugh. "Let me help you."

Scorpius scowled at him. "I said I can do it myself."

Harry was a bit taken aback. Scorpius was probably the most agreeable child he'd ever met. He followed the rules easily and almost never talked back or got in trouble. It wasn't like him to sass like that.

"Scorp, that's not a nice tone," Harry chided him gently. "I'm not saying you can't do it; I just think it will be easier if you let me help you."

"No! Don't touch it!" Scorpius shrieked, trying to pull the bowl away from Harry, spilling some flour out.

"Woah, don't do that, please," Harry tried, reaching for the bowl so it didn't make a bigger mess.

"No! I don't need your help! I don't want to make dumb cupcakes, and I don't want to play with you anymore!"

Harry frowned, startled by the outburst. "Scorpius, that is not a nice way to talk to me," he said sternly before softening his voice again. "What's wrong? Why don't we talk about what's bothering-"

Scorpius stamped his foot, cutting him off. "No, no, no! You're too bossy! You think you know everything but you don't. You- you're dumb!"

Ouch.

Harry's jaw dropped, and he watched in shock as Scorpius snatched up the bowl and threw it across the room. The glass bowl hit the floor and shattered, spraying half mixed chocolate cake batter on the lower cabinets and all over the floor.

Harry slowly turned away from the mess to stare at Scorpius, who was standing there, arms crossed, face red and pinched in anger.

"That was completely unacceptable," Harry said quietly, looking at Scorpius seriously. He had never seen the boy act anything like this. He knew he was just having a hard time right now, probably scared about starting playgroup, but he couldn't let that kind of outburst slide. "You owe me an apology for your behavior. That's now how we express our emotions, and that's not how we treat people, or our things."

"I don't want to 'pologize," he snipped.

"Alright. Well, your father will be home soon, and I think you need to sit at the island and think about why you felt the need to act like that so we can explain it to him when he gets home," Harry said firmly.

Scorpius' jaw dropped, but he didn't move for several long seconds.

"That wasn't a request, Scorpius. You can choose to sit on your own, or I can put you there," Harry told him.

Scorpius huffed, then kicked his stepstool aside and stomped over to one of the island stools and climbed up, curling himself into the smallest ball possible, refusing to look at Harry.

Harry sighed quietly, but stood where he was, arms crossed, as he watched the small boy pout aggressively.

He's never had to punish Scorpius before. He didn't like it, but he had to. Draco had already let him know that he'd be home shortly on their two-way mirror before they started baking, and Harry hoped that he'd have Scorpius in a better state before he arrived.

Luck was not on his side, though, and the Floo roared to life not two minutes later, signaling Draco’s arrival. Scorpius didn't even lift his head.

"Is there something wrong?" Draco asked when he entered the room a few moments later.

Scorpius huffed moodily and turned his body away from his father. Harry and Draco both frowned, and Draco looked to Harry in askance.

Harry stuck his thumb over his shoulder, pointing him towards the cake batter mess that was still dripping down the normally pristine, white cabinets.

Draco gasped. "Scorpius! Did you do that?"

Scorpius just shrugged his tiny shoulders, not speaking.

"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy," Draco said, voice harsher than Harry had ever heard it. "I asked you a question, and I expect an answer. Did you do this?"

Scorpius sighed loudly, and huffed again. "Yes," he finally said sullenly.

"What happened?"

"I threw it," Scorpius said, voice sassy.

"Why did you do that?" Draco asked incredulously.

"Because I wanted to!" Scorpius snapped, his grey eyes finally looking at Draco, full of anger. “I hate cupcakes!”

Harry could see the alarm on Draco's face at the amount of attitude his normally cheerful son was giving.

"Are you going to apologize to Potter for making a mess on purpose?"

"Nope," Scorpius said, narrowing his eyes. "He's dumb, and bossy, and I'm not sorry!"

Draco's jaw dropped, and Harry sighed quietly, biting his lip. He'd already said it once, and he knew Scorpius didn't mean it, not really, but it still stung. Maybe Draco would be able to get answers out of him; Harry hadn't had much luck all week.

"Scorpius, go to your room. That was mean, hurtful, and completely unacceptable," Draco ordered.

Scorpius' eyes grew wide. "But-!"

"No 'buts'. I'll be in to talk to you after you've had time to think about your behavior. Go, now."

Scorpius puffed up in a rage, then threw himself off of his stool, stomping up to his room and slamming his door as loudly as he could. Harry watched carefully as Draco stared after him in complete shock.

"I- Potter, I'm sorry, I've never seen him act like that, ever. Does this happen often when I’m not around?" he stammered, looking absolutely mortified.

"He's never had an outburst like that," Harry told him, frowning. "He wanted to crack the eggs, but he kept hitting them too hard and getting shells in the batter. I offered to help him or teach him how, but he just screamed at me, then threw the whole bowl when I tried to talk to him about it."

"What on earth could have caused him to react like that?" Draco asked.

"He's been a bit on edge all week.  Nervous, I think, about his new playgroup? I thought he'd like to bake cupcakes for the other kids to calm him down, but it seemed to have made it worse," Harry said sadly. "I couldn't let him get away with throwing the bowl, though, so I made him sit there and have a bit of a time out. He didn't like it. I've never had to discipline him beyond a stern word or two."

"He's had a few time outs or other small punishments, like no dessert after supper, but not often," Draco grimaced, confirming what Harry already knew; this was very out of character for Scorpius. "I'll go talk to him after I clean this up. He owes you an apology, at the very least."

Harry shook his head. "I'll get it. I'm not worried about the mess," he said softly, "I'm worried about him."

Draco sucked on his bottom lip, nodding. "I'll be back," he muttered, slipping out of the kitchen.

Harry sighed again, turning back to the mess. He vanished the bowl and most of the batter, then cast a Scourgify at the cupboards and floor, giving them both a quick wipe down by hand after. He wiped up what was left on the counter, too, then focused back on supper.

It was almost ready, and he certainly wasn't going to go upstairs and interrupt whatever they were talking about. He didn't hear any more yelling, at least, so hopefully Draco was having better luck than Harry had getting him to open up.

Harry pulled the roast out of the oven and set it aside to rest, quickly finishing whipping up the potatoes and seasoning the peas and carrots. He was working on the gravy when Draco and Scorpius appeared again, Scorpius hiding behind his father's legs like he was afraid.

Harry's heart clenched a bit, not wanting Scorpius to ever be afraid of him. "Hey," he said, smiling as warmly as he could. "Are you feeling a bit better?"

Scorpius peeked his head out, studying Harry with cautious, grey eyes.

"Scorpius has something to say," Draco prompted when he didn't say anything, guiding his son out from behind him. Scorpius bit his lip, head lowered, kicking his foot back and forth.

"I'm sorry, Harry," he said quietly, finally looking up at him with teary eyes that broke Harry's heart. "I didn't mean it when I called you dumb and bossy."

"And?" Draco pressed.

"And for throwing the cupcake bowl and having bad 'havior," he sniffled.

"Be-havior," Draco corrected quietly.

"Be-havior," he parroted, tears slipping down his cheeks. "Do you forgive me?"

"Oh, love, of course I forgive you. You just had a bad day, it's alright," he told him gently, crouching down and holding his arms out for a hug.

Scorpius ran to him, hugging him tightly, nuzzling his teary little face in Harry's chest. Harry hugged him back, relieved he was feeling better. "Maybe next time you're feeling scared or unsure, we can talk about it instead of keeping it inside, okay?"

Scorpius nodded. "Okay. I'm really sorry," he whispered.

"No more apologizing, you're already forgiven," Harry dismissed. "Supper is ready, but how about we do the cupcakes after we eat?"

"Yeah," Scorpius agreed, finally cracking a smile. "They'll have to be my friend if I bring cupcakes, it's the law."

Ah. He knew that had been about playgroup.

Draco snorted quietly at the declaration. "I'm not sure it's the law," he chuckled, "but it's awfully hard to not like someone nice enough to give you a treat."

"Yay!" Scorpius cheered, rubbing his nose, which was still running from crying. Draco handed him a tissue, and Harry finished up the gravy and sent the food to the table for a much more peaceful supper.

*

"Hi, Harry! I have playgroup today, and Papa bought me a new dragon!" Scorpius chirped when Harry arrived the next morning, showing him a new stuffed dragon with blue and purple scales from where he was sitting at the island with breakfast, already dressed.

"That's awesome, Scorp! Are you excited?" Harry asked, glancing at Draco, who nodded, giving Harry a relieved smile.

"Yeah. Make sure we don't forget the cupcakes, please," he said, humming as he continued eating.

"I won't forget," Harry chuckled.

Draco left for work fairly quickly, and Harry tidied up the house and played a few games with Scorpius before it was time to go. Scorpius had gotten quieter as the morning wore on, and Harry knew they needed to talk before going.

He called Scorpius over, hoisting him up into his arms, supporting him on his hip. "You ready?" he asked softly.

Scorpius was quiet, then gave a very hesitant nod.

"What's wrong, Scorp? You can talk to me, buddy. I'm a really good listener, right?"

"My tummy feels funny," he said.

"Are you still nervous about going?"

He shook his head, then changed his mind and nodded. Harry brushed his fringe to the side, stroking his little cheek where it was still slightly rounded from baby fat.

"You know it's okay to be nervous, yeah? It's scary doing something new, especially because you didn't have a great experience last time. But I'll be right there with you the whole time, and I promise, if you aren't having fun we can leave. I'm not going to make you stay somewhere you're not comfortable, and I'm not going to let anyone be mean to you, but we should try and give it a chance first, right?"

"You won't leave me? Promise?" he asked, his bottom lip wobbling.

"Cross my heart," Harry promised, rubbing his nose against Scorpius', making him giggle. "And I'll bet you that you'll leave later with at least one new friend. If you don't, I'll eat my pants for supper," he joked.

"Your pants!" Scorpius screeched, laughing like it was the funniest thing he ever heard.

"That's right," Harry said with a wink. Scorpius seemed to consider this, then nodded.

"Okay. We can go," he agreed, sounding more sure.

"I'm proud of you," Harry told him sincerely. He picked up the box of cupcakes and handed Scorpius his dragon, then told him to hold on tight and Apparated them to the little school. They landed near the front gates, and Harry let Scorpius down and handed him the cupcakes to carry in himself when asked.

Harry placed a hand on his back and guided him inside, easily finding the correct room. There was no teacher or anything to greet them this time. The Headmistress of the school had informed him that the group was mainly run by the parents, all of them alternating who would run the group each week so everyone contributed. Harry thought it was a great idea, and had eagerly added his name to the list when he'd signed Scorpius up after touring the school.

He had been a bit surprised they didn't need Draco to be the one signing him up, but Harry had taken the paperwork home to him and let him fill it out before returning it, so they at least had his actual father's information. As much as Harry loved Scorpius like his own child, he wasn't his parent, and he only had as much say as Draco allowed.

When they entered the room, no one noticed at first, which was somewhat of a relief, as there were a lot of parents mulling about. He knew that there would be, logically, but he'd been so focused on Scorp that he hadn't given it much thought. They were all here for their children, though, not for him. Obviously. It should be fine.

Scorpius clung to Harry's legs, refusing to go play, but Harry and Scorpius were eventually spotted by one of the mothers standing nearby, and she came over to greet them, a wide, warm smile on her face. She was very pretty, with gorgeous chocolate brown skin, curly black hair tied back in a scarf, and friendly, hazel eyes.

"Hello! You must be Harry," she said, "I'm Samantha, but you can call me Sam. I'm hosting the group this week. The Headmistress told me you'd be coming," she said brightly, holding her hand out for Harry to shake.

He grinned at her, tension leaving him at her completely normal treatment of both him and Scorpius. She seemed so kind, and he liked her immediately.

"It's so nice to meet you. We're very excited to be here," Harry told her, taking her hand, and nudging Scorpius a bit, raising his eyebrows at him, as if to say, see, she's already nice.

She turned her attention to Scorpius at Harry's motion. "And you must be Scorpius! We're so glad to have you here," she said, crouching down to shake Scorpius' hand. Scorpius instantly relaxed at her friendly demeanor, leaning in to hug her like he did the first time he met Harry.

"Hi!" he greeted. "This is my dragon. Are you going to be my friend, too?"

"You know what, I sure will, but I have someone who you might like just a little better," she told him, not missing a beat.

She called over a little boy who was clearly her son. His complexion was a bit lighter than his mother's, but they had the same unique hazel eyes. "Scorpius, this is my son, Tommy. Tommy, this is Scorpius. Would you like to show him around the room? You can show him where all the different toys are and introduce him to the other children."

"Hi," Scorpius greeted him shyly, clutching his dragon and the box of cupcakes tightly, and Tommy stared intensely at Scorpius' face before he cracked a grin.

"Hi! You have cool eyes. They're all silvery, like my mummy's necklace. I never saw eyes like that before. Come on, come meet Julian and Luca. They're my bestest friends, but you can be our friend, too."

Scorpius turned to Harry with excited eyes, begging to be allowed to go.

"Go on, buddy," Harry said amusedly, shooting him a wink. Scorpius let Tommy drag him over to two other boys, one with brown hair and eyes, and another one, even smaller than the others with long, golden blonde curls, who looked incredibly shy. Harry watched Scorpius offer them his cupcakes, and Tommy and the brunette boy eagerly took one, but the blonde boy didn't take one.

"Thank you so much for that," Harry said, turning back to Sam. "He didn't have a great experience at his last playgroup, and he was so worried no one would like him."

"That's awful to hear, he’s just a child." she grimaced. "I did see his last name, but I can assure you, that won't happen here, especially if you’re here. No offense."

"No, that’s honestly what we thought, too. But I'm glad to hear that. I read a lot of good reviews about this group," he admitted, turning back to the boys, frowning at the little boy who seemed to shrink away any time Scorpius glanced at him. "Is that little boy alright?" Harry asked in concern. "He looks scared of Scorp. He's super sweet, I promise..."

She glanced over to the boys. "That's Luca," she told him. "He's just very, very shy around new people. Give him some time, he'll come around. We're family by marriage, so I've known him his whole life. He came with me today."

That made sense. Some kids were just shy, there was nothing wrong with that. Scorpius already seemed to be over his nerves, though, and was now running around with the other two boys, offering his cupcakes to other kids in the group.

Harry hovered near Sam for most of the afternoon. Slowly, word that he was here had spread, and he was getting far, far too many looks and whispers, but he ignored it. Usually, if he pretended he didn't notice, it eventually stopped. He'd be coming back here every week, and the last thing he wanted was any awkwardness. A couple of the women did try to turn the topic to who he was or the war, but he smoothly changed the subject back to the children. Eventually, Sam caught on and helped keep the interactions normal, and she eventually had gathered a group of parents around them who didn't seem to care who he was after their initial meeting. Harry was so grateful, and he told her so when they were getting ready to leave. She had just brushed him off with a wink, and told him she was looking forward to seeing him next week.

"You ready to head out, buddy?" Harry asked when he wandered over to collect Scorpius.

"I don't want to," he pouted. "Can't we stay?"

"Unfortunately not, playgroup is over," Harry told him gently, chuckling at the pout he received. What a change from just a few hours ago. "Did you give away all of your cupcakes?"

"I got two left," he announced.

"You have two left. Did everyone get one?"

"Nuh uh. Luca didn't come get one. He played by himself. He didn't want to be my friend, but Tommy and Julian did," Scorpius told him, sounding aggravated.

"Is that what he said?"

"No, but he ran away when Tommy told him to come get his cupcake."

"Did that upset you?" Harry asked him, curious what he would say.

"Yeah. I was nice, but he wouldn't talk to me. He was rude," Scorpius huffed.

"I don't think so," Harry told him. "Tommy's mum said that Luca is just really, really shy. Remember how scared you were about coming here?" Scorpius nodded, looking confused. "Well, that's how he feels around new people too, but all the time."

"Oh," Scorpius said, looking over to Luca who was slowly pushing a little car around by himself. "That felt bad. I don't want him to feel bad."

"What do you think you could do to make him understand that you're nice and want to be his friend?"

Scorpius blinked, and Harry looked pointedly at the mostly empty cupcake box.

"Oh! I know! I can give him a cupcake!"

"I think that would be very kind of you. Maybe he was just afraid to come take one."

"He looked at them a lot," Scorpius agreed. He picked one out of the box, and ran over to Luca, holding the cupcake out to him. Harry watched him say something, then hold the cupcake closer to him, until the smaller boy finally nodded slowly and took it. Scorpius said something else to him, then waved at him and skipped back over to Harry.

"We aren't friends yet," Scorpius announced when he returned, "but I told him I'll show him that he can be my friend and I won't ever be mean to him. He'll see, right?"

"That's right," Harry told him softly, so proud of him for being kind to someone who struggled to open up or make friends. "I think today was a big success and we should celebrate. What do you think?"

"Yay! How are we gonna cel'brate?" he asked, silver eyes lit up with excitement Harry hadn't seen in them all week.

"Celebrate. And I have the perfect idea," he said mysteriously. He knew exactly what he was going to get him; something he wanted to do for him anyway before it got too cold out, but was saving for a special occasion. "Go say goodbye to your new friends and we can go," he urged.

When they left playgroup, Harry Apparated him to muggle London. They passed a frozen yogurt shop called Yolé on their way to Lillywhite's, and Harry asked him if he wanted to stop in and try some. He'd had a cupcake at playgroup, but the sign said zero dairy, zero sugar, and it was quite busy inside, so it must be good. This was for Scorpius. He definitely didn't want to try it himself.

Scorpius easily agreed once Harry explained to him that it was a lot like ice cream, and they examined the menu as they waited their turn, and Harry noted with concern that they did have bananas on display. He mentioned the allergy to the man behind the counter, though, and he ended up making both of their orders in the back, to avoid any possible contamination.

Harry ordered frozen yogurt with Biscoff biscuits, strawberries, and something called pistachio sauce that sounded interesting, while Scorpius surprised him, getting a strange looking bubble cone, Oreo bits, and Nutella sauce on his, after Harry explained to him what those things even were, being muggle products and unfamiliar to him. He left the man a nice tip for going out of his way to accommodate them, and they ate their treat outside, enjoying one of the last warm days they had left.

Scorpius declared Nutella one of the best things he'd ever tasted, and begged Harry to buy him some and some Oreos for home, which Harry easily agreed to, knowing Draco probably would enjoy them as well.

Once they finished their treat, they walked a few blocks over to Lillywhite's, and Harry purchased Scorpius a pair of roller skates. The sales clerk was very helpful in finding them an appropriate skate for his age and the right size, and Scorpius had been so excited that he gave the man his last cupcake in thanks.

When they returned home, Harry quickly began his prep for supper, choosing something simple tonight, and spent the next several hours teaching Scorpius how to roller skate on the hardwood floors in the living room.

He learned fairly quickly, not seeming put off at all by how often he fell at first, and by the time Draco got home, he'd learned how to pick up some speed. Unfortunately, this caused him to crash right into his father when he stepped out of the Floo. Harry gasped as Draco was knocked backwards, landing hard on his arse. Scorpius tried to scramble off of him, but he couldn't get any traction with his feet, and ended up kneeing Draco in a most undesirable place. Draco groaned, closing his eyes briefly in pain, and Harry hurried over to haul Scorpius off of him, setting him back down on his feet before helping Draco up.

"Papa! Sorry, I'm sorry, but look! I have stakes!" Scorpius said excitedly.

"What?" Draco asked faintly, looking confused.

"Stakes!" Scorpius repeated, gesturing wildly down to his feet.

"And what exactly are stakes?" he asked, staring at the skates strapped to his child.

"They're skates," Harry corrected. "Roller skates."

"And what are they for?"

"For skating, duh," Harry said, giving him a look. "Show him, Scorp!"

Scorpius bent his knees like Harry had taught him, and Harry gave him a big push, sending him rolling across the room. Once he was going, he started pumping his legs to keep up the momentum, skating in circles around the room until he lost his balance and fell, giggling madly.

Draco had the most constipated look on his face, and it was all Harry could do to keep from bursting out laughing.

"Potter, is this safe? Those things look like death traps," Draco said uncertainly, and Harry lost the battle with keeping his composure, laughing at the idea that Scorpius could die from roller skating in the living room, while wearing kneepads, under adult supervision.

"Of course they're safe! Muggles use them all the time, it's fun. Oh, I should get you a pair!" He laughed even harder at the image of Draco trying to skate with his long giraffe legs, and Draco scowled at him.

"Harry got them for me after playgroup! To celebrate!" Scorpius chirped up, carefully pronouncing the word correctly this time.

"Celebrate? It went well, then?" Draco asked.

"I made two friends, papa! Two!" Scorpius said excitedly, skating over to Draco much slower this time. "Tommy and Julian. Tommy said I had cool, slivery eyes, and Julian liked my cupcakes the most. He ate three! I told him he was gonna get a bellyache, but he didn’t care."

"Slivery eyes?" Draco asked, bewildered.

"Silvery," Harry laughed, correcting Scorpius' pronunciation. "Just like yours. I've never seen them on anyone else, just you two." He glanced up at Draco's own eyes that looked like molten silver. "So fucking pretty," he muttered under his breath.

"What?" Draco asked, frowning.

"Oh, nothing," Harry waved him off with a smirk.

"Is that all that happened today, love?" Draco asked, turning back to his son, ignoring Harry’s teasing.

"Nope! I got to answer lots of questions about things I like, and show them my dragon. And all the parents really liked Harry. The mummy’s there kept looking at him all smiley. I think they were jealous that he's my friend and not theirs." He whispered the last part, and Harry pretended he didn't hear him, but he did note how Draco rolled his eyes, looking inexplicably annoyed.

Harry didn't know if it was because he just disliked when people recognized Harry around his son, or something more, something akin to jealousy, but he could dream.

*

The next week, Draco was hurrying to the Floo one morning, running late for work, when he turned back to Harry.

"Oh, Potter, before I forget! I've arranged for Scorpius to stay with my parents on Friday night," Draco told him. "I actually have a Saturday off as a reward for helping get the ward back in line, and I thought it would be a good time to let him stay with them like we discussed since I'll be able to get him early the next day. So, it looks like you'll have a free Saturday," he said, flashing Harry a brilliant smile, like he was genuinely pleased that Harry would have a Saturday off.

Harry smiled at him. "He'll be so excited," he said, avoiding mentioning what he really thought of having a free Saturday. He'd rather spend it with them, but he could probably come up with something to do. He knew Neville was going to need help replanting his summer flowers in warmer soil to prepare for autumn soon, maybe they could do it then.

Harry tried not to dwell on it, but he couldn't seem to get it off his mind. Draco was going to have a free evening. Scorpius would be gone. It was like the heavens had sent him a gift; an opportunity on a silver platter.

This was it. This would be the perfect time to try and shift their relationship. Harry had been wondering exactly when and how he was going to finally come out with it and ask him out like he's been wanting to for weeks, but nerves had been holding him back.

Not that Draco would be that surprised. He hadn't exactly been subtle about how he felt, and Draco was brilliant; he had to know. Harry had hoped by now that Draco might have reciprocated in some way, shown Harry an indication of how he felt, any hint of wanting Harry back, and sometimes Harry thought it was there, would see flashes of what he would swear was affection or wanting, but he just held his cards too close to his chest and it was impossible to know for sure.

Harry had finally come to the realization that he was going to have to be the one to do it. He had to be the one to put himself out there. That was fine, though. He could do it, he just wanted to do it right, in a way Draco deserved.

They hung out in the evenings quite regularly now, with Harry staying past Scorpius' bedtime several nights a week. Draco didn't even have to extend an invitation to him anymore, they just got Scorp to bed and settled in on that horrible couch together, sometimes with wine, or a board game, but a lot of the time, it was just them. It was Harry's favorite time of day.

He wanted more of that. He wanted days full of Scorpius that ended with nights full of Draco. He wanted to get to see Draco relax and laugh and talk about his day, wanted to be allowed to stare and touch and cuddle up to him, wanted to follow him up to bed and hold him through the night, but mostly, he wanted to kiss him; to taste and worship him, to take him apart bit by bit until he was a boneless heap. He wanted to love him, the way he deserved.

Harry wanted everything with him.

He had to do it. His mind was made up. This was the perfect opportunity, and he couldn't let it pass him by. He didn't want this to be a friend night, though. He wanted more, was dying for more.

What could he do to make it special, though? Maybe he could plan a sort of date night? Wine and dine him a little bit, get the mood right, then just... confess. He was still a Gryffindor, dammit, and he was going to call that Gryffindor courage that he used to have in spades to the forefront.

Not wanting to give himself time to change his mind, Harry set his plan into motion.

He went out the next day, shopping for the same fancy Elf-made wine he'd gotten Narcissa on Draco's birthday. At least he knew that one was good, his mum had said so.

He'd also begged off going to the Wobbly with Ron and Hermione, informing them of his plan. Ron slapped him on the back with a warm grin and told him that the wine was a nice touch, and Hermione had hugged him for far too long, blinking back tears as she wished him luck.

He sometimes wondered why they seemed so invested in his personal life, but really, he knew why.

Harry had been a mess after his break up with Owen, for a long time. He knew his friends had been unbelievably worried about him during that dark time, and he hadn't even looked at anyone else for years now, having lost all interest in casual dating. He just didn't see the point in it. He wanted to settle down, wanted a family, almost more than he could bear, but his heart couldn't take any more pain. He'd sworn off relationships, not trusting his own judgement anymore. He always seemed to pick wrong, and Owen...

Their relationship had only lasted a year, but it had been the longest year of his life, and the damage had lasted far beyond that.

It had been good at first, it really had; he'd been sweet and charming and understanding, and Harry had fallen for him fast and hard. Harry had felt safe with him, safe enough to open up about how he'd grown up, explaining to him why Harry was so tactile, why he always had this need to be near people, touching someone, why he needed so much affection and reassurance and validation along with other strange quirks of his, like why he always had far more food than he actually needed in his pantry, and why he hated small, confined spaces. Harry had trusted him.

And Owen had listened, had held him and told Harry how sorry he was, how he didn’t mind any of Harry’s strange habits or quirks. He'd been so patient.

He had been patient in other ways with Harry, too, especially in bed. Owen had been the first man he'd ever really had sex with, and Harry had been quite shy and inexperienced, but he had done his best to meet Owen's needs and learn what he liked. It had been the one part of their relationship that he'd always thought was really good, and Harry remembered thinking that must mean something; that it had to mean that they were compatible, good together, if they were having decent, regular sex.

It wasn't until after it had long ended that Harry realized how one sided their sex life had been. They did what Owen wanted to do, how he wanted to do it. If he wanted to try something new, Harry responded enthusiastically, giving it his all, always giving and giving, and not typically getting much in return, but if Harry wanted to try something, Owen would moan about it, or make passive aggressive comments until Harry changed his mind. The only thing that Owen had wanted to try that they never explored again was having Harry bottom. They'd tried it once, and it had been... well. Slightly traumatizing. Harry had put his foot down on that one, and they didn't try it again.

Owen didn’t seem to mind that Harry hadn't liked it, though, and they did plenty of other things. Harry almost always got off, but it was because he did all the work, not because Owen was a particularly active or enthusiastic participant. Ginny had often crudely described him as a 'pillow princess'. It had pissed him off at the time, but in hindsight, she hadn't been wrong. Harry could count on one hand the number of times Owen had actually put any effort into Harry's pleasure after the first few weeks, and it slowly became less and less as time went on.

That hadn't been the only thing that had tapered off, though. Slowly, he became more distant, withholding affection as a 'punishment' if Harry did or said something he didn't like, or if something didn't go his way, even if it wasn't anyone's fault, and even though he knew how much it hurt Harry to be shut out like that, knew how much that affected him with how attention starved he'd been growing up. He couldn't handle being ignored, hated the silent treatment, and that was exactly why Owen had done it.

The emotional abuse came into play slowly. It had started with withholding affection and slowly devolved into snide remarks here or there; just little things, things Harry hadn't even noticed much at first, but had eventually burrowed deep inside him and festered into crippling insecurity.

A fan would approach and pay too much attention to Harry, and Owen would say something in passing, like, "huh. You seemed cold with her, don’t you think?" Or, "well, you definitely liked that one! No wonder she was flirting with you." He would gaslight him, claiming that Harry had said or done something he knew he hadn’t so insistently, that he eventually stopped trusting his own memory.

He liked to intentionally draw attention to them when they were out, calling Harry's name out loudly so people would stare, or come over to them, or even take photos, even though he knew Harry absolutely hated the attention.

Sometimes, they'd go out and he'd make comments about Harry being dull, claiming Harry never wanted to do anything exciting. Sometimes he'd look around the room, then back to Harry, unimpressed, and comment on how plain or unimpressive Harry looked in comparison to every other person there.

He'd eventually progressed to flirting with other people in front of Harry, always making him feel like he was too possessive or controlling if he dared say anything about it. He'd also never let Harry choose what they did, declaring the things Harry liked boring or outdated, and he never offered to pay for anything, not a single time. He wouldn't do anything around the house because it was Harry's house, not his, even though he lived there, too. Harry hadn't minded that so much, so desperate to do something that made Owen happy that he'd have done anything asked of him. 

When he'd ended things, somehow Harry had been completely blindsided. He'd been so busy trying to make it work that he never even noticed that he was the only one actually trying. He'd come home from watching Victoire one evening, and Owen had packed his things.

*

"Honey? I'm home," Harry called out when he returned from Bill's, arms laden down with groceries for supper. It was their one-year anniversary, and he planned on making Owen's favorite meal, hoping for a nice, quiet evening together. They'd been going through a bit of a rough patch, and Harry was determined to make things right and have a fresh start.

He was shocked, however, to see Owen hovering in the living room, half of their belongings and furniture missing. At first, he'd thought that they'd been robbed, but when he saw how calm Owen was, he knew it was something else.

"Owen?" he asked tentatively, and Owen rolled his eyes, instantly annoyed. Harry's heart dropped.

"I can't do this anymore," Owen said shortly.

Harry blinked at him, stunned. "What? What do you mean?"

"I mean I'm done. We're done. It's over, Harry."

It was so clinical, so cold, and Harry couldn't even react, it was so unexpected.

"But... why?" he asked desperately, tears springing to his eyes.

"You're boring, Harry!  Your idea of a good time is playing Bingo, for fuck's sake. You're barely twenty-one years old, but you live like you're sixty. I dated you because I thought you'd be exciting. The Saviour, you know? You fought in a war. I thought you'd at least know how to have fun, but all you care about are those stupid kids, they're all you talk about. What about me? What about what I want? Do you ever think about anyone besides yourself?"

Harry was stunned. "But I-"

"I don't care, honestly. I've already moved all of my things out. You can keep the rest."

Harry looked helplessly around his barren living room, noting that quite a few of the things that he'd owned before meeting Owen were missing, but not caring at all right now.

"But... it's our anniversary..." he whispered.

Owen sneered. "And you've brought food home instead of offering to take me out. I think that says it all, doesn't it? Goodbye, Harry."

“I- I’m sorry,” he said desperately, but Owen ignored him. He swept past Harry, who was frozen in place, still holding the groceries, and slammed the door without looking back, while Harry just collapsed in a heap on the floor and sobbed.

*

Harry had been absolutely devastated by how things had ended, but not as devastated as he'd been just a few short days later when he got the morning paper and saw the story, his story, plastered all over the front page of The Daily Prophet. His blood had turned to ice when he saw the headline, and uncontrollable panic had settled deep inside him the further down he read.

Owen had gone to the Prophet, had sold Harry's story to the media, to get even more money out of him. His childhood, every embarrassing, traumatic detail that he'd ever told Owen thinking he could trust him, was right there on paper, in black and white, for anyone to see. And everyone did see. Letters poured in, full of false pity, or worse, real pity, some truly evil ones full of sneering jibes and vitriol, calling him weak, a phony, unlovable. Hermione had furiously set those ones on fire before she put up scarily strong wards to refuse the post for him.

He never thought he was capable of feeling that hurt after everything he'd already lost.

His friends had been furious. That was probably putting it mildly, actually. He'd never seen Hermione cry like that before, or Ron's face go that red in anger. He remembered Molly showing up at his door in tears, hugging him for an unimaginably long time. He had never wanted her to know how bad it had been.

That had been bad enough, the guilt at how upset they were because of him eating him alive, but he'd actually had to actively stop Ginny from going to murder Owen, and she had only relented when he'd broken down, begging her not to make it worse. She had been the one he'd confided in the most; the only one he hadn't been too humiliated to tell the extent of how bad it had gotten between them, and he just wanted a clean break. If she went after him, he knew she wouldn't hold back, and he'd have to live with that guilt forever.

After the initial mental break, he'd gone completely off the rails. He'd gone out quite a lot for several weeks after, trying to numb the pain, isolating himself from his friends as he slowly tried to destroy himself. He'd drank a lot in that time, and slept around even more, more than he felt comfortable admitting now. He didn't remember a single time he'd hooked up with someone clearly, but he knew it was a lot and that he'd done some... questionable things. It got to the point that eventually, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and Neville had sat him down and given him a very serious wakeup call, telling him that Teddy and Victoire didn't need to see him kill himself slowly over someone who had never deserved him in the first place.

It had been harsh, but it worked; the thought of his kids seeing him like that and traumatizing them had snapped him out of his destructive streak, and he'd just... stopped. He finally went numb. He stopped drinking anything other than Butterbeer for a long time, he stopped going out, he stopped sleeping around, stopped talking at all. For months.

Eventually, though, he found his way back to himself. They'd all been a rock for him in the following months, doing their best to rebuild his self-esteem until he could at least recognize himself, then like himself again. It had taken a lot, and he knew it had been incredibly hard on them, and he loved them so much for how patient they'd been with him, getting him to where he was now. He could never repay them for helping him the way they did.

He was only twenty-one, then. He'd felt so much pain for so long, but he didn't feel pain when he thought of that time in his life anymore so much as he just felt... empty. He didn't like to talk about it, preferring to put it away in a dark corner of his mind where it could seldom haunt him.

He was mostly embarrassed that he'd let it go on for as long as he had, embarrassed that he'd refused to see the signs, embarrassed that he let someone make him feel ashamed of who he was. He'd never been embarrassed of who he was before Owen, but he couldn't shake that for a long time after.

Eventually, he did try dating again, but it was short lived. He couldn't relax around anyone, couldn’t even let go enough to have sex with them, and he was torn between a desperate desire to just be himself, to find someone who cared about him, not his name, and a deep need to prove that he wasn't boring and uninteresting.

None of them were exactly mean to him, not anything like Owen had been, he could admit that now, but it was like everyone just wanted Harry Potter, the 'celebrity', this hero who defeated Voldemort. It was like they thought excitement just followed him around, but it didn't, and they always ended up disappointed.

He'd stopped dating altogether after that, deciding to just focus on other areas of his life. It was too painful, never feeling like he was enough for anyone.

He was just a person, a regular person, and after everything he'd been through, he just wanted a normal, quiet life. He wanted to settle down and have a family, have children, but he hadn't met a single person who he could even remotely see himself being with long term.

Until now.

Draco was special.

Harry had always been far too interested in Draco. Their relationship had always been intense in one way or another, always burning too brightly, always one of two sides of the same coin. Seeing him again after years of no contact had been the biggest rush of his life, and after only five minutes on his doorstep, it felt like they’d never been apart at all. His crush, which he had been absolutely sure he'd gotten over, had come rushing back so fast it made him dizzy.

Because regardless of how much had changed in that time, how much they’d both lived and suffered through, he was still Draco. Draco, who had seen the absolute worst of Harry, who had done terrible things to Harry, and had terrible things done to him by Harry. Draco, who had no reason to let him in after everything, but had given him a chance anyway, had trusted him with his son, his most precious thing in this world; Draco, who treated him like a person, not a commodity, who never even asked him for anything, who refused to let Harry work for pittance; Draco, who didn't see 'Harry Potter, the Saviour of the Wizarding world' when he looked at him, but just saw Harry. He didn't treat him like a celebrity, didn't expect him to be perfect, and it made Harry want to give him absolutely everything.

He was going to tell him. On Friday.

Notes:

Thank you so much for sticking with me! As always, any feedback or comments are massively appreciated! I appreciate you <3

Chapter 7: CHAPTER 6, PART II

Summary:

PART TWO!

The Catalyst ;)

Notes:

We've made it! One of my favorite chapters. I hope you enjoy Harry's take on this. Our poor baby.

It was finally Friday. The day. Harry had woken up all aflutter, and it hadn't calmed down once, not with the way Scorpius had been begging him to leave every half hour since Harry had arrived that morning, reminding him of his plan for later.

Eventually he had caved and agreed to make supper early, just in case Draco got home earlier than usual, and packed his bag for him so it was ready.

He was in luck; Draco surprisingly did arrive home early. Harry bit back a smile when he showed up and Scorpius practically tackled him, already begging to leave. That was just one more thing that had gone right today. It was a good sign; it had to be.

"Papa! You're home!" Scorpius screeched. "Can we go to Grammy and Grampy's early? Please, please, please?"

Draco smiled. "We'll go after we eat, love, does that work?"

"Yay! We can eat now! We made supper early, 'just in case', Harry said."

"How smart of him," Draco murmured, meeting Harry's eyes appreciatively, and Harry tried not to swoon.

Draco allowed Scorpius to drag him to the table, laughing, and Harry served up supper.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were itching to get away from me," Draco told his son, amusedly.

"I want to go to Grammy's!" he answered, shoveling food in his mouth quickly.

"Slow down, Scorpius. You won't be going anywhere if you choke," Draco pointed out. His son made a face, but did slow down the tiniest bit, for a time.

Draco complimented Harry's cooking, as always, and Scorpius ate faster than Harry thought was possible, chattering on about his entire day, and all the things he planned to do with his grandparents.

As soon as his plate was empty, he declared himself done and begged again to leave right now.

"Alright, alright," Draco chuckled. "Go get your bag. We'll go as soon as I wash up."

"I can do that, Malfoy," Harry insisted, vanishing the supper dishes to the kitchen. "He's been jumping out of his skin all day, just take him over."

"Yay!" Scorpius cheered, zooming off to grab his bag.

"Are you sure? It won't hurt him to wait-"

"Nooo!" they heard Scorpius shout from his room.

Harry laughed. "I'm sure. Go on."

"Thanks," said, shooting him a grateful look. He nipped upstairs for a minute, then came back down with Scorpius and disappeared through the Floo with a final wave.

Okay, Harry thought. Okay. It was almost time. He had the wine hidden under a Disillusionment Charm already, chilled and ready to go. He'd just clean everything up quickly and get Draco’s tea up to his room for tonight, and when Draco got back, he'd mention the wine; sweeten him up a little, get him more relaxed, then make his move. He didn't exactly know what that move was yet, but he was going to make one.

Harry quickly swept the floor and scrubbed through the few remaining dishes that he hadn't washed before supper and was putting the dishes away when he heard Draco return. Butterflies swirled wildly in his stomach so suddenly that he dropped the plate he was holding, shattering it on the floor.

Fuck.

He crouched down, picking up the broken pieces carefully.

"Have you forgotten you're a wizard, Potter?" Draco asked, appearing suddenly, causing Harry to jump about a foot in the air.

"Oh. Right," he muttered, embarrassed, waving his hand to repair the plate, smiling sheepishly.

"You're allowed to go home, you know. You don't have to stay so late, especially while Scorpius isn't here," Draco reminded him, checking his watch.

The dismissal made Harry pause in worry, but determined not to be thrown off, he plowed on, more nervous than he had been moments ago.

"Er, right. I was actually wondering... Andromeda gave me this really fancy wine a few weeks ago," he lied, smiling slightly. "Elf-made, she called it? I don't really understand that kind of thing. But it sounded like something you would like, and I was thinking, if you weren't busy this evening..." he trailed off hopefully, his meaning clear, but his hopes were shattered with Draco's next words.

"Oh. I'm sorry, Potter, I can't. I promised Theo I'd spend some time with him this evening," Draco said, looking regretful.

Oh. Oh.

Disappointment crashed over him. Harry was an idiot. Of course he'd made plans for his one Friday off. Plans with his real friend, one who wasn't also his employee. Why would he want to spend his free weekend with Harry? Why didn't Harry just ask, instead of choosing to spring it on him, like he just expected Draco to never have plans outside of him? He was mortified.

He was so, so stupid.

"Oh. Of course!" he babbled, trying to backpedal. "Of course you have plans. That was stupid of me, to just assume- I'm so sorry. I'll just... go," he finished lamely, cheeks stained red.

"Potter, don't apologize," Draco said, looking confused. "You didn't do anything wrong. I'd really prefer to stay home, but I've been blowing him off for ages."

Great. Now he looked like a desperate fool and he'd made Draco feel guilty.

"No, you should definitely go," he forced a smile, suddenly needing to get out of this house. "I hope you have fun, Malfoy. You deserve to relax. I'll see you on Sunday, yeah?"

Draco nodded slowly. "Yeah..."

Harry hurried over to the Floo and left before he could humiliate himself further. All that excitement, all that planning, all for nothing. Disappointment gripped him even tighter, and he buried his face in his hands, willing himself not to cry.

It was stupid to be this upset. Draco was perfectly within his rights to spend his free time however he wished; Harry certainty didn't begrudge him that. But the thought of sitting home all night, in his depressing, empty house full of even more depressing memories when he'd been so excited, made him want to scream.

He quickly turned around and stepped right back into his fireplace, Flooing to Ron and Hermione's.

"Harry?" Hermione asked, confused, when she entered the room and saw him. She was already dressed to go out, and now he felt even worse for interrupting their plans.

"I'm sorry," he stammered. "I completely forgot about pub night-"

"Don't you dare apologize. What happened? I thought you were spending the evening with Malfoy?"

Harry looked at his feet, hands wringing his shirt. "He, um. He had other plans already. I didn’t really think..."

"Oh, Harry. I'm so sorry. I know how much you were looking forward to tonight," she said sadly, pulling him into a hug.

"It's okay. It was my fault, I shouldn't have just- I should have asked instead of assuming," he said defeatedly.

"Well, it just wasn't the right time," she said firmly. "He didn't say no, right?"

He shook his head. "I didn't even get to tell him. He just said he had plans with Theo when I asked to stay."

"Well, that's alright, then. There's still plenty of time to tell him. You don't have to rush it."

He hadn't been rushing it, at least he didn't think so, but she was right. It wasn't like he said no, he was just busy.

"You're right," he said softly. "I'm sorry, 'Mione, I just couldn't stand the thought of being home alone."

"You won't be. You'll just come out with us, like we had planned anyway. Right, Ronald?" she asked her husband as he entered the room.

Ron looked confused. "Right... Why are you here, again?"

"Malfoy had other plans," she said sharply, giving him a look that told him to shut up and not ask questions.

"You'll have more fun with us, anyway," Ron said with a grin, slinging his arm around Harry's shoulders, and he finally allowed himself to relax.

“Thanks, Ron. Oh! How are the baby plans coming? Any luck yet?” Harry asked hopefully, but Ron shook his head.

“Not yet, but it’s only been a few months. It’ll happen.”

“It will,” Harry assured them, hugging a slightly down Hermione tightly.

They let Harry use their shower, and he changed into the spare set of clothes he kept at their house just in case, his nicer, fitted jeans, tight black t-shirt, and a gray plaid flannel. He'd probably just come back here later to sleep, and he could grab his dirty clothes then.

He took his time, knowing they were waiting for Neville, Seamus, and Dean anyway, and they all lingered around the cottage for a bit longer after everyone had arrived, drinking wine and snacking on the gingersnaps Molly had sent over earlier in the week. None of them asked why Harry was suddenly joining them, and he was grateful for that.

Eventually, they were ready to go, most of the group a few drinks in already, and they Apparated near the Wobbly Broomstick, heading inside to their usual table. It was a bit later than they usually came in, but not by much. Harry offered to get the first round, and he made his way over to the bar.

Audrey was busy getting someone else's order when he approached, and he stood back and waited his turn, eyes wandering until he spotted what had to be one of the most beautiful men he'd ever seen, from the back, anyway, standing alone up near the bar. Long, long legs clad in skin tight black denim, and a leather jacket.

Harry immediately felt guilty for finding a stranger so attractive when he was in love with someone else, but as he stared, the man leaned up against the bar, propping his arse out enticingly, and holy mother of God, that arse...

He froze.

Wait. He knew that arse. He'd spent months gazing at that delicious, perfectly round arse longingly. His eyes traveled up the body again, and sure enough, shoulder length, white-blonde hair greeted him.

"Malfoy?" he asked incredulously, and the man stiffened before spinning around hastily to face Harry.

His brain felt like it short-circuited as he drank Draco in. He- he looked like absolute sin. He was wearing the tightest jeans known to mankind, ripped up and down the legs in a few places, revealing bits of smooth, pale skin. He had on a fitted white t-shirt and a black leather jacket, his hair falling softly around his face and shoulders. And his face... he had smudged a bit of what looked like black eyeliner around his eyes, making him look edgy and dangerous and painfully, unbearably sexy.

He looked like a fucking wet dream, and Harry had never wanted to fall to his knees for someone so badly in all his life, and he didn't care who would see it.

Draco stared back at Harry, looking shocked to see him.

"Er," Draco choked out, then swallowed. "Potter. What the fuck are you doing here?" he asked in disbelief, and pain sliced through Harry at his cold tone, like Harry was the last person he wanted to see.

"I- this is my pub? I come here twice a month with my friends..." he trailed off, gesturing to where his friends were sat, unable to keep the hurt from his voice at Draco's accusatory tone, like he thought Harry had followed him here or something.

Draco winced slightly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to say it like that," he said sincerely. "I just didn't expect to see you here."

Harry relaxed a bit. Right. He'd just been caught off guard, it wasn't that he wished they hadn't run into each other. "Of course. I didn't expect to see you, either. I wasn't supposed to be here tonight, anyway. I called Hermione after- well, they invited me last minute," he said, waving his hand a bit, wishing immediately that he could wave that revelation away, when he remembered that the reason he’d been re-invited last minute was because Draco had had other plans. "I thought you were visiting Theo?"

"Um. I am. He's over there," Draco said, pointing to where Theo was sitting at a two-person table, waving at some random person enthusiastically.

His heart dropped into his stomach, settling there like a stone as everything clicked into place. The outfit, the eyeliner, the pub…

Draco was on a date.

He was on a date. With Theo.

It made so much sense, why he hadn't told Harry he had plans, why he had seemed less than pleased to see Harry here, why he was dressed like that, like a bad boy supermodel, looking hotter than sin. Looking like that for someone else, someone who wasn’t Harry.

His gaze hardened to hide his burning dislike for Theo before he forced a smile onto his face. "Right. Well, I'll leave you to it," he said shortly, walking back to his table as quickly as he could, ignoring the few stares he got entirely, in no mood to entertain anyone tonight. His eyes burned.

Ron looked up as Harry approached, his laugh instantly dying on his lips when he saw Harry's face. Harry sat heavily, cutting Ron off before he could ask what was wrong.

"Malfoy's here. On a date. I ran into him at the bar, and I couldn't get the drinks, I'm sorry," Harry said shakily, swallowing past the lump in his throat. "Can you get them, please," he pleaded.

"'Course I can," Ron said, kindly not pushing him, and Harry handed him a handful of gold.

He glued his eyes to the table and just let Hermione and Neville scoot closer to him. Harry was a complete and utter fool.

He'd waited too long. He'd waited too long to make his move, and now it was too late. Or maybe it wouldn't have mattered; maybe he never would have gone for Harry anyway. Maybe he'd been fooling himself this whole time. Maybe he'd imagined everything; every lingering look or touch, every longing gaze, every single flirty word or gesture... it had all been in his head. Draco was never going to be his.

"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione asked him quietly when he got himself under enough control to look up, eyes sad. Ron had come back with the drinks at some point, and he hadn't even noticed.

"I'm fine," he said flatly. "He has every right to date whomever he wants, and I have no right to stop him. I waited too long. It's my own fault."

Hermione looked like she wanted to argue, but she restrained herself, probably sensing now wasn't the time.

"Are you sure it's a date, Harry? Did he tell you it was?" Neville asked quietly.

"No, but he- he looks like that," Harry shrugged. "I've never seen him look like that before. It's- he's gorgeous. He's always gorgeous, but..." he trailed off helplessly.

"You haven't been to a pub with him, though. Maybe that's just how he dresses when he goes out?" Neville suggested.

Harry glanced back at the other man longingly, pain squeezing his chest. Draco was sitting across from Theo, mischievous smile on his lips as he sipped his drink, eyes sparkling with amusement until they closed, head tilting back as he laughed at something the other man said.

Draco was radiant. It felt like everyone in the bar had their eyes glued to him, and he was oblivious to it all, ignoring them all in favor of Theo.

He looked down at himself, frowning at his boring, worn-out t-shirt and jeans, and his too common flannel. Plain. He was so embarrassingly plain.

What had he been thinking? Why would Draco ever want to be with someone like him? He wasn't especially attractive or interesting. He had nothing to offer someone like him.

He looked back up, eyes locked on that pretty face. Draco looked so free right now, not weighed down with stress and responsibility like Harry usually saw him. He looked so happy.

White hot jealously like he's never known flared up inside of Harry so quickly he almost choked on it. It was suffocating. He couldn't tear his eyes away.

"I don't know, but it doesn't matter," he said, tuning out whatever was said next.

His drink sat untouched. He had no desire to drink it, or even be here any longer. He tortured himself by staring at Draco, watching half the pub gawk at him, desire written all over their faces, watching as Theo got closer and closer to him all night, touching him where Harry was supposed to be touching him, making him laugh the same way Harry always did. Eventually, Theo had moved seats to get even closer to him, and Harry bit the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood when he saw Theo practically hanging off of him.

He's never wanted to punch someone in the face as badly as he did right in this moment. The thought startled him, but not enough to stop his self-imposed torment. His friends tried to draw him into the conversation occasionally, but for the most part, they just let him alone, sensing his sour mood. Instead, they just shot him sympathetic glances, all except Neville and Hermione, who both kept a strangely close eye on him.

His boiling jealousy shifted more towards concern as the night wore on, though. It didn't go away, but he noticed Draco throwing back drink after drink, could see him start to sway a bit in his chair, eyes too bright, growing more agitated with his companion.

At one point, Draco gave Theo, who was now holding his hand and playing with Draco's fingers, a disgruntled look before pulling his hand away, scooting his chair a few centimeters away from his date.

Theo was obviously an idiot, though, because instead of taking the hint, he moved his own chair closer again, and Draco gasped, face downright annoyed now. He said something to Theo, who replied, grinning, and Draco's jaw dropped in outrage, eyes blazing.

Harry saw his mouth moving rapidly, clearly tearing into his date about something. They spatted back and forth, Draco trying unsuccessfully to stand at one point, but Theo pulled him back down when he wobbled too much, holding him steady.

Harry's whole body was incredibly tense. He couldn't stop watching now if he wanted to, torn between anger towards Theo and genuine concern for Draco. Just because he didn't want Harry didn't mean Harry automatically stopped caring about him. He loved Draco. Was in love with him, and he had to keep an eye out and make sure he was alright. He'd never forgive himself if anything happened to him when he could have stepped in and prevented it. It may be intrusive and controlling, but he would not stand by and watch Draco get hurt by this prick, or anyone else, not in a million years.

Slowly, Harry watched Draco's fury morph into actual upset. He looked quite distressed, slightly teary.

Theo eventually got up to go to the bar again, and Harry frowned at the thought of him giving Draco yet another drink when he'd clearly had enough. Draco chose that moment to look over at Harry, sad, silver eyes locking on his green ones just for a moment before he turned away, slumping and burying his face in his hands in obvious anguish.

"Something is wrong," Harry murmured, and the whole table looked to him, but he couldn't take his eyes off of the scene across the room.

"What's that, Harry?" Seamus asked, glancing over to where Theo had now returned and set a glass of something clear down in front of Draco. Harry could see his mouth moving, but Draco didn't respond at all, just sitting in the same slumped position, looking more miserable by the second.

"They're fighting about something. He's drunk," Harry said distractedly. "I'm going over there."

"Mate, are you sure that's a good idea?" Dean asked skeptically, but Draco suddenly stood up far too quickly, stumbling away from Theo in Harry’s direction. He swayed on his feet, bending over to grab a random chair for support, grimacing, and Harry was out of his seat in an instant, shoving through the crowd to get to him.

As he got closer, he heard Draco shouting.

"I didn't ask for your bloody help!" Draco slurred loudly, drawing the gazes of everyone around them as he tried to walk away from his date. He staggered to the side, and Theo grabbed him.

"Shit, Draco, stop!"

"No!" Draco shouted, yanking his arm violently out of Theo's grasp. Draco stumbled backwards towards Harry, and rage welled up inside of him when he saw Theo reaching for him again after Draco had explicitly said no.

Harry moved without thought, easily catching Draco before he could fall. Draco's back was pressed against his chest, legs bent at the knee so he was shorter than Harry, and Harry's arms came up to cradle Draco closer, to keep him safe.

Draco stiffened for a moment, then seemed to practically melt into Harry's touch, sighing quietly.

Theo was still reaching for him, and Harry grit his teeth. "Back off," he said coldly.

Theo's eyes widened, but he did stop. He felt his friends hovering behind him, but they stopped, too, not interfering, just watching.

"Easy there, mate, it's not what you think," Theo said, holding his hands up placatingly. "He's had a bit too much-"

"I don't care," Harry spat. "I heard him say no, and saw him trying to get away from you while you refused to take a hint. That's all I need to know."

A strange, high-pitched giggle burst out of Draco, and he slapped a hand over his mouth, while Theo's jaw dropped in shock.

"Woah, that's not-"

"I. Don't. Care," Harry stressed. All he cared about right now was getting the man in his arms home safely.

Draco chose that moment to go completely boneless, and Harry grunted in surprise, gripping him tighter and shifting his stance a bit to be able to support the much larger man's unexpected dead weight.

"I'm taking him home. Christ, how much did he have to drink?"

Theo didn't answer, but Draco giggled again.

"Are you going to cuddle me, Potter?" Draco asked, looking up over his shoulder into Harry's face, smiling lazily.

He obviously had no idea what he was saying, but even completely off his face, he was still painfully charming, and Harry felt his whole demeanor soften. Draco giggled again when Harry met his eyes. "You're tall."

"No, I'll take him," Theo finally stepped in, ignoring Draco's ramblings, drawing his wand, like he was prepared to fight Harry for him. That was never going to happen. Fierce protectiveness welled up inside of him, even stronger than before. Date or no, he was Harry's to keep safe. Harry would always look out for him, take care of him.

"Don't touch him," Harry seethed, and a few lightbulbs somewhere above him shattered as he felt his magic burst out of him uncontrollably.

"Harry!" Hermione screamed, and he heard several gasps, a crowd now gathered around them, staring at the scene they were making.

"Unbelievable," Theo muttered, staring at the broken glass around him in shock. Audrey hurried over, vanishing the glass with a swish of her wand, turning to talk into Theo's ear, but Harry couldn't hear what she was saying.

"Harry! You need to calm down," Hermione chastised him. He was too distracted to answer her beyond a stiff nod, though. He knew he needed to calm down, but he couldn't.

"Draco, do you want Potter to take you home?" Theo suddenly asked, voice gentle.

Draco closed his eyes, a wide grin slowly stretching his cheeks, but he didn't answer.

"Look at me, Draco," Theo urged. "I'm not letting him take you until I know you're alright."

Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Draco couldn't be anywhere safer than with him.

Draco opened his eyes, locking them on Harry's face. "Potter will take care of me," Draco slurred out, reaching up to pat Harry's cheek affectionately, and Harry's heart lurched. "He cooks for me, did you know? I love when he cooks. Takes such good care of me..."

Theo bit his lip, looking uncertainly at Audrey, who nodded at him sternly, silently telling him to let Harry take him. She knew Harry would get him home safe.

Theo sighed, locking eyes with Harry. "Fine. But know I'm only letting this go because I know he'd make the same choice sober, and you'd chew your own arm off before hurting him. He keeps hangover Potions under his bathroom sink. He'll need it."

"I can handle it," Harry snapped, but he softened when he looked to Audrey, feeling awful about making such a scene in her bar. "I'm sorry about the mess, Audrey. I'll replace the bulbs."

He'd do a lot more than that, but that was all he could think of right now with twelve stone worth of drunken blonde in his arms.

"Yes, yes, just get your boy home before you frighten my patrons any further," she said with a laugh, and he managed a small smile. She wasn't angry with him, then, thank goodness.

Draco giggled again, and Harry adjusted his hold on him, lifting him enough to get his arm around Harry's neck, and his own arm wrapped around Draco's waist. He supported most of Draco's weight so the man could walk without falling. He'd just carry him, but he didn't think Draco would appreciate that in public.

"Byeeee, Theo," Draco whispered, wiggling his fingers. "I'm still mad at you, but we can be friends again if Potter forgives me."

Harry had no idea what he was talking about or why he seemed to think Harry had anything to forgive him for, but Theo just rolled his eyes affectionately. "Yeah, yeah. We'll see how you feel tomorrow when you aren't blitzed out of your mind. I'll be checking in."

Hermione looked worried, whispering, "are you sure you're alright?"

He nodded, giving her a slight smile. "I'll be by later, just need to sober him up," he whispered back, then gently guided a very sloppy Draco towards the doors. Draco couldn't seem to get his feet to cooperate, but Harry just shifted to take on more of his weight, and eventually got them outside.

"I'm going to Apparate us," Harry warned him. "Don't let go of me."

"Never," Draco mumbled, closing his eyes and gripping the front of Harry's shirt with his free hand. Harry's heart flipped painfully at how much Draco trusted him when he wasn’t able to keep his guard up, and he tightened his own grip before turning them on the spot and Disapparating with a loud crack.

When they landed, Draco groaned miserably, looking quite green. "Harry," he said weakly, letting go of Harry to try and lie down on the floor.

Harry.

"No, no, not on the floor," Harry told him gently, unable to focus on the fact that Draco said his name, again, while he was in a vulnerable position. "Come on, Malfoy."

Harry hauled him back up and got him over to the couch, sitting him down and leaning him back against the cushions so he was supported. Harry tipped his chin up so he could cast the spell that would sober him up, but Draco opened his eyes, breath hitching as his silver eyes held Harry's gaze, looking incredibly, inexplicably sad.

"Why are you mad at me?" Draco asked sadly, voice cracking. He sounded so much like his son in that moment, looking small and vulnerable, and Harry wanted to scoop him up and protect him from the entire world, heart throbbing at how distraught he sounded.

"I'm not angry at you, darling," he said quietly, brushing a lock of hair away from Draco's face.

How could he be angry with Draco? For what? For going out and living his life? He could never be angry at him for that. He was hurt, and jealous, and yes, maybe angry at himself, and probably some at Theo, but not at Draco.

"Yes, you are, and I don't know what I did, but I’m sorry. I just want you to like me," Draco said desperately. His eyes drifting shut and flying open again, like he couldn't stay awake.

Harry couldn't stand this. They had to talk. He had to apologize, had to fix this, had to make it clear that Harry did like him, that he could never not like him. He couldn't stand that Draco felt like this, but they couldn't talk about this while Draco was this drunk.

"I need to sober you up, Malfoy. We can't talk while you're like this, and I don't want you to get sick in your bed tonight," Harry explained.

"Okay," Draco whispered.

"Just relax for me," Harry instructed him softly. Draco laid his head against the back of the couch, but didn't take his eyes off of Harry, carefully watching as Harry touched his temple, stroking the skin there soothingly as he muttered the incantation.

White light flowed out of Harry's fingers and melted into Draco's skin, leaving it glowing brightly for a moment before it disappeared. Draco shuddered violently, then curled himself up into a ball, groaning. Harry was intimately familiar with that spell, and knew how miserable it was for the first minute or so.

Draco eventually quieted down, and when Harry was sure it had passed, he spoke quietly. "Are you alright?"

Harry saw mortification set in, staining Draco's cheeks red as he slowly realized what had happened, but it only lasted a moment before being replaced with anger.

"I'm fine, Potter," Draco snapped at him. "You've done your duty; you can leave now."

"My du- Malfoy! I didn't do it out of obligation," Harry protested, scandalized that he could even think that.

Draco ignored him, standing on shaky legs and making his way to the kitchen. Harry followed him, not understanding why he seemed so pissed off.

"Why are you being so hostile?" he asked, bewildered, as Draco filled a glass with water. He'd just been trying to help.

That seemed to make it worse, though. Draco slammed his glass down, spinning around to face Harry, absolutely seething.

"Me?!" he hissed incredulously. "I’m being hostile? You were the one trying to Crucio me with your eyes all evening! What the fuck is your problem, anyway? I thought you said we were friends. I don't know what I did wrong, but I didn't deserve that. You had me so on edge I drank myself into oblivion!"

Harry was horrified. He had no idea that Draco had even noticed him looking at him! He'd ruined Draco's one night out because he couldn't keep his stupid emotions in check. Guilt settled heavy in his stomach, the need to fix this practically smothering him.

"Malfoy, I'm so sorry," he babbled desperately. "I really didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I was completely caught off guard; I thought you were meeting up with Theo at his flat, not that you were going out with him dressed like that," he said, gesturing wildly up and down Draco's body, face going hot with embarrassment at his admission of jealousy. He'd wanted to tell Draco how he felt tonight, but not like this. Not while Draco was looking at him like he hated him.

The confession seemed to only make it worse, though, as he quite obviously misunderstood Harry’s meaning.

"Are you fucking serious? I'm an adult, Potter. I'm allowed to go wherever and dress however I please! I've stayed home to take care of my son for five years. I wanted one night to go out with a friend, and that doesn't make me a bad parent! I was out at a pub, not a brothel! And it's none of your bloody business, even if I was!"

"What- Malfoy, of course it doesn't make you a bad parent," Harry said, softly, trying to deescalate the situation. "That's not- you've got it all wrong-"

He was trying to explain himself, to fix the misunderstanding before it got worse, but panic was bubbling up inside of him, the fear that he was ruining everything making him trip over his words.

"Go home, Potter," Draco cut him off, rolling his eyes, storming past Harry.

Harry sighed, following Draco again. There was no way he was leaving things like this, absolutely fucking not. He was not going to let everything they've built be ruined over a misunderstanding, but Malfoy wouldn't stop walking away from him.

"Malfoy! Would you stop?" Harry called after him, frustrated. "Please, we need to talk, I don't want you to think that I-"

"Potter," Draco gritted out through a clenched jaw, cutting him off again. "I can't think of anything I'd rather do less right now."

"If you would just listen-"

"I don't want to listen!" Draco exploded, throwing his hands up. "I want to go to bed and forget that you completely changed tonight. You were looking at me exactly like how you used to in school, and I had no idea why. I hated it!" he stressed.

Harry stared at him, stunned, as Draco reached up to brush an angry tear off of his cheek, chest heaving. That- he was crying. Draco was crying, and it was Harry's fault. 

He felt awful. Draco always kept his emotions tucked so carefully away, guarded fiercely, but now he was crying in front of Harry. Because of Harry. Because he thought Harry was judging him, and he didn't like it. He cared. He cared about what Harry thought of him. He looked so affected, so upset and humiliated, and Harry couldn't stand it.

They had to talk about this. They had to. It was going to slowly destroy them if he didn’t. Draco had been on a date with someone else; Harry had lost his chance and he knew that, but he couldn't keep it inside anymore. It's been eating him alive for weeks, and there was no way, absolutely no way that Draco didn't know how Harry felt about him, at least to some degree. He'd been anything but subtle about it for months.

He carefully contemplated his words from his spot in the threshold between the living room and hallway, not taking his eyes off of Draco. Best to start with what started all of this.

"I wasn't glaring at you," he said quietly.

Draco laughed dryly. "I saw you-"

"It wasn't at you," Harry interrupted, crossing his arms defensively. He wasn't going to let Draco's mind run off with the conversation again. "Not specifically, anyway. It was mostly because of Theo."

"Theo," Draco repeated dully, looking thoroughly unimpressed in the way that only he could. Harry usually loved that look because it was so Draco, but right now it was only making this harder.

Harry nodded tightly; jaw clenched.

"And why, pray tell, would you be angry at Theo? He didn't do anything to you, either," Draco pointed out, but he did finally sound less furious.

"He was touching you. A lot."

Draco blinked blankly. "And?"

Harry shrugged, agitated at having to spell it out like this. "And, I didn't like it."

"Why would you-"

"Because I was fucking jealous!" Harry burst out, casual going out the window in an instant. This was killing him. Acting like this wasn't a big deal was killing him, when it was the biggest deal, when it was everything to him.

Draco looked stricken for a minute, just standing there, shaking his head slowly like he couldn't believe Harry had just said that.

"Jealous?" he finally whispered shakily. "Why were you jealous?"

Harry stared at him incredulously. He could not be serious. He was so surprised by the absurd question that words began pouring out of him like vomit, and he couldn't stop them. He didn't want to stop them. It felt so bloody good to finally say it out loud.

"Are you serious? Have you met yourself? You're disgustingly gorgeous. It's unfair, really, being around you. I've been trying to get you to see me as an option for months, and I haven't exactly been subtle about it," he ranted, beginning to pace and tug on his hair. "I flirt with you constantly, I touch you all the time, I try my best to show you that you can count on me and that I'm here for you and Scorpius... that I'm right here. But you are either painfully oblivious, or completely uninterested, neither of which are particularly appealing options, if I’m honest," he said in frustration, pain flaring up again at the reminder that once again, he wasn't good enough, that Draco didn't pick him.

"And seeing you on a date tonight, looking like a wet dream come to life for someone else... Christ, Malfoy, that fucking hurt. I was so jealous it felt like I couldn't breathe, and I just... I'm sorry," he said desperately. "You're not mine. I know I have no right whatsoever to feel that way and that I'm risking my job by even saying this, but I couldn't control it."

Harry was breathing heavily by the time he finished, emotions warring inside him. Draco wasn't saying anything, though, just gaping at Harry like he'd grown a second head, and Harry felt himself growing more distressed the longer Draco was silent until he couldn't stand it anymore.

"Um," he said nervously, breaking the awkward silence, "if you could say something, that would be great, because I-"

He trailed off when Draco moved towards him, long legs carrying him across the room in three long strides, and Harry's eyes widened impossibly when Draco fisted the front of his shirt tightly and yanked him forward. Harry panicked for a split second, thinking Draco was going to hit him, but then the taller man was swooping down, crashing their lips together in a bruising kiss that was so full of passion, so full of want, that Harry couldn't breathe, couldn't think.

His mind went blank, struggling to understand what was happening, even as Draco pressed in closer to him, his body touching Harry everywhere, leaving him feeling far too hot.

He- he was kissing Harry. He was kissing Harry like it was all he wanted to do for the rest of his life, his full lips impossibly soft and pressing against Harry's insistently, not seeming deterred at all by the fact that Harry was frozen in place, not kissing him back.

When his tongue slipped out to brush along Harry bottom lip, asking for entrance, though, Harry finally snapped out of it, animalistic instinct taking over him so fast we felt dizzy.

He was kissing Draco. His mind shut off and he just acted.

He grunted, opening his mouth to allow Draco in, and his hands snaked up to finally tangle in Draco's long, silky hair, tugging him closer roughly and drawing a low moan out of Draco that shot straight to his cock.

Harry took control of the kiss, and Draco let him, practically melting into Harry's touch, allowing himself to be pressed up against the wall of his hallway as Harry plundered his mouth, tasting licorice on his tongue, memorizing the feel of his mouth.

Harry had imagined what it would be like to kiss Draco a thousand times, in a thousand different ways, but they all paled in comparison to the real thing. He never could have imagined how much it would be. His stomach was flipping wildly, heart pounding so loudly that he'd be surprised if the whole neighborhood couldn't hear it.

As he grew used to the idea that he was actually kissing Draco, though, something began nagging at the back of his mind.

Draco had been out on a date. He was seeing someone. As much as Harry wanted him, he couldn't live with himself if he came between their relationship, if he ruined that for Draco because he couldn't control himself. He couldn’t be ‘the other man’.

He forced himself to pull back enough to talk, gasping words out between kisses.

"Wait. Wait, Malfoy, stop. Aren't you dating Theo?" he panted, trying to clear the fog of arousal that had settled over him.

Draco looked at him like he was insane, then let out a slightly hysterical laugh. "Fuck no," he said, pulling Harry back in, kissing him quiet.

No.

He said no. He'd said fuck no, actually, like the idea of him dating Theo was ridiculous.

It hadn't been a date. He was still single.

Oh my God.

Harry allowed himself to fall into it for just a moment before he pulled back again. There had been so much misunderstanding between them tonight. They had to talk. Harry had so much he needed to say, so much he needed to ask. He didn't want any more miscommunication.

"Wait," he said, stopping them again, this time taking a small step back to create distance so he didn't get sucked back in again. "I really think we should talk about-"

"No," Draco cut him off harshly, shaking his head. He looked absolutely wrecked, kiss swollen and flushed, his hair a rumpled mess where Harry had been pulling on it. He was gorgeous. "Not now. Please," he added, licking his bottom lip seductively.

Harry looked at him helplessly, fighting an internal battle. They needed to talk. It was important, and if they didn't stop now, he knew they were heading somewhere they'd never be able to come back from. He needed Draco to know how much Harry loved him before they did this, that he wanted him, not just tonight, but forever. He wanted them to be together, to be a family. And perhaps even more, he needed to know how Draco felt about him.

But on the other hand, he couldn't even pretend that he didn't want this. He could feel his cock, rock hard in his jeans, practically begging to be touched, and Draco... he looked so, so kissable. His hands itched to reach out and touch him so badly. Harry needed him, needed him like he needed air.

Draco was right here in front of him, offering himself up to Harry, wanting Harry, and Harry... was he really going to waste this opportunity when he's waited so long to have it?

He felt his resolve weaken, and he set his jaw, mind made up. There would be plenty of time to talk later; they'd have their whole lives to talk. He could let himself have this now.

He nodded firmly once. "Later," he promised, then hooked his hand on the back of Draco's neck and pulled him back down into another kiss, not letting their height difference deter him, and he pressed Draco firmly against the wall, slotting their bodies together.

The kiss was all teeth and tongue, biting and so fucking good, even hotter than before. Harry felt like he might not survive this night. It was so much. Everything about Draco was so consuming; it felt like the world outside of them ceased to exist, and he could think of nothing but Draco, Draco, Draco. He felt like he might explode. It had been so long, so long since he'd been touched, so long since he’d touched anyone, and it had never meant this much to him before, not ever. Harry's heart throbbed along with his cock, feeling so much love for the other man that he thought he might faint.

Harry pressed in closer to him, his erection digging into Draco's thigh insistently, and Draco seemed to go feral, kissing him even more insistently, hands coming up to grip Harry's face and keep him close, nipping harshly at Harry's lips as he tried to get even closer, like he wanted to climb inside Harry, until he eventually grunted, pushing Harry back slightly.

"Bed," he gasped out, groaning when Harry's stomach brushed against his cock as he backed up. "Potter, bed, now."

"Are you-" Harry started to ask.

"If you ask me if I'm sure, I'm going to hex your bollocks off," Draco snapped in irritation, and Harry huffed out a laugh. Leave it to Draco to get even sassier when he was horny.

If Draco wanted to move this upstairs, he could do that. He snatched the taller man's hand up and dragged him up the stairs to Draco's room. Harry shut the door and turned to face him, eyes roving hungrily over him while Draco stood near his bed, frozen.

"Fuck, you're gorgeous," Harry breathed, taking a step towards him and peeling his flannel off, suddenly far too hot in it. Draco's eyes tracked his movement, looking darker than Harry has ever seen them, but he still didn't move, aside from his labored breathing. "Do you have any idea what you've been doing to me all night, dressed like that? All leather, and ripped jeans, and eyeliner?"

Harry stripped his shirt off next, watching as Draco swallowed heavily, eyes glued to his torso. The blatant arousal in his gaze made a shiver run up Harry's spine, along with a flash of pride. "You drive me crazy; do you know that?" Harry demanded, and Draco looked about two seconds away from coming at his firm tone.

Interesting.

"Potter-" he croaked out hoarsely.

"It’s Harry," Harry corrected him, kicking off his boots and socks, unbuttoning his jeans to relieve some of the pressure on his dick, but not pulling them down yet.

"Potter," he whispered, jutting his chin out defiantly, and Harry felt a thrill run through him. He wanted to play that game, did he? Well, Harry was so, so down to play.

He walked right up to him, invading his space, and Draco's breathing was ragged as Harry ran his hands carefully down Draco's arms before reaching up and sliding his jacket down until it hit the floor, ridding him of it.

Draco twitched, looking visibly uncomfortable at having his forearm bared, at having his Dark Mark out in the open for Harry to see, but Harry didn't tear his gaze away from Draco's face once.

I don't care about it, he thought, willing Draco to understand. I don't care about that Mark at all; that's not who you are.

He kept his eyes locked on Draco's until he saw the man relax imperceptibly, then he leaned forward to lick a stripe up the side of Draco's neck, ending the motion with a sharp nip to his earlobe. Draco moaned breathily, eyes fluttering shut and mouth dropping open, submitting to Harry's touch beautifully. Amazing.

"Clothes off," he breathed into Draco's ear, punctuating his sentence with another nip of his teeth.

He watched, fascinated, as Draco scrambled to comply, stripping himself quickly, kicking his jacket aside and tossing his clothes and shoes into a corner somewhere.

Harry's eyes roved his body hungrily, drinking him in, and Draco just let him, waiting for another instruction, standing perfectly still, not hiding himself at all, not even when his cock jumped under Harry's intense scrutiny, a drop of pre cum beading on the tip.

He was the loveliest thing Harry had ever seen. A million things he wanted to do to him flashing through his mind before landing on what he wanted most. He wanted Draco incoherent under him, wanted him to feel so good he couldn't form words, wanted to make sure this was worth it to him.

"Beautiful," Harry muttered. "Turn around, on the bed. Arse up," he said more firmly, urging him backwards, testing just how far Draco was willing to let him go with this.

Draco drew in a sharp breath, hesitating for the briefest of moments, eyes darting down to Harry’s crotch, before he climbed onto the bed, keeping his knees close to the edge and lowered his upper body down onto his elbows, baring his arse to Harry.

Harry's cock twitched violently, partly at the sight before him, partly at the easy submission. Fucking hell, could he be any more perfect?

"Perfect. Good boy," Harry praised him, and Draco moaned uncontrollably, his cock jumping as he leaked more pre-come onto the duvet. Jesus Christ.

Harry approached him, running gentle fingers down his spine reverently until they settled on his arse, spreading him open, eyes glued to his opening, pink and smooth and hairless, clenching under Harry's gaze. He was even perfect there. Harry was so fucked.

Harry needed to taste him.

He concentrated intensely for a moment, casting the gentlest Cleaning Charm he could muster on Draco, causing him to jerk in surprise, but Harry didn't give him a chance to ask what that was. He leaned in, mouth watering, and licked.

Draco cried out, jolting forward to try and escape the unexpected sensation, but Harry wrapped one arm around his hips, hauling him back up and holding him in place, using his other hand to keep him spread open before diving back in, lapping at Draco's hole like he was a gourmet meal.

Harry moaned, feeling absolutely drunk with desire. He didn't think he'd ever been this turned on his life. His dick felt like a steel rod in his jeans, straining to get free from the uncomfortable, restricting material. He reached down and pushed his denims down far enough for his cock to breath before bringing his hand back up, squeezing Draco's hip, not pausing his ministrations even once.

Harry ate him out with the voracity of a man starved, applying every single trick he'd ever learned doing this until Draco's thighs were shaking, moans pouring out of him without restraint. It was the prettiest thing he'd ever heard, and Harry was positive he'd never done anything this hot in his entire life

Suddenly, Draco whined, loud and high. "Potter, gon- gonna come," he choked out, and oh, no. No, this was not going to end yet. Harry was nowhere near done with him, and Draco was still calling him Potter, hadn't given Harry what he wanted yet. He could come once he did.

Harry hummed in acknowledgement but didn't stop licking. The arm holding Draco up shifted, his hand slipping lower until he could wrap two fingers around his balls and tugged them down firmly to stop him from coming.

Draco keened, bucking wildly as he tried to both escape and lean back into Harry, his body breaking out in a sweat at having his orgasm denied.

"Potter, please, I need-" he gasped, and Harry shushed him gently, silently conjuring a handful of lube. He didn't let go of his balls, but pulled back just enough to slip a wet finger over Draco's hole, rubbing in the slick a bit before slowly sliding inside. God, he was so tight.

"Settle down, darling. I know what you need," he murmured, the term of endearment slipping out so naturally he almost didn't even notice he'd said it, and pumped his finger in and out of Draco. "Fuck, you’re so tight. How are you this tight?" he muttered, not actually expecting an answer. He was virgin tight. Surely Draco had sex, at least somewhat regularly. How could he not, when he looked like that? It wasn't like he'd be pressed for choice. Harry would be worried about hurting him if Draco didn't appear to absolutely love this, rocking back onto Harry's finger, clenching even tighter, like he wanted more.

Harry took the hint and slid a second finger in and Draco gasped, keening loudly when Harry located his prostate, brushing over it teasingly.

That's it, baby, he thought, smirking. He boldly pushed a third finger in, picking up on the fact that Draco liked the stretch, then focused his touch on that sensitive bundle of nerves, rubbing firm, unrelenting circles into it until Draco was an incoherent mess, practically sobbing into the mattress.

Harry was still holding his balls away from his body, not wanting him to come yet. Harry wasn't going to get this close to fucking the fittest bloke on the planet and not get to follow through, not when Draco was literally begging for it.

"Please," Draco sobbed out, voice wrecked and cracking with need.

"Shh," Harry soothed again. "You're alright, I'm going to take care of you."

Harry pulled his fingers out, finally ridding himself of his jeans and pants, freeing his throbbing erection and stroking himself lightly.

"Roll over, sweetheart," he said softly, urging Draco to roll onto his back. "I want to see you."

Draco nodded frantically, quickly rolling onto his back, and Harry almost came when Draco shamelessly pulled his knees back, spreading his legs open invitingly, his dark, liquid mercury eyes heavy with arousal and… something else, locked on Harry's cock. If Harry had any inkling of doubt left that Draco wanted this as much as Harry did, it was gone now.

Draco moaned as he watched Harry stroke himself, shifting impatiently on the bed.

"Potter, please," he begged, and Harry leaned over him, kissing him deeply as he pressed the wet head of his cock teasingly against Draco's entrance. Draco ground his hips down, trying to get Harry inside of him, but Harry waited.

"Condom?" he asked, assuming Draco had some around here somewhere, but Draco just shook his head quickly instead of telling him where they were.

"I don't- um. It's been a really long time," he rasped out.

Harry was surprised to hear that, but couldn't deny the warm, pleased feeling that settled in his stomach at hearing that Draco hadn't sex in so long that he no longer had any condoms on hand. That- he was breaking that for Harry. The thought of getting to fuck Draco bare... that wasn't something you did casually. This meant something. It had to.

"Me too," Harry told him. "We can just..." he trailed off, implication clear. He knew he was clean, and assumed Draco was, too, especially since he worked as a Healer.

"Yeah, please," Draco said breathlessly. "Hurry up, Potter, fuck!"

"Bossy," he smirked, leaning in to capture Draco's lips again and he finally, finally pressed forward, breaching Draco slowly. Draco gasped when the head popped in, then moaned loudly as Harry steadily slid rest of the way in.

Oh, my fucking God.

It was- he felt unbelievable. So fucking tight, his arse already milking Harry's cock. He'd never fucked anyone bare before, and it was almost too much to handle.

"Fuck, you feel incredible," Harry gasped out, jaw clenched tightly as he tried not to come immediately.

When he had himself under control, he pulled out almost all the way before he thrust back in, setting a punishing pace right from the beginning. He gripped Draco's thighs tightly as he slammed into him repeatedly, fucking him roughly, his lust addled brain struggling to think of anything besides how right this felt.

Draco's hands were clenched in the duvet so tightly his knuckles were white as he babbled a string of profanities, begging Harry to fuck him harder, faster, more. Harry couldn't peel his eyes away from Draco's face, memorizing every tiny expression and sound; how he moaned louder when Harry angled his hips up a bit, how his jaw fell open when Harry thrust in a bit harder, how he whined in protest when Harry slowed down. He took it all in, tucking it all away in the part of his brain meant for the most important things.

Harry could feel sweat dripping down his forehead as he thrust into Draco, a slick sheen forming over his skin, making their bodies slip against each other enticingly, his stomach rubbing against Draco’s poor, neglected cock, smearing pre-come in his happy trail. Draco eventually slid his arms around Harry's neck, pulling him back down into a kiss that was more teeth than anything, and Harry thought he might actually die of happiness.

Sex had never felt like this before. Harry thought he'd been in love before, but nothing he'd had before even come close to this, this all-consuming, suffocating feeling of pure, unadulterated love he felt right now. He felt like he'd been waiting his entire life for this, and now that he finally had it, he was never going to let it slip away from him. He could never go back to how he was before this moment; that was a lifetime ago now.

After a bit, Draco broke away from the kiss to cry out, hole tightening even more as Harry slammed into his prostate unrelentingly, determined to get him as close to the edge as possible.

"Can't believe I get to have you," Harry gritted out, babbling away, needing Draco to know that he was the best thing Harry had ever had, that he felt so fucking privileged to have him like this. "So gorgeous. Fucking perfect. I wish you could see yourself, spread open for me, practically gagging for my cock. Feel so good, you’re so good for me, like you were made for me. You're mine," he punctuated with a particularly hard thrust, and Draco keened.

"Potter!" he sobbed, fingernails digging into Harry's shoulders, cutting into his flesh with how hard he was gripping. "Close, so close, gonna-!"

And that was what he'd been waiting for.

Harry supported his weight on one arm, and he reached down, clamping his hand around the base of Draco's cock tightly.

Draco cried out in protest, scrabbling to get to his dick, sobbing in desperation, but Harry didn't budge or loosen his grip.

"Harry," Harry told him firmly. Draco looked at him in disbelief, then whined, high-pitched and frenzied when Harry mercilessly slammed into his prostate again.

Draco was going to say his name. He wasn't Potter anymore. Potter was who he'd been when they were kids, both of them angry and frightened and in way over their heads. He hadn't thought of Draco as Malfoy in months, and he didn't want to be that person to Draco anymore; that wasn't who they were anymore. Harry needed him to see him as Harry, not as Potter, and especially not as Harry Potter; not as their past. This was a fresh start, and it mattered.

"Say it, Draco," he demanded.

"P-Potter," Draco huffed out stubbornly, but another exceptionally hard thrust to his prostate tore another sob from his throat.

"Harry," Harry said again, eyes narrowing. "All you have to do is say my name. Say my name, and I'll let you come, baby."

Draco bit his lips bloody, and Harry trailed his hand up to play with the head of Draco's cock before clamping down again, and he saw Draco's resolve crumble.

"Harry!" he cried out, tears rolling down his cheeks. "Harry, Harry, oh, fuck, Harry, please!"

It was the sweetest thing he'd ever heard, even better than the last two times he'd said it, because now he knew; he knew exactly what he was saying.

Harry smirked. "Good boy. That wasn't so hard, was it?"

He released Draco's cock, and Draco immediately came. His eyes rolled back in his head, jaw falling open in a silent scream until he let out a delayed moan, long and loud and insane, body bucking up wildly with the force of his orgasm that seemed to go on forever.

Harry stared at him, jaw hanging open. It was the hottest thing he'd ever seen, and he needed to come, right fucking now.

He carefully began to pull out, not wanting to hurt Draco, knowing he had to be oversensitive after that. "Fucking beautiful," Harry mumbled under his breath. "Hottest thing I've ever bloody seen."

Harry froze, though, when Draco wrapped his legs around the backs of Harry's thighs, pulling him back in. "Don't stop," he slurred out, eyes blinking heavily.

Harry stared at him. "Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you," he said softly.

Draco tightened his legs again, urging Harry on in response. "I like it. Want you to come in me."

Harry closed his eyes, groaning quietly, unable to comprehend how he could be this perfect, before he started pumping his hips again furiously, babbling a string of nonsense as he chased his own orgasm.

It didn't take long for it to hit him, and he shoved into Draco as deeply as he could, claiming him, painting his insides with his release as he shuddered through it, jaw clenched so tightly it hurt, his mind a constant mantra of mine, mine, mine, mine.

Draco sighed contentedly, wrapping his limbs around Harry, not allowing him to pull away, and Harry’s heart clenched.

I love you.

Harry stayed inside of him for as long as he could, but eventually his softened cock slipped out, and Draco whined as Harry cast another gentle Cleaning Charm over himself and Draco, sensing he was too tired to get up and shower.

Harry laid down next to him, stroking a hand through Draco's sweaty hair contentedly. He was halfway asleep when he felt Draco struggling to sit up for some reason, but Harry didn't want him to go anywhere. He was so comfortable, so happy, he didn't want to disturb their bubble.

"Shh," Harry soothed him sleepily, reaching back out for him. "Relax, darling," he whispered.

"Thirsty," Draco croaked out.

Oh.

"There's tea there for you," Harry slurred out, gesturing vaguely towards the usual tea on his bedside table.

Draco was quiet for a long moment. "How the fuck do you always get bloody tea in here? You left before me!" he asked, confused, sounding far too awake now for Harry's liking, but he just grinned lazily up at him, dimple digging into his cheek.

"Magic," he whispered, wiggling his fingers.

Draco huffed out a quiet laugh, taking a few sips of the tea before settling back down in bed, allowing Harry to pull him close. Harry wrapped his limbs around Draco tightly, burying his face in the sweet, grapefruit scented hair that fell over the back of Draco's neck, sighing happily.

That had been so worth the wait. He'd live through every bit of fear and hurt and insecurity again and again if it got him here in the end.

This was it for him. He would never love anyone else like this, it wasn't possible. In the morning, he'd tell Draco everything, but tonight, he let his imagination run wild, visions of wedding rings and hotter than sin sex, of sleepy morning kisses and late-night cuddles, of family outings and sweet little babies with white blonde hair and bright green eyes flooding his mind as sleep finally claimed him.

He couldn't wait to start the rest of their lives together.

Notes:

I hope you enjoyed this one! If you've read RFT, you know what's coming.

As always, I greatly appreciate any and all feedback or commentary! Thank you so much for reading!

Chapter 8: CHAPTER 7

Summary:

Poor Harry, is all I can say. Again, I'm sorry for what I'm about to do.

Notes:

Another one churned out! I should be back to a more normal schedule now. I hope this doesn't hurt too much, I promise it gets better!

Harry woke slowly to sunlight shining on him, the warm and comforting scent of grapefruit and cedar wrapped around him like a blanket.

Draco.

Memories from the previous night flooded his mind. They'd gotten together last night. Finally. And not just that, but they'd had sex, and Christ, had it been the best sex of Harry's life, without question. They had fit so well together, like they were made for each other. It had been perfect, absolutely perfect.

It may have started off shaky, with Harry's plans getting messed up, and then the whole jealousy thing and their little argument about the pub, but by the end of the evening, Harry didn't think he'd ever been happier, and now they had an entire day together. Draco was off today, and they could spend the morning together then go get Scorpius, maybe go to Laser Quest. As a family.

He grinned, not bothering to open his eyes yet as he rolled over, humming contentedly, hand reaching out for Draco.

He frowned, however, when his hand hit the cold mattress instead of a warm body. What the fuck?

He cracked his eyes open, seeing that yes, he was definitely in Draco's bed, but Draco was not in the bed with him. His side of the bed was cold, indicating that he must have been up for a while.

Harry looked over and saw that the bathroom door was open, and he dragged himself out of bed to take a piss, noting that the shower was still wet.

Harry briefly wondered why he'd gotten up instead of staying in bed with him so they could wake up together, but when he checked the time and saw that it was later than he usually slept, he relaxed. It wasn't much later, but it was enough. Maybe Draco just couldn't sleep in, even on his days off. Harry wouldn't know, he'd never woken up with him before. He couldn't wait to find out.

The smell of toast wafted up into the room, and Harry grinned again, quickly tossing on his jeans from last night but not bothering with his shirt, remembering how Draco had reacted last night when he'd taken it off, causing butterflies to swirl up in his stomach. He knew he wasn't the best looking guy out there, but he did keep himself in shape after dropping out of Auror training, and he had loved, absolutely loved, how Draco had looked at him, like he wanted to lick every inch of him. Harry would let him do that. He would do anything Draco wanted. Anything.

He ran a hand through his hair in a half-hearted attempt to tame it, briefly lamenting that he didn't have a toothbrush with him, then slipped downstairs to join Draco.

He smiled warmly when he saw him sitting at the island, and his grin widened even more when he noticed that Draco had set out a second cup of tea. For him. It was in front of the empty stool that Harry usually sat on. It was for him. Draco had gotten up early and made him tea and breakfast. No one had ever done that for him before.

Draco hadn't noticed him yet, focused on his piece of toast. He was wearing the same joggers and t-shirt he'd worn when he was sick, hair falling softly around his face. The sun was shining on him, making his hair light up like a halo and softening his sharp features, giving him an even more ethereal appearance than usual. He looked like an actual angel, and Harry's heart flipped, remembering that this gorgeous man was actually his.

"Well, aren't you up early," Harry said to him, amused.

Draco's head snapped up, eyes locking on Harry, roving over his exposed chest. Definitely the right call to leave the shirt.

"Couldn't sleep anymore," Draco shrugged, averting his eyes, a slight blush dusting his cheeks. "I made tea, and there's toast there," he said, pointing to a veritable mountain of toasted bread. Harry almost laughed at how absurd it was, but managed to contain himself, taking his seat next to Draco and having a sip of his tea. Perfect.

"Thank you," he murmured, leaning in for a good morning kiss. He saw what looked like horror flash through Draco's eyes, so quick he thought he imagined it until Draco turned his head at the last second and Harry's lips landed on his cheek instead.

Harry pulled back slowly, white hot panic seizing him momentarily.

Stop it, he told himself immediately. Stop overthinking. He probably just doesn't want to kiss you until you clean your teeth. That's all. That was fair. He was probably gross from sleep and sex.

They sat in uncomfortable silence for too long after that, and Harry watched Draco pick a second piece of toast to shreds without taking a single bite. The comically large mountain of toast no longer seemed funny to him in the least as Harry tried desperately to quell the fear that was now squeezing his chest painfully.

Something was terribly wrong.

He was so confused, not understanding why Draco was being so... distant. Last night had been perfect; better than anything he could have imagined. He thought they'd gotten past the hard part, and that they could just be together now. He'd gotten Draco to call him by his first name, he'd spent the night. Draco had told Harry that he hadn't been with anyone in five years, but he had slept with Harry; he'd let Harry fuck him bare. There was no way Draco broke a celibacy streak that long for no reason. It meant something, it did, but here he was, shredding a piece of toast to bits, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else right now.

He had to fix whatever was happening, right now.

"Did you sleep well?" Harry asked softly.

"Yes," Draco replied shortly.

"Me too," he smiled tentatively, reaching for Draco's hand, giving it an affectionate squeeze, trying to regain any kind of physical contact or familiarity, but almost immediately, Draco slipped his hand out from under Harry's, getting up to start packing away the pile of leftover toast, not looking at Harry once, and that feeling of dread only grew stronger.

Harry had no idea what was happening or why. He didn't know what to do or say to fix this. He floundered, trying desperately to think of something, anything to say, when Draco finally turned back to face him.

"I need to go pick up Scorpius," he said.

"Oh!" Harry exclaimed, perking up, relief flooding through him. Scorpius! Yes, perfect! He had some ideas for today that involved Scorpius, that would be the perfect thing to break this horribly awkward tension and get them talking like normal. "Good. I'll come with you. Since you have the day off, I was thinking that we could go to Laser Quest later. I've been saving it for a time you could come with us, it’s really quite fun," he explained excitedly.

Draco was super competitive; he'd love Laser Quest. Harry would let them team up against him, since he'd played before, or the three of them could go against another group of three. It was impossible not to have fun at Laser Quest, it would definitely lighten the mood, get rid of any post-sex awkwardness.

Draco frowned at him, crossing his arms. "I don't need help picking up my son, and we have plans with Pansy this afternoon."

Harry's excitement instantly died, and he couldn’t stop his face from crumpling. He was lying. Harry knew he was. The tips of his ears always went red when he lied, every time. Why was he lying? There was only one answer that made sense, and it sent pain slicing through his heart.

No. That wasn't it. Draco just needed some space, that was all, Harry thought. If Harry gave him some space, surely he'd come around. He just needed time to process what had happened. It was a big change, after all. Space. Right.

"Oh. That's fine. Yeah, of course. I'll just..." he trailed off, looking away uncomfortably, not able to finish his sentence without choking up. His leg was jiggling uncontrollably now, and his hands clenched and unclenched where they rested on the countertop, trying to get himself under control, but Draco just turned away from him, like he couldn't stand to look at Harry any longer.

"Um. I'll just- get out of your hair, then?" he said questioningly, hoping beyond hope that Draco would ask him to stay.

"Thanks. I really do need to go get him," Draco said shortly, not turning around, and the tiny flame of hope he had left died.

A blatant dismissal. A blind man could have seen what this was. He tried to swallow down the massive lump that was lodged in his throat as he fought back tears. This couldn't be happening. He couldn't have gotten it this wrong. Harry had thought they were going to be together now, thought that what had happened could only bring them closer, but here Draco was, basically kicking him out of his house, treating Harry like a meaningless one night stand, like he didn't mean anything to him at all.

He'd never felt so small, so unimportant or unwanted in his entire life, and that was saying something. Images of Owen's sneering face flashed through his mind, and suddenly, it was very difficult to breathe.

He doesn't want you. You're not good enough.

He didn't say anything else, just slowly got up and went back upstairs to gather up his things, pulling his shirt and shoes on with trembling fingers, willing himself not to cry as he grabbed his wand off the bedside table.

He glanced at the bed, the bed he'd been so thrilled to wake up in, remembering how the sheets had smelled like Draco. A single sob escaped him before he cut them off, and he ripped the sheets off the bed. Draco didn't need a reminder of what they'd done on these sheets, didn't need to see the signs of their night together, didn't need to smell Harry's shampoo intermingled with his own.

He was about to vanish them to the laundry, but then, in a wildly inappropriate moment of possessiveness, he vanished them to his own bedroom at Grimmauld Place instead. He couldn't bear the thought of washing last night away like it had never happened. Just the thought of it sent a fresh wave of pain through his heart.

Harry quickly made the bed up with fresh sheets before heading back to the kitchen. Draco was no longer in there, but his tea still sat, untouched, where he'd been sitting.

Harry couldn't help himself; like an old habit he couldn't break, he pulled out a scrap of parchment and a self-inking quill from the junk drawer, the drawer Harry now made sure stayed stocked so he could leave Draco notes every night, and quickly drew a crude little picture of two stick figures, one Harry, one Draco. He drew himself taking his own heart and giving it to Draco, and Draco smiling as he accepted it before the two hugged, a little heart appearing above their heads. He charmed the little drawing to move on a loop, so it showed the image over and over. He didn't add any words, but it spoke for itself. Harry had given Draco his heart. Harry loved him, and he wanted, needed Draco to know it, even though he didn't love Harry back.

Harry cast Warming and Stasis Charms on the tea, and vanished both things upstairs to Draco's room before grabbing his jacket that he'd forgotten here yesterday when Draco had told him he had other plans from its spot on the back of the sofa, not bothering to put it on.

Harry briefly wondered if Draco had left while he was still here to avoid saying goodbye, but he found the man waiting for him by the front door, looking incredibly uncomfortable, like he just wanted Harry to leave.

His hands tightened on the collar of his jacket, squeezing it nervously and biting his lip as Draco looked on impassively.

"Um. I changed the sheets for you," Harry said softly, breaking the horrible silence.

"Thanks," Draco said stiffly.

The hurt suddenly turned into desperation. He couldn't leave like this. He couldn't, it would kill him. He couldn't come this close, couldn't have gotten to have him for one night just to lose him less than nine hours later.

He had to at least try to salvage this, or at least try to understand what the fuck had happened between last night and this morning, what had gone wrong. Maybe he could fix it, if he just knew what he'd done wrong. Harry knew they should have talked last night. He should have stood his ground, refused to sleep with him until he had a clear understanding of where this was heading, but he'd been weak. Draco had promised him that they could talk later, and Harry was going to hold him to that, right now.

"I had a really good time last night," Harry started carefully, not wanting to set him off, but refusing to leave without at least acknowledging the Hippogriff in the room. "It was incredible, really."

Draco just shrugged, looking bored. "Sure. It was fun, Potter."

Harry stiffened. Potter.

That- out of everything Draco could have said, that hurt the most. Draco had gone right back to calling him Potter, stripping away who he was, who he had become, and reducing him to just a surname, an employee, a ghost of the past.

"Potter," he said flatly.

Draco arched an eyebrow. "Yes? That is your name."

His disinterested tone set Harry's teeth on edge, and he felt his body tense up even more. "My name is Harry."

Say it, he willed him silently, but the answering silence was louder than anything Draco could have said.

"Not Harry, then. Got it," he said, closing his eyes briefly, trying to shove down his pain, still refusing to leave without answers, without knowing why.

When he opened his eyes again, he locked them on Draco's carefully shuttered face. "I don't understand," he whispered, voice shaky. "I thought we were..."

Draco looked away, and Harry swallowed, taking a steadying breath. "You said we could talk about it," he said quietly. "Last night; we said later. It's later now."

"There's nothing to talk about, though," Draco said dismissively.

"Yes, there is," Harry argued desperately. "Please. Draco, sweetheart-" he begged.

"Stop it," Draco bit out harshly, cutting him off, eyes blazing with more emotions than Harry could even begin to unpack, and it only confused him more. "Look, Potter. Thank you for last night, truly. I'd had far too much to drink and wasn't myself, and I appreciate you getting me home safely. I'll kill Theo later for the inconvenience. As for the rest... well. It was fun, but we both know what this was. Just letting off some steam, right? And really, it's in Scorpius' best interest that we don't revisit this in the future."

We both know what this was.

Just letting off some steam.

Harry stared at him, stricken, unable to form words. He felt a huge piece of his heart shrivel up and die at his words.

He certainly did not know what this apparently was. It hadn't been a casual hookup, not to Harry. It had meant everything to him, and he had thought it meant something to Draco, thought that after everything, the time they'd spent together, the friendship they'd built, everything Harry had done to try and show him that they could be more, he might be worth a little bit more than a quick fuck and a boot out the door.

This- This was not Draco. He didn't know who the hell this cold-hearted stranger standing before him was, but this was not the man he'd fallen in love with. Harry didn't even recognize him.

The most fucked up part in all of this was that even after the disaster this morning had been, Harry still wanted him, still didn't regret it, still didn't wish it away. He was pathetic.

Draco watched him for too long, his red cheeks the only slip in his stupid Malfoy mask, until he finally released a harsh breath. "I'm sor-"

No. He had to draw a line somewhere, and this was it.

"Don't," Harry snapped, pain and sadness rising up like bile as angry tears sprung to his eyes. He could take a lot, but he could not, no, he refused, to stand here and be insulted with some fake ass apology after having his heart crushed. "Don't you dare say you're sorry. I don't know what's wrong with you right now or why you're acting like this, but don't stand there and pretend that you're doing something noble then try to apologize to me like you actually care. Don't act like it was a- a mistake, because it wasn't; not for me, and I don't regret it. I never could, no matter how much it hurts now."

Draco didn't say anything else, and Harry didn't wait for a response. A stray tear escaped, slipping down his cheek, but he ignored it, brushing past Draco and out the door, adamantly ignoring the spark even that brief touch sent shooting through him. He immediately turned on the spot, just needing to get away from there as his composure crumpled rapidly, Apparating back home.

He landed in his bedroom, and he just stood there, trying to get his emotions under control until his eyes landed on Draco's sheets, lying crumpled on his own bed, mocking him. They were proof of what he'd lost, lost before he barely even got to have, proof of what a complete fool he'd been. He couldn't look at them, but he couldn't get rid of them.

He turned abruptly and left the room, crossing the hall to the bathroom he always used, turning the water on as hot as he could stand it. He rid himself of his clothing and stepped under the spray.

The water beat down on him, washing away last night as he just stood there, staring blankly at the wall, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Draco's cold eyes and dismissive words stabbed into his heart like a knife.

We both know what this was.

It had been nothing. Nothing at all. A foolish fucking fantasy that Harry had dreamed up because he was a lonely, desperate loser with nothing going for him, nothing to offer, and he'd projected that onto Draco.

Draco hadn't asked for any of this, had never given him any real indication that he was interested in Harry. Last night had probably just been a pity fuck, because Harry had been pathetic enough to spill his guts like that. He'd probably looked like the biggest loser on earth to Draco.

This was his own fault. All because he had built this stupid fantasy up in his head.

Do you ever think of anyone besides yourself?

Owen's cold words floated through his brain, reverberating around like an echo, soon accompanied by every unusually cruel thing he'd ever said, the ones that hurt the most sticking there like glue.

Stop being so needy all the time.

I thought you'd be more fun.

You're just too much sometimes, Harry, Christ.

You're lucky I love you. Lord knows no one else would put up with you.

There had to be a reason why no one seemed to want him. Maybe he really was... unlovable.

He cracked.

A loud, painful sob tore out of his throat, and that was all it took to completely lose control, hyperventilating as unrestrained panic and grief seized him.

He sank to the shower floor, curled himself up into a ball, and just sobbed. He sobbed until he couldn't cry anymore, and then he just laid there, letting the spray hit him, feeling painfully empty except for the throbbing ache in his heart

He couldn't go through this again. It felt worse than a break up. It felt cruel and unusual, getting to have a taste of what he wanted more than anything in this world just to have it snatched away. It would have been better to never know. It couldn't possibly hurt as much as this. Nothing could.

He just didn't understand what he'd done wrong. He thought... it had seemed like Draco had wanted him just as much as Harry wanted him; he had seemed just as desperate to be touched, to be close to Harry. His face... the look in his eyes from last night was burned into Harry's memory forever. That burning want, that desire. It hurt to think about.

Maybe he felt like Harry had taken advantage of him. He'd been drunk and emotional, then sober, but still emotional. Had Harry unintentionally taken advantage of his vulnerable state? The thought made bile rise up in his throat so fast he could barely stop it. He closed his eyes as he swallowed it down, breathing heavily.

Everything felt so wrong.

He had today off, thank God, but then he had to go back to work and...

Oh fuck.

His job. His job was going to be so awkward now. If he even had a job left. He wouldn't be surprised if Draco fired him. How stupid could he have been, sleeping with his employer? Even if he could go back, how on earth was he supposed to act normal around Draco?

And Scorpius...

What would happen with Scorpius? What would he think? His kids were his entire life. He'd already lost one, he couldn't lose another. Not to mention the bond Harry had formed with Scorpius was so much deeper than any other, so much more than just that of an uncle.

Would Harry even be allowed to say goodbye? What did Draco plan on telling his son? His son, who Harry loved like his own child, who he'd probably never get to see again after this... no. He violently pushed that thought away, trying to shut his brain off. It was too painful to think about anymore. He couldn't handle it.

Eventually, Harry turned the water off and slumped out of the shower. The sun had shifted high in the sky, indicating that morning had passed, and he had no idea he'd been in there as long as he had. Magical hot water had come in handy, at least.

He didn't bother getting dressed, just pulled on a clean pair of black briefs before he moved over to his bed, staring at the heap of sheets balled up on top.

He kept his mind carefully blank, not wanting to examine why he was doing this to himself as he crawled into bed, gathering the sheets up in his arms.

He wrapped them partially around himself, keeping a bunched-up section near his head to use as a pillow, and buried his face in them, inhaling the sweet, woody scent that was Draco, intermingled with his own apple shampoo. His heart throbbed, but he just pressed his face in more, closing his eyes as tears he didn't even think he was capable of crying soaked into the fabric until he fell asleep, emotionally exhausted from this terrible day.

*

A loud knock startled him out of his sleep. He glanced around in confusion, smelling Draco but seeing his own walls, until he remembered what he was doing in his own bed with Draco's bedding.

He closed his eyes as a fresh wave of pain washed over him, but the knocking persisted. He ignored it, not wanting to see anyone, and rolled over in bed, burying himself deeper into the sheets, trying to will himself back to sleep.

It almost worked, until a loud crack just outside his bedroom door startled him and he looked up right as the door swung open. He squinted at the person in the doorway without his glasses, slightly embarrassed by what a sight he must be, but then he heard Hermione's voice.

"Oh, Harry," she said, her voice heartbreakingly gentle as she came over to the bed and climbed up with him, pulling him into her comforting embrace.

The lump in his throat came back, bigger than before, and he struggled to keep it together, sucking in a gasping breath.

"Just let it out," Hermione soothed. "It's alright. It's just me."

He crumpled, crying tears he didn't think were possible to have left. She just held him for as long as he needed, running her soft, soothing fingers through his hair until he finally quieted down again, feeling a bit more in control of himself.

"I'm sorry I barged in, but you weren't answering the door," Hermione finally said, breaking the silence.

"What are you even doing here?" he asked, voice rough and gravelly from all the sobbing he'd done.

"Pansy stopped by to let me know I should come check on you."

"What did she tell you? How did she know?" he asked, confused.

"She'd been to Malfoy's."

"Oh."

"What happened, Harry? You said you'd be by last night after you got him home, but you never came over," she reminded him.

He shrugged, averting his eyes. "We had sex."

She was quiet for a long moment. "And it didn't go well?"

"It did. I thought it did, anyway. He apparently didn't agree."

"Did he say that?"

Harry shook his head. "He- God, Hermione, he was like a different person this morning. Everything was so perfect last night. I told him how I felt about him, and he kissed me, and then we... I have no idea what I did wrong. When I woke up, he wasn't in bed, and he was so... frigid. When I tried to talk to him about it, he told me it had been nothing, just a bit of fun, just 'letting off some steam', and that it couldn't happen again, and then he basically kicked me out."

His mind flew back to Draco's face as he was leaving. He couldn't understand him. He was more distant, more closed off than Harry had seen him since Sixth Year. It had been intimidating. He didn't seem to care at all, except that one brief moment before he tried to apologize, when something Harry couldn't understand had flickered through his eyes.

Why did Draco even sleep with him at all if he knew it didn't mean the same thing to him as it did to Harry? Harry had done everything short of writing I love you in the sky, it was beyond obvious how he felt. Why even go there at all if he didn't feel the same way? Why did he have to act like this, to send him away with some piss poor explanation that left Harry with more questions than answers, and absolutely no closure? How could he be so cruel? It would have been kinder of him to punch Harry directly in the face. At least the meaning behind that would have been clear.

Instead, he'd toyed with Harry's emotions, hooked him in and used him, then threw him away like garbage.

Harry thought Draco was different, somehow knew, even still, that he was different, but it wasn't enough. Harry wasn't enough. He never was.

"I don't know why I'm not enough for him," he whispered. "It hurts."

"You are enough," Hermione told him fiercely. "Don't you think for one second that you're not. His reaction... this wasn't about you, Harry, you have to see that."

He frowned. "What do you mean? Of course it was."

"Did you think that maybe he might just be scared? Don't get me wrong, he is completely wrong for how he's handling this, and I'm furious, but Pansy said he's as much of a mess as you are right now."

Harry blinked in confusion. That couldn't be right. Why would Draco be upset?

"But... why? He wouldn't even let me talk," Harry said. "He treated me like- like I was an inconvenience. He wouldn't call me by my name, he could barely even look at me, and when he did..." he trailed off, heart aching.

She sat up, and pulled him up with her, wiping his face with her sleeve, then cupped his face with her hands, forcing him to meet her serious, brown eyes. "Harry, listen to me. This isn't about you. He has his son to think about-"

"I would never do anything to hurt him!" Harry burst out, horrified.

"Of course you wouldn't. We all know that, including Malfoy, but he still has to consider him. Entering a relationship isn't just about the two of you. This is probably a huge deal for him, and he’s… emotionally stunted. He's scared, Harry."

"I don't understand why he wouldn't just talk to me about it, then," he said. "I would have listened. I would have done anything. I love him, Hermione. He just... he doesn't feel the same."

Hermione studied him, then pulled something out of her pocket and handed it to him.

Harry took it, frowning as he unfolded it. It was the newspaper photo from his birthday, the one of the two of them at Fortescue's, that she'd apparently cut out. He looked up at her in confusion. Why did she have this?

"I don't know about you, but I can tell you that you don't look at someone like this," she pointed to Draco's face, at where he was gazing at Harry with that soft look Harry loved so much, "unless you have feelings for that someone. That's want, Harry."

What?

Why would Draco have pushed him away like that, shut him out, if he cared about him? It didn't make any sense.

He's scared. This is a big deal for him.

Was he scared?

Harry stared at the photo, mind racing, trying to make sense of everything. He felt so overwhelmed.

"You said he was worth it," Hermione said softly, interrupting his thoughts. "Is he?"

Harry stared at his lap, brows furrowed.

Hermione hugged him tightly again, rocking a bit, before getting up. "You're not stupid, Harry," she said, "and you're not blind. You can trust yourself. You can trust what you can see. You deserve so much, but not more pain. You've had enough of that. Just think about what I said, alright?"

"Thanks, 'Mione," he said softly, squeezing her hand.

She paused when she reached the doorway, turning to look back at him. "And don't worry, I didn't tell anyone else any of this. I thought it might be safer for him if Ronald and Ginny didn't find out about this."

She smiled at him and slipped out the door, then, and he heard the telltale crack of Apparition, but he still just sat there, trying to figure out what to do with this information. His heart ached a little less, but he was more confused than ever.

She'd said Draco was scared. Harry didn't understand why he would be afraid of him, but maybe he was? Fear made you do irrational things. Could he be pushing Harry away because he was afraid, a 'hurt before you can be hurt' type of thing? Did... did he think he didn't deserve love? That was a horrible thought, but it was possible.

It made more sense than anything else he'd thought of so far, at least. He hadn't been able to figure out why Draco had seemed so hot and cold, for months, not just this weekend. And he'd been so passionate yesterday; Harry had believed, truly believed, that he wasn't the only one who had felt something.

Harry's eyes drifted down to the newspaper photo again, fingers brushing over the image of them longingly.

That's want, Harry.

He's seen that look on Draco's face a hundred times.  He just thought it was the face the other man wore when he was content, but... had he ever seen Draco look at anyone else like that? He had a similar face for Scorpius, but it wasn't quite the same.

Heart pounding, Harry got up and pulled a large photo box labeled 'Malfoy Boys' out from under his bed. He kept all of the photos he took of Draco and Scorpius in here, so they could be close to him. Well, all of the ones he didn't have displayed, anyway. He had one for Ron and Hermione, one for Teddy and Andy, one for Victoire, the Weasley's, but this was his most recent one, his favorite.

He carefully removed the lid, rifling through them. There was a mix of magical and muggle photos, some in color, some in black and white, but they were all of Draco and Scorpius, and sometimes of himself with one or both of them. Harry picked out all the ones that had both himself and Draco, spreading them out on the floor. There weren't as many of these, but there were enough to get a clear idea.

There it was.

That same look. Over and over, in almost every single one of these photos, Draco was looking at him, not the camera, with that same soft look on his face.

Harry loved that look, because of how sweet it made Draco look. Softer; his sharp edges less severe.

He could see it.

He hadn't been able to before, but now that Hermione had put a name to it, he could see it. It was clear as day. It was the same look he'd had last night.

It was longing.

Draco looked at Harry with so much longing it was almost palpable. He wanted Harry. He could lie about it, but it was right there, indisputable proof, staring back at him.

He ransacked his brain, squeezing his eyes shut so he could see Draco's face from earlier more clearly. The look in Draco's eyes right before he left...it hadn't been disgust at all, it had been fear. He was scared. Of what, Harry didn't know, but he felt an almost uncontrollable need to go over there right now and find out, to tamp out that fear, to shake the other man until he stopped lying; lying to Harry and lying to himself.

Hermione was right. This wasn't about him at all.

He couldn't believe he let himself be pushed away so easily. He'd promised himself he wouldn't give up on Draco without a fight.

What was he doing?

He needed to go back and prove that this was worth fighting for, prove to him that Harry would always fight for him, even against himself. They worked together, they did. The way they'd fit together like two pieces of a puzzle, the way his skin had buzzed with magic and with life when they'd touched... he couldn't ignore that. He wouldn't.

Was he worth it? Hermione had asked him that very question, but he hadn't answered her. He knew the answer, though.

Yes.

The answer would always be yes. Harry just had to make him see it.

He scrambled out of his bed, almost falling on the floor as his legs got tangled in Draco's sheets, and pulled on his same clothes from this morning, not caring that they were probably a bit stale by now. He looked to the clock, frowning when he saw it was only around six. It was too early to go. Scorpius would still be awake, and he couldn't do this in front of the little boy. He had to wait until he was in bed.

Fuck. This was going to be the longest three hours of his life.

Harry tried to keep himself busy by having supper with Kreacher, doing his laundry, and going over exactly what he wanted to say when he went back, not managing to stop himself from glancing at the clock every five minutes, but finally, it was after nine o’clock and he could go. Scorpius should be in bed by now.

Harry headed towards his Floo, then stopped himself. He should definitely not just Floo over and pop into Draco's house uninvited after this morning. It would be so disrespectful, especially because he didn't know if Draco would even let him in.

He Apparated instead, landing on Draco's porch. He sucked in a shaky breath, then steeled himself and knocked loudly, not allowing himself to back down. Even if Draco slammed the door in his face and told him that he never wanted to see Harry's face again, coming back was still the right choice. At least he'd know in his heart that he'd done all he could, and it just wasn't meant to be. If Draco truly, truly didn't want this, Harry would respect that, but he wasn't leaving without answers. Not again.

He wasn't wrong, though. he wasn't.

You can trust yourself.

When no answer came, he knocked again, even louder, then again, not stopping this time until he got an answer. He knew Draco was home, and he couldn't ignore him forever. He was more determined than ever to have this conversation, though, and he wasn't leaving until he'd gotten to say his piece.

The door finally opened, and there was Draco, still in his joggers. He had dark circles under his eyes, the tip of his nose was a bit raw, and his hair was damp on the ends, and he was still every bit as beautiful as always. Harry's heart squeezed painfully.

"I don't know why you didn't just come in-" he was saying, cutting himself off abruptly when he locked eyes with Harry, looking dumbfounded.

"I didn't know if I'd be welcome," Harry said quietly.

"What?" Draco asked, bewildered.

"You asked me why I didn't just come in?" Harry reminded him.

"Oh."

Draco didn't ask Harry to leave, but he didn't invite him in, either. Harry huffed.

"I have some things to say," he said firmly, brushing past Draco to enter his house, no longer waiting for an invitation, but he didn't go beyond the entryway. He set his jaw, eyes locking stubbornly on Draco. "Is Scorpius asleep? I tried to wait until I thought he'd be asleep."

Draco sighed quietly, shutting the door. "He's still at the Manor. Why are you back here, Potter? We already discussed-"

"No, we didn't, and I'm not letting you do this," Harry cut him off firmly. He wasn't going to be railroaded this time. "I won't let you ruin this before we even get a chance; not without fighting for you with everything I have."

Draco blinked, mouth hanging open a bit in stunned silence, like this was the last thing he expected to hear, and Harry forged on, taking advantage of his silence, stepping closer to him.

"I know you feel something for me. I know you do. You don't- you don't look at me the way you did last night if you don't feel anything," he pressed.

"You're wrong," Draco said, voice shaking slightly, taking a step backwards.

"I'm not wrong," Harry stressed, stepping even closer to Draco, eyes boring into his, refusing to let him hide himself away again. "I'm not. You're just scared, so you're trying to push me away, but I'm not going to let you."

Draco swallowed, throat bobbing visibly. He looked like a cornered animal. He was scared, eyes darting to the side, like he was trying to find an escape. Harry wanted to comfort him so badly, to let him know that it was alright, that he didn't have to be afraid anymore, not of Harry, but he still had more to say. This was the farthest he's gotten with him so far, and he needed to get everything out there.

"I've spent all day thinking about this, trying to figure out where I went wrong and why you seem to think I don't care about you so I could fix it. I finally came to the conclusion that I didn't do anything. You're just caught up in your own head, trying to convince yourself that you can't have this, for whatever reason. I don't understand it, but it's the only thing that makes sense. Tell me I'm wrong," he demanded.

"You're wrong," he rasped out after a moment, not meeting Harry's eyes, ears going red.

Harry paused, frowning, eyebrows drawing in as he studied Draco's face, trying not to let that response burrow inside of him.

You can trust yourself. You can trust what you see.

"You're lying," Harry said flatly.

"No, I'm not," Draco snapped, eyes flashing with anger.

"Yes, you are! I know you are. You have a tell. Your ears go red at the tips. Why are you doing this?" Why do you keep lying to me? To yourself?

Draco scoffed, ignoring him, and instead turning on his heel to storm into the living room.

He wanted to scream in frustration. Absolutely not. Harry followed him, not caring at this point if it pissed Draco off. He did not get to walk away again; he wasn't going to run from this. Not anymore.

"Stop walking away from me! Christ, why won't you just be honest-" Harry snapped, his frustration finally bubbling over, but he froze when his eyes spotted something that definitely didn't belong, something yellow. He inhaled sharply, blood rushing loudly in his ears. "What is that?" he whispered, eyes glued to the spot.

It was a couch. A yellow couch. A mustard yellow, velvet covered couch. Brand new. It was gorgeous.

That hadn't been there yesterday. He knew it for a fact; he'd grabbed his jacket off Draco's old, gray couch, the one Harry hated. The one Harry had mentioned would look better in yellow a couple of times in passing.

Draco had bought a yellow couch.

"I-" Draco choked out, eyes widening in panic momentarily before he composed himself, face going carefully impassive. "It's a couch, Potter. I know you need glasses, but surely you aren't completely blind."

Harry ignored his bratty comment, stepping closer to run his fingers along the arm of the sofa reverently, needing to make sure it was real.

This... this was not an act of someone who didn't have feelings. This meant something. This possibly meant everything. Every trace of doubt that was still lingering in the back of his mind vanished in an instant, replaced with absolute awe.

"Your couch is yellow," he whispered, turning to face Draco, heart pounding. "You have a yellow couch. Why do you have a yellow couch, Draco?"

"It's just a couch, Potter. You're acting awfully strange about a piece of furniture."

He was deflecting, and it only cemented what Harry now knew for certain. His entire demeanor softened as he looked at this man, this man who had bought this couch for his own house for Harry, simply because Harry wanted it. Why else would he have done it?

You can trust yourself. You can trust what you see.

He wanted him to say it. Needed him to say it.

"You bought a yellow couch, though. Why?" Harry pressed. His eyes darted between Draco and the couch furiously, heart practically bursting with adoration.

Draco shrugged, going for nonchalant, but only succeeding in looking even more caught. "I don't know, Potter. I saw it in a shop last week and I liked it, so I bought it," he said defensively.

Harry stalked towards him slowly, giving him time to move or stop him from getting closer, but he didn't; he just stood there, wide eyes glued to Harry. "Why yellow?" Harry demanded.

"I like yellow," he tried desperately, voice trembling.

"Do you?" Harry asked, his voice almost unrecognizably deep. He was so fucking in love with this man, and so fucking turned on. Draco bought him a yellow couch. "Because I know that I like yellow. But you don't, do you?"

Draco stared at him helplessly, floundering for a moment, then finally, finally, he cracked.

He shook his head slowly, and before he even finished, Harry lunged forward to crash their mouths together, unable to not be touching him for even one more second.

His arms wrapped around Draco's neck to give him more leverage as he pressed his lips insistently to Draco's, tongue diving inside taste, needing to be as close to him as possible.

He groaned when he felt Draco respond after only a few seconds, kissing Harry back with fervor, matching him stroke for stroke, making Harry feel even more desperate.

He thought he'd lost this. His pain from earlier seemed like a distant memory, a lifetime ago, unable to touch him when Draco was kissing him like this, but too soon, far, far too soon, Draco was pushing him away.

"Stop," Draco said shakily, taking a hasty step back to create some distance. Harry immediately hated it. "Please stop. Don't do this to me," he whispered brokenly, closing his eyes like just looking at Harry pained him.

"Don't do what to you?" Harry asked, bewildered. He didn't understand what he was talking about, didn't understand why he kept stopping this when he clearly wanted it, too. Harry knew he did.

"Don't- don't kiss me like that," he said desperately.

What?!

"Draco, you seriously cannot still be pretending that you don't want this," he said incredulously.

"Of course I want this!" Draco exploded, hysterical. "Potter, this is all I've ever wanted. Don't you understand?"

What? All he's ever wanted? What the hell did that mean? That he's wanted a relationship forever? Or to kiss someone like that forever? If he wanted it, why did he keep stopping it? Harry didn't understand him at all!

"Um. Honestly, no. I don't understand. You want me, I want you. What's the problem?"

"Potter, I won't be able to survive it when you decide you don't want this anymore. You may be able to move on, but I... I won't."

What?! When he decided-

"What are you talking about?" Harry said, frustration bubbling over, trying to wrap his brain around what Draco was thinking. What was going on inside of his head that was making it so hard for him to just let this happen? What had he convinced himself of? Because whatever it was, it wasn't reality. It sounded like he thought Harry was going to get bored of him and toss him aside. That couldn't be further from the truth.

Draco flinched at his harsh tone, and Harry closed his eyes to compose himself. Okay. He had to calm down. Getting frustrated was only going to make Draco retreat more, and they were so close to an actual breakthrough. Draco needed Harry to be patient with him right now. He needed patience, and he needed reassurance. Harry could do that. He was great at that.

But first, he needed to understand where Draco's head was at, so he could soothe away this irrational fear that was clearly crippling him. He looked so distressed, and it was breaking Harry's heart seeing him struggle like this. His poor baby.

"Draco. Sweetheart," he said soothingly, reaching out to take Draco's hand, relieved when Draco let him. "Please. I'm really trying to understand what's going through your head, but you have to give me something to work with, here. Please. I'm literally begging you."

"I don't- I don't know what to say," he whispered, looking wretched.

"Okay. Well, maybe you can just tell me why you seem to think I don't want you?" Harry suggested gently, desperate to put that ridiculous idea to rest immediately.

Draco studied Harry for a long time, eyes darting over Harry's face like he was looking for something before he closed his eyes, swallowing thickly, and finally, finally began to open up.

"You don't have relationships, Potter," he said quietly. "You said it yourself, they never last, and if you did want one, why on earth would you choose me? I'm a Death Eater, Potter. You- you're going to realize I'm not worth it; that I'm just another face in the sea of people obsessed with Harry Potter," he finished, sounding defeated.

Harry was baffled. That was honestly the last thing he'd expected Draco to say. The thought that Draco was his- his fan was so laughable, so utterly ridiculous, that Harry couldn't even process the rest of what he'd said.

"What? Draco. You can't be serious. You're nothing like them. You're not a- a fan!"

“You're wrong," Draco whispered, pulling his hand away and refusing to meet Harry's eye. "You have no idea. I've always been so fascinated by you; I wanted to be your friend so badly, but you rejected me. So, I spent my time pretending I hated you, all because I was a horrible brat who didn't know how to handle not having my own way. I couldn't accept that I was the problem," he admitted, cheeks reddening. "But I didn't hate you. I never hated you, all I ever wanted was your attention. After the war, I couldn't pretend anymore. I didn't want to. Especially after seeing how you are with my son... I wanted you just as much as they all did; maybe more. I'm just like them."

Draco cared about him. He'd never hated Harry, he said. Never. He said he wanted Harry. Did that mean... Had- had Draco liked him at Hogwarts? For how long? And he was worried that Harry was going to think he was an obsessed fan? He- he was the absolute farthest thing from that. He was one of the only people to treat Harry like a person outside of who he was, outside of his name, and Harry loved him for it, more than he's ever loved anyone.

Draco turned away from him, hunched over like he thought Harry was going to hate him or something. Harry stepped around him, cupping his face gently so Draco would look at him.

I love you, Harry thought desperately.

"You're nothing like them," he whispered lowly, confidently. "You're not dazzled by 'Harry Potter', the over sensationalized media creation. You see me, the real me, and you don't expect me to be anyone else. That's- you have no idea what that means to me."

Draco's eyes were glued to him, and Harry stepped closer, bodies almost touching, so close he had to tilt his head up to maintain eye contact. Christ, he was so tall. Harry loved it. Loved him. He loved him so much. It was time to lay everything out for him. He didn't want any more room for doubt, not for either of them.

"You are not a passing fancy, Draco. I'm not going to wake up one day and suddenly realize you aren't who I thought you were. I already know you; I know the worst sides of you. You are prickly and dramatic and insufferable at times. You don't take care of yourself properly and it makes you grouchy. You refuse to wear 'cheap' clothes and you are far, far too hard on yourself, and it makes you incredibly irrational. I know these things, and I want you despite all of that. Hell, because of it, probably."

Draco blinked at him, like he didn't fully grasp what Harry was saying to him.

"I still can't do this, Potter. Even if what you say is true, I can’t risk it. I have to protect Scorpius," he said quietly.

"I would never, ever hurt him," Harry said fiercely. How could he not know this? Harry would die for that little boy. He wanted him every single bit as much as he wanted Draco. "Draco, I love that kid! Don't you get that? Can't you see that? I love him so much. I want to be with him all the time, even when I’m not working. I feel gross even taking your money for watching him because I enjoy it so much. I love him, Draco, like he's- like he's mine."

Draco stared at him in wide-eyed shock, looking so lost, like he truly hadn't known that Harry loved his son that much, like he couldn't believe that Harry cared about him that much. That wouldn't do at all.

Harry softened, smoothing his thumb over Draco's sharp cheekbone. "You don't need to worry so much, darling. I hope you've actually been hearing me this time, but just in case... if I wasn't already clear enough, I like you." And, well. That was putting it mildly, but he had a lot more to say and he didn't want to scare Draco off again by being too much. "I am so into you it should be embarrassing, but it's not, because you're you, and I don’t understand how everyone isn’t as obsessed with you as I am. You are so bloody incredible. You're ambitious and hilarious and smart as hell, and on top of all of that, you're probably the best father I've ever seen. I love your son so much it hurts, and I'm probably at least half in love with you already. I want you. I want both of you. Please, give me a chance to show you how good we could be together. I really think I can make you happy, if you would just let me."

Draco's eyes were closed, his breathing ragged. A tear slid down his cheek, and Harry caught it with his thumb, brushing it away tenderly. Don't cry, my darling. I'll take care of you. Please, just let me.

"You don't have to be afraid of this," Harry murmured, brushing his fingers along Draco's jaw. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm not going to hurt him. I'm not going to leave. Please trust me," he practically begged. "You're allowed to have this, darling. Just... let it happen."

Another tear escaped, but Draco finally opened his eyes, molten silver locking onto Harry intensely, searching, and Harry tried to let everything he was feeling show. Just trust me, he pleaded.

"I want you so much it hurts," Draco eventually whispered.

"So have me," Harry pleaded. "I'm right here."

Harry saw it the moment he broke, resolve crumbling away, walls crashing down.

He whimpered, surging forward with surprising speed, grasping Harry's face in his hands and pressing their lips together insistently.

Butterflies and relief erupted in his stomach, fluttering around wildly, and Harry sighed happily at finally, finally being allowed to have this. For real this time. He'd laid himself bare, and Draco hadn't run away from him.

Draco slipped his tongue in when Harry sighed, and Harry melted into him, letting Draco take what he needed from him.

Tears were still slipping down Draco's face, and Harry could taste them. "I'm sorry," Draco gasped desperately between kisses, choking on a sob. "I'm so fucking sorry, I'm sorry."

"Shh," Harry soothed, cradling Draco's face, softening their kisses, and Draco clung tighter to him, like he thought Harry might disappear. "You're alright sweetheart. It's alright. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere," Harry assured him, and Draco whimpered again.

"Harry..." he whispered, pressing in closer, and Harry's eyes fell shut, swallowing thickly as he tightened his grip on Draco, tears and emotion welling up, choking him.

Harry.

Not Potter.

It was the sweetest thing he'd ever heard.

"Say it again," Harry said lowly. "Please."

Draco swallowed. "Harry," he repeated, more confidently.

Harry groaned, slamming their lips back together. "Fucking finally," he gasped out, then licked into Draco's mouth, exploring the inside of his mouth, running his tongue along Draco's teeth and the roof of his mouth, stroking it along Draco's tongue, nipping roughly at his lips.

Harry threw his arm out, causing a fire burst to life in the fireplace, cackling warmly and casting a soft glow over the room. They'd need heat for what Harry had planned. He pressed in closer, pushing Draco backwards until the backs of his legs hit the couch and he fell back onto it with an "oof!"

Harry was on him again in under a second, mouths crashing together as he climbed on top of Draco, slotting their bodies together, Draco's legs bracketing his.

Draco bucked upwards, searching for any kind of friction, but Harry kept his hips just out of reach, pulling back to strip off his jacket and shirt, preening at the way Draco's eyes drank him in, eyes dark with lust.

He watched, fascinated, as Draco reached out with shaky fingers, smoothing his hands up over Harry's shoulders and down the swell of his pecs. He twitched as Draco's fingers grazed lightly over his nipples, playing with them until they tightened up. His hands moved lower, exploringly, finally stopping at the waistband of his jeans.

Harry's cock was like a steel rod in his pants, twitching wildly at the teasing touches, those big hands so close, but not close enough.

Before Harry could urge him to continue, though, Draco surged up, wrapping one surprisingly strong arm around Harry's waist to twist them so Harry was half seated on the sofa, then he pushed at his shoulder until Harry got the hint and settled against the back cushions while Draco sank elegantly to the floor, looking up at Harry hungrily.

"Gonna suck you," he muttered, placing a hand directly on Harry's throbbing cock, giving it a rough squeeze, and Harry slammed his eyes shut, mouth falling open on a gasp.

Draco hooked his fingers into the waistband of Harry's jeans and pants, and Harry managed to lift his arse enough to allow Draco to pull them both down swiftly. His erection sprung free, slapping heavily against his stomach.

Draco stared at him, licking his lips subconsciously, and moved quickly to pull his trousers off entirely, but they got tangled around Harry's knees until Harry impatiently snapped his hand down, vanishing them, causing a flush to spread down Draco's neck. He whimpered, pressing a hand to his own erection, eyes squeezed shut, and... that was interesting.

Harry tucked that reaction away to examine later, but was pulled out of his thoughts when Draco's hands landed on Harry's knees, pushing them wider apart so he could shuffle in closer. Without further hesitation, he leaned in and swiped his tongue over the head of Harry's dick, catching the drop of pre-cum that was sliding down the length, moaning lowly. Draco wrapped his lips around the head, swirling his tongue and licking at the slit before sliding his mouth down the entire length.

Holy mother of God.

It felt unreal. His mouth was hot and wet and tight, and he quickly began working in earnest, hollowing his cheeks and bobbing his head, taking Harry's cock deeper and deeper into his throat. Harry couldn't stop himself from squirming, gasping out as he felt his cock hit the back of Draco's throat, but he didn't pull off like Harry expected.

Instead, he closed his eyes and relaxed his throat, allowing himself to sink down even lower, like he was comfortable like this. Harry could see his throat bulging, from Harry's cock being lodged in it, and Harry made an involuntary, strangled sound in the back of his throat, hands gripping his own thighs to the point of pain to prevent himself from bucking up into that mouth, unable to tear his eyes away from the absolutely gorgeous sight in front of him.

Draco glanced up at him, eyes nearly black with desire, as his tongue kept licking the underside of Harry's dick. Slowly, deliberately, he reached up and pried one of Harry's hands away from where it was gripping his leg, moving it to the back of Draco's head and applying pressure, letting Harry know exactly what he wanted.

Harry's eyebrows shot up in disbelief. "Yeah?" he breathed, and Draco nodded the best he could with his mouth full of cock, pushing down on Harry's hand again.

Harry swallowed thickly, his mouth suddenly far too dry, and he experimentally pushed down on Draco's head gently, his hips pushing up at the same time so that his cock hit the back of Draco's throat again, and Draco just moaned wantonly, eyes falling shut again.

Oh god. Holy fuck. Jesus fucking Christ.

He'd done this exactly one other time before, and that nameless stranger certainly hadn't been as into it as Draco was right now. He looked like he was gagging for it.

"Fuck!" Harry gasped out. "You like that, don't you?"

Draco just moaned again, and Harry snapped, his hand clenched in Draco's hair, gripping it in a makeshift ponytail, and shoved him down, forcing his cock into Draco's throat and holding him there for a few seconds before letting him up for air. Draco's eyes rolled back in his head and he whined desperately.

So. Fucking. Perfect.

Harry set a brutal rhythm, then, fucking Draco's throat roughly, but he couldn't stop the litany of praise falling from his lips. "Christ, look at you, taking me so well. You were made for this, made to take my cock, weren't you? You're fucking gorgeous like this, hottest thing I've ever seen, I swear. How are you so bloody perfect?"

Draco moaned unabashedly, trying to rut his cock up against the couch and just let Harry fuck his throat.

After several of the shortest minutes of Harry's life, he pushed him down again even harder, holding himself in Draco's throat. The taller man locked his streaming eyes on Harry's and swallowed, throat going unimaginably tight around the head of Harry's cock.

Harry let out a string of profanities and ripped Draco away from his cock, hauling him back up the sofa to crash their mouths together. "Need you," he panted into Draco's mouth, unable to think. All he knew was that he needed his dick in Draco's arse, right fucking now.

Draco nodded frantically and melted into the kiss, struggling to stand up, trying to pull Harry up with him, but Harry held him steady. "Bed. Harry, bed, please, need you inside me."

"Not a chance in hell," Harry gritted out. "I'm going to fuck you right here on this couch, Draco, the couch you bought for me."

"Okay, yes, okay," he gasped out, and Harry quickly vanished his clothes, arranging him so that he was on his knees on the sofa, arms draped over the back of it, arse pushed out invitingly.

God, he was beautiful.

Harry grasped his arse, spreading him open to look at his hole, drinking in the most intimate part of him, the part that was his now. Draco was his.

The little hole clenched reflexively when Harry brushed his thumb over it, applying just a bit of pressure, testing to see if he could take him or if Harry needed to open him up a little. They'd just done this last night, but he didn't want to hurt him. Harry knew he wasn't the easiest to take, had been told that enough to know it was the truth.

"Do you need my fingers?" Harry asked, draping his body over Draco's back, nipping at his ear.

Draco shook his head. "No, need you," he whispered, looking over to meet Harry's eyes, not a shred of doubt or uncertainty present in those molten irises.

Harry quickly cast a silent Lubrication Charm on himself then kissed him again, slow and gentle and tender, trying to pour every bit of love he felt for this man into it, taking advantage of his distraction to line himself up and sink in.

Draco broke away with a sharp gasp, and Harry needed a moment to breathe so he didn't come immediately. They'd just done this last night; how did it feel better than the first time? He pressed his face between Draco's shoulder blades for a moment, placing a gentle kiss there before he pulled back and slammed back into Draco, fucking into him fast and deep, exactly how Harry knew he wanted it.

"H- Harry," he stuttered weakly, moaning on a particularly hard jab. "Please, I wanna see you."

"Yeah," Harry agreed breathlessly. Yes. He definitely wanted that.

He slowly pulled out, and Draco whirled around faster than Harry thought possible and manhandled him until he was sitting on the sofa. Draco climbed on top of him, straddling his lap, and quickly sunk down, taking Harry back inside of him in one fluid motion. Harry grunted, hips stuttering up as Draco began riding him with vigor, arching his back a bit to find the right angle.

God, it was so fucking good. Harry didn't even know sex could be this good. He was breathtakingly beautiful like this; cock rubbing up against Harry's stomach, leaking copiously, mouth kiss bitten and spit slick, hair a disheveled mess from Harry's hands, flushed and panting, eyes practically wild with arousal.

Harry wanted to look at him forever, never wanted this to end, but then Draco was leaning forward, capturing Harry's lips, sucking on his tongue, and that was somehow even better. Harry couldn't stop the chorus of grunts and moans and whimpers coming out of him, barely even registered that they were coming from himself.

Draco was still fucking himself on Harry's cock, not slowing down even though his legs were trembling, and he eventually tore his mouth away from Harry's. Harry whined in protest, but that quickly turned into a moan as Draco attached his mouth instead to Harry's throat, sharp teeth worrying the skin as he sucked dark bruises into Harry's throat, then along his collarbones.

He was marking Harry. Staking claim on him. The thought was enough to drive Harry completely wild, but when Draco pulled away, fingering the marks he left with shaking fingers, and growled out, "mine," Harry lost it.

He cried out, the sentiment shooting straight to his cock, and he couldn't hold back anymore. He wrapped an arm around Draco, holding him steady as Harry slammed his hips up, fucking Draco with abandon.

"Yours, only yours; only ever yours. Come on, baby, need you to come for me. Can't hold on much longer," he grunted out roughly.

Draco reached down and wrapped his hand around his cock, pumping furiously, trying to get himself there. Harry could feel his channel tightening, indicating that he as close, but then he clenched down around Harry's dick, hard, at the exact same moment he leaned forward, biting down sharply at the juncture of Harry's neck and shoulder.

Harry let out a guttural groan as he came, unable to hold himself back, vision whiting out as his cock twitched violently, painting Draco's inner walls with nothing between them to stop it, marking Draco as his once again.

Harry heard Draco cry out his own release, felt it hitting his stomach, coating him in come

Harry slowly came down, slowly releasing his tight grip on Draco's hips that he was sure would leave bruises, and slid his hands up Draco's back, rubbing soothing circles there. Draco took a shuddering breath and slumped forward, burying his face in Harry's neck. Harry heard him sigh contentedly, and he nuzzled his face against Harry, eyelashes fluttering as he struggled to keep his eyes open, tickling.

Harry's heart clenched. He didn't want to move from this spot, didn't want to break this delicate bubble they once again found themselves in, but Draco was clearly exhausted, heavy in Harry's lap.

"Do you want to go to bed, sweetheart?" he asked softly.

Draco made a noncommittal noise, and Harry chuckled quietly. "Come on, you'll be more comfortable in bed."

Draco allowed Harry to shift him enough to pull his softened cock out of Draco. He whined at the loss, but Harry shushed him comfortingly, pressing a gentle kiss to Draco's temple before helping him up to stand on shaky legs.

Draco looked down, frowning down at the mess on his brand-new couch.

"We've ruined the sofa," he pouted adorably.

Harry couldn't help but laugh. "I'll clean it. And if we can't, I'll buy you another one. I still can't believe you bought a yellow couch," he said, fondness practically pouring out of him. He fucking loved that couch. It was his favorite thing ever.

Draco flushed, shrugging awkwardly. "It's your couch," he said simply.

Harry melted at that, rising up on his tiptoes to kiss Draco, keeping it gentle and sweet, wanting it to say the words that Harry couldn't.

"I'm tired," Draco admitted when they broke apart. He looked it. He looked so, so tired.

"Let's get you to bed, then," Harry said, threading his fingers through Draco's and tugging him towards his bedroom, ignoring the fact that they were both still naked.

He was still sticky and damp, covered in drying come and sweat, and now that they had gotten moving, Harry felt his nerves start to return, fizzing at the edges of his brain.

"Do you mind if I use your bathroom?" Harry asked abruptly.

"Of course not, help yourself," Draco said, looking a bit confused.

"Thanks," Harry said with a small smile, slipping into the bathroom, shutting the door softly.

Harry quickly relieved himself, then turned on the shower, stepping under the spray before it fully warmed up. The water was like a shock to his system, bringing reality creeping back in.

Here he was, in almost the exact same position he'd been in last night.

Last night, he'd thought everything was perfect and they were going to be a couple. He thought they'd gotten through the hard part and that the rest would come easily, and then he'd gotten the rudest awakening of his life.

Harry couldn't take another wakeup call like today. He'd barely survived this one. Might not have if Hermione hadn't come over and talked him down.

He knew Draco had just been scared, he knew they'd actually talked this time, but what if he woke up and changed his mind again? The possibility was almost too painful to even consider.

He still didn't really know what exactly it had been that had set Draco off in the first place. Maybe it had just been too much, too fast for him. Did he need to move at a more reasonable pace? Harry knew that he was a lot, and some people didn't really like that. Maybe Harry spending the night on the very first time they'd slept together like that had been too much for him.

He had to go home. He didn't want to even chance doing something that might bring about a repeat of last night.

Mind made up, Harry turned off the water and toweled off before remembering that he'd vanished his clothes like a fucking idiot. Shit. He sighed, wrapping the towel around his waist, securing it at the hip, then exited the bathroom.

"Hey," Draco greeted him softly.

"Hi," Harry said, fidgeting with the towel. "Can I borrow some clothes? I don't really fancy using the Floo naked, and I vanished mine," he said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Why do you need the Floo?" Draco asked, looking bewildered.

"Er. To go home? I didn't know if..." he trailed off, looking away awkwardly. Why was this so awkward?

Draco studied him for a long moment, eyes sad. "Come to bed, Harry," he said softly, pulling the duvet down for him.

Harry. Not Potter.

Hope flared back to life, burning white hot. He bit his lip. "Harry?" he asked quietly, praying that that meant what he hoped it did.

Draco arched an eyebrow at him. "That is your name, isn't it?"

Harry's body flooded with relief. That one little statement, that small gesture, that was all he needed, and he couldn't stop the grin that spread across his face if he wanted to.

"Yeah," he breathed, dropping his towel, uncaring about his nudity, and climbing into bed, immediately pulling Draco as close to him as possible. He wrapped his arms around him, one leg thrown over the taller man's hip, needing to be as close to him as possible.

Draco chuckled, but didn't dislodge him. "You're like the Giant Squid."

"Only for you," Harry replied cheekily, nuzzling his face against Draco's chest. Harry could feel his heartbeat picking up, rabbiting under his cheek, and his own heart mimicked the motion.

"Go to sleep, Harry," Draco whispered, dimming the lights and threading his fingers through Harry's. 

"Goodnight, darling," Harry said into his neck, pressing a kiss there.

Harry laid there for minutes or hours until Draco's breathing evened out, he didn't know, but he couldn't stop thinking. Couldn't stop thinking about this morning.

If him spending the night hadn't been the problem, had it been that Draco didn't think Harry cared enough? He had tried to make his feelings and his intentions abundantly clear earlier, there was no way Draco could still think he wasn't serious.

But what if he did? What if he didn't know? What if he tried to run again because Harry hadn't been clear enough?

The need to tell Draco exactly how much he loved him was so intense he thought he might choke.

He tried to brush it aside, tried to ignore it and just go to sleep, but his brain wouldn't shut up.

He had to tell him. It was going to eat him alive. He couldn't leave any window of doubt again.

"Draco?" Harry whispered softly against his neck. "Sweetheart, are you awake?"

"Yeah," Draco rasped out, but he'd clearly just been woken up. Great, now he felt guilty on top of feeling anxious.

"I can't sleep."

"What's wrong?" he slurred, turning his head so he could meet Harry's gaze.

"I need to tell you something. I can't stop thinking about it until I do," he said, anxiety kicking into overdrive.

Draco frowned a bit, but didn't argue with him. "Okay," he whispered. "You can tell me anything."

Harry bit his lip nervously, then took a deep breath. He could do this. It would be alright. Draco deserved to know. Not telling felt like lying. "Remember earlier, when I said I was probably halfway in love with you already?"

"Mhmm," Draco hummed, closing his eyes.

"There might not be any halfway about it."

His eyes flew open in shock. "W-what?" Draco gasped, head rearing back. "What?"

"I love you," Harry told him softly, cupping Draco's cheek tenderly, thumb stroking over his cheekbone, words flowing out now that he'd started. "Fuck, I- sweetheart, I love you so much. I have for a while. Not telling you is eating me alive, but I'm so afraid of scaring you off by moving too fast. I know I'm too much sometimes-"

"I love you, too," Draco blurted out desperately, cutting him off. "Fuck, Harry, I love you, too, and you are not too much. You could never be too much."

Harry stared at him, jaw hanging open. Even in the dark, Draco's silver eyes were shining like stars, looking at Harry like- like he was everything. It took his breath away.

"You love me?" Harry finally asked, voice shaky, vision blurring as tears sprung to his eyes.

"Harry... I've always loved you," Draco said, brushing a tear off of his cheek with fingers so gentle it made Harry's heart ache. "Did you really not know?"

Always?

Did he say he'd always loved Harry? What did he mean by that? Surely he couldn't mean...

"No, I-" his breath hitched, and Draco's face softened even more.

That look.

He was wearing that look again, the one in all the photos, the one that was just for Harry, the one that was full of want, full of longing.

Full of love.

Draco loved him.

He lunged forward, then, claiming Draco's mouth in a desperate kiss, kissing him like he was dying of thirst in a dessert and Draco was water, kissing him like he'd never get to again.

"Fuck, I love you," Harry said desperately, composure completely cracking. Every doubt filled thought, every insecurity, every bit of pain and fear and hurt that he'd felt in the last fourteen hours rushing to the surface as he clung to Draco. "Please don't change your mind in the morning," he begged. "Please don't do that to me again, baby. Please. I can't- that- you almost broke me this morning," he whispered, a tear slipping free. "I've never felt so unwanted or unimportant in my life. That- it hurt."

Guilt flashed through Draco's pretty, grey eyes. "Shh," he soothed, cradling Harry against his chest. "I won't, darling. I promise. I swear. Never, ever again, okay? I'm going to keep you forever," he murmured into Harry's hair, pressing kisses there. "We'll talk as much as you want in the morning; about anything. I promise. I'm so sorry I was such an idiot."

Harry needed to believe him. He did believe him.

"It's okay," Harry breathed, body relaxing at the promise. He tilted his head up so they could lock eyes. "We're okay. I'm just glad we're here now, yeah?"

"Yeah," Draco answered quietly, hugging Harry tighter.

He knew they still needed to talk more, but he was so tired. The stress of this entire day was catching up to him, weighing heavily, but it would be alright. Draco loved him.

Just love me, Harry thought desperately. Please love me. That's all I've ever wanted. That's all I need.

Notes:

Another one bites the dust. Hopefully you enjoyed this one, even through the angst!

As always, I greatly appreciate any and all feedback! Thank you so much for reading! <3

Chapter 9: CHAPTER 8

Summary:

Romantic Draco, and a bit of Harry and Scorpius time.

Notes:

This is a sweet one, and it will only get sweeter.

Harry woke up, groggy and disoriented. He was still so tired, but Something felt off, and he couldn't place it with his brain in such a fog, until he could.

He was alone.

He could sense it. He was waking up alone, when there should definitely be someone else in the bed with him.

Again.

Fear sliced through him, and he was suddenly wide awake. He had something in his arms, but it wasn't his... well, he didn't know what Draco was to him, exactly, but he was his something. He wasn't holding his something, he was holding a pillow. One that smelled like Draco, but a pillow nonetheless.

He closed his eyes, struggling to get his anxiety under control, trying to remain rational.

He loves you. He said it. He said he loved you. He wouldn’t just say that. He promised he wouldn't change his mind again. You can trust him.

He took a deep breath, releasing it slowly. Okay. Yes, Draco had left him alone in bed yesterday, but just because he was awake early again didn't mean he changed his mind, right? He was just an early riser. It didn't mean anything.

But then he could smell it. Bacon.

White hot panic sliced through him. Draco was cooking. Again. His mind flashed to the mountain of toast from yesterday. 

No, no, no, no.

This morning felt like a slow-motion repeat of yesterday, and he felt dread pooling in his stomach.

His heart wouldn't survive another blow like that. He had no idea what was going on, but he had to go find out, right now.

Swallowing down his panic, he stumbled out of bed, remembering he was naked at the last second. He searched for his pants before remembering that he'd vanished them and instead pulled on the first pair of Draco's trousers he could find; his joggers from yesterday. They were way too long, but that didn't matter right now.

He forced himself to act normal, not wanting to scare Draco off by being too emotional, too much, and made his way downstairs at a normal pace, hovering nervously in the kitchen threshold.

Draco was there, fully dressed, pouring tea into two mugs. Tea. Again. Harry barely even registered him, though, because his eyes were glued on two absolutely heaping plates of food that were set out on the island. Too much food. Like the way too much toast he'd made yesterday.

Harry's blood turned to ice. He felt a muscle near his eye twitching uncontrollably, and he began wringing his hands together, absently picking at his cuticles until they grew sore when Draco finally noticed him standing there.

"You weren't in bed," Harry said quietly, hoping Draco would ease his worry. He didn't.

"I, um. I made you breakfast?" Draco said carefully, looking uncomfortable.

Harry couldn’t speak. This was a repeat of yesterday. He'd changed his mind again. Please, God, no. He clenched his hands into fists, fingernails cutting into his skin as he tried to will himself not to cry.

Draco was eyeing him carefully, now, a tiny crease between his eyebrows, lips pursed in a small frown, like he was trying to figure something out. Harry only grew more confused, though, when Draco's face finally smoothed out, what looked like understanding, then determination, shining in his eyes.

He smirked, and Harry's eyes widened, heart stuttering frantically as Draco strode confidently across the kitchen to him. He reached up to cradle Harry's face in his big hands before kissing him, deep, and so, so sweet.

Harry let out an involuntary squeak of surprise, too stunned to react, and his heart flipped so violently he went lightheaded, knees weakening. He felt Draco grin against his mouth, and his heart flipped again.

Oh, my God.

"Good morning, my sunshine," Draco murmured against his lips, leaving one last peck there before pulling back, thumb stroking tenderly over his cheekbone. "Merlin, you look lovely."

Harry released a shaky breath, tension slowly seeping out of him.

Draco kissed him. He called him lovely. He called him sunshine. He kissed him.

Harry had been so sure that Draco was going to kick him out again, but he was standing here, smiling down at Harry like he was the center of his universe, cradling his face sweetly, and kissing him.

Harry had never been more relieved to be wrong in his life.

He relaxed even more, leaning into Draco's touch. "Good morning," he breathed out, biting his lip shyly.

Draco's face softened, taking on that look, the one Harry loved so much, the one that meant Draco loved him, and he pulled Harry into his arms, just holding him gently as he buried his nose in Harry's hair.

It was the most comforting, loving, reassuring hug he'd ever received, and Harry melted into it. Humming happily in the back of his throat, he wrapped his own arms around Draco's waist, nuzzling his face against Draco's throat, breathing in his scent, and Draco just let him, showing no signs of wanting to let go. God, he loved it. He loved this so much, loved him so much.

When they finally did part, Harry couldn't keep the pleased grin off his face, looking up at Draco, who looked every bit as content as Harry felt. It sent a thrill up his spine.

Draco's eyes locked on Harry's throat, and he carefully ran his fingers along the necklace of bruises he'd left on Harry last night, pressing into a few of them so they twinged. Harry had completely forgotten about them, but he flushed at the reminder. He suddenly wished he'd gotten to mark Draco up, too.

"Pretty," he muttered, then smirked when Harry flushed even deeper. "Are you hungry? I thought you might like a break from cooking."

"I like cooking," Harry chuckled, "but thank you, darling, this looks amazing. You didn't have to do this."

Draco pulled out his stool for him so he could sit. "I wanted to. You do so much for me all the time, I wanted to do something nice for you for a change."

Harry tried not to swoon. Draco had pulled out his seat. He felt so giddy over such a small gesture, and it should be embarrassing, but he was just so grateful. These things... they may just be little things, insignificant to someone else, but they were things that no one had ever done for him before and they mattered.

"Thank you," Harry replied softly, dimple popping into place.

Draco reached up to thumb over his cheek, pressing slightly into his dimple. Harry's smile widened, causing Draco to grin, too, as his thumb to sank deeper into Harry's cheek.

"Fuck, I love you," Draco blurted out of nowhere.

Butterflies erupted in Harry's stomach, and he felt his cheeks stretch even more.

God, he'd woken up petrified that he was going to have to go through the same cycle of pain again, that he'd have to fight once again to get Draco to see what they could be, but he had been so wrong. This morning couldn't possibly be going more right.

"I love you, too," Harry said softly, leaning in to capture Draco's lips, kissing him soft and slow, just savoring the fact that he could.

Draco sighed, looking indescribably content, and he just watched Harry eat his breakfast for a bit before finally digging into his own.

"This is really good," Harry complimented. It might be the best thing he'd ever eaten, because it was made for him.

Draco flushed a bit at the compliment. "I'm glad. Um. So, I know I promised you we would talk in the morning, but can we pause it until tonight?" Harry frowned, but Draco didn't give him a chance to worry. "I'm not trying to get out of it, I swear," he hurried out. "I have to go to work soon, though, and I don't want to be interrupted. Is that okay?"

Oh. That's right. He had to work today. Of course. That's probably why he was up so early. If Harry wasn't such a mess, he would have realized that and saved himself a lot of worry.

Harry smiled. "Of course it's okay. Do you want me to pick up Scorpius from the Manor?"

"I actually thought you might like to have the day off," Draco suggested.

"Oh," Harry said, surprised. "I really don't need to. I'd rather get him, if you don't mind. I miss him. Unless you didn't want me to, of course," he said, frowning down at his hands, heart sinking as a new, terrible possibility came to mind. "I suppose I didn't really consider that you might not want me working for you anymore."

"Merlin, no, that's not it at all," Draco assured him right away. "No. Never. If you want to keep watching him, of course you can, love. I just thought you might want a break after... well, everything."

"Thank God," he chuckled, relaxing. "But yeah, I'd like to pick him up. I'll tidy up here and clean the couch, then go over."

Draco winced. "Good call."

"Go get ready for work," Harry laughed, pecking him on the cheek and getting up to clear their plates away.

Draco slipped out of the kitchen, and Harry began washing up the dishes, humming old muggle songs under his breath, unable to wipe the smile off his face.

Finally. They were finally together, no more doubt. Draco wanted him back, loved him back, and now he was going to get to spend the day with Scorpius, then come home to his boyfriend.

Harry bit his lip, stomach fluttering madly. He had a boyfriend. He felt a bit silly, using the word boyfriend when he was twenty-five, but that's what they were. Boyfriends.

Harry saw Draco enter the room out of the corner of his eye, and he did a double take, eyes stuck on his hair, where he had it pulled up in a bun. He loved when Draco pulled his hair back. He didn't do it nearly enough, and Harry always wanted to tell him to wear it like that more, wanted to tell him how attractive he was like that. He was always startlingly attractive, but God, did he want him like crazy when he looked like that.

He could tell him that now, he realized. He was allowed to say that now. Harry swallowed thickly, dick twitching in his- well Draco's- pants.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked, touching his face like he thought something was wrong with him.

"I fucking love your hair like that," Harry said lowly, advancing towards Draco. "Every time you do it, it takes every ounce of self-control I have not to throw you against the nearest surface."

Draco's breath quickened, going a bit ragged, eyes instantly darkening with arousal. That was surprisingly easy. He was so bloody reactive. Harry wanted to see how far he could push him, how worked up he could get him.

"God baby, do you have any idea how fit you are? All long, lean limbs and sharp eyes and fucking cheekbones? Gorgeous. Should be illegal to be as pretty as you are."

He was right in front of Draco now, who was frozen to the spot, not daring to take his eyes off of Harry. Harry drank him in, cock completely hard now, just from the way Draco was looking at him. Draco whimpered, high and needy, and it only aroused Harry more.

"You like that, don't you?" Harry asked, voice rough. "You like when I tell you how pretty you are, when I make you want to beg. You want me to bring you to your knees."

It wasn't a question, and they both knew it, but Draco nodded anyway, frantic and desperate and so beautifully, perfectly, eager to please. If Harry asked him to, he'd drop to his knees and suck him off right here in the kitchen, and he'd be late to work to do it, too. Harry almost came in his pants at the thought.

Harry smirked at him, tugging on his collar until they were eye level. Draco licked his lips subconsciously in anticipation, but Harry bypassed his mouth to press his mouth to his ear instead. "Unfortunately, darling, you have to go to work. But don't worry; I'll get you on your knees tonight," he breathed, licking up the shell of Draco's ear.

Draco shivered, moaning quietly, and Harry's smirk widened before he lowered his mouth, attaching himself to the sensitive spot right below Draco's ear, nipping and licking there until Draco was a quivering mess. Harry gave one last hard suck, and pulled away smugly, taking a step back to examine the claiming mark he'd placed there where anyone could see, that would alert anyone who saw him today that he was Harry's.

"You'd better hurry, darling, you're going to be late," Harry said, pecking Draco's slack mouth once before he turned back to the dishes, smugness washing over him at the incredulous look Draco was giving him.

"I hate you," Draco said shakily, trying to shake himself out of his lust filled haze.

Harry grinned at him. "Nah. You love me."

Draco made a noncommittal noise before stalking into the living room. Harry turned to the sink, humming quietly as he listened for the sound of the Floo.

"Harry?"

Harry whipped his head over to where Draco had poked his head back into the kitchen, watching Harry with soft eyes.

"Yes?"

"I really do," he said softly.

Harry's face heated up, but before he could reply, Draco winked at him and slipped back out of the room, the sound of the Floo signaling his departure ringing out moments later.

Well, fuck.

Harry tilted his head up to the ceiling, grinning so wide his cheeks ached. He had a boyfriend. They were in love. He did an excited little shimmy, whooping loudly before settling down a bit, setting the few remaining dishes to wash themselves magically and going to tackle cleaning the couch instead.

He grabbed a bottle of vinegar he kept in the pantry and a couple clean rags, carrying them out to the living room. The sofa certainly wasn't ruined, just a bit messy. Molly had taught him to use white vinegar on particularly stubborn stains before hitting them with Cleaning Charms if he didn't want to leave residue behind.

Granted, she'd taught him this for how to get red wine and sweat stains out of brightly colored fabric, not come, but he had found that it worked wonders for that, too. He dabbed the vinegar on the stain and scrubbed at it a bit before casting a strong Scourgify at it, smirking when the stain lifted easily, leaving the couch looking brand new. Perfect.

Harry finished tidying up the kitchen and went upstairs to make the bed with fresh sheets again, bundling the ones they'd slept in up in his arms before Flooing home to get some actual clothing for the day.

Once he was dressed, he tucked Draco's joggers away in his bureau to keep, but he did send the dirty sheets that he'd rolled himself in yesterday back to Draco's to be washed, making his bed up with the sheets from last night instead. The newer ones still smelled like them, but without the crusted come all over them. That had been pretty gross of him, actually, to lay in that all day, but he had been distraught. He could give himself a bit of leniency for acting irrationally yesterday.

"Kreacher," Harry called out, rolling his eyes when the House Elf appeared, bowing deeply. "I still hate that, you know," Harry said, huffing out a laugh.

"'Tis a symbol of-"

"Respect, yes, yes. I know. I just wanted to ask if you needed anything. I haven't been home much," Harry said guiltily. He wished Kreacher would just let Harry free him, but he'd had a meltdown when Harry brought it up, so he never mentioned it again. He'd have to figure out what to do with him if he ever moved in with Draco, though.

"Kreacher isn't needing anything," the Elf mumbled.

"Do you want to go back to Hogwarts? Are you lonely?" Harry asked. He did worry about him being here all by his lonesome all the time. Kreacher might be grouchy and disagreeable most of the time, but he still had feelings.

Kreacher blinked at him, scowling, then shook his head.

"Alright... if you're sure," Harry said uncertainly. "If you want to go back there, you can go. Just leave me a note or something so I know you're alright, okay?"

"Thank you, Master. Kreacher is fine." Kreacher said, but he sounded slightly less grumpy.

"I'm not sure when I'll be back, but remember the offer is there, Kreacher," Harry said, heading back to the Floo.

He stepped into Malfoy Manor, and Dandy popped up, as always, bowing to him. "Harry Potter is to be picking up the little Master?"

"That's right," Harry smiled. "Is he ready?"

"Dandy will go fetch him," he said, disappearing again.

Harry only waited for a few minutes when he heard the clacking of heels accompanying little running footsteps, and he grinned widely, catching Scorpius with a laugh when he launched himself at Harry, hugging him tightly.

"Harry! I missed you," he said, nuzzling his little nose up against Harry's cheek.

"I missed you too, buddy," Harry told him sincerely. He had. He missed him so much more than he thought he would, especially because he'd been so afraid he'd never get to see him again.

He wondered how Scorpius would take the news that he and his father were dating now. Harry couldn't imagine him taking it poorly, he was so pleasant about everything, and he had asked Harry to move in with them several times already.

"I got to stay two nights! I had so much fun with Grammy and Grampy!" he squealed, then dropped his voice to a whisper. "Grammy even helped me hide the Chocolate Frog cards for Grampy. She put one in his slipper!" Scorpius giggled wildly, and Harry couldn't help but join in. He'd almost forgotten that Draco gave the boy Harry's cards to hide for Lucius, and it was still the funniest thing he'd ever heard. How the older man hadn't blown a gasket about it yet was a mystery.

"We had a wonderful time having you, my darling," Narcissa said, kissing Scorpius on the cheek. "How is Draco doing? Pansy told me he was feeling poorly yesterday."

"Oh, he's much better now," Harry said easily. "He just needed a day to get himself together."

"That's good to hear. I must admit, I was rather shocked that he allowed Scorpius to spend more time with us, but we did enjoy it tremendously," she said wistfully, carding gentle fingers through Scorpius' hair.

He set Scorpius down. "Go get your bag, Scorp. We have fun plans for today," he told the little boy.

"Yay! I'll be right back!" he said, taking off in a run. Harry chuckled at him before turning back to Narcissa.

"He's coming around," Harry told her softly. "It wasn't you, you know, it was..." he glanced away, biting his lip, his indication that it was Lucius clear enough, judging by her understanding eyes. "He's trying, though."

"I know how difficult it must be for him to trust us after everything that happened," she replied. "I can assure you, however, that my husband has learned from his mistakes, and I've put my foot down with him as far as Scorpius goes. Draco, too. He wouldn't dare put a toe out of line."

"I've noticed," Harry smirked. "He hasn't even said anything about the Chocolate Frog cards, and I know that has to drive him nuts."

Narcissa smiled, eyes glinting. "Yes, well, he could do with a bit of payback for all the trouble he caused. If sneaking the cards into the Manor makes Draco feel better, I won't stop him. Truthfully, Lucius should be grateful that's all Draco is doing. He always was a bit mischievous, my Dragon."

Harry laughed at that. "Yes, he was. But don't worry, he'll see that it's alright soon enough. As long as Scorp comes home happy, I'm sure he'll be allowed to come back."

She smiled softly at him, reaching out to squeeze his hand. "Thank you, darling. You've been so good for him, I hope you know that. For both of them. Draco... he tries so hard, especially with Scorpius, and he's taken far too much of the burden of rebuilding our name onto himself. He was running himself ragged trying to do everything by himself. He's been so much happier since you came to work for him, happier than I think I've ever seen him. Thank you for being there for him. You've gone above and beyond the call of duty, and I hope you know how much he appreciates you, even if he's not the best at saying it."

I've always loved you. Did you really not know?

Harry smiled at her, cheeks warm. Scorpius came running back to them with his small overnight bag swinging wildly, jumping back into Harry's arms.

"I got it! We can go now," he announced, hugging Harry tightly.

"Yeah, we can go," he laughed, glancing back at Narcissa, who was just looking at them tenderly. "And I know he does," he told her quietly.

They left the Manor shortly after that to drop his bag off at home. "How would you like to go visit Hermione with me?"

"Yes, yes! I miss Auntie 'Mione," he said, and Harry's eyebrows lifted in surprise. That was the first time he heard the little boy call any of Harry's friends ‘aunt’ or ‘uncle’. He kind of loved it. He wondered if it would bother Draco, but it was perfectly harmless. He did see them quite often with Harry, after all, it was natural that he’d develop a bond with them, and he knew his friends loved Scorp back. It was impossible not to, really.

"I'm sure she misses you, too," Harry assured him, and picked him up to Floo over to Ron and Hermione's house. Ron would, unfortunately, be at the shop with George this morning, but Hermione should be home; she didn't work on Sundays.

"Hermione?" Harry called out when they stepped through the Floo.

"Harry! Is everything al-" she trailed off as she hurried into the room, then halted when she saw Scorpius, relief flashing across her face momentarily before she smiled at them both.

"Auntie 'Mione! Hi! I came to visit you, aren't you happy to see me?" Scorpius asked, wiggling to get out of Harry's arms so he could hug her.

Her eyebrows shot up, too, at the name, then she laughed, scooping him up. "I'm so happy to see you! I heard you had a sleepover last night."

"I did! It was so much fun. Grammy helped me hide Harry's Chocolate Froggy cards in Grampy's slipper!" He repeated to her, and Hermione's jaw fell open before an incredulous laugh burst out of her.

"Well, that certainly sounds like an excellent time," she assured him. "I have a plate of cookies in the kitchen from Mrs. Weasley, and I have a new book for you upstairs in the library on my desk. I think Crookshanks is sleeping in there. Would you like to go play with him?"

"Yes, yes! I don’t have a kitty at home!" he squealed, and skipped into the kitchen. "Ooh, these have chocolate chippies! My favorite!" he shouted, and they both laughed.

"You look good," Hermione said when they sat down on the couch, after Scorpius was playing upstairs with the cat. "You went back to talk to him?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Thank you so much for coming over yesterday. You really helped pull me out of... whatever that was," he said, cheeks flushing in embarrassment. He'd been an absolute mess.

"Harry, stop. You don't have to be embarrassed for having feelings. You were hurt. Understandably so, I might add," she said pointedly. "Did he apologize to you?"

"He did. A lot. You were right, he was scared. But we talked. Well, mainly, I talked at him until he finally listened, but Hermione... he bought me a couch. A yellow couch. That- all because I mentioned in passing that it would look good in his living room. He couldn't really pretend he didn't care after that, could he? He did that for me."

Her mouth fell open slightly before a pleased look spread across her face. "No, I suppose he couldn't," she agreed, squeezing his hand. "So, are you on the same page, then?"

"Yeah," he breathed. "It took a while because he was still fighting it, but he finally admitted he wanted me. He was mostly afraid because of Scorp, which I really do understand. It’s a big deal, like you said.”

“I had a feeling,” she said empathetically. “What happened after you talked? Did you say everything you needed to say? Does he feel better about it?”

“We, um, we had sex again, but after, he asked me to stay, and he called me Harry, and I- I told him I love him. I couldn't keep it in any longer, I just needed to get it out, I needed him to understand that this wasn’t casual for me, but he actually said it back. I never thought..."

He trailed off wistfully. He never thought Draco would say it back. Not right now, anyway. He had hoped that eventually he could get Draco to fall in love with him, too, but he was already there.

"Are you happy?" she asked softly, but she was studying him intensely. "He's good to you?"

Harry swallowed thickly.

Was he? He knew he was happy, that was a no brainer, but was Draco good to him?

He certainly always made Harry feel appreciated, never failing to say thank you, or compliment his cooking, commenting about how nice the house looked, or sometimes even how nice he looked, even before they got together. He showed that he trusted him by how much freedom he gave Harry with his son and his home. They've only just worked themselves out, so he didn't have that much to go on yet, but even then, Draco still treated him better than anyone else ever had. That may not be saying much, considering what Harry had to compare it to, but it mattered to Harry. A lot.

"Yeah," he replied confidently. "He really is. I didn't think I could ever be this happy."

"Oh, Harry," she said, eyes filling with tears.

They were interrupted by an orange blur streaking past them to hide under a nearby chair, followed by a running Scorpius, who crouched down in front of the chair, tapping his fingers lightly to try and lure the cat back out to play. Harry and Hermione exchanged a look.

“Scorp, you have to play gentle with him, he’s not the most social cat,” Harry chastised him gently, and Scorpius stood up, pouting.

“I didn’t mean to! I was petting him nice, but I saw a pretty book up high with a flower on it, and I wanted it, but I couldn’t reach it! I got upset, and then it flew at me and scared the kitty away. I just wanted to ‘pologize to him.”

 Hermione gasped, then laughed. “Accidental magic,” she said, shaking her head. “Over a book!”

“You must be thrilled,” Harry laughed, and she nodded excitedly before jumping up to go fetch him the book he’d wanted to see so badly.

They chatted about lighter topics while Scorpius scoured the book about plants, and when it was time to go, Hermione hugged him fiercely. "I'm so, so happy for you, you know. You’ve suffered enough, and you deserve this, so much," she whispered.

And for the first time, possibly ever, he found himself agreeing with her.

*

After they left Hermione, Harry took Scorpius to Diagon to pick up some very special ingredients for supper. He had an idea to try something new, something he knew neither Draco or Scorpius had ever had before.

"Scorp, we're making pizza tonight," Harry announced when they got hom- back to Draco's house. He set his bags down on the island and began pulling items out, lining them up.

"What's that?" Scorpius asked, frowning.

"Delicious," Harry winked at him. "You'll love it, I promise. So will your papa. They eat it across the pond."

Harry had picked up a nice steak that he could cook up for Draco just in case he actually didn't like the pizza, but he had a feeling he'd like it.

"Okay. Can I help?"

"I couldn't do it without you."

Harry made the dough and set it aside to rest, then let Scorpius help him sort out ingredients. They decided to split each crust in half so they could make four different types, plain cheese, pepperoni and sausage, pineapple and ham, and Margherita, which Harry thought Draco would like best.

Once the dough was ready, Harry rolled it out into two large circles. He added sauce, and then let Scorpius help him add cheese and all the toppings, making sure they were spread evenly.

He'd just gotten them in the oven when they heard the sound of the front door shutting loudly. Harry's stomach flipped, so excited to see his boyfriend after spending the whole day apart.

"Papa's here," Harry whispered, right as they heard Draco call out, "Scorpius?"

Scorpius shrieked, running full speed to his father. He had to have missed him so much. Harry watched with a soft smile from the doorway as Scorpius launched himself at Draco, who was kneeling on the floor, arms open for his son.

"Papa! I missed you!" Scorpius cried out, hugging Draco tightly.

"I missed you too, my little star. Did you have fun with your grandparents?"

"Uh huh! I got to stay extra, extra long! And I finished the Secret Mission you gave me! I hided all of the cards. Grammy even helped me hide one in Grampy's slipper! He was so happy when he found it his face turned red!" Scorpius said excitedly.

Harry snorted, biting his lips to keep from laughing. He was really excited about hiding that card in Lucius' slipper.

"Did she, now?" Draco asked, glancing up at Harry in amusement.

"She did! She promised she’d help me hide more if I come back soon. Can I, papa? Can I go back soon? I had so much fun."

"Of course you can, love," Draco said softly.

Harry was suddenly startled by a loud honking noise coming from behind Draco.

"What's that?" Scorpius asked, peeking over Draco's shoulder.

"I brought you a present," Draco told him, reaching behind him to blindly grab something, a small bouquet of honking daffodils shimmering into view as he held them out to his son. Scorpius squealed with delight, and Harry melted at the sweet gesture.

"Papa, they're honking at me! Those are funny!"

"I thought so, too," Draco chuckled. "Would you like to put them in your room?" Scorpius nodded eagerly.

"Okay. Go on ahead and find the perfect spot, and I'll bring a vase in for you soon," he urged, and Scorpius took the bunch of flowers and ran upstairs to his room.

Harry watched Draco watching his son as he ran up the stairs, the sound of the flowers honking all the way upstairs, Scorpius' laughter joining in. He spotted the love bite he’d given Draco this morning, still there, still visible. He hadn’t healed it. He’d left it there for everyone to see, to see that he was Harry’s. He ignored the bolt of heat that realization sent shooting to his dick.

"That was an interesting gift. Went shopping after work, did you?" Harry asked, wandering closer to Draco, dying to just hug him again.

Draco stood up, brushing off his knees, grabbing something else Harry couldn't see from behind him. "Yes, well, I didn't think it would go over too well if I came home with a gift for you and not one for him," he laughed.

"For me?" Harry asked in surprise. Draco got him a gift?

"Yes, for you," Draco smirked, ending what was clearly a Disillusionment Charm and holding an absolutely stunning bouquet of colorful flowers out for Harry. "Here you are, darling."

Harry's breath caught in his throat. A million emotions were swimming through him. No one had ever...

He's good to you? Hermione had asked him that, just a few hours ago. This only solidified what Harry already knew.

"You got me flowers?" he asked, voice shaky.

"I did. I hope you don't mind; I know men don't always like- mmph!"

Harry didn't let him finish his sentence. He grabbed the front of Draco's robes, yanking the taller man down so he could kiss him, tongue immediately delving into Draco's mouth.

I love you. You have no idea what this means to me.

"I do," Harry said fiercely when he finally broke the kiss. "I like them. I love them. Thank you."

Draco nodded slowly. "Yes. I- yeah. I'm glad," he stuttered.

Harry had kissed him stupid. Oh, God, he might faint. He loved this man so, so much.

Harry smiled at him, leaning in to kiss him again, softer this time; sweeter. Harry could feel Draco melt into it, pulling him closer, and his heart flipped wildly.

He eventually stepped back, remembering the pizzas in the oven, breaking the kiss with one final peck. "I love you. You better get that vase up to him. I'll put these ones in some water, too, then we can eat," Harry said happily.

Draco blinked, like he'd forgotten they had anything else to do. "Right. I should do that." Draco brushed past him to go grab a small vase from a cupboard in the kitchen and hurried upstairs with it.

While he was up there, Harry set the table and pulled the pizzas out, slicing them up before setting them out on the table.

"What is this?" Draco asked, looking incredibly confused when they came back down, joining Harry in the dining room.

"Pizza!" Scorpius announced, then frowned in confusion. "Harry said they eat it 'across the pond', but I don't know what that means. We don't live near a pond."

Harry laughed. "They eat it in America. Muggles here eat it, too, but it's like a way of life over there."

"I see," Draco said, eyeing the food distrustfully. "Why isn't there any silverware out?"

"Because you eat this with your hands," Harry said, grinning and wiggling his fingers at Draco, causing Scorpius to clap. Draco curled his lip in distaste, but sat down.

"Start with this one," Harry told him, sliding a piece onto his plate. "This seems most up your alley. Margherita, it has cheese, tomatoes and basil on it. I did four types, half and half, if you wanted to try something else instead. If you really don't like it, I can make you something else."

Draco stared as Harry served Scorpius, then himself, watching to see how to eat it. Scorpius took a big bite of his own slice of plain cheese pizza, humming happily in approval. Harry watched, amused, as Draco glanced back down at his own piece, picking it up by the end like it might bite him, and took the tiniest bite Harry had ever seen.

His eyes widened before he started practically inhaling it, moaning in pleasure, and Harry grinned, feeling smug.

He must have sensed Harry staring, because when the slice was nearly gone, he froze, eyes darting up to Harry like a caught animal.

"Enjoying yourself, there?" Harry asked, quirking an eyebrow at him.

Draco flushed, lowering his pizza crust, and clearing his throat. "It's... edible," he said evasively.

Harry's grin only widened. "Well, if it's just edible, you won't mind if we eat the rest, then? You won't want any more."

Draco’s eyes darted over to the other pizzas in a panic, making a small noise of disagreement in the back of his throat.

"I- I suppose it's better than just edible," he caved.

"Papa likes it!" Scorpius announced.

"Do you, Draco?" Harry asked innocently. He was absolutely going to make Draco say it.

"Yes, I like it," he sniffed primly.

Harry sat back in his chair smugly. "I'm very glad to hear that. Would you like more?"

Draco crossed his arms petulantly, then nodded.

Harry laughed, then leaned over to grab another piece of the Margherita pizza for him.

"Um. Can I try a different one?" he asked hesitantly.

"'Course you can. Which one?"

"All of them?"

Harry was surprised, but he smiled, quite pleased that he liked it that much. He pulled one piece from each remaining half and piled them on Draco's plate, unable to resist discreetly brushing his fingers gently over Draco’s wrist when he pulled away.

Draco ate them all declaring the Margherita he'd had first as his favorite. They'd definitely have to make it again. Maybe next time Draco could help, like a fun family activity.

Family.

Harry bit his lip to keep from grinning like a lunatic.

After supper, Draco offered to clean up, but Harry shooed him away to give Scorpius his bath. Harry cleaned up the kitchen and sent the usual cup of tea up to Draco's room, along with a little note that simply read 'I love you'. Pleased, he finished up the dishes, and tidied up the small mess in the living room.

By the time he finished, Scorp still wasn't out of the tub. His mind drifted to the fancy wine he'd bought for Friday, but never got to open. It was still sitting in his kitchen at home. They were supposed to talk tonight; Draco had promised. It might go smoother with some wine to help him loosen up.

Mind made up, Harry grabbed his flowers and quickly Flooed back to Grimmauld Place, grabbing the wine and arranging the flowers prettily in a vase, leaving them in the kitchen to catch some light. He paused before returning to the fireplace.

What if he spent the night again? Not tonight, obviously; Scorpius was home and he doubted Draco would be okay with his son knowing Harry was sharing his father's bed, at least not yet, but eventually, ideally, he'd be allowed to stay again. Harry had a bad habit of vanishing his clothes, and he didn't want to be stuck borrowing Draco's constantly. As wonderful as it was to wear his clothes, they really were way too big for him.

Harry headed upstairs, packing himself a small overnight bag, throwing a few changes of clothing, pants, and pajama bottoms into it, just in case, and then grabbed his spare toothbrush, and his backup bottle of shampoo, so he didn't keep using up all of Draco's expensive products.

He zipped the bag up and cast a quick Disillusionment Charm on it before Flooing back to Draco's. He set out the wine and two glasses in the living room, then slipped upstairs, stashing the bag in a corner of Draco's bedroom, and followed the quiet voices coming from Scorpius' bedroom.

He hovered in the doorway listening quietly to their conversation.

"Why not?" Scorpius was asking, crossing his arms with a pout.

"Because, love, people aren't possessions. We can't just command them to do what suits us," Draco explained. Harry was suddenly very curious as to what they were talking about, but he didn't interrupt their conversation.

"What if we ask really nicely? With sugar on top?"

Harry couldn't see Draco's face, but he did see his shoulders tense up as he took and released a deep breath before changing the subject. "You know, if I don't start reading soon, it's going to be too late for a story."

"Fine," Scorpius huffed dramatically, throwing himself back against his pillows. "You can do the voices, I guess."

"Oh, this I have to see," Harry cut in, no longer able to stay quiet.

Draco snapped his head over, relief plastered on his face for some reason.

"Harry! Papa said you left!" Scorpius cried, narrowing his eyes at Draco.

"He did!" Draco defended, then turned to Harry. "You did," he added accusatorily.

"Only for a bit," Harry admitted, coming to join them on the bed. "But then I realized I forgot to say goodnight to my favorite little goblin," he said, lunging to tickle Scorpius until he was screaming with laughter.

"Stop, stop! I'm not a goblin!" he squealed, trying to wriggle away from Harry's fingers.

"You're not? Then what are you?" Harry said, widening his eyes so he looked shocked.

"I'm a wizard!"

"A wizard?! Well, how foolish of me. Wizards get bedtime stories, not tickles," Harry relented seriously, taking the book that had been abandoned on the bed and opening it to start reading Beauty and the Beast to him, making his voice higher for Belle, and lowering it to a growl for the Beast, then putting on a ridiculously terrible French accent for Lumiere.

Scorpius fought sleep for a short while, but soon enough, he was fast asleep, clutching his favorite toy dragon tightly.

Harry looked over and saw Draco still sitting there, looking completely lost in thought. Harry hated to disturb him, but he was dying to go downstairs and have their talk.

"Draco?" Harry said quietly, standing up.

"Hmm?" he hummed distractedly, looking up at him.

"He's asleep," Harry whispered, gesturing to Scorpius.

"Oh," he said, standing up hastily and following Harry out of the room, closing the door softly behind him and following Harry downstairs.

"Why did you leave?" Draco asked, looking rather put out.

"I didn't plan to stay gone," Harry assured him. "I just wanted to pop home and put the flowers up and grab that wine I mentioned the other day. I didn't think I was gone long enough for you to notice."

"Oh. That makes sense. I worried you'd change your mind about having a chat."

Harry quirked an eyebrow. "You, Draco Malfoy, actually want to have a discussion?" Harry was thrilled.

Draco shrugged. "I might," he said nonchalantly.

Harry smiled widely. "Well, it’s a good thing I brought wine, then," he said, threading their fingers together and pulling Draco over to his new, yellow sofa. He had Draco sit, then poured the wine into the glasses he had set out, handing one to Draco.

Draco took a slow sip, eyes falling shut. "Merlin, that's good," he sighed, taking another sip. "Andromeda really gave you a great bottle."

"Er. She didn't, actually," Harry said, chuckling quietly. They were supposed to talk, and he didn’t want to start their relationship off on a lie, not even a small one. "I bought it."

Draco looked confused. "You did? Why didn't you just say so?"

Harry shrugged. "I didn't want you to think I was desperate. Even though I kind of was," he said, rather embarrassed. "I knew Scorpius was spending the night away, and I thought I could get some time alone with you to finally make a move. I wanted to make it feel a date night, in a way, and expensive wine felt romantic. Was hoping that if I was able to woo you a little, it might get you to see me as more than just the nanny."

Draco's jaw dropped in surprise, realization flashing across his face, like something clicked into place for him. "Is that why you seemed so off when I said I had plans with Theo?"

"Yeah. I thought you were meeting him for a date. I was so fucking jealous it was embarrassing," Harry admitted sheepishly. Christ, had he been jealous. He was so glad he'd been wrong.

"Why were you even jealous of Theo, though? We've only ever just been friends," Draco said, confused.

And... that was certainly not how it seemed to Harry.

"He's always all over you! And you told me you two used to snog at school. It wasn't a far stretch," he defended.

Draco snorted. "Harry! We used each other for practice. Neither of us wanted to look like an inexperienced twat when we finally found someone we actually wanted to snog. We've never liked each other like that, and Theo only dates women, anyway."

Oh.

"Well, how was I to know? You definitely made it sound like more, and then he flirted with you at your birthday party, and at the pub all night. I watched it happen, I didn't imagine that," Harry said pointedly. He knew he hadn't been imagining it, especially at the pub.

"You didn't, but he did it on purpose. That's why I got upset with him, actually. He told me he was trying to make you jealous and I didn't appreciate his meddling," Draco confessed.

That little...

Harry gaped at him, then let out an incredulous laugh. "Unbelievable. Well, you're right; it did work. You looked unbearably sexy, and I wanted to punch him in the face all night for touching you. Actually, I kind of wanted to punch everyone who was staring at you, which was at least half the pub," he admitted.

Draco ducked his head down, biting back a pleased little smile. "Thank you for not punching my friend. Or half the pub," he said softly.

"At least half," Harry corrected with a smirk, then went serious. "Don't worry, Hermione would string me up by my thumbs if I ever did anything like that. I'm not usually like that, and I don't want you to think that I’m some controlling brute, or that you can't, like, talk to people, you know? You can do whatever you want. I just wanted you so much and I thought I'd missed my chance. It was- it wasn’t a good night for me."

He really, really didn't want Draco to think that he would be that kind of partner. He may have been jealous, but he never would have interfered if Draco hadn't been noticeably distressed. He had been more worried than anything.

"It's okay, really. I know you're not controlling, Harry. I'm sorry that I was such an idiot. I wanted to stay home with you, I only really went to try and get over you," he admitted quietly, looking half ashamed, half nauseated, and realization blanketed Harry, thick and suffocating.

"You went out to pull," he said, a myriad of emotion flying through him. He felt hurt, that Draco had even considered finding someone else when Harry had been right there the whole time, waiting for him to notice him. More jealousy bubbled up, but mostly, he just felt resigned. They weren't together then, and Draco had the right to do whatever, or whomever, he wanted. He just... he needed to know if he did, especially because they hadn't used protection.

"Did you?" Harry asked quietly.

Draco shook his head slowly. "All I could think about was how none of them were you."

Harry's heart flipped and he relaxed at that, relief washing over him, a small smile playing on his lips. He reached for Draco's hand, pulling it into his lap so he could play with Draco's fingers, stroking over them lovingly. "I'm quite glad to hear that," he said. "You're all I've been able to think about for months. Maybe next time you have a free evening, we can go out together, though? I'd really like to take my boyfriend out on a proper date," Harry suggested.

Draco sucked in a sharp breath, squeezing his wine glass tightly. "Boyfriend?" he repeated, sounding awed.

"Yes?" Harry confirmed, confused by that reaction.

"Is that what we are, then?"

Harry laughed. "Of course we are. What did you think we were?"

Weren't they? Why wouldn't they be? They had both said 'I love you'; why would they do that and then choose not to be a couple? It made no sense to him.

"I- I had no idea," Draco said. "I didn't want to assume..."

Oh...

Draco was feeling insecure. Harry never would have guessed it, not with the way he carried himself, aloofness and easy confidence practically radiating off of him at all times. Not to mention how gorgeous he was, always drawing attention anywhere he went. But just because he seemed to have it together all the time, didn't necessarily mean he did.

Well, Harry wasn't going to leave any room for doubt.

"Sweetheart, I told you, I'm in this, yeah? I want to be with you. I'm in love with you. I want everything you're willing to give me," Harry said, bringing Draco's hand up to his mouth, kissing along each knuckle to punctuate each sentence.

"Okay," Draco breathed, looking quite overwhelmed.

"What are you thinking?" Harry asked. Draco slipped his fingers between Harry's, squeezing briefly before taking a long sip of his wine, frowning down at his wine glass like he was annoyed that it dared to be almost empty.

Harry noticed this, refilling his glass without hesitation. He could have the whole bottle. Draco smiled gratefully at him.

"Did you want to tell people? About us, I mean."

He wanted to tell everyone.

Harry's eyebrows inched up. "Of course I do," he laughed. "Don't you?"

"I don't want to tell Scorpius," he blurted out, looking shocked that those words had come out of his mouth.

Harry felt like he'd been slapped.

"You don't?" he asked in a small voice, hopes crumpling. "You don't think he'll be okay with it?"

Why would Scorpius be upset? He loved Harry, and Harry loved him. He was so sweet and good natured, he couldn't imagine the little boy being upset about them being together. He- he thought Scorpius would be happy. Was he that far off?

"That's not what I'm saying at all," Draco said. "He loves you; I don't think he'll be upset. I'm afraid he'll be too excited, actually, and I don't want him to be devastated if this doesn't work out."

"You don't think it will work?" Harry said, feeling even more upset now, eyes falling to his lap.

Harry knew in his very soul that they would work, that they'd make it work. They were meant to be together, complimenting each other perfectly. They clicked so well, everything about them just worked. He didn't understand why Draco still seemed to be so unsure about them. Had Harry not done enough to convince him that this was right, that it was already working?

"I don't mean it like that," Draco said gently, tilting Harry's chin up, forcing Harry to meet his eyes. "There's more to a relationship than just feelings, though. I don't know how people will react to us being together, especially the public or the media, I don't know how our lives will meld together. I have a whole other person to worry about, not just myself, and I need to make sure he has stability. I'm not saying I never want to tell him, just that I want to give it some time to fall into place first. Can you understand that?"

Okay. Okay, that was understandable, in a way. He didn't really see how anything would be that different between them, but if Draco needed time, he could give him that. He did want Draco to know that Harry didn't need any time, though. He's waited for a connection like this his entire life, he was already there, ready for whatever Draco wanted to give him.

"Of course I can," Harry said earnestly. "I do understand being protective of him. I guess I just thought that this didn't really change anything except that I get to kiss you now. We've been acting as a family unit for months. At least that's how it felt to me."

"We have?" Draco asked, confused.

"Uh, yes? Unless you think it's normal for the nanny to eat meals with you every night, stay long after the parent gets home, and insert themselves into your family game nights and activities?" Harry said, chuckling. "I didn't do any of that with Bill's family, I haven't even thought of this as a job in ages."

Draco swallowed, and Harry could practically see the wheels turning in his head. "You're right," Draco said faintly after several long seconds. "You're completely right. I didn't even- you're right."

Harry squeezed his hand. "We can still wait to tell him, if you want, darling. There's no rush. We don't have to tell anyone yet. I did kind of already tell my friends that I was trying to date you, though, so they know that much."

"I know," Draco said. "And that's fine. I don't want to keep it a secret, but maybe we should still wait just a bit to tell him, just to get everyone else out of the way first."

"Okay, I- wait. How do you know I told them?" Harry asked, perplexed.

"Longbottom told me."

"What? When did you see Neville?" Harry hadn't even seen him since the pub. It had only been two days, after all.

"Ran into him in the flower shop in Hogsmeade," Draco smirked. "He seemed quite upset at the possibility that I might be buying flowers for someone else," he chuckled. "I kind of assumed you must have told him. Once I told him they were for you, though, he took me to the greenhouses so I could get you nicer ones."

What a coincidence.

"I should have known," Harry laughed. "I spent ages helping him rearrange those greenhouses, you'd think I'd recognize his work anywhere."

"He's certainly transformed everything there. It was lovely. I asked him not to tell anyone, though. I didn't even know if we were together at the time, and I figured you'd want to do that yourself."

"Yeah," Harry breathed dreamily, leaning closer into Draco. "I'd like that. And we are definitely together."

"Together. Boyfriends," he said, eyes shining like silver.

"Mhmm. Are we still talking, or can I kiss you now?"

Draco laughed, pulling Harry in until their lips met. Harry opened for him easily, letting Draco lick into his mouth. Draco sucked on his tongue, tugging on him until Harry was straddling his lap, knees caging Draco in, groins brushing teasingly together as they kissed.

"Stay," Draco breathed, lips brushing together.

Stay.

Draco wanted him to stay. Even though Scorp was home. He couldn't even pretend that he didn't want that more than anything.

Harry pulled back, blinking at him with huge eyes, heart stuttering. "Can I?" he asked, hardly daring to hope.

"I want you to. If you want to, that is."

"Are you okay with that? With Scorp being home?" Harry asked carefully.

Draco nodded, no hesitation whatsoever. "I can ward the room. You get here early enough, he won't know. You should run home and get some clothes for tomorrow, though."

Harry grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Um. When I went home earlier, I may have brought back a few changes of clothes to keep here? Just in case... I keep vanishing my clothes and didn't want to have to keep borrowing yours. I know that was really presumptuous..."

He was worried Draco might think it too forward, but he just gave Harry a blinding smile. "It's not presumptuous. Not at all. Stay. Please," he urged, and well, Harry certainly didn't need to be convinced.

"Of course I will. Come on," he said, climbing off Draco's lap and grabbing his hand, pulling him to the bedroom. Draco ducked into the bathroom, emerging quite quickly again, smelling minty from his toothpaste.

Harry kissed him on the cheek, then grabbed his bag, taking it with him to the bathroom to get ready for bed. He jumped into the shower, scrubbing himself clean faster than he ever had. He cleaned his own teeth, then packed his bag back up, putting it back in the corner.

When he came back out, Draco was wearing his pajamas, standing near his bedside table with the drawer open, smiling at something in his hands.

"Whatcha got there?" Harry said, and Draco jumped a mile, spinning around to face him, clearly startled.

"Fuck, don't sneak up on me like that," Draco scolded.

"I didn't," Harry laughed. "I wasn't exactly quiet; you're just absorbed in whatever is in your drawer. What is it?" he asked, trying to peek over Draco's shoulder, but he was too bloody tall.

"Nothing!" Draco squeaked, shoving whatever was in his hand into the drawer and slamming it shut. "Nothing. Just drinking my tea."

Uh huh. He was hiding something.

Harry arched an eyebrow at him, fixing Draco with a stern look as he purposely reached past him, sliding the drawer open slowly, giving Draco plenty of time to stop him if he really didn't want Harry to know what he was hiding. He didn't stop him, and Harry reached into the drawer, pulling out... parchment?

He glanced down at the slips of parchment in his hand, immediately recognizing his own handwriting. He- these were Harry's notes, the ones he liked to leave for Draco under his tea every night. Every night for the past six months. He kept these? How long had he been keeping them? And why?

He glanced over a few of them, remembering each one.

Remember, drink plenty of water and always eavesdrop in the break room.

How would you feel about trying homemade ice cream?

What's your favorite color pineapple?

Hope you had the best day!

Saw some puppies in a muggle pet shop today with Scorp. Do you think dogs think in barks?

Saw a book today I thought you'd like. I left it on your desk ;)

Some of these were quite old, and he looked back up at Draco, heart practically bursting with affection. Draco was flushed clear down to his chest, looking mortified, but Harry was absolutely awestruck.

"You kept these?" he asked softly, holding one of the small notes up.

Have you ever dipped chips in ice cream? If you haven't, you definitely should. Thank me later.

Draco nodded stiffly, looking away.

"How many?" Harry demanded. He needed to know how long Draco had been saving these. It mattered.

Draco shrugged in response. "All of them."

"All of- you've kept every note I've left you since I started working here?" Harry asked, hands coming up to cradle Draco's face, staring intensely into his eyes.

"Yes..." he breathed, eyes now glued to Harry's face.

"Why? Why did you do that?"

"Because I love you," he said simply.

It was that simple. He'd kept those notes because they meant something to him, because he loved Harry, because he'd wanted to keep a part of him close. His boyfriend was a romantic sap, and Harry loved it.

A slow smile spread across Harry's face until his dimple dug deeply into his cheek. "You know, you may pretend to be all cold and uncaring and aloof, but you don't fool me for one minute, darling."

He attached his mouth to Draco's then, kissing him insistently, tongue prodding the seam of Draco's lips until he opened up to let Harry in, the fresh bite of his toothpaste only driving Harry more wild.

Harry pushed him backwards until Draco was on his back and Harry climbed on top of him, not breaking the kiss, and wordlessly vanished his clothes. Harry grinned against his mouth when Draco gasped into his mouth clearly noticing what Harry had done, his cock hardening instantly. Draco apparently loved it when Harry did wandless magic, and Harry would definitely be taking advantage of that revelation. He ground his hard cock into Draco's once, twice, before he pulled back, swiftly pushing Draco's legs up until he was nearly bent in half, causing Draco to let out a yelp of surprise.

"Shh," Harry soothed him. "Hold them there for me, baby, let me take care of you," he said, backing up enough to shimmy down onto his stomach between Draco's legs. He was going to enjoy every second of taking Draco apart.

Draco obediently replaced Harry's hands with his own, holding himself open and Harry cast an exceedingly gentle Cleaning Charm on him, getting him ready for what Harry wanted to do.

Had it really only been two days? It felt like they've always done this with how well they melded into each other, like they'd always belonged to each other. He hoped they did this forever.

Harry leaned in closer, swiping his tongue experimentally over his pretty hole, and Draco sighed, practically melting into the bed. Harry’s desire spiked. He knew he’d told Draco that he’d get him on his knees, but there was plenty of time to do that, and he was suddenly desperate to make the man before him a quivering mess.

He dove in unrelentingly, licking, lapping all around that clenching little hole until it relaxed enough for him to slip one finger into him, then a second, sliding inside with relative ease. He kept licking around his fingers, finding his prostate with practiced ease, crooking his fingers and vibrating them insistently against that tiny bundle of nerves.

Draco whined high in his throat, back practically arching off the bed, head thrashing. "Ah! Ah, Harry!" he wailed, when Harry began rubbing that spot in firmer strokes, his body trying to get away from the maddening touch and also lean more into it.

"What do you want, sweetheart?" Harry murmured, pulling back just enough to speak, breath fanning over that quivering opening.

"You," Draco moaned. "Harry, please."

"Me? You want my fingers?" he asked, sliding a third finger inside, not pausing his ministrations. "Or my mouth?" He took Draco's twitching dick into his mouth, sliding down as far as he could before pulling up enough to swirl his tongue around the head, lapping at the slit to taste the pre-come that was steadily leaking out, moaning around him.

Draco got even louder, breath coming in gasping pants as Harry sucked him teasingly, not really giving him enough suction or speed to make him come. He popped off after a minute, giving him one last lick, and Draco whined in protest, lifting his head to look at Harry with confused, lust filled eyes.

Harry arched an eyebrow at him. "You're going to have to be a bit more specific, darling."

Draco blinked his heavy eyes, clearly trying to remember what he was supposed to be specific about, and Harry twitched his fingers up, applying even more pressure to his prostate as a reminder, smirking.

Draco yelped in response, head falling back against the bed, mouth falling open. "Your cock! want your cock, please, I need it,"

Harry pulled his fingers out, casting a Lubrication Charm on himself, then climbed on top of Draco. He gently pulled Draco's hands away from where he was still holding his legs open and wrapped his legs around Harry’s waist instead so he'd be more comfortable before leaning down to kiss him, sweet and slow, and completely at odds with his boyfriend's desperate pleas.

"All you had to do was ask," Harry murmured against his lips, then he slowly slid inside so Draco would feel every inch entering him. Fuck, he was still so bloody tight, hands down the best thing Harry had ever felt.

Draco cried out, head tilting back once Harry was fully seated, panting. Harry's hips were flush against Draco's arse, and Draco groaned, eyes falling shut. "So fucking big."

Harry felt a tiny swell of pride at that, but he pushed it aside and slowly pulled out before thrusting back in, punching another moan out of Draco. He set a steady pace, fucking deeply, angling his hips so he would brush up against Draco's prostate with every movement.

The man beneath him was moaning beautifully, white blonde hair splayed across the bed like an angel, flushed down his chest. His hard cock was rubbing up against Harry's stomach, and Harry lowered himself a bit more to give him even more friction as he picked up his speed, increasing the volume of his cries. It was the prettiest sound he'd ever heard, the most stunning sight he'd ever seen, and he needed Draco to know it.

"Look at you," he breathed, hand coming up to run through Draco's hair, tugging lightly, making the other man's mouth drop open more. "Most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Love you like this, all spread out for me, desperate for my cock." He punctuated his words with a particularly hard thrust, and Draco's eyes rolled back, chest heaving.

"Harder, please," he panted, legs tightening around Harry to pull him closer. "Wanna come. Fuck me."

Harry gave him what he wanted, slamming into him faster and faster until he was a writhing mess, tears gathering at the corners of his eyes. He reached down to touch himself, ready to come, but Harry grabbed his hand, stopping him.

"Nnngh, Harry! I need-" Draco whimpered in protest, eyes wild, but Harry ignored his pleas, shaking his head firmly as he threaded their fingers together, lifting his hand above his head, holding him there, then repeating it with his other hand, effectively restraining him. Draco was taller, but Harry was stronger, and they both knew it.

"Shh, darling, you're alright. Don't worry, I'll let you come," he soothed, not slowing his pace. Draco had come untouched that first night, he knew he could do it again, but he wanted to test something.

Draco whined again, but didn't fight him, simply tightened his legs again, using Harry for leverage to shift his lower body until Harry was slamming directly into his prostate instead of brushing past it, causing him to cry out.

Harry could feel the slick glide of Draco's cock against his stomach, could feel it getting wetter, and it was driving him crazy. He grunted, gritting his teeth, doing his best to hold back his own release without losing his rhythm. "That's it, baby," he panted. "You’re such a good boy for me."

Harry watched, mesmerized, as Draco's eyes slammed shut, mouth falling open on a cry as his body tightened and arched almost unnaturally with the force of his orgasm.

Jesus Christ.

He would never get used to that; how responsive Draco was, how bloody hard he came, because of Harry. It was intoxicating, and Harry slammed into him once, twice, then came with a groan, tucking his face against Draco's sweat slick neck, hips stuttering wildly as he rode out his own orgasm.

Fuck.

If they were going to have sex like this forever, Harry wasn't sure he'd survive this relationship. He panted into Draco's neck as he came down, not capable of moving yet. His legs and arms were sore and heavy, but he didn't care.

After a moment, he felt Draco slip his hands out of Harry's grasp, bringing them up to wrap around his shoulders, rubbing soothing circles between his shoulder blades with one hand while the other hand drifted up to stroke though the back of his hair. Harry closed his eyes, a small, pleased noise escaping him.

Draco chuckled lowly in the back of his throat, turning his head to press a kiss to the side of Harry's head. "I love you," he murmured, and Harry thought his heart might pound out of his chest.

"I love you, too," he whispered thickly, neither of them moving, even when Harry's softened cock slipped out of Draco. They could clean up in a bit; right now, he just wanted to be held by his boyfriend, who was the love of his life, probably. "Best thing that ever happened to me."

Notes:

I hope you enjoyed this one! I'll be adding more with Harry's other friends as well, but Hermione and Harry's friendship has always been my favorite, and I love writing her. She's the best.

Chapter 10: CHAPTER 9

Summary:

A visit to the Burrow and Halloween <3

Notes:

TRIGGER WARNINGS: mentions of past traumatic sexual experience, nothing graphic. slightly more descriptive mentions of child abuse.

A knock on the door dragged Harry out of his sleep. He was comfortable, still wrapped around a warm body. Wrapped around Draco. He wasn't alone this morning. Contentment settled over him like a blanket, and he started to snuggle closer, but another knock, followed by a little voice, reminded him of who else was home.

"Papa! I'm up! I'm up! Can I come in yet?"

Scorpius. Harry's eyes shot open, but Draco was already reaching for his wand, replying to him before Harry could even think.

"Not yet, love. I'm going to get a quick shower and then I'll be out to make you breakfast, alright? Can you play in your room until I'm done?" Draco called out to him.

"Yeah! Can I draw a picture for Harry?"

Draco barked out a laugh, glancing over at Harry, who just nodded silently with a slight smile, not wanting to alert Scorpius that he was already here.

"Of course you can. He'll love it. I'll be out soon."

"Kay! Bye, papa!" Scorpius called, his little footsteps scurrying away.

Harry chuckled; his voice gravelly from sleep. "Well, that was easier than I expected."

Draco snuggled closer to him, and Harry's heart did a twist. He'd probably never get used to this, this amazing feeling of being wanted.

"He's used to it. Knows not to come in without permission. I rarely let him in here, actually. I figured it would be a good idea to set the boundary in case a situation like, well, like this ever popped up," Draco explained.

"Good idea," Harry murmured, carding his fingers through Draco's hair. He definitely liked that. He was suddenly struck again, though, wondering why Scorp called Draco 'papa', not 'daddy'. He was allowed to ask that now, he realized.

"Hey, why does he call you papa instead of dad? Don't get me wrong, it's adorable; I've just always wondered. Bit unusual, innit?"

Draco huffed out a laugh. "I don't know, really; he just always did. I actually asked him once, sort of. Last year, I asked if he wouldn't prefer to call me daddy like the other kids in his playgroup.  He laughed at me and said I'm not his daddy, I'm his papa. I just let it go. It doesn't really matter what he calls me."

Well, that didn't really clear it up. Maybe he'd ask Scorpius himself someday. Draco was right, though, it didn't matter, not in the least, he was just curious.

"Huh. Kids are funny," Harry said, and Draco hummed in agreement.

"You better get up and get that shower," Harry said, "and I better sneak out there and tell him I came in through the front door."

"Good luck with that," Draco laughed, but he did get up and headed towards the bathroom arse naked, and fucking hell, what a view that was. 

Harry let out a low whistle, and Draco looked back at him, quirking an eyebrow in question.

Harry shrugged. "What? You're hot. Can't I ogle my unbearably gorgeous boyfriend?"

Draco rolled his eyes affectionately, continuing towards the bathroom.

"Hey, baby?" Harry called out to him before he shut the door.

"Yes?" He asked, glancing back.

"It was nice to wake up with you for a change," he said, and Draco smiled softly at him.

"Yes, it was. We'll have to do it again."

Harry jumped out of bed, quickly grabbing a change of clothes out of his overnight bag, throwing them on before he snuck downstairs to make breakfast, carefully avoiding Scorpius' slightly open door.

Harry started in on making pancakes right away, running through his mental checklist for the day, freezing when he remembered what day it was.

Bill was visiting.

With all the turmoil, then excitement, of the last few days, he'd almost forgotten. He hadn't seen Victoire in what felt like ages, and God, did he miss her. He couldn't wait to get her and Scorp together to play. They were going to get along wonderfully; he just knew it.

He grinned widely to himself and called Scorpius down to eat, scooping him up excitedly when he finally bounded down the stairs.

"Harry! Put me down, put me down! I'm hungry," he giggled, and Harry plopped him on his stool, handing him a plate of pancakes.

"Guess where we're going today?" Harry asked.

"To the moon?" he asked, looking awed, and well reality wasn't quite that exciting.

Harry barked out a laugh. "No, you goof. We're going to the Burrow!"

"Yay! I love it there, it's the funnest place ever!"

"Most fun," Harry corrected him. "You get to meet Victoire today. She's only a little older than you; I think you'll really like her."

Scorpius thought about it, then nodded. "Okay. I like girls."

Harry snorted, turning away to start the dishes, and Draco chose that moment to enter the kitchen.

"Morning, papa!" Scorpius chirped, shoving a forkful of pancakes in his mouth.

"Morning, love," Draco said, ruffling his blonde hair, then leaning down to press a kiss to the top of his head. "Any fun plans today?"

"Harry says we're going to the Burrow today!"

"What's the Burrow?"

"It's the Weasley's home," Harry explained, turning away from the sink and drying his hands on a small towel that he draped over his shoulder. "Bill is visiting for a couple of days, I thought Scorp might like to meet Victoire."

"Oh. Well, that sounds like fun," he said, smiling. "Scorpius, why don't you go get dressed so you're ready when it's time to go? I'll see you after work, okay?" Draco suggested.

"Okay! I can't wait!" his son said, shoving the last piece of bacon in his mouth and taking off towards his room.

"Don't run with your mouth full!" Draco called after him.

"Sorry!" the garbled reply came, but the footsteps did slow.

Harry chuckled, leaning back against the sink and crossing his arms. "What's up, boss?"

"Ugh, don't call me that," Draco cringed, laughing. "Why didn't you tell me Victoire was visiting? You could have taken the days off to visit with her."

"Why would I do that?" Harry asked, confused. "I wanted Scorpius to meet her. She's so shy, but really sweet, they'll get along great."

"I just thought you'd like to have time with her to yourself."

Oh. Did Draco think he'd want to keep the two halves of his life separate, or that he might prefer Victoire over Scorpius?

Well, that was just ridiculous.

Harry smiled, coming closer until he could wrap an arm around Draco's waist. "I love that I get to bring the two most important parts of my life together," Harry explained, kissing up Draco's throat. "The family who chose me when I was eleven, and the family I chose as an adult. I love both, I don't want to keep them separate."

Draco's breath hitched, then he leaned down and kissed Harry softly, a silent thank you.

"I forgot to tell you last night because you distracted me with that filthy, filthy mouth of yours," Draco murmured when he broke away from the kiss, "but I cleared out my top drawer for you to keep your things in. I already put everything away for you. I hope that's okay."

He cleared out a drawer for him.

Draco made space for Harry in his home. He wanted him here.

Giddiness bubbled up inside of

Harry grinned widely, beaming up at Draco. "So okay," he breathed. "I hope you have a good day today, darling. I’m not sure how long we’ll be gone, but I'll be home in time to have supper ready for you," Harry promised, pressing one last kiss to Draco's mouth before backing away to go help Scorpius finish getting ready while Draco left for work.

Harry tied Scorpius' shoes for him, then jumped up, clapping loudly. "Okay! Are you all ready to go make a new friend?"

"Yeah!" he cheered, catching on to Harry's enthusiasm. Harry scooped him up, then Apparated to the Burrow. Bill had come in yesterday, so it didn't matter that they arrived early.

Harry could hear commotion inside, and he grinned, setting Scorp down.

"Shh, let's surprise them," Harry whispered.

Scorpius giggled, then nodded, and Harry took his hand, leading him inside without bothering to knock. Everyone was congregated in the kitchen, and he meant everyone. Even Ginny was here, apparently, and his grin widened even more. They hovered near the doorway, mostly out of sight. Molly spotted him and began coming towards him, but he quickly brought his finger to his lips, shaking his head slightly. She smiled, understanding his request, and turned back to the stove.

He spotted Victoire almost immediately, head of soft golden curls a contrast to the sea of fiery redheads scattered about, sitting on her father's lap, picking at her eggs. She was so beautiful, and he had missed her so much.

He felt a spike of anxiety, then sadness, shoot through him. What if she'd forgotten him? It'd been months since he'd been able to visit her. What if she remembered, but thought he didn't care about her anymore? She was so sensitive, so sweet, the last thing he'd ever want to do is hurt her.

Well, all he could do right now was greet her and hope for the best. He cleared his throat quietly,

"You know, little girls who don't eat their breakfast don't get any treats later," Harry said, loud enough for her to hear. He hoped if he kept it light, she'd be too distracted to be upset with him.

Her little head snapped up, blue eyes seeking him out immediately as a dozen other pairs of eyes turned towards them. She stared for what felt like the longest second of his life, her little mouth still open from the bite of food she was about to take, then she squealed, grin lightning up her face as she scrambled off of Bill's lap.

"Harry!" she screeched out, launching herself at him. "Harry, Harry, you came!"

He caught her with a laugh, twirling her around a bit, hugging her tightly. He squeezed his eyes shut against the onslaught of tears that threatened to fall. He needn't have worried at all.

"How's my little princess?" he asked, stroking her long hair.

"Better now. I missed you," she said, pulling back to kiss him on the cheek.

"I missed you too, sweetheart. So, so much."

"Well, I didn't miss you at all," Ginny's voice interrupted them, and he looked up to see her standing in front of him, smirking, arms crossed.

He laughed. "Good to see you, too, Gin," he said, supporting Victoire with one arm so he could hug Ginny, too.

"A-hem," Scorpius said impatiently. "I'm waiting to say hi."

Ginny let out a startled laugh, and Harry gave a quiet chuckle. So much like his father, honestly. "Sorry, buddy, I got caught up there for a minute."

Ginny crouched down in front of him. "I'm sorry, Harry is so rude. I'll say hi to you," she told him, winking up at Harry. "I'm Ginny. And you must be Scorpius."

He nodded sagely. "I am. Your hair is pretty. I like it long like that. My papa has long hair, but not that long, and ‘sides, he wears it up all the time now. Can I have a hug, too?"

She blinked in surprise, and he wrapped his little arms around her before she could respond. Harry watched as she relaxed after the surprise wore off, and she hugged him back, face soft. He knew she was a goner for him, just like everyone else who met that little ball of sunshine.

"Harry, who is that?" Victoire whispered in his ear.

He set her on the ground, kneeling and reaching out for Scorp who was now chatting Ginny's ear off, much to her amusement. "Victoire, this is Scorpius. I'm his nanny, now. I've told him so much about you."

"Hi!" Scorpius greeted her just as enthusiastically, smiling widely. "Wow, you're pretty. You have blonde hair, too, and blue eyes. Mine are slivery. Do you want to go play with the gnomes? They get lonely."

Victoire stared at him, then looked over to Harry uncertainly. They were like night and day, and Harry bit back a laugh, nodding at her. "It's alright, he's just very excited. You can go play, I promise I'll come out to join you both soon. We can play all day."

She smiled, hugging him again, then followed Scorpius outside, who had grabbed her hand and ran her over to the gnomes like he lived here.

Everyone else shouted out their greetings to him now that he was no longer absorbed in the children, and Ginny nudged him, still smirking at him.

"What? Why is your face doing that?" he asked her.

"My face isn't doing anything. Just... no wonder you love that kid," she shrugged. "Cute as hell. Likeable. Sociable. Sweet. Absolutely nothing like Malfoy, is he?"

Harry chuckled. "You'd be surprised," he said. "You'll see it come out of him occasionally, and it's like looking at a tiny Draco. They're nearly identical."

Her eyebrows raised. "Draco?" she asked. "Harry James Potter. Something happened."

He couldn't stop the goofy, besotted smile from overtaking his face. "Yeah. Something definitely happened."

"Oh, my God. You look smitten. Details, now."

He shrugged, trying to look nonchalant. Might as well tell them all at once. "He's my boyfriend."

"What?!" Ron cried out, spraying crumbs across the table. His eyes were enormous, filled with delight. He scrambled up to pull Harry into a strangely enthusiastic hug, making Harry laugh. "Mate, why didn't you say anything? We've been waiting to hear from you! When did that happen?"

Harry glanced at Hermione, who just gave him a small, private smile. She'd kept her word, hadn't told anyone about the horrible fight they'd had. He could kiss her. He didn't want anyone's opinion of Draco to be tainted before they got to know him and all of the wonderful things about him, especially not when he'd simply reacted out of fear, and had already done so much to make up for it. They were all very protective, especially Ginny, and he just wanted them to give him a chance.

"Over the weekend," Harry said vaguely. "Took some convincing, he was a bit scared, but I managed to convince him that I was serious about him."

"How'd you convince him?" Ron asked curiously.

Harry shrugged again. "I told him I love him."

Ron’s jaw dropped, then he looked impressed. "Well, alright! What did he say?"

"That he loves me, too. He brought me home flowers yesterday," Harry said, flushing with happiness.

"Oh, Harry, dear, that's so wonderful," Molly sniffled, snatching him away from Ron to fuss over him. “When can we meet him?”

"When he’s ready, mum, sheesh. I'm happy for you, mate. We were starting to think you'd never put yourself out there again," Ron said, grinning.

"Ronald!" Hermione screeched, looking horrified.

"It's alright, Hermione. I thought it, too," Harry admitted.

Bill and George came up to talk to him about it, but Ginny shoved through the wall of people surrounding him.

"We'll be back," Ginny said abruptly, grabbing his arm and dragging him upstairs to her old room, shutting and warding the door so they had privacy.

"Alright, so what actually happened?" she demanded, crossing her arms.

"What do you mean?" he asked, confused.

"I mean, I don't buy that you two just romantically confessed your love for each other, then rode off into the sunset. What really happened?"

"Nothing that matters anymore," he told her gently.

"Harry."

"Gin."

She jutted her chin out, arms still crossed stubbornly as she stared him down, and he sighed. If he didn't tell her, she'd just interrogate Draco when they met, and probably scar him for life.

"Fine. He freaked out after we slept together. Like, really freaked out. He's never had a real relationship before, and he was afraid that I wasn't serious about him, mostly scared about how it would affect Scorpius. He sent me away, told me it didn't mean anything, and I was... I was a mess; I'll give you that. But-!" he interrupted her outraged look, "I went back a few hours later and we worked it out. We weren't even apart for a day. He's made up for it. We worked through it, and we're together. We've actually communicated. I promise, it's good, Ginny."

She didn't look moved. "And how has he made up for breaking your heart? Because I know you, Harry, and if you admit you were a mess, it was probably ten times worse than that. I also know that you make excuses when someone treats you like shit. No offense, but your bar of standards is so low it's on the floor. You get excited if someone offers you their leftovers. I need to know that you're being treated right by my standards, not yours." She softened then, pulling him down to sit on the bed with her. "You deserve to be a priority. You understand that, right? I'm just worried about you. I can't stand the thought of you ending up with someone else who treats you like an inconvenience instead of the amazing person you are."

Harry loved her. He loved all of them. They all just wanted the best for him, and he could never be mad at them for that, especially Ginny, not after what she knew, what she saw.

"I- he bought me a couch, Gin. He bought a yellow couch, for me, because I love yellow and told him his couch would look better in yellow. Before I even told him how I felt. He told me he loved me back. The sex... God, the sex is fucking incredible, but it's more than that. He brought home flowers for me. The morning after we made up, I was so scared he'd changed his mind again because he wasn't in bed, but he noticed, so he kissed me, called me sunshine, told me I looked lovely, then just hugged me for like, five whole minutes so I could relax. I write him notes, yeah? Just dumb little notes that I leave with his tea every day before I leave. He saved every single one. He's not just saying pretty words; he's actually backing them up. He- this isn't like last time. Not even a little bit. I told you, he's the one."

"Okay," she said softly after a long minute, her soft brown eyes searching his face. "I trust you. But I need to meet him, alright?" she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"You will. Next time you're in town, yeah?"

"That'll be Christmas," she wrinkled her nose.

"It's only two months.”

“Ugh, fine. I need to know if his dick is as pretty as his hair was in school. How incredible is incredible, by the way?”

“Not a chance in hell,” he laughed. “Come on, come play with Scorp and Victoire with me. Bet I can throw the gnomes farther than you," he challenged, standing up and walking towards the door.

"You are so on," she laughed, racing him outside.

Harry had been right, Scorpius and Victoire got on so well that they both cried and begged to stay longer when he told them it was time to go home. He checked his watch, thinking that maybe Draco would get stuck working over again, then relented, giving them an extra hour, but they still cried when it was really time to go. Harry knew they were just tired, but it was already dark, they needed to get home. He’d promised Draco he’d have supper ready.

"Scorp, I'm sorry, but we really have to go. Papa will be home soon and we have to shop for supper still," Harry told him gently, then turned to Victoire. "Victoire, darling, we can come back tomorrow, I promise. I'll visit every day until you go back home."

"You'll come back?" she asked hopefully, and he nodded, pushing her hair behind her ear.

"Of course we will."

She sniffed, then nodded. "Okay. I'm sorry, I miss you."

"I miss you, too. I'll be here bright and early tomorrow, okay? Promise."

She hugged him tightly, then hugged Scorpius, and finally allowed Bill to pick her up.

"Bye bye, Mrs. Weasley. Don't worry too much, I'll be back tomorrow," Scorpius told her seriously when she came over to hug them goodbye.

She smiled at him. "I'm so relieved to hear that, dear. We'll be waiting for you." She kissed them both on the cheek, then Harry picked him up and Apparated them to Diagon Alley to shop for supper.

He wanted something easy, tonight; he was exhausted, but so happy. The kids had definitely worn him out, and for once, he wanted to just fall into bed when he got home.

Home.

He realized that he'd been thinking of Draco's house as home all day. Hopefully that was alright, he wasn't sure he could stop now. He'd never felt more at home anywhere, except maybe Hogwarts.

"Harry, I'm sleepy," Scorpius complained, tugging on Harry's sleeve. "Will you carry me? Please?"

"Of course, come here, buddy," Harry said, picking him up and propping him on his hip. Scorpius immediately snuggled into his neck, sighing softly, and before Harry finished grabbing ingredients, he was fast asleep.

Harry hurried to grab the rest of what he needed and paid. He didn't want to Floo home with him asleep, and he was definitely running later than he wanted to be now, so he Apparated them to the front porch, trying to juggle the shopping bags and Scorpius without jostling him awake.

He knew immediately that Draco was home from the light shining from the living room window. He'd never not at least had supper started by the time he got home, and he needed to get started. He fumbled with the door, shoving it open a bit too hard in his haste to get inside.

"Shit, I am so sorry, darling," Harry called from the entryway. "I lost track of time and he fell asleep at the shops, but I'll get supper started right away-"

He stopped short when he entered the living room and saw Draco kneeling in front of the fireplace and Theo's head, looking like Christmas had come early.

"Oh. Hello, Theo," Harry greeted him pleasantly, not a shred of jealousy in sight, then turned to kiss Draco on the cheek. "I'll be in the kitchen."

Harry carefully laid Scorpius down on the couch, then took the bags to the kitchen and began putting some things away, leaving others out for supper, humming quietly to himself. He was so focused on his task that he didn't even notice Draco come into the kitchen until he felt long arms catching him around the waist from behind, the smell of grapefruit and cedar enveloping him.

Harry jumped a bit, then turned to lock eyes with him, dimple popping into place as he smiled at his boyfriend.

"Well, don’t you look lovely," Draco said, kissing him softly. "Busy day?"

"Yeah, but it was so much fun. Part of me was afraid she'd have forgotten me, but she definitely did not," Harry laughed quietly. "And I was right, Scorpius and Victoire got on wonderfully. I hated to break them up, which is why we're late. By the time I finally got them apart it was already dark."

Draco brushed his thumb along Harry's jaw, studying him carefully. "You look so tired, sunshine."

Harry's grin widened at the nickname, a flush crawling up his cheeks. Sunshine. Fuck, did he love that. "I am, but that's alright. I can have supper ready in a jiff."

"Let's go out tonight," Draco suddenly suggested.

Harry lit up. Go out? In public? He knew Draco had said that he didn't mind them telling people, but going out in public was another matter entirely. What if the media saw? He forced his excitement back. Draco was probably tired from work, anyway.

"We don't have to do that. You worked all day, I'm sure you just want to relax at home. And what if someone sees us?"

"Harry, going out to eat is hardly a strenuous activity," Draco said, rolling his eyes, but there was no malice behind it. He almost looked fond. "And I couldn’t give a fuck if anyone sees. Let me take you out. We don't go very often; Scorpius will be thrilled."

Harry bit his lip. "Are you sure? I kind of wanted be the one to take you out on our first date."

"And you still can," Draco assured him. "This isn't a date; it's a family outing."

Oh.

He wanted to go out, as a family.

Harry beamed, unable to keep his excitement under control. "A fam- okay. Yeah, let's do that, then, yeah. I'll get Scorpius up while you go change."

Harry ran to the living room, shaking Scorpius awake gently. "Buddy, wake up. How would you like to go out to eat tonight?" Harry asked him softly, running his fingers through his white-blonde hair.

"Out?" he mumbled sleepily, blinking up at Harry. "To a res'raunt?"

Harry nodded, and Scorpius was suddenly wide awake. "Yes, please!"

Harry laughed, taking him over to wait by the door. When Draco appeared again, Harry had to clench his hands together to keep it together. He was wearing the pretty lavender button up that complimented his fair complexion so beautifully, and his hair was pulled back up into a much neater bun. He looked incredible. Harry tried not to consider how drab he looked in comparison, and luckily Draco didn't comment on his casual attire.

"Papa! Harry said we get to go out to eat!" Scorp said excitedly.

"That's right," Draco confirmed. "Are you hungry?"

"I'm so hungry I could eat a whole dragon," he groaned, gripping his stomach dramatically.

Harry burst out laughing. After stuffing himself on Molly’s cooking all day, there was no way he was that hungry. "We'll see what we can do," he said, then turned to Draco. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Draco smirked, picking Scorpius up and propping the small boy up on his hip. "Hold on," he told Harry, holding out his free elbow. Harry gripped his bicep tightly and he turned on the spot, Apparating them to Diagon Alley, right in front of the restaurant they had gone to on Harry's birthday. The one with the server who had treated Draco like shit.

Harry's eyes widened. "Here?" he asked in surprise. "Are you sure?"

The food had been amazing, but in no way did he want Draco to feel uncomfortable in any capacity. Harry didn't care so much about himself, he was used to too familiar fans, he just cared about Draco and Scorp.

Draco shrugged. "The food was really good. I thought we could give it another chance, if you want to."

Harry studied him. He looked sure; he didn't seem put off or nervous at all. Well, if he was alright with it... Harry shrugged. "If that's what you want to do, I'm fine with it."

"You good too, Scorpius?"

"I want pasketti!" Scorpius announced.

"Spaghetti," Draco corrected. "And that's fine, love."

Draco led them inside and let Harry and Scorp hang back while he went and put their names in.

"Want to sit on my shoulders, buddy? You can see the whole restaurant from up there."

"Yeah!"

Harry helped him climb up, listening to the small boy chatter about Victoire until his father returned.

"It'll just be a few minutes," Draco informed them when he came back.

Harry glanced down the long line of people who were clearly waiting, then back at Draco, eyes slightly narrowed. "Awfully quick," he commented.

Draco shrugged. "I had a reservation," he said lightly. He definitely didn't.

Harry didn't argue, just rolled his eyes and bumped their shoulders together.

The hostess came back shortly after and led them to the same table as before. "Here you are gentlemen. I hope you enjoy your meal this evening."

"I'm sure we will, love, thank you," Harry said politely. "Oh! Before you go, I wanted to make sure you still had the Veal Parmigiana tonight. It's my favorite."

Draco shot him a sharp glare which he ignored, and the young girl looked confused, but said, "of course we do. We haven't run out of anything yet."

Harry nodded, flashing her his most charming smile, dimple popping. "Perfect. Thank you so much."

She seemed satisfied, letting them know their server would be by shortly, then disappeared.

"That wasn't necessary," Draco said casually, handing Harry a menu.

"It absolutely was," Harry replied, smirking. "Now, I let you get away with dropping my name, so you have to let it go."

Draco pursed his lips, and Harry knew he'd won. He'd be damned if Draco spent another meal eating food he didn't order.

When their server finally appeared, Harry sighed internally. It was the same pushy girl from last time. Hopefully she'd be a little less starstruck tonight, since she'd met him before, but he had an idea on how to handle her this time if she tried to pull anything with Draco.

She bounced up to them, blonde hair swinging, grinning like seeing them made her entire night. "Good evening, Mr. Potter! I'm so glad to see you back with us again," she greeted sweetly.

Harry smiled politely. "Nice to see you again," he said.

"Eileen," she practically cooed at him.

"Right," he nodded, then glanced at Draco, his tight jaw the only sign that he was annoyed. "We'll both have water, and Scorp, what do you want to drink?"

"I want milk and pasketti, please!" Scorpius announced.

Eileen's smile tightened, and she barely even glanced at him. Harry didn't like that at all.

"Of course,” she said. “Are you both ready to order as well?"

"We'll have the Chicken Marsala and the Veal Parmigiano, please," he said calmly, purposely not specifying which meal was his, but her lips thinned anyway, giving her the appearance of sucking on a lemon.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Potter, but we're out of veal," she tried for the second time, and this time, he knew for a fact that she was lying. He called her bluff.

He put on an exaggeratedly disappointed face. "Well, that's quite unfortunate. That's the second time it's been out. Would you mind terribly fetching your manager for me? You really shouldn't have something on the menu that you don't keep inventory of," he said, giving her his best puppy dog pout.

Let her try and lie her way out of that. Now, she could either give him the proper meal, or risk getting in major trouble for lying to patrons.

She faltered, clearly not having been expecting that. "I- please, allow me to double check with the kitchen. Perhaps they were mistaken," she stuttered.

Harry gave her a winning smile. "Would you? Thank you so much," he gushed.

"No problem at all," she sighed, cheeks flushing under the attention.

That was easy enough. He'd feel bad for basically manipulating her if she wasn't being so blatantly rude to his partner and Scorpius. It was entirely uncalled for, and Harry wouldn't stand for it. He would never let anyone treat his family poorly.

"Clever," Draco said to him after she'd disappeared, sounding impressed.

Harry shrugged. "I'd like for you to eat the correct food this time."

"Thank you," Draco said gratefully, reaching over to pat his hand.

The server came back with their drinks quick enough, not taking her eyes off of Harry once.

"Thank you!" Scorpius chirped when she handed him his cup. She ignored him entirely, again, and his little face fell. Harry frowned. Seriously, what was her problem? He was a little kid, for fuck sakes. What kind of person was rude a small child who was just being polite?

"Good news, Mr. Potter, the kitchen did manage to find some veal in the back, so your preferred meals will be right out," she said, leaning in towards him.

"Thank you," Harry said, shifting away from her casually, but she just leaned in closer until Draco cleared his throat, fixing her with an absolutely glacial stare that made Harry's pulse quicken, and she straightened up. "Thank you, Elizabeth," he snapped.

"My name is Eileen," she said evenly, and he just looked at her, completely deadpan, clearly not giving one single shit what her name was. Harry had to choke back a snort as she finally walked away.

"She doesn't like me," Scorpius said sadly. Harry was horrified that he'd noticed her cold attitude towards him, but Draco just leaned closer to his son, eyes sparkling conspirationally.

"Can I tell you a secret?" he whispered, and Scorpius nodded. "She's just jealous of your pretty blonde hair. She's colored hers to try and match. You should be flattered that she wants to look like you."

"Really?" he asked, eyes wide.

Draco nodded seriously. He giggled and Harry relaxed. They chatted lightly until the food arrived, Draco filling him in about his day, Harry and Scorpius describing the fun day they’d had at the Burrow.

When Eileen returned with their food, she brushed up against Harry when setting down his plate, giving him the veal, but she remained silent and didn't linger this time, thankfully.

Harry gave Draco a small smile, embarrassed by the inappropriate attention he was receiving, offering him the correct plate. He didn't want Draco to think he enjoyed this or wanted it in any way, but he didn't want to draw attention to it or himself, either, it would only make it worse.

Draco just handed Harry his own plate with a surprisingly warm smile that helped Harry relax, and took a bite of his veal, moaning quietly. Harry relaxed further, thrilled he was actually enjoying his meal this time. Scorpius happily slurped up his spaghetti noodles, and Harry tried to eat his Carbonara, but it felt like he was being interrupted by the server every other bite.

She came back an alarming number of times to check on them, and each time she did, Harry grew more and more flustered under her attention. The last time she'd come over, she had unbuttoned the top of her blouse like last time, and she practically pressed her breasts against his face while leaning over him to fill his water glass.

Harry was mortified, face burning as he leaned away from her, desperately trying to think of how he could politely ask her to stop bloody touching him, especially in front of his boyfriend, whose face was absolutely thunderous.

Harry was terrified that he was blowing everything. It was their first time out as a couple, as a family, and here he was, unintentionally causing a scene. People were staring, and he tried his best to ignore it, praying this wasn't going to cause a fight when they got home.

"I'll be right back, I just need the loo," Draco said quietly after she'd left, and Harry nodded, fear crawling up his throat. He distracted himself with helping Scorpius cut up his last meatball as Draco got up and disappeared around a corner towards the bathrooms.

It's fine. He's not leaving, Scorp is still here. He just had to go to the bathroom, like he said.

Time seemed to drag on, so long that even Scorpius asked what was taking him so long, but Draco still hadn't returned.

"Papa got lost," Scorpius whined, rubbing his eyes.

"He probably just fell in the toilet," Harry joked. "Come sit with me."

Scorpius crawled out of his seat and onto Harry's lap, resting his head against Harry's chest. Harry rubbed his back soothingly, continuing to eat awkwardly with his left hand.

Eventually Draco returned, and the tightness in Harry's chest loosened a tiny bit. What had taken him so long?

"Papa, you took a long time!" Scorpius scolded him tiredly, not lifting his little head.

"Sorry, love, there was a line," Draco said. The restaurant was almost empty by now, there was no way there was a line. Harry studied him, noting that the tips of his ears were red, confirming that he was lying, but Draco didn’t seem upset, so he decided to drop it for now. 

To Harry's immense relief, the server didn't come back again until it was time to bring the check, and when she did, she just dropped it off quickly with a sour look on her face before retreating again.

Oh, Draco had absolutely done something. Harry narrowed his eyes at him, but Draco just smiled at him, and Harry felt a warm affection flood through him. Draco had done that for him. He knew he did. He wasn’t angry that Harry was getting attention, he’d been angry that she had been overstepping his boundaries. Or any boundary, really.

Harry watched him leave a handful of gold out for the bill, not even bothering to argue about paying the check, then he lifted his now sleeping son off of Harry's lap. When Harry stood up, Draco wasted no time in wrapping his free arm around Harry’s waist, pulling him in close as they headed to the stairs, and that warm feeling only grew. People could see them, but Draco didn't care at all. He- he looked proud to be here with Harry, even with his rumpled clothes and messy hair from running around with kids all day.

Harry swallowed down the lump in his throat and allowed Draco to lead him to the doors.

"Goodnight, Mr. Black," the sweet hostess said quietly to them as they passed. "I hope you had a good evening here with us."

"The food was delicious," Draco told her pointedly, and she frowned, a tiny furrow appearing between her brows, fleetingly looking back towards the kitchens. "Have a good evening, love," Draco told her, and Harry smiled at her kindly as they left.

"That was an interesting exchange," Harry murmured after they'd Apparated back to Draco's house and gotten Scorpius into bed.

"I like her," Draco told him. "That waitress was still terribly unprofessional, though."

"It wasn't that bad," Harry said with a shrug. All he cared about right now was the Draco wasn't upset with him. "Food was incredible."

Draco lifted a disbelieving eyebrow at him, but didn't argue. "I had a nice time, anyway."

"Me too," Harry said, wrapping his arms around Draco's waist, hugging him tightly. "Thank you for taking us out, darling."

Thank you for being you.

"I'm sorry it wasn't more relaxing for you," Draco said, kissing the top of his head.

"Oh, it was fine. I'm used to it," Harry waved him off, not wanting to talk about it anymore.

He pulled Draco towards the bedroom, stripping down to his pants and crawling into bed, reaching up and making grabby hands towards Draco, pouting dramatically. Draco laughed, shedding his own clothes, and joined Harry, gathering him up in his arms.

He was so tired, but he sighed happily, snuggling closer to Draco's chest until sleep pulled him under, thinking about how lucky he was to have this.

I will never, ever take you for granted. I promise.

*

Harry was bursting with excitement.

It was Halloween, and this year, he had his own family to include in one of his favorite holiday traditions. He didn't know if Draco would necessarily be thrilled to go out and about in a muggle neighborhood with him, or participate in a muggle tradition at all, but Harry was about seventy percent confident that he could incentivize him, so to speak.

He'd picked up costumes for them several weeks ago while out shopping. Family costumes. And they were going to go trick or treating tonight. Scorpius was almost as excited as he was, running around the house like a wild child.

He had Scorpius dressed up as the cutest crocodile he'd ever seen, in a one-piece costume covered in green sequins and a crocodile head as the hood. Harry himself was dressed up as Peter Pan, hat, tights and all; he'd even removed his glasses, sticking in the contacts he hated to wear if he could help it. Even he had to admit that his arse looked good. And it had better, these damn tights were his hail Mary to get Draco to go along with this.

He loved Halloween, almost as much as Christmas, and he could not wait to finally have someone to do this with him, to share in something that Harry cared deeply about. Andromeda and Teddy went with him every year, but this was different. Draco and Scorp, they were his. It mattered.

The second Draco stepped through the Floo, Scorpius ran at him, arms out. "Papaaaa! Lookie! Look at me! I'm a croc-dial!" Scorpius practically screamed.

"I can see that, love, but why are you dressed as... that?"

"A croc-dial,” Scorpius told him impatiently. “Harry said we're going treat and tricking, and you have to come with us!"

"What now?" he asked, searching for Harry. His jaw dropped when he finally spotted him, eyes roving over his body slowly.

"Trick or treating!" Harry said excitedly. "It's what muggles do on Halloween, and it's loads of fun. I take Teddy every year, and you're both coming with us this year!"

Draco looked absolutely horrified, and Harry burst out laughing. "Oh, my God, your face. Trust me, he's going to have a blast. Hurry up and go get dressed before we're late, I left your costume out on the bed."

Draco blinked at him in shock until Harry impatiently dragged him upstairs to his room. He glanced behind them to make sure Scorpius hadn't followed, then pulled Draco into a heated kiss, stroking his tongue everywhere he could reach in the way he knew made Draco's toes curl. He pulled back and licked up the shell of Draco's ear.

"If you do this for me, I'll make it worth your while later," Harry growled quietly, hand sliding down to cup Draco's already semi-interested cock in promise.

"Fuck, okay," Draco breathed, his eyes heavy with arousal, hips bucking forward. "Whatever you want."

Perfect.

Harry chuckled, giving Draco's dick one last light squeeze before letting go and patting his cheek affectionately. "Good boy," he murmured for good measure, kissing Draco on the cheek before slipping out of the room so he could change.

Harry played with Scorpius, teaching him to how to say 'trick or treat' when Draco finally emerged.

Oh, my God, it was fantastic. Even better than Harry anticipated.

Draco came down the stairs, grimacing, carrying the long, curly black wig and hat in his hand, but he had the full pirate costume on, and he actually looked good. How did he manage to look good in something so ridiculous? He had on tight black trousers and knee-high cuffed boots, a ruffled white shirt, and burgundy waistcoat that flared out at the hips, accentuating his trim waist and long legs.

Harry could kiss him for agreeing to do this. He didn't even argue. He must really, truly love Harry a lot, because Harry had a feeling no one else could get him into a getup like that. It made his heart thud painfully in his chest. God, he was so in love with this man, and so excited to do this together.

"You look so funny!" Scorpius said, laughing delightedly while Harry helped him get the wig on properly.

"What exactly am I?" Draco asked, staring down at himself in distaste, holding a synthetic curl away from his face.

"Cap'n Hook!" Scorpius said, holding his Peter Pan book up to show Draco. He took the book and flipped through it quickly.

"A muggle fairy tale, Potter?" he asked, smirking, but his eyes were soft.

"That's Pan to you," Harry said cheekily with a wink. "Come on, we have to meet Andromeda and Teddy. I'm just going to Apparate us."

Draco nodded, picking up Scorpius then taking Harry's arm.

They landed in a back alley in Little Whinging. He really only knew his old neighborhood, and he knew that the people here gave out the good candy, like it was a competition on who had the best sweets. And Mrs. Figg still lived here, and he liked to visit her. She'd looked out for him, after all. The older he got, the more he was able to appreciate her.

Harry led them down a few different streets to the corner he always met Andromeda and Teddy at, spotting them right away.

"Teddy!" Scorpius screeched, running towards the other boy. He turned around quickly, hugging Scorpius. Teddy was dressed up as a baseball player, and Andromeda had on her normal robes, able to get away with it due to the holiday. Harry kissed her on the cheek in greeting while Scorpius and Teddy exclaimed excitedly over each other’s costumes.

Harry turned to introduce Draco to them, but he paused when he saw Draco standing a few feet away, frozen, looking like he'd seen a ghost.

"You alright?" Harry asked him concernedly, walking back over to him.

"Yeah," he rasped, color slowly returning to his face. "I thought it was my Aunt Bella for a moment. I'm okay. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. I thought the same thing the first time I met her. I'll introduce you, but don't be nervous, okay? I promise she's nice," Harry assured him.

"I'm sure she's lovely," Draco said, swallowing thickly.

Harry led him over to where the others were waiting, and Draco held his hand out to her. "Aunt Andromeda, hello. It's so nice to finally meet you."

She glanced at his hand, then rolled her eyes, pulling him in for a hug. "It's nice to meet you, dear, but you're family. We hug family."

"Oh," Draco said, surprised, carefully returning the hug.

Harry left them to go help the boys adjust their costumes, and Teddy wandered off to go say hello to Draco. Harry smiled, watching Draco explain to him why he couldn't dress up as a quidditch player and why it was so important to keep it a secret from muggles. He really was so good with the children. Harry never, ever would have guessed it when they were younger.

"Ooh look, Harry! It's starting!" Teddy said, pointing out other families walking around with their children.

Draco looked fascinated by the whole thing, then gasped loudly when a little girl dressed as a unicorn passed them. "Harry! That's a unicorn! How do they know about unicorns?" Draco hissed.

"They just think they're imaginary, darling. It's alright," Harry laughed.

"Oh."

"Yes, oh," he smirked, then pulled a couple of shrunken pillowcases from a small pocket in his tunic and discreetly enlarged them.

"Alright, boys. Here you are," Harry said, handing a pillowcase to each boy. "Now, Teddy has done this before and knows what to do. Scorp, you'll go up to each house we stop at and say 'trick or treat', remember?"

"I 'member! And I'll use my real good manners and say thank you!"

"That's a good boy," Harry said proudly.

"Harry?"

"Yes?"

"Will you go up with me?" he asked, lip jutting out.

"Of course I will," Harry said, taking his hand. "Let's go, I'll go with you to the first few, alright?"

"Kay!"

Harry led everyone to the first house on the street. Draco and Andromeda hung back while Harry took the boys up to the door.

"Trick or treat!" Scorpius shouted proudly, and the woman who answered the door laughed, cooing at how cute he was.

"Happy Halloween, darlings. Here you are," she said, putting a sweet in each of their bags. Both boys thanked her and ran back to where Draco was standing.

"Papa, lookie! I got a candy!" Scorpius said excitedly, showing him the miniature chocolate bar.

"Candy?" Draco asked, confused. "Why did she give you candy?"

"That's what trick or treating is, Draco. You dressed up and go around door to door and people give you candy. It's fun!" Harry told him.

"Free candy? Why don't wizards do this?"

"No idea," Harry said, "but it's nice letting them do it anyway, isn't it? I know we have our own traditions, but I never got to do this growing up."

"You didn't?"

Harry shook his head, trying not to remember how heartbroken he used to be, stuck locked away in his cupboard while Dudley got to dress up and get candy, never once sharing a single piece. Now wasn't the time for dwelling, and he got to do it now, at least.

"Nah. Saw my cousin go out, though. We're actually in my old neighborhood now. The Dursley's moved years ago, but I like stopping by to see Mrs. Figg."

"Is this where you grew up?" Draco asked, looking more than a little surprised. "And who is Mrs. Figg?"

"The old squib who used to babysit me. I mentioned her before. Want to come up to the next one with us?" Harry asked, waggling his eyebrows to try and entice him into coming.

Draco huffed out a quiet laugh, then nodded, much to Harry's delight. Oh, he was so getting the best orgasm of his life later.

Draco took Scorpius' other hand, and approached the next house with them while Andromeda waited for them on the sidewalk. Teddy rang the bell, and when the door opened, both boys cried out "trick or treat!"

A woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties answered the door, smiling at the two little boys. "Well, aren't the lot of you adorable," she gushed in a heavy Irish accent, handing candy to both of the boys.

"Thank you!" Scorpius said politely. "Papa is Cap'n Hook! But he won't talk like a pirate."

"Well, isn't that a shame," she laughed. “I do love seeing parents dress up with their little ones. You have a beautiful family," she said.

You have a beautiful family. He did. The most beautiful, because they were his, including Teddy.

Harry beamed, grinning so widely he could feel his dimple digging into his cheek. "Thank you," he said quietly, and she handed Harry and Draco both candy as well.

"Here you are, loves. Costumes get candy, no matter how old you are," she told them with a wink, and Teddy and Scorpius giggled like mad as they ran back towards Andromeda.

"Thank you again," Draco told her, then allowed Harry to pull him along to the next house.

Harry led them around the neighborhood, both boys glued to his sides as they slowly filled their pillowcases with sweets. He was so bloody happy. This was the best evening, and hands down the most fun he'd ever had doing this. He wanted it to last forever.

Eventually, they arrived at Mrs. Figg's house, and Harry knocked on the door loudly so she'd hear them, as she was getting on in age.

"Hello, Mrs. Figg," Harry greeted her when she opened the door.

"Oh, Harry!" she exclaimed, pulling him in for a quick hug which he warmly returned. "I was wondering if I'd see you again this year, dear. Don't you look interesting," she laughed.

"You know Harry?" Scorpius asked curiously, and she turned her attention to him. Teddy already knew her from previous years, but Scorp had never met her.

"I do," she confirmed. "I used to watch him when he was as small as you."

Scorpius gasped. "He used to be my size?"

"Of course I was," Harry chuckled. "I was a child once, too."

"Yeah, grownups aren’t born big, silly," Teddy chimed in, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

"This is my friend, Draco and his son, Scorpius," Harry introduced them, emphasizing the word friend so she'd catch his meaning without alerting Scorpius, "and you remember Teddy, I'm sure."

"Of course I do," she said, smiling at Teddy when he waved at her.

They chatted for a bit about what they'd both been up to since his last visit several months ago, until the kids started to grow restless, and Harry had to bid her goodbye, giving her another hug.

"You look so happy, dear. You deserve it, so much. Come back and visit anytime. I'd love to see more of you and your friend," she added with a wink.

"I'll come visit soon," he promised, grabbing both Scorpius and Teddy's hands again. He really did need to come back sooner this time. He knew she was lonely.

They walked around for a bit longer, and when they finally turned onto Privet Drive, Harry deliberately guided them past his old childhood home, not even sparing it a glance. He couldn't stand to look at it.

"Wait! We skipped one!" Scorpius cried, pointing back towards the house.

"We don't go to that one," Harry told him, gently guiding him away from it.

"But why? They have sour candies! Look! Please, Harry? Pleaseee?" he begged, tugging on Harry's hand.

Fuck. He just- he couldn't. He avoided that house every year. He should just avoid the whole street, really, but it was so close to Wisteria Walk where Mrs. Figg lived, and it didn't make sense to skip the whole street.

But now Scorp was begging him to go to that house, to get far too close to the place that he'd basically been a prisoner, where he'd been- been abused, and he had those big, silver eyes looking up at Harry, begging silently, and it was so hard to say no to him when all he wanted to do was make him happy.

Harry was just about to cave when he felt big hands gently removing the boys' hands from his. "I'll take them," Draco said softly, looking at him with understanding in his eyes.

Relief flooded him. He'd have done it, for Scorpius, but he was so bloody relieved he didn't have to. Even being this close, looking at it at all, was hard enough.

Harry watched Draco walk the boys up to the door, but when it opened, he froze, eyes glued on the small cupboard door he could see even from here.

He could still imagine himself, so small, so painfully lonely, locked away in there like a dirty secret. How every hour in there had felt like a year, with nothing to do and no one to talk to, usually in pain from one beating from Dudley or another, wondering if he'd even get to eat that day, and hoping beyond hope that if he was just quiet enough, just good enough, that he'd be shown a single shred of empathy or care. It never happened, though, not once.

He remembered crying himself to sleep more nights than not, wondering what he'd ever done that was so horrible to deserve that kind of life, hating that his parents weren't there to save him, to love him. But who could ever love a freak?

Of course, now he knew that none of it had been his fault, regardless of what those evil monsters had said, but as a child, all he had ever wanted was for someone to love him. He'd been starved of food, yes, but he'd also been starved of affection, which was so, so much worse. That- it stuck, it lingered, ate away at him, for years.

It was a small wonder he'd been as stable as he was when he went to Hogwarts, and he wondered, not for the first time, if it had been the excitement of escape or the threat of impending doom hanging over him every year that had helped distract him from how bad it had really been; if it had helped him because he had been so grateful to finally be treated like a person that he'd been able to compartmentalize all that hurt while there were more important things to think or worry about.

He still did it, in a way; still covered those memories with a rosy veil, pushed them away to a dark corner of his mind that he tried not to visit. He wondered if Owen would have been able to destroy him the way he had if Harry hadn't grown up like he did, if he hadn't been damaged from the Dursley's and from the war. Would he have been such an easy target? Would he have been able to see the signs if he hadn't been so bloody desperate for love, for a family?

One of those things had hurt more than the other, a sharper, more acute pain, because with the Dursley's, he'd just been a child, innocent, like Scorpius, like Teddy, like Victoire, and only someone with a bitter heart and a black soul could treat a small child the way he'd been treated. Even thinking of accidentally hurting any of his kids made him feel sick to his stomach. He would never understand how they'd done what they did to him with no remorse whatsoever. He felt sorry for them, in a way. What a miserable existence they must have.

He hated that small door. He wanted to burn it down, blast it away until it didn't exist anymore, so no one could ever be locked away in there again.

He was jarred from his memories by Teddy and Scorpius barreling into him, begging to keep going. Harry shook himself out of it, and nodded, but Draco looked a bit haunted when he came up to him, frowning the tiniest bit as he studied Harry carefully, trying to assess if he was alright.

I'm fine, darling. It was just a ghost, nothing more. It can't hurt me anymore, not when I have you.

Harry gave him a small smile, and Draco just gripped his hand tightly, refusing to let go for the rest of the evening, and by the time trick or treat was over, Harry felt much better, leaving those memories in the past where they belonged.

They returned to the Apparation point together and bid goodnight to Teddy and Andromeda, Harry promising Teddy that he'd bring Scorpius back over to play soon.

When they got back, Draco collapsed onto the couch, pulling the ridiculous wig off of his head and tossing it onto the chair near the fireplace. Scorpius sprawled out on the floor, dumping his bag of candy out and sorting through it. Harry went and sat on the floor right in front of Draco, leaning his back against Draco's legs, explaining the different types of muggle candy to Scorpius, pointing out the ones he thought the little boy would like best. He still wasn't used to muggle sweets, and Harry loved seeing his little face light up.

He felt Draco knock the hat off of his head to card his fingers through Harry's messy locks. Harry sighed happily, leaning back farther into him, encouraging Draco to keep going. Scorpius didn't appear to notice a thing out of the ordinary, just happily hummed over his candies until Draco announced it was bedtime.

He whined a little, mostly because he was overtired from his busy day, but he did go upstairs to change out of his costume as instructed. Draco tipped Harry's head back, kissing him briefly. "I'll meet you in our bedroom, love. Don't change out of those tights."

Our bedroom.

He'd called his bedroom their bedroom.

Harry blinked at him, jaw dropping a bit in awe, then grinned, wide and unrestrained.

"Knew you'd like them," he murmured, tracing his fingers over Draco's cheek, then got up and went towards the kitchen to make Draco's tea while Draco went upstairs to get Scorpius to bed. Harry took the tea and the little note he'd scribbled upstairs with him, setting them on Draco's bedside table before sprawling out on his bed to wait.

Draco came in, warding the room behind him, then turned his eyes to Harry, pupils dilating almost immediately as he drank him in. He looked quite tired, but he was still breathtakingly gorgeous.

"I love the tights," Draco admitted, and Harry smirked. "Your legs look incredible."

"Knew you'd like them," Harry repeated his sentiment from downstairs. "You look tired, darling."

Draco shrugged one shoulder, unbothered. "Not too tired. You stay where you are, I'll be right back," he said, then ducked into the bathroom for a few minutes before emerging, still fully dressed.

Draco dimmed the lights and playfully stripped his own costume off until he was down to his pants and climbed on top of Harry, straddling his hips. Harry's fingers came up to trace along his scars, the scars Harry gave him, but Draco gripped his hands, pinning them to the bed beside his head as he leaned down to kiss him.

Oh.

"You know, I'm never more attracted to you than I am when I see you with my son," he whispered against Harry's lips, grinding their hips together lightly, and Harry's cock twitched under him, thickening up a bit. "You're so fucking good with him. You give him the best experiences, the best memories. He adores you. Turns me on so fucking much."

Oh God. Hearing Draco compliment him like that, hearing him appreciate something about Harry that had only ever been complained about... it was driving him wild.

"I'm supposed to be rewarding you," Harry said, moaning quietly and bucking up to seek more friction, which Draco gave to him, now rocking on top of him, and he could feel Draco sliding his arms up the bed, felt the cool kiss of the metal from their headboard against the backs of his hands.

Draco smirked down at him, eyes heavy with desire. "Oh, you are," he said. "Incarcerous."

Harry's eyes flew open as his wrists were suddenly bound to the headboard.

Did he just...?

Harry pulled at the restraints, cock twitching uncontrollably under Draco.

Jesus fucking Christ.

"This okay?" Draco asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Fuck yes," Harry groaned, bucking upwards again.

Oh God, it was so, so okay. Words didn't exist for how okay it was. He loved this. Draco wanted to take charge, something Harry seldom experienced, and he was already half mad with desire. This man was going to kill him.

Draco vanished Harry's top and began leaving a trail of biting little kisses down his chest and stomach until he reached the waistband of his tights. Draco looked up at Harry coyly, eyes roving over Harry's face before he grinned lasciviously and began licking over the tip of his dick through his tights, lapping up the pre-come that had soaked into the fabric, then taking the whole head into his mouth, sucking hard, creating a much larger wet spot, blonde hair falling into his eyes as he looked up at Harry.

And Harry couldn't touch him.

Fuck, why was that so erotic? Harry tipped his head back, a breathy moan escaping him. If he kept looking at that sight, he was going to come.

When Harry began panting a bit, Draco finally pulled his tights down, freeing his weeping cock from its confines.

“No pants?” Draco asked, voice low, rubbing one hand lightly over his erection teasingly.

Harry shook his head. “You’d see them underneath,” he explained breathily.

Draco hummed, then sucked Harry down to the root, swallowing around the head. Harry cursed loudly, jaw clenching against the sudden onslaught as Draco began bobbing his head in earnest. His thighs trembled, trying not to buck up into the wet heat of that fucking mouth.

It was so good, and he could feel Draco's long, elegant fingers stroking against his skin, touching him what felt like everywhere, and Harry let himself get lost in the feeling. It wasn't like he could do much anyway, being tied to the bed like he was; Draco obviously just wanted him to relax and enjoy it, and that thought shot a pulse of heat to his dick.

He vaguely felt one of Draco's hands trail up his thigh, then over his balls, just lightly touching, but Harry snapped back to attention the second he felt those fingers ghost over his- his hole.

Harry gasped loudly, eyes flying open in shock as he subconsciously tried to reach down and stop him, forgetting that he couldn't. He didn't touch himself there. Hadn't been touched there in years, had only ever been touched there once, and the feeling was weird and instantly overwhelming.

"Fuuuck," Harry groaned, beginning to pant as Draco kept focusing his touch right there, rubbing those long, sinful fingers over his opening, not applying any pressure, just touching him, gently, almost reverently.

"Still okay?" Draco rasped, popping off his cock to ask, silver eyes practically glowing with intensity and arousal. He was genuinely asking, and Harry knew that if he said no, Draco would stop, no questions asked.

Draco had recently asked him if he'd ever bottomed, and Harry had laughed, shaking his head, dismissing the conversation immediately, but Draco had kept on, refusing to be deterred, asking him why. Harry had tried to brush it off, but eventually he admitted that he'd only done it once when he was twenty and that it had been terrible; just painful and uncomfortable and wrong, and not something he cared to revisit.

Truthfully, Harry had no idea how anyone actually liked it up the arse. Logically, he knew the prostate was located there and that it could be pleasurable for some people; obviously it was, because Draco in particular was an impressively enthusiastic bottom, but Harry had never understood the appeal, personally. It certainly hadn't been pleasurable at any point for him. Owen had been rough, taking him too fast, too hard, and had told Harry that he just wasn’t good at it if he didn’t like it. They never tried it again; it had been the one thing Harry had put his foot down about, and Owen seemed happy enough not to have to do the work of being the top.

Harry had moved on, just assuming he wasn't one of the people who had a sensitive prostate or liked it, and he was fine with that. He preferred giving anyway, absolutely loved seeing his partner come apart under him, and he'd certainly never had any complaints about his dick, especially not from Draco.

But... if Draco wanted this, wanted to try this with him, Harry would do it, even if he didn't like it. He didn't know exactly what Draco was planning, and he was nervous, but Harry trusted him entirely. He knew he would stop immediately if Harry couldn't handle it, knew he wouldn't hurt him.

He could give Draco this.

Harry nodded jerkily, taking a shuddering breath to calm himself, and Draco took his cock back down, sucking him while he continuously rubbed his fingers gently over Harry's entrance until he finally began to relax, growing accustomed to the touch, and he felt Draco begin to add a bit of pressure, not breaching him, just rubbing him more firmly, but Harry couldn't stop himself from clenching, nerves still a bit on edge, even through his haze of arousal.

Draco pulled off his leaking cock, licking up the underside, and locking his eyes on Harry. "Relax, darling. Let me make you feel good. Trust me. Just relax."

His voice was so soothing, so reassuring, and Harry trusted him, he did. Harry took a shuddering breath, letting it out slowly, and forced his muscles to unclench, body sinking into the bed as he relaxed, trying his best to follow Draco's advice.

Draco leaned back down to lap at the head of his cock, tongue flicking just underneath the head, and slowly but firmly slid a finger inside.

It felt- fuck, it was so weird. He felt strangely full, considering it was just a single finger, and he couldn't stop his body from clenching around it, trying to force the intrusion out.

It didn't hurt, though. There was no pain, just uncomfortable pressure, and Harry clung to that fact. It was already better than last time if it didn't hurt.

"Holy fuck," Harry groaned biting his lips, trying to get accustomed to the feeling of having something up his arse. How on earth was he going to survive having Draco's cock up there? How did Draco survive having Harry’s? Harry was not small, by any stretch of the imagination. Modesty aside, he wasn’t a complete oblivious fool.

Draco kept working Harry's cock with his mouth, patiently waiting until Harry was used to the feeling, loosening up enough for him to move. He carefully slid his finger out, then pushed back in several times, until he could move easily in and out of Harry's body.

It was better. Not necessarily good, but he could feel himself adjusting, and he hadn't lost his erection even a little bit. This wasn't so bad; he could handle this if Draco liked it.

Just as he thought that, however, Draco pulled off his dick again. "Just one more," he murmured softly, sliding a second finger in beside the first, and Harry immediately stiffened, breathing heavily.

Fuck. That pinched. He felt himself stretch beyond what was comfortable, and he bit back a whimper.

"I don't-" he started, but cut himself off. I don't know if I can take that, oh, God.

"You're alright," Draco soothed. "That's all I'm going to give you, just relax and I promise I'll make you feel so good."

Oh, thank God. He wasn't going to fuck him.

I trust you. I love you.

Harry swallowed, then nodded, breathing slowly until his body adjusted to the unfamiliar intrusion.

Draco didn't take his eyes off of Harry's face, watching him for any sign of it being too much, holding completely still as he adjusted. That level of care, of concern... it only made Harry more determined to do this for him.

The sharp stretch slowly faded to a dull ache, then to nothing more than a slightly uncomfortable feeling of being too full.

"Perfect, just like that," Draco murmured, then licked the head of his cock as he began to gently thrust his fingers, scissoring them a bit, trying to loosen the tight ring of muscle enough to move more freely.

The movement did help, less uncomfortable than just being stuffed full. He could feel Draco curling his fingers inside him a bit, sliding them against his inner walls, clearly now searching for his prostate, and Harry just closed his eyes, trying to find some pleasure in it, focusing his attention more on his cock in Draco's mouth than on the fingers in his arse until-

"Oh God!" Harry cried out suddenly.

That- holy fuck, what was that?!

He'd never felt anything like it. It felt like a spark of electricity lighting him up from the inside, shooting such an intensely unexpected pleasure up his spine and down his cock that he almost came, cock twitching violently as his body bucked up off the bed involuntarily, trying to curl in on itself.

Was that his prostate? That was what that felt like? Holy fucking God.

Draco released his cock, but Harry barely noticed because Draco touched him just there again, not removing his fingers this time, but rubbing firm little circles into that spot.

A litany of curses fell from Harry's lips, but he was too caught up in the sensation to make any sense.

"Fuck, oh God, baby- shitting fuck, nnnnghh!"

Suddenly, Draco stopped rubbing and began vibrating his fingers insistently against that spot, and Harry nearly choked on the sharp breath he sucked in. He whined, pulling at the ropes around his wrists, legs trying to find purchase on the bed as his body simultaneously tried to back away from the overwhelming sensation, and buck up into it to get more.

He felt like he was losing his mind, and his body was so confused. It was too much, but he needed more. This is why people did this. Oh, my God, no wonder they did this.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck! I can't- I need-"

He cut off when he felt Draco begin to lick around his fingers, shoving one of Harry's thighs open farther before sliding up to wrap around his painfully hard dick. God, he'd almost forgotten about his cock. He needed to come, now.

He practically melted in relief when he felt Draco stroke him once, twice, but then his hand was clamping down tightly around the base, preventing him from coming.

No.

Harry cried out in frustration, back arching off the bed as he tugged helplessly at his bonds, unable to free himself. A slight panic was building up in his chest, and he felt wild with desperation.

"No no no, baby please, I can’t take any more, I need to come, please!" he begged, eyes locked on where Draco’s hand was disappearing into him, wild with desperation. He's never needed to come so badly in his life, it was maddening.

Draco remained impassive, however, and just lifted one perfect eyebrow at him, mercilessly applying more pressure to his prostate, not releasing the base of his cock.

Harry howled, a sheen of sweat breaking out across his entire body. He felt like he was on fire.

"-would be just rude, wouldn't it?" Draco was saying calmly, and Harry struggled to focus on his words. "Coming before I've even had any pleasure. This is supposed to be my reward after all," Draco tutted, and Harry looked at him incredulously, jaw hanging open. "Now, I believe I'd like to come on your cock."

Oh, sweet baby Jesus.

Harry whimpered when Draco removed his fingers, his hole clenching tightly, not wanting to feel empty. Draco reached for something on the bed behind him and held up a black, egg-shaped plug, a bit wider than his two fingers with a smooth, flat base.

Was that going inside of him?

Harry's eyes widened, staring in shock as Draco recast a wandless Lubrication Charm and coated the plug before lining it up with his entrance.

"Deep breath," Draco told him. This was okay. Harry had liked it before, actually liked it. Draco was right, he'd trusted him and it had felt good. He could do this.

Harry exhaled shakily, keeping his body relaxed, and he felt Draco working the plug into him carefully. He felt it acutely when the widest part slide into him, settling in place, pressing snugly up against his prostate. Holy shit.

Harry grunted loudly, body twitching and breathing choppy as Draco climbed back on top of him, reaching behind himself to grab Harry's cock, rubbing the head against his already wet hole. When the fuck did he do that?

"Don't come, Harry," he commanded sternly, and Harry nearly bit his lip bloody when the head of his cock popped through Draco's opening, trying desperately not to come. He didn't want to disappoint his boyfriend, but holyfuckingshit, it was so. Much.

Draco moaned when he was fully seated, wiggling his hips a bit as he adjusted to the stretch, and Harry made an involuntary noise in the back of his throat, sweat now pouring down his face as he tried to get himself under control.

Oh, my God, he was going to come.

Draco was on top of him, naked and fucking glorious, face etched in pleasure, wiggling on Harry’s cock, and every wiggle jostled not only where Harry was buried inside of him, but also the plug inside his own arse. He couldn't move his arms to hold Draco still and the sensations were so overwhelming he could cry. This-

"Too much," he gasped, a tear slipping free and sliding down into his hair when Draco clenched tightly around him. Harry's hands were clenched so tightly they were shaking, knuckles white, cords straining in his neck and forearms as he tried to hold back his orgasm.

Draco leaned forward and kissed him, slow and deep, momentarily distracting Harry from his lower half, allowing him to get his body slightly under control.

"Don't be selfish, darling," Draco teased him when he broke the kiss, eyes sparkling mischievously.

Harry huffed out an incredulous laugh that quickly morphed into an obscene moan when Draco lifted himself almost all the way off of Harry's cock and dropped back down harshly. Draco groaned, eyes falling shut and he leaned back a bit, hands gripping Harry's thighs behind him for support as he fucked himself on Harry's cock.

God, he was so bloody beautiful, but every movement just jostled the plug inside of Harry even more until he was back to teetering on the edge of orgasm, barely holding on, every muscle in his body clenched as tears pooled in his eyes. Draco fucked him for a few minutes or few lifetimes, Harry had no idea. All sense of time had left him, all there was now was Draco and his blissed-out face, his hair flowing around his shoulders, his gorgeous moans, and nearly unbearable sensation, lighting every nerve in his body on fire.

All of a sudden, Harry saw Draco flick his wrist over his shoulder, and then Harry's world exploded. The plug vibrated to life inside of him, stimulating his prostate to an almost unbearable degree, and it was so intense that he came immediately, didn't even have a prayer's chance in hell of holding himself back.

The noise he made was inhuman and his eyes slammed shut, back bowing off the bed completely as his orgasm slammed into him, coming harder than he's ever come in his life. It felt like hours before the shudders subsided and he was twitching with oversensitivity. He vaguely registered Draco carefully ending the vibration and removing the plug, and he only fully came back to himself when he heard a quiet, "Finite," being muttered against his lips, releasing his wrists.

Harry's hands were on Draco so fast he didn't have a chance to react before he was flat on his back, Harry hovering over him. Harry gripped his beautiful face, crashing their lips together in a searing kiss, tongue plundering Draco's mouth, drinking him in like he was water in the desert.

"Selfish, am I?" he asked in amusement when he pulled back, repeating Draco's teasing words from earlier.

"Never, darling," Draco said softly, reaching up to push his sweaty hair off his forehead, fingers lingering on his lightning bolt scar.

Jesus. That was somehow even more intimate than what they'd just done. No one ever, ever touched his scar. He hated it. Hated it with anyone but Draco, apparently. He didn't even have the urge to push him away or ask him to stop.

He grinned down at Draco, love practically seeping out of his pores.

Draco had taken an experience that had, frankly, been quite traumatic for him in the past, and turned it into what he knew was going to be one of his favorite memories, completely overshadowing any negativity that he'd associated with the act. It had never been his fault at all that it had gone so horribly wrong before.

God, I am going to marry you so fucking hard one day, he thought, staring at his boyfriend in awe.

He didn't say it out loud, though, no matter how much he wanted to. Harry didn't deserve him. He didn't even have words to thank him for what he'd just done. He probably had no idea how big of a deal that was.

Now wasn't the time to get into it, though, not when they were so sated and happy and still partially lust drunk and covered in sweat and come. Harry swore he had come on his chin, somehow.

"That was probably the best orgasm of my entire life," Harry admitted with a quiet groan. "Fucking incredible. You should be illegal."

Draco barked out a laugh. "Illegal?"

Harry nodded. "Definitely. Come shower with me, I'm too sticky to sleep."

Draco chuckled, getting up and following Harry into the shower. He took his time washing Harry's hair and his body for him, running his hands all over him until Harry felt his eyes beginning to droop.

"Fuck, that feels good. You have magic fingers," Harry slurred out as Draco rinsed the conditioner from his hair.

"That I do," Draco confirmed with a quiet laugh. "So do you, though."

Harry hummed, eyes falling closed and he wiggled his fingers, thinking of the nightly tea he left Draco. "S'pose I do."

"Come on, sleepyhead," Draco told him, turning off the water and wrapping Harry up in a towel, drying him off gently before drying himself quickly and casting a quick Cleaning Charm on the messy bed. Harry would definitely have to wash those sheets tomorrow.

Harry fell into bed, and Draco joined him, snuggling up closely and turning on his side so they were face to face, sharing air and a pillow, just enjoying being together. Harry blinked at him slowly, a tired smile tugging at his lips, and Draco swallowed.

"I love you so much. You're going to be the best dad someday," he whispered, reaching up to caress Harry's jaw, smoothing a thumb along his cheekbone reverently.

Tears sprung to his eyes, blurring his vision. That wasn't something he ever thought a partner would say to him. He hoped to every God out there that it meant that Draco would consider him a parent to Scorpius someday. He already felt like one.

"God, I hope so," he breathed.

Notes:

We're halfway there! Feels like it should be ending, but nope, still nine chapters to go! Hopefully you like this one! They're building trust.

As always, any comments or feedback is welcome and appreciated,

Chapter 11: CHAPTER 10

Summary:

Scorp's birthday and a bit of a scare for Harry.

Notes:

TW: allergic reaction scene, panic attack.

Harry's wand vibrated incredibly early the next morning. It was still dark, but he woke immediately, silencing it before it could wake Draco. He snuck out of bed and pulled on some clothes, closing the bedroom door softly behind him and creeping down the stairs to Floo back to Grimmauld Place.

"Master is home," Kreacher said the second he stepped out of the fireplace, scaring him to death.

"What the fuck, Kreacher!" Harry gasped, hand to his heart. "Stop scaring me like that, please."

"If Master ever came home, maybe he wouldn't forget that Kreacher exists," the Elf mumbled, slinking away.

Well, fuck, now he felt horribly guilty. He had to find something to do with Kreacher. He'd been staying at Draco's nearly every night, and he truly had no desire to come back here more than he had to. He hated this house, but he didn't hate Kreacher, and he was neglecting him.

"Kreacher, wait," Harry called, and he turned back to Harry. "I'm really sorry I haven't been here. I did tell you that you didn't have to stay here, but I know you don't love going to Hogwarts very often. I'll try to figure something out, alright?"

Kreacher sniffed and crossed his arms, but he did offer Harry something to eat, which he politely declined, only because he really was in a hurry, but he did ask him to change his sheets and clean up the spare bathroom, just to satisfy his need to have something to do. He really needed to figure that out.

After Kreacher disappeared upstairs, Harry bolted into the kitchen, grabbing the chocolate cake he'd made yesterday before trick or treat. Today was Draco's final day in Magical Bugs, marking the end of his second rotation, and also the end of having to be in a ward he didn't enjoy at all, and Harry wanted to do something nice for him to celebrate. He just had to get the cake to the hospital before Draco woke up and noticed he was gone.

Harry gripped the cake box tightly and Apparated to St. Mungo's, wasting no time in taking the lift up to the second floor. He approached the Mediwitch station, clearing his throat quietly to grab the attention of one of the staff members.

One younger Mediwitch looked up at him, her eyes growing wide. He ignored it, though, and gave her a polite smile.

"I- er- I mean, c- can I help you?" She asked nervously.

He smiled a bit softer. Nerves. That he could handle. "Hello, I'm hoping you can. I was hoping to give this cake to Healer Thompson? My partner has his last day on your ward today, and I wanted to bring him a surprise to celebrate, if I'm allowed. There's enough for everyone, of course..." he trailed off nervously when she kept just staring at him, mouth parted. "Are you alright?"

That seemed to snap her out of it, and she flushed bright red, babbling out an apology. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Did you say your partner? Do you mean Intern Malfoy?"

"Er, yes?" He said hesitantly, unsure if he should really be revealing that at his job, "but I don't want him to know it was me, if you don't mind. This is about him; it's his day to celebrate," he said gently, silently begging her to not make a big deal out of this and take away from Draco's accomplishment.

"O- of course, I won't say a word," she rushed out. "I'll go get Healer Thompson. One moment please." She scurried out from behind the desk, head down, muttering, his partner under her breath.

He hovered awkwardly for a few minutes, glancing at the clock, getting anxious about the time, but she finally returned, along with a surprisingly tall, willowy woman with curly, dark hair down to her waist.

"Hello, dear," she greeted him dreamily, and if Draco hadn't described her demeanor to him in detail, he'd have been concerned about her. This was just how she was, though, and he smiled at her.

"Hello, it's so nice to meet you. I hope I'm not breaking any rules, but I brought a cake to celebrate Draco's last day? I hoped you could keep it in the breakroom, everyone is welcome to have some. It's quite big," he rambled.

She gave him a genuine smile, taking the cake. "Oh, this is lovely! It smells divine. He'll be so pleased."

Harry returned her grin, relaxing. "He loves chocolate. Just please don't let him know where you got it, if you don't mind?"

"Whatever you wish, dear. I'm sure we'll all be very grateful to you by lunchtime."

He laughed at that, and bid her and the Mediwitch goodbye, then Apparated back to Draco's, sneaking back in the front door. The house was silent, and he breathed a sigh of relief, hurrying back upstairs to rejoin his boyfriend in bed.

*

Draco returned home in an excellent mood, and thank goodness for that. Scorpius had been on ten all day, reminding Harry that his birthday was in four days at least sixty times, as if he could possibly forget with all the meticulous party planning he'd been doing over the last month. Harry had managed to distract him for a little bit while they prepared dinner, but the second Draco stepped through the Floo, he was right there, announcing it again, attaching himself to his father's legs.

"Papa, there's only four days until my birthday! Four days until I'm five! Then I'll be old enough to use your wand!"

Harry's eyebrows shot up, and Draco squinted at him. "Absolutely not," he said firmly, and Scorpius' jaw dropped, looking unbelievably offended. Harry stifled a laugh behind his hand.

"But why?!"

"You'll get your own wand when you're eleven," Draco explained. “That’s when you'll be going to Hogwarts to learn magic. You can't use mine, it's not safe."

"Not fair," he pouted, crossing his arms. "No fair, no fair, no fair!" He repeated over and over, until the phrase melded together and started coming out like 'nofe-air' instead of an actual word.

"Scorpius, that's enough," Draco said sternly. Scorpius stopped talking, but didn't quit mouthing the words, arms crossed, and Harry had to spin around, hand covering his mouth so Scorpius wouldn't see him laughing. This child was ridiculous, and he fucking loved him so much.

"Scorpius, what did you and Harry make for supper tonight? I brought home some chocolate cake for dessert," Draco said, after a minute, probably trying to distract him.

"We made Shepherd's pie!" He said excitedly, zooming into the dining room, previous irritation apparently forgotten.

"Did you like the cake?" Harry asked, trying to keep his voice steady as he wiped a tear from under his eye. He was dying to know how it had gone.

Draco smirked at him. "You made that cake, didn't you."

Damn.

Harry grinned sheepishly, knowing he couldn’t lie to him. "Maybe? But it was a big deal! You finished your second rotation! A nasty one, at that," He defended vehemently.

Draco tipped his head back and laughed. Harry was going to apologize for overstepping, but Draco grinned widely at him. "Gods, I love you. I knew that ganache tasted like yours, I should have known. So fucking sweet, I swear," Draco said fondly, catching Harry around the waist and pulling him in for a kiss that was far hotter than Harry expected. His heart rabbited in his chest. He wasn't mad, not even a little. He was happy. Harry had made him happy.

“It’s a good recipe,” Harry agreed breathlessly when Draco finally released him.

“I meant you, you numpty.”

Oh.

Harry made a pleased sound in the back of his throat, leaning back up to kiss him again, stroking his tongue along Draco's.

"Papa! Harry! I'm hungry!" Scorpius called from the dining room, startling the two apart.

"Later," Draco whispered, a promise, licking Harry's bottom lip one last time and throwing a wink over his shoulder before going to join his son at the table.

Harry was so in love.

*

"Good luck on your new rotation, sweetheart," Harry kissed him goodbye the next morning.

"Thanks, love," Draco murmured.

He looked great today, forest green robes perfectly pressed for his first day on his new ward, hair brushed back, falling loosely to his shoulders. Harry had even polished his golden intern badge. He'd be switching to Creature Induced Injuries, the ward Draco seemed most excited for so far. Harry had a special supper planned for him, but he had a few errands to run first.

"Scorp! Come eat your breakfast before it gets cold!" Harry called up to him. He was upstairs reorganizing his stuffies by color and breed now, instead of alphabetically by name, and it was taking longer than Harry expected. He'd never met such a meticulous child. He'd guess Scorpius to be a Ravenclaw if he wasn't absolutely, one hundred percent certain that boy was going to be a Hufflepuff. Draco didn't know it yet, and Harry certainly wouldn't be telling him, but he knew.

"I'm coming!"

Little feet ran down the stairs and he jumped up into his seat at the island, scarfing down his eggs and bacon.

"Woah, what's the hurry? You're going to choke."

"My birthday is in three days, Harry! And I wanna go somewhere," Scorpius declared, but he did slow down.

"Well, you're in luck. We have to go shopping for supper, but we also need to go get Ron and Hermione a gift for their anniversary. How does that sound?"

"Ooh, yes please! I wanna pick out something fun for Uncle Ron and Auntie 'Mione!" He said excitedly, and Harry softened. He loved when Scorpius called his friends his aunts and uncles.

"Excellent. We can go as soon as you finish eating. At a normal pace, please," Harry laughed when the little boy tried to shove two bites in his mouth at once.

Scorpius finished eating soon enough, and Harry helped him get his shoes on, trying to teach him how to tie them himself, unsuccessfully, then bundled him up in his little peacoat that matched Draco's and Apparated them to an Apparition point in muggle London.

Harry knew he wanted to get them tickets to go see Candide, an operetta about 'the cynicism of societal ills and injustices that plagued the 18th century', according to Hermione, whatever that meant. He just knew it was coming to the Victoria Palace Theatre in December and that Hermione was absolutely dying to see it. If Harry bought the tickets, Ron would have to go with her. But that also meant that he needed to get them something that was more up Ron's alley, too, and that was a bit trickier. But he could shop around and he was sure they could find something.

Purchasing the tickets was quick, just stopping in the Theatre and buying the best seats he could. He lucked out, snagging the last ones in the Royal Circle, and the staff member he spoke to assured him they were incredible seats.

When they left the Theatre, Harry took them through a few shops with no luck. Harry should probably just sign them up for a cheese of the month subscription, honestly, Ron would be in heaven.

Scorpius had been an absolute angel the entire time, giving Harry some helpful advice, even picking out gifts of his own to give them each. He'd chosen a box set of Broadway plays in book form for Hermione, because, "she likes plays and she likes books! It's perfect!" And for Ron, he'd chosen a puzzle. A puzzle that was a solid blue square. The box said it was a 1000-piece puzzle of 'the sky', but it was just... all solid blue. It would take Ron a hundred years to put it together, but when Scorpius had shown it to Harry, excitement lighting up his gray eyes, Harry had laughed hysterically and bought it immediately. Ron worked at a literal joke shop; this was perfect.

The gifts were surprisingly thoughtful for an almost five-year-old. Oh, he was so going to be a Hufflepuff. He couldn't wait to let Scorp give them his gifts next week.

While they were walking back to the Apparition point, they passed a Smoothie shop Harry hadn't ever seen before, and a large sign jutting out of the building read Juicebaby. It must have been new. It was swarming with people, which meant it was probably good, too.

Harry squeezed Scorpius' hand. "Wanna get a smoothie?" He asked, waggling his eyebrows. He'd been so good all day, he deserved a little reward.

Scorpius agreed happily, and Harry led them inside. Harry read down the list of flavors while they waited in line, until Scorpius interrupted him with a squeal.

"Nut Butter Fudge!" He said excitedly, clapping. "I like peanut butter and I like chocolate!"

Ugh. He hated peanut butter, but he just smiled at him, scanning the listed ingredients quickly and when it was finally their turn, he ordered one for Scorpius, and a green smoothie for himself.

When one of the teenagers behind the counter called his name, he handed Scorpius his drink, and grabbed his own, leading him over to a free table near the windows so they could watch the people passing by.

"Like it?" Harry asked Scorpius, who was happily slurping up smoothie. He nodded, not detaching his mouth from his straw and Harry chuckled, sipping his own drink while he dug around in his coat pocket for the small notebook and muggle pen he kept on him so Scorpius could draw.

"Harry?"

"Yeah, buddy, what's up?" He asked distractedly.

"I don't feel good."

Harry looked over at the small boy in concern. He'd left his smoothie on the table, still mostly full. He looked a bit uncomfortable, and Harry brushed his fringe aside and pressed the back of his hand to his forehead. He didn't really feel warm, though.

"Well, that's not good. Your stomach hurting?"

Scorpius shook his head. "No, my throat hurts."

Harry frowned. Weird, he'd been fine not ten minutes ago. Hopefully he wasn't getting sick right before his party. "Let me have a look."

Scorpius opened his mouth wide, and Harry discreetly shone the tip of his wand lit up by Lumos inside.

"It doesn't look red," he said. "Are you sure it hurts? Did you maybe just swallow too much at once? You've been eating awfully fast today."

Scorpius shrugged, looking more even more uncomfortable now, color fading from his face, and Harry grew slightly alarmed.

"I don't know. Feels itchy."

Harry froze, body stiffening immediately. Itchy…

He grabbed Scorpius' smoothie off the table and tore the lid off, taking a sniff, but all he could smell was peanut butter and a bit of chocolate. He lifted the cup to his mouth, tilting it back to taste it, and his blood turned to ice.

Banana.

It was incredibly faint, overpowered by the stronger flavors, but it was there. There was banana in his drink. His allergy...

His heart dropped into his stomach.

"Fuck!" Harry hissed, scrambling out of his seat to scoop up the small boy and the smoothie cup. He ran up to the counter, shoving in front of the man who was currently ordering, and slammed the cup down, ignoring the man's outraged yell.

"There's banana in this!" He shouted. The girl behind the register looked startled.

"Er..." she said.

"It's not listed! He's allergic to bananas, why the fuck isn't it listed on your board? It's a common fucking allergen!"

"I- it's part of the base-" she stammered, looking frightened.

"Harry," Scorpius whimpered, a red flush crawling up his neck as hives began to form around his mouth and chin.

Harry forced his panic down; freaking out wasn’t helping the situation. "I'll be back," he spat at the worker, running out of the shop.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. He needed to get to St. Mungo's, now. He'd already wasted too much time.

Harry speed-walked around to the back of the building, afraid running would only draw unwanted attention and prevent him from Apparating unnoticed.

He began talking to Scorpius in a soothing tone as his eyes searched for somewhere, anywhere, he could hide to Apparate. Why did they have to be in the busiest part of muggle London?!

"Scorp, I'm going to Apparate us, okay? I know you're scared, but I'm going to take you to see papa at work, won't that be fun?"

Scorpius whined, his breathing labored, clinging tightly to Harry, and Harry finally spotted a row of large bushes that would hide him from view enough to hopefully go unnoticed. He couldn't wait any longer. He broke into a run, twisting on the spot the second he was between the bushes and mostly out of sight.

They popped up right inside the hospital lobby, and Harry wasted no time running up to the witch sitting behind the reception desk, who looked at him with wide eyed recognition.

"Help him, please. He's having an allergic reaction," Harry begged.

The witch looked at Scorpius in alarm, clearly noticing the rash and his choked breathing. She did something with her wand, then rushed around the desk, taking Scorp from him.

Scorpius' eyes were wide and terrified and he let out another choked whimper as he reached out for Harry, who grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly, stroking the back of his hand. "I'm right here, sweetheart, I'm not leaving you, I promise," Harry told him.

"What happened?" She said urgently, lifting his chin and unbuttoning the top two buttons on his shirt, massaging his chest and throat lightly while he whined, his silver eyes wide with fear.

"He's allergic to bananas, the smoothie shop didn't have it listed as an ingredient... I brought him as quickly as I could, but, oh, God, is he going to be okay?" He rambled frantically. She replied to him, but he couldn't hear her.

He was panicking. He knew he was, but he couldn't help it. Scorpius' breathing was ragged and his sweet little face was white as a sheet as more angry red blisters formed around his mouth and up his neck. Harry was petrified, but panicking wasn't helping Scorpius right now. He was scared enough, and Harry needed to keep it together for him.

"Harry!" Scorpius wheezed, hands scrambling for Harry now as he tried to escape the Mediwitches hold.

"I'm here, sweetheart. They're going to help you, just let them help you," he tried to soothe, but his vision was blurring, unable to keep a sob at bay when Scorpius began gasping for air. His lips were turning blue, and Harry felt a piece of his soul die.

He thought he knew terror with everything he'd lived through, but he was wrong. Nothing, absolutely nothing in his life had ever terrified him as much as this, right now. His baby was dying in front of him, and he couldn't do anything to help him. He'd never felt so helpless, so weak.

Just then, two Healers rushed into the lobby, a man and a woman. They took one look at Scorpius and the man cast a series of quick spells at his chest that must have allowed his airway to open up, because Scorpius suddenly sucked in a huge, gasping breath, tears slipping down into his hair. His breathing was still ragged, but he was breathing, his lips returning to a normal color, thank fucking God.

Harry heard another sob rip out of him, and he clung to Scorpius' hand, unable to let go. No one asked him to.

The female Healer conjured up what looked like a cot with rails and wheels, and directed the Mediwitch to lay him down on it.

"Are you his guardian?" She asked him calmly, and Harry nodded, unable to take his eyes off Scorpius, barely able to think.

"Wait, no, I'm not- Draco..." he choked out, feeling sick.

"Grab on, love," she said softly, gesturing to the cot, and he blindly reached out for one of the rails, gasping as they were Apparated to a different part of the hospital, an empty room.

"If you could step back for a moment, please, Mr. Potter," the man said, just as calm as the woman was. How were they so bloody calm? At Harry's wild look, the man softened even more, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Just for a moment, Healer Swynford and I just need to get him onto the bed and assess his condition. You're too worked up, and your magic could interfere with the readings if you're too close to him. I can feel it from here. He's going to be fine. You don't have to go far," he assured Harry, voice steady and soothing.

He's going to be fine. He clung to that hope and told Scorpius he'd be right back and did as directed, but the second he did, Scorpius panicked, letting out heartbreaking little cries of protest as his hands frantically reached for Harry again. He couldn't go back over yet, though, he had to let them treat him so he'd be alright. Harry covered his mouth with both hands to stop Scorpius from hearing his cries until the Healers beckoned him back over. It had probably been two minutes at most, but it had felt like an eternity.

He ran back over to him, scooping up his hands. "Shh, it's alright, baby, I'm right here. I didn't leave you," he murmured, pushing Scorpius' hair back. Scorpius quieted when Harry was back in his sight, though his breathing was still far too labored for Harry's liking.

God, he looked so small, too tiny in that big bed with Healers hovering over him. Harry hated it.

The two Healers were talking quickly, using words Harry didn't understand aside from anaphylaxis, and the male quickly left the room, returning with several potions.

"We've already given him a bit of Calming Draught to calm him down," he explained, uncorking the first bottle. "Hey, little man, do you think you can drink this down for me?" The Healer asked, and Scorpius blinked slowly up at him but did as he asked, drinking down three more vials after the first.

"Good lad," the Healer said, grinning, and Harry watched as Scorpius' eyes fluttered shut, his small body clearly exhausted by what had just happened. Harry stroked the back of his hand as his breathing evened out, finally, finally losing that harsh, ragged quality.

Harry looked up at the man with pleading eyes, desperate to hear that he was going to be okay.

"I have paperwork to fill out for him, but you can relax. He's going to be just fine. You did a good job, getting him here as quickly as you did," the man assured him.

Upon hearing that, Harry closed his eyes, swallowing back another sob. "Thank fuck. Thank God. Thank you," he babbled, but his chest was still tight, and suddenly he remembered. "Oh, my God, his father! Draco. Draco Malfoy, he works here. He should already be here, what's wrong with me? He's interning in Creature Induced Injuries. Oh, God, it's his first day, and I-"

"Saved his son's life," Healer Swynford cut in, pulling out her wand and sending off some kind of signal, and the male Healer told him goodbye, then slipped out of the room.

Fuck, this was all his fault.

Draco was going to hate him. Scorpius was going to hate him.

Harry had almost killed him, because he was careless and lazy. He should have asked, should have made sure there were no other ingredients in the damn thing. Him and his bright ideas. He thought it would be fun, letting Scorp try something new, and it had almost...

Fuck.

Harry didn't protect him. He'd promised Draco he'd always protect his son, that he'd never let anything happen to him, and look what he'd done.

Draco should hate him. Should fire Harry on the spot, break up with him, probably hex him. He didn't deserve to even be in this room, but he couldn't leave him here alone, he couldn't.

He was ripped out of his hateful thoughts by a tiny little Mediwitch with short curls popping into the room, doing a double take when she saw Harry.

"Marianne, will you please alert a Draco Malfoy up on your ward that his son is here? Let him know that..." she glanced at Harry agian, eyebrows raised in question.

"Oh, um. The nanny. I'm just the nanny," he stuttered quietly, feeling sick to his stomach.

"The nanny is with him. Don't scare him, but do have him come quickly."

The Mediwitch went to fetch Draco, and Healer Swynford left him alone after that with a pat on the shoulder, assuring him she'd be back when Draco arrived.

Harry sat in an empty chair, pulling it close to Scorpius' bedside, taking his small hand in his. The painful looking hives were beginning to fade, and his breathing was soft and even, face a normal color. Harry gently wiped the dried tear tracks from his sweet face, but he couldn't stop watching his chest rise and fall, an assurance that he was okay, that he was alive.

An elderly Mediwizard stopped in to scan Scorpius for just a moment before stepping back out, and less than two minutes later the door to the room burst open. Harry snapped his head up to see a frantic looking Draco rush in, his face etched in distress and fear. Harry's stomach lurched. It was his fault that Draco was going through this, and on his first day in his new ward, too. This was the last thing he ever needed. Harry had almost killed his son.

"What happened?" Draco asked frantically, rushing over to his son, hands fluttering all over his body like he was afraid to touch him. Harry's gut twisted even more.

"I- he-" Harry's breath hitched, and he covered his mouth as a sob escaped him, guilt practically suffocating him. "He's okay. Allergic reaction. I took him to get a smoothie... it didn't say... I brought him in as soon as I could. I'm sorry-"

He saw Draco close his eyes, taking in a shaky breath as he attempted to calm himself before examining his son. Harry wanted to disappear into the floor. He inched towards the door, struggling to decide if he should just leave now or wait to be kicked out, but he didn't get a chance to decide.

Healer Swynford came bustling into the room again, smiling brightly when she spotted Draco, and Harry froze. "Oh good, you're here. I'm Healer Swynford. The little man gave this one quite the scare, he did," she said amusedly, gesturing to Harry. None of this was funny, though. How was she being so lighthearted, when his entire world was getting ready to fall apart?

"How bad was it?" Draco asked, picking up his son's hand and stroking it soothingly.

"It could have been much worse," she told him. "He was in anaphylaxis, but the airway hadn't been entirely restricted. He's going to be perfectly fine. He was brought in quickly enough, and we were able to treat him without any issues, but we did give him a bit of Calming Draught as he was quite distraught, but he's not under any type of Sleeping Draught, and he should wake up any time. I would like to keep him overnight, just to be safe, but he was very brave," she said proudly, looking at the little boy fondly.

"Thank you," Draco said earnestly. He talked to the Healer for a bit longer, and Harry edged farther and farther away from them, closer to the door. They deserved privacy, this wasn't any of his business, he shouldn't even be here. He tugged at his hair anxiously as Healer Swynford slipped back out of the room, barely even registering that he was doing it or how hard he was pulling.

"Harry?" Draco's soft voice called out to him.

Harry met his gaze, and his eyes were so gentle, and Harry just... he broke; the tears he'd been holding back since the smoothie shop all coming out at once, guilt and fear clawing at his throat.

"I- I'm so sorry," he cried, chest heaving. "Fuck, I'm sorry. I should have been more careful, what if he had-" Harry choked, crying even harder now. God, he couldn't say it out loud. "You should fire me, leave me. I didn't protect him. I didn't-"

He was too much of a mess to continue. He couldn't speak. He flinched when he felt familiar arms wrap around him, holding him close, rubbing his back and running through his hair. Soothing gestures he didn't deserve. He hated it. Harry held his body stiff, not hugging him back. He didn't deserve comfort.

"Shh," Draco whispered soothingly, pressing soft kisses to the top of Harry's head. "Sweetheart, you did protect him. You brought him here to get help right away, and because of that, he's alright. I promise; he's going to be just fine. You did everything right, darling. It's was just an accident. I don't blame you at all, and neither will he."

You did everything right.

Another sob was wrenched out of him, and he finally sagged against Draco, his hands clenching tightly in the back of his robes. Draco didn't hate him. He didn't even blame him. He should, though.

Draco let Harry cling to him until he was able to get himself under control and he pulled away, wiping his face.

"I'm sorry," he rasped, voice cracking. "I had to get an anniversary present for Ron and Hermione, and we passed a new smoothie shop. I thought it would fun for him after being so good while we shopped. I swear, I checked the ingredients, and banana wasn't on the list at all. I should have asked anyway. When I confronted the girl who was working, she said it was part of the base. I kind of yelled at her, but I ran out in a panic when he started to choke. I should have brought him in sooner, but I was so frazzled..."

"Harry, I'm not upset with you," Draco told him firmly, tilting his chin up so Harry had no choice but to look at his face. "I promise. This wasn't your fault. I will be having a word with that establishment, though, it's unacceptable not to have every ingredient listed, especially one that's a known allergen."

"I told them I'd be back," he shrugged helplessly. "Plan on telling them off for it."

Oh, did he plan on telling them off. That was an understatement.

"Papa?" Scorpius' little voice floated over, and Harry froze.

Draco rushed back to him. "I'm here, love. You had a big scare, huh?"

Scorpius nodded. "Yeah. My throat was itchy. I didn't like that drink."

Draco huffed out a quiet laugh. "I imagine not."

"Where's Harry?" He asked, craning his neck to look for him, and Harry's heart clenched painfully. How could he still be asking for him? "He didn't leave me, did he?"

"He's here," Draco said, turning to lift an eyebrow at Harry, as if to say I told you so.

He didn't hate him, either.

Relief flooded him, and he slowly made his way over to the bed.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" He asked softly.

"Lonely," Scorpius pouted. "Will you cuddle with me?"

"Of course I will," Harry whispered, heart melting. How could he possibly deny him anything? He sat on the opposite side of the bed and wrapped his arms around Scorpius when he snuggled up close to him, hugging him tightly.

Harry let his eyes fell shut, and he released a shaky breath.

He was okay. They were okay. They were all going to be okay.

*

"But I want to go home! I'm not sick!" Scorpius protested, on the verge of tears.

They'd just told him he wasn't allowed to go home tonight, and he was not happy about it, at all.

"I know you're not, love, but you were, and we need to make sure you're alright. Your Healer is very nice," Draco was trying to calm him down.

"I don't want her, I want you," he cried, hugging Draco, and well, Harry couldn't really blame him for that.

Draco just hugged him back. "I'm right here. I'm not leaving you, alright? I'll stay with you."

"I want Harry to stay, too," he whined.

Harry's eyebrows inched up; still surprised Scorpius wanted him around like this after what happened. "If your papa and the Healer say it's okay, I'll be happy to stay," Harry assured him.

Scorpius sniffled. "Can I still have my party? I'm turning five in three days," he pouted.

Oh. No wonder he was so upset. Did he think they'd actually cancel his party? They may move it back, but they'd never just cancel it. Harry had already RSVP's from almost every kid in playgroup, the party was happening.

"We have no intention of canceling your party, love, I promise," Draco assured him, and he relaxed.

"Good. I would be very sad," Scorpius said seriously with a nod.

Draco laughed, then got up, straightening his robes. "I'll be back shortly," he said to Harry.

Wait, what?

He was leaving? He couldn't leave! What if Harry did something else to hurt Scorpius on accident? He didn't trust himself anymore. Draco shouldn't, either. He was irresponsible.

"Where are you going?" Harry asked urgently.

Draco lifted an eyebrow at him in question. "To go get coffee, then find the Healer and get permission for you to stay?"

"Ah. Well, why don't I do that, and you can stay here," he said nervously.

Please stay here.

Draco blinked at him. "Scorpius, Harry will be back in just a moment," he said, and pulled Harry out into the corridor before he could protest, shutting the door behind them.

"Harry, are you afraid to be alone with him?" he asked, voice far too gentle.

Harry startled, not expecting to be called out like that. His non-response must have been enough of an answer, though, because Draco just softened even more.

"You know I still trust you, right, darling? You're still perfect with him, and you're not going to let anything happen to him. If I thought for even a moment that he wasn’t safe with you, or that you weren't completely trustworthy and responsible, I wouldn't leave you here with him, okay?"

He meant it. Harry could see it written all over his face. He trusted Harry. He knew Harry wouldn't hurt him. He needed to trust himself.

"Okay," he relented. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Draco told him firmly. "I understand, I really do. It's alright."

"Thank you," Harry whispered. "I'm still just so freaked out. I was convinced you were both going to hate me. It was all I could think about once I knew he was alright."

"We could never hate you," Draco said, tipping his chin up to kiss him softly, and Harry gasped, pulling back sharply, eyes darting around. What if someone had seen that? They were at Draco's work! Being seen like that with Harry would just make his life here harder.

"Stop that," Draco scolded him, drawing Harry's attention back to him. "I told you; I don't want to hide. We'll tell Scorpius soon, but until then, I don't care if anyone, not even my colleagues, sees me kiss my boyfriend."

Oh. He actually meant that? He didn't think Harry was a deterrent to his job?

Why was that so hard for him to just believe? Draco had shown him over and over that he didn't want them to hide their relationship, that he wasn’t ashamed of him or inconvenienced by him, why couldn’t he just believe it? Maybe it was just residual fear from always being treated like a secret or a burden. He didn't know why he always jumped to the worst possible scenario, he just knew he couldn't help it.

Harry allowed himself to relax. "Okay. You're right. I'm being silly."

"No, you're not," Draco disputed. "You're just rattled. It's okay. Now, are you alright to go back in there before he thinks we abandoned him?"

Oh, God!

Harry turned and rushed back into the room, and Scorpius smiled when he saw him. He went back to lay down with the small boy, cuddling him close again.

"Will you read me a story?" he asked, pouting.

"I didn't bring any books with me," Harry said, disappointed. He should definitely start carrying some with them, just in case.

"Can't you make one up?"

Harry grinned. That, he could definitely do.

He told Scorpius about his first time riding Buckbeak, and his time in Third Year when they went back in time to save him. He told him about the Chamber of Secrets and the Triwizard Tournament and all of his favorite things about Hogwarts, obviously leaving out the parts about Voldemort and Wormtail, just leaving in the fantastical parts.

Draco returned at some point with tea and hot chocolate, and he settled in the bed with them, listening to Harry with fascination until he, too, fell asleep.

*

Harry woke up the next morning before Scorpius, but Draco wasn't there. He frowned, but quickly spotted a note on his pillow.

Darling,

Went to speak to my Lead Healer about my shift today. Be back shortly.

I love you.

DM

P.S. You’re lovely when you’re asleep, even though you snore.

Harry grinned, slipping the note into his pocket. Now he had one of his own to keep.

He didn't bother waking Scorpius, figuring he needed the extra sleep after what he went through, but he did order up some breakfast.

To his surprise, Healer Swynford carried in the tray a few minutes later, waking Scorpius. 

"Good morning!" she greeted them cheerfully.

"Morning," Scorpius groaned, rubbing his eyes and stretching. He really did look so much better today, not a trace of hives remaining.

"Good morning," Harry greeted her.

"Let's see how you're doing today, shall we?" she said, pushing up her sleeves and having Scorpius sit up for her.

Harry automatically got up to move across the room like yesterday, but she stopped him. "You can stay, love. Your magic is fine now. You were just upset," she explained.

"Oh," he said dumbly, but did stay put while she scanned over Scorpius, carefully checking the skin around his throat and mouth.

He had no idea that other people could feel his magic when he got worked up. That was actually really embarrassing. Thank goodness it didn't happen often. Why had no one ever told him this? He probably should have known about it in hindsight, what with how he tended to explode lightbulbs when he was angry and all.

"You look perfect!" she declared, and Scorpius cheered. "I'd say we can get you out of here before supper today, how does that sound?"

"Thank goodness," Scorpius said dramatically. "I turn five in two days."

She laughed, and so did Harry, and he followed her to the door.

"Thank you so much for helping him," he said earnestly. "And the other Healer. I never caught his name. But don't you need to wait and talk to Draco? He'll be back soon; he just went down to check in with his Lead Healer."

"You got him here quickly, so it was very simple to heal him up. You did a great job. And don't worry, I only needed to speak to a guardian. He'll be fine to leave," she dismissed.

"What? I'm just his nanny, though," Harry argued.

She arched an eyebrow at him, flipping through Scorpius' chart. "Nope. Here you are, 'Harry Potter - guardian, next of kin, emergency contact'. That's you, is it not?" she asked, eyes flicking up to his forehead.

Harry was dumbfounded. "I- why am I listed?"

"I would assume because Mr. Malfoy listed you," she smirked.

"Oh."

"Like I said, before supper," she told him, shooting him a wink and a pat on the shoulder before disappearing down the hall. 

What the fuck.

When had Draco added him to their medical forms? Emergency contact he could understand, since he was there all the time and they were close to him, but guardian? Next of kin?

His heart swooped wildly. Draco considered him family. Indisputably. Holy shit. He bit back a grin and turned to Scorpius, joining him to eat until Draco returned. He didn't need to know that Harry knew. It was enough already.

He did eventually return, poking his head into the room, but not coming in.

"Harry, can I have a word?" he asked abruptly, startling Harry.

That- he looked stressed. What had happened?

"Hurry up, papa! I want to go home. Healer said I can go home before supper!" Scorpius said happily.

"I'll be quick," Draco promised. "Harry?"

Harry climbed off the bed and joined Draco in the corridor, but before he could even open his mouth to ask what was wrong, Draco was on him, grasping his face with both hands as he sucked searing kisses to his lips. Harry gasped in shock, and Draco took the opportunity to slip his tongue into Harry's mouth, kissing him far too long and inappropriately for his place of work, but it was so wonderful it made Harry's knees weak.

"What was that for?" Harry asked dazedly, touching his lips when Draco finally broke the kiss.

"I'll tell you later. Just... thank you for being you," Draco told him earnestly, and his eyes were full of so much love and adoration it made Harry's breath hitch. He smiled, a bit confused, but he was too pleased to bother questioning him further.

*

They did finally get to leave the hospital before supper, as promised, but after feeding them both, he had to go home. He still had so much to do for the party, and he needed to go back to the smoothie shop. He'd had a day to calm down, but he was still furious about it. That whole experience was completely avoidable, and they were lucky he was a wizard, or he actually would sue them for negligence.

He Apparated to the same spot they'd gone to yesterday and walked until he came to the shop. It was far less busy, considering the later hour, but the same girl was working. She froze when she saw him, eyes going wide. He waited until she finished with her customer, then approached, trying to keep the rage he still felt off of his face.

She was just a teenager, just a kid who worked here; it wasn't really her fault, and she looked mildly traumatized from how he yelled at her yesterday, if the way she flinched when he approached was any indication.

He didn't get to say anything before she was crouching down, digging something out from under the counter. When she straightened up, she meekly handed him his coat and shopping bags from yesterday. He hadn't even realized he'd forgotten them. Most of it could be replaced, but the tickets couldn't be, it was already almost sold out, and he'd gotten the last decent seats they had.

"Oh. Thank you," he said, taking his things.

She whispered something to her coworker who disappeared into the back before turning her full attention to him.

"Is he alright?" she asked in a small voice, and now he actually did feel bad that he'd frightened her so badly.

The young boy returned before he could answer her with a much older man who was a bit round about the middle and looked to be quite disgruntled and sweating a bit. Harry frowned, but the man shooed the boy away before heading towards Harry.

"Hello, I'm the owner of Juicebaby," he said, holding his hand out to Harry, "and can I just start off by apologizing for the unfortunate mishap that occurred yesterday."

Harry ignored him, turning back to the girl who was watching him with wide eyes. He softened his voice when he spoke to her.

"He's going to be fine, luckily. I'm sorry if I scared you yesterday; I was panicking. I know it wasn't your fault," he said, then turned to the man, face hardening, "but it was yours," he bit out. "What the hell are you doing, not having allergens listed clearly? That's the law, you know, and I will be reporting it."

The man looked startled. "Now, now, let's not be hasty! It was simply an accident-"

"An accident? No. It was neglect. I check and double check ingredients everywhere we go. You are required by law to have a full ingredient list and an allergen warning in plain sight."

"We do have them on the menu," he argued. "You should have asked. We aren't responsible-"

"Yes, you are," Harry hissed, slamming his hand on the counter, getting angrier by the second. "Do you see where bananas are listed up there?" Harry snapped, pointing to the board, while the man sputtered. "Because I do, plain as day under two of your twelve flavors. Why would they be listed for some items and not others? Logic would say it's because they're not in the rest of your items. If they're part of the base, it should be listed! Where's the allergen warning? I don't see one anywhere, for anything. Not for nuts, or dairy, or soy, nothing. Don't you dare try to spin it around on me when you aren't following the law!"

The glass display next to him rattled a bit, and he took a deep breath. He needed to calm down, but this man was horrible. "That kid is my entire life and he could have died, and all you seem to care about is shifting blame. You're disgusting."

"That's not true!" the man cried. "Of course I care that he's alright! It's tragic what happened."

"Then fix your bloody signs," Harry said icily. "If you fix them within the week, I won't report you, and I won't sue you for everything you're worth."

He nodded frantically, probably just relieved he wouldn't get in trouble with the law.

Harry couldn't exactly do much legally anyway, he didn't have any muggle identification, no real address, job, National Insurance Number… nothing to make him a real person in the muggle world. But he could scare this arsehole into compliance.

"I'll be back in a week," he said cooly, then turned back to the girl. "Thank you for saving my things."

She nodded, giving him a small smile, and he left.

Okay. Now that that was handled, on to party planning. Harry had fully booked a bowling alley for the party, thinking the kids would enjoy getting to experience something they'd most likely never done before. He’d made sure to pay extra to have the whole building, too; with so many kids running around, accidental magic could happen at any time, and he didn't want to take any chances.

He Apparated to Diagon Alley to shop for supplies. He had a cake and a ton of food to make, and only two days to get it done. He was definitely going to need some magic to manage this.

On his way out of the shops, Harry passed the Magical Menagerie and had to do a double take, eyes stuck on the display.

Oh, my God.

There, in the windows, was a tiny, long-haired black kitten with the brightest blue eyes he’d ever seen, sitting primly with its tail curled around its little paws, just staring at him. Those eyes were gorgeous, they almost looked like they were glowing, staring into his soul.

He had to have her.

Or more accurately, Scorpius had to have her. Harry had already gotten him a gift, but he could put it back for Christmas. This... this was his gift.

Harry hiked up his shopping bags and went inside, purchasing her quickly, with little fanfare, and left the shop even more loaded down with a cat carrier, food, bowls, a few toys, and the sweet little kitten.

He prayed Draco wouldn't be too angry, and Apparated home, dropping his bags in the kitchen and immediately taking the kitten out of her carrier, holding her up to his face.

"Oh, my goodness, you are so pretty," Harry breathed, rubbing his face against her silky soft fur. She instantly started purring and rubbed back against him. He wanted to snuggle her forever, but he had so much work to do. "Scorp is going to go crazy for you. Want to keep me company while I work?"

She gave the smallest meow, like she was answering him, and he reluctantly set her down. She curled around his feet while he worked, getting the cakes in the oven first thing before starting in on some of the other food.

Kreacher stopped in to help him, sneering at the small kitten.

"Be nice," Harry scolded him. "She's only here for a couple of days."

"Whatever Master says," Kreacher sassed, and Harry smirked at him. He seemed happy enough, though, helping Harry work his way through some of the food until he was so exhausted he couldn't keep his eyes open. He'd made good progress, though, so he allowed himself to scoop up the kitten and fall into bed with her, falling asleep before his head even hit the pillow.

*

Harry went back early the next day, kissing Draco awake and letting him know he'd taken care of the smoothie shop owner, which seemed to satisfy him, then spent most of the day teaching Scorpius addition and subtraction using blueberries. He was actually really good at it, picking it up straight away. Harry was so impressed with him. So bloody smart, just like his papa.

When Draco got home, he popped in on them working in the kitchen. "Well doesn't this look fun," he said, examining the blueberries.

"Papa, hi! I turn five in one day! That's tomorrow!" Scorpius said excitedly.

"That's right, love. What are you two doing with those berries?"

"Harry is teaching me maths," he said proudly. "Adding and take-aways. It's hard, but he says I'm really good at it!"

"You are good at it, buddy. Want to show your papa?" Harry asked, and Scorpius nodded.

"Okay. If you have six blueberries," Harry said, placing them in front of Scorpius, "and I give you four more," Harry placed four more in front of him in a separate pile, "how many do you have all together?"

Scorpius carefully sorted through the smaller pile, counting each one under his breath. "Seven, eight, nine, ten. Ten! I have ten!"

"That's right! Now, what if I take five of those away," he said, taking five of the blueberries. "How many do you have now?"

Scorpius held ten little fingers up in front of him, counting backwards and lowering one finger for each number. "Five! Like me! I'm five!"

"Not yet, you're not," Draco laughed, "but love, that's incredible! You're so smart."

"Harry's a good teacher. He should teach at Hogwarts!"

Harry burst out laughing. "I don't think so, Scorp. Besides, if I did that, I wouldn't be able to play with you every day anymore."

Scorpius gasped, offended. "Never mind! Only teach me. You're mine," he said, hugging Harry tightly.

You're mine.

Warmth spread through Harry as he hugged the little boy back.

Yeah, buddy, I'm yours. And you're mine.

*

Harry had gone home again last night after supper to finish up his prep for the party and make sure the kitten was okay, but now everything was ready, and today was Scorpius' birthday. He couldn't wait for him to see the cake Harry made for him. That had certainly been a labor of love, emphasis on the labor.

Harry arrived back at Draco’s early to make Scorpius a special birthday breakfast, and he was happily munching away when Draco made his way downstairs.

"Papa!" Scorpius screamed when he saw his dad, jumping up to cling to him. "I'm five, I'm five! It's my birthday! I have my party today!"

Draco laughed, leaning down to kiss him on the cheek. "Happy birthday, love. Hope you're all ready to have fun today."

"Yup! And I have my clothes all ready for my party!"

"Even your shoes?" Draco asked, lifting an eyebrow. They'd helped him lay out his party clothes last night, and Draco knew good and well that they hadn't set out shoes.

Scorpius gasped. "Darn! I forgot," he said, then zoomed off to his bedroom.

"Good morning, darling," Draco greeted Harry, pulling him in for a kiss of his own, then looked over the massive amount of food Harry had made. "This looks amazing."

Harry shrugged. "Figured he deserved a special birthday breakfast. I even got sprinkles," he said, shaking the small bottle of rainbow sprinkles he'd added to Scorpius' pancakes.

"You'll definitely be his favorite today," Draco chuckled, sitting down on one of the stools. "Come eat with me, love, he'll be back any second."

Harry smiled, taking the seat next to Draco, and sure enough, Scorpius zoomed back into the kitchen shortly after, declaring his task complete.

When they finished eating, Draco and Scorpius went upstairs to get dressed. The party started at two o'clock, and they needed to get to the bowling alley to set it up. There was still so much to do. He couldn't wait.

When they arrived, they asked Scorpius to wait on one of the benches while Harry and Draco went to speak to the owner.

"Mr. Potter! How good to see you again," Mr. Lowe, the owner, greeted in his loud American accent, grinning widely.

"Mr. Lowe, Good afternoon," Harry said pleasantly. "This is the birthday boy's father, Draco. Thank you so much again for allowing us to rent out the whole building for our event."

"Of course! No trouble at all. I appreciate the business. We'll have one worker in the back to control the pins, but other than that, you'll have complete privacy until six o'clock, as agreed. He's been directed not to disturb you, though, you won't even know he's here."

"That's perfect," Harry smiled. They'd prepared for that; they'd be casting a Notice Me Not spell around the main room, which should deter the teenage boy from checking in on them while they're here.

The owner chatted for a bit longer, then left them to it. Harry quickly went to work casting wards around the building that would only allow the people invited to enter, as well as Silencing and more Notice Me Not spells around the perimeter while Draco began conjuring up the decorations; all dragon themed, of course.

When Harry rejoined them, he grinned at what they'd done so far, and then set about summoning the food from Grimmauld. He'd spent ages making bite sized canapés and desserts, all with their own little dragon-themed labels, like deviled eggs, or Dragon Eggs, hearty chili in little cups that he’d called Dragon's Breath, and little spicy meatballs on toothpicks labeled as Fire Balls on serving platters.

He was quite pleased with how it had all turned out, very cute, but the cake… he was especially proud of that. He'd made an enormous, three-tiered cake covered in fondant and made to look like stone with a giant dragon covered in shimmering blue scales crawling up one side of the cake, tail curling around the base protectively.

He'd formed the body of the dragon from cereal and marshmallow treats and the face from modeling chocolate. He hadn't slept last night, instead spending hours carving and decorating it with modeling chocolate. He did use a bit of magic to stabilize the whole thing and make the scales shimmer, but most of it he’d done by hand.

Scorpius loved dragons, and he knew he was going to lose his mind when he saw it. Turning five was a big deal, after all, and this was his first party with friends.

Once it was all in place, Draco's jaw dropped in shock. "Harry! Where did all of this come from? You can't conjure food!"

"Of course not," Harry rolled his eyes fondly. "I worked on this last night. I just summoned it from Grimmauld."

"You made all of this?" Draco whispered, eyes roving over the massive variety of food, drinks, and treats he'd summoned, gaping at Harry until Scorpius ran up to them, jumping up and down excitedly.

"I love it, I love it, I love it!" Scorpius cried, throwing himself at Harry. "Papa, look at my cake! It's a dragon!"

"I can see that, love. Harry, that-, that's incredible. Holy shit," he said faintly, looking stunned.

"Papa, that's a bad word!"

"Sorry, love," Draco said absent-mindedly, his silver eyes darkening as he stared at Harry.

Harry flushed, biting his lip shyly. "I'm glad you both like it," he said, eyes on Draco.

It was worth every single second of work for them both to be this happy. So, so worth it.

Guests began arriving shortly after they finished decorating, and Draco greeted them while Harry gathered the children over by the lanes to teach them how to bowl. He'd invited everyone from playgroup to the party, as well as Draco's friends and parents, and Andromeda and Teddy.

He decided it would be too much for Draco to spring all the Weasley's on him at the party, so Harry planned to take Scorpius over to the Burrow tomorrow to celebrate with them while Draco was at work. He knew Molly was preparing a special meal for him, and she'd have a cake there as well.

"Alright!" Harry clapped, looking around the group of small children that were gathered around him. "All you have to do is take one of those balls," he said, pointing towards the rack of child-appropriate weighted bowling balls, "and roll it down these lanes. You just want to hit as many pins as you can. Rules! Rule one, don't throw the balls anywhere but down the lanes. They're heavy and they can hurt someone, alright?"

Twenty little heads nodded solemnly, and he grinned.

"Excellent! Rule two! Wait your turn. Only one person can throw at a time. And rule three is the most important one. Have fun!"

The kids cheered, clamoring to grab balls. "Wait, wait! You haven't seen the best part yet!" Harry said excitedly.

"Best part of what?" Draco asked, appearing out of nowhere.

Harry glanced over at him, then flipped a nearby switch that lit up a bunch of purple lights above them.

"That didn't do much, did it?" he asked, frowning in confusion.

Harry grinned, extinguishing the lights over the bowling section, leaving only the purple bulbs on over the lanes.

The whole bowling alley began to glow with fluorescent colors, lighting up any white or neon in the vicinity, causing Draco to gasp loudly and the children to all scream in delight, ooh-ing and ahh-ing over the changing colors and lit up pins and bowling balls.

"Blacklight bowling!" Harry announced. "Interesting now?"

"Yeah..." Draco said faintly, looking fascinated, no doubt trying to figure out how muggles managed to do that with light.

Harry and Draco watched the children bowl, all of them catching on to how it was done after Harry did a demonstration. He was terrible at bowling, but he didn't care; it was fun. His goal now was to get Draco in on the fun.

"Please, please, please?" Harry begged, putting on his best pout and holding up a ball under his chin until Draco caved.

"Fine! Merlin, Harry, stop with that face. It’s unfair," he grouched, but he was smiling.

Harry smirked and handed him his bowling ball, then watched in barely contained amusement as he threw it straight down the gutter. Harry snorted, covering his mouth with his hand, and Draco glared at him.

"That's alright, just try again," he said, handing him another ball.

Draco huffed, taking the ball, determination written all over his face. He crouched down, setting the ball in the middle of the lane, and gave it a push.

Oh, my God. What was that? It was going to take forever!

"Papa, it's going too slow!" Scorpius scolded, voicing Harry's thoughts.

“It’s not,” Draco said confidently.

"It is going quite slow. You need to put some force behind it," Harry said with a chuckle, but then watched, stunned, as the ball hit the front pin and knocked it over, which slowly caused all the rest to fall over, one by one until they were all laying on the floor. Draco stood up and smirked at Harry until he let out an incredulous bark of laughter.

"Only you, I swear," Harry said, shaking his head.

Draco wandered off back over to the adults, but Harry stayed with the kids for a while longer, enjoying being in their company and playing with them while he could. Eventually, his stomach started to growl, so he excused himself and made his way over to the crowd of adults, eyes seeking out Draco, who was standing a little away from the largest group of women, a look of pure annoyance on his face.

Oh, no.

Thinking he could distract him from whatever was irritating him, Harry approached him from behind.

"There you are," Harry murmured into his shoulder, accidentally startling Draco so badly he dropped his plate.

Well, that didn't work.

"Shit, sorry," Harry said apologetically, stooping to pick up the plate for him and quickly trashing it before getting him more food to replace what he had dropped.

"No harm done," Harry smiled at him, handing him the new plate, catching sight of Scorpius trying to reach the platter of little bacon wrapped sausages. "I'll be right back, don't disappear," he said quietly, ghosting his hand along Draco's waist out of sight before going to help Scorpius get some food. Once his plate was full, he ran back over to eat with his friends.

Harry smiled at them and grabbed his own plate, but on his way back to Draco, he found himself stopped by several of the mothers from playgroup, including quiet little Luca's embarrassingly aggressive mother, Maura.

Fucking hell.

Harry plastered a polite smile on his face as they practically cooed at him, standing far too close for comfort. Most of them were fine, just a bit excitable, but Maura...

Harry genuinely dreaded seeing her at playgroup. She was always pushy and clingy, far too touchy and almost shockingly forward. Even if he hadn't been completely arse over heels for Draco, he'd never go for someone like her. Shameless flirtation aside, she was a neglectful parent, showing little interest in her little boy, usually treating him as an annoyance to her. It broke Harry's heart, honestly, seeing his little face fall when she brushed him off. No wonder he was so shy.

Luca still hadn't fully come around to Scorpius, but he was getting better, at least on the weeks that Sam brought him to playgroup. When Maura was there, though, he pulled away even more, which really only made Scorpius even more determined to befriend the small boy. Harry was very proud of him for it, loving how sweet and caring he was. Maybe she'd notice how reserved her child was if she took her eyes off of Harry long enough to notice.

She was practically hanging off of him now, her hand gripping his forearm and she leaned in to whisper in his ear, and he tried not to cringe. "You look fantastic today, Harry," she murmured. "That color really brings out your eyes. And the food! Incredible. You're so talented."

"Thank you," he said politely, pulling slightly away from her. There was no bloody way he could do anything that might cause a scene in front of the children.

"How long did it all take you?" another woman asked.

"Oh, just a couple of days," he chuckled. I stayed up most of the night on the cake, but he loves dragons. I wanted it to be nice for him."

Maura laughed loudly. "Well, it's certainly impressive! Hopefully you’re being compensated well. You spoil the boy, you know. I'm sure there are more interesting things you could spend your evenings doing."

The smile was frozen on his face as a few others murmured their agreement, while a few others gave her weird looks, because, really, what the fuck kind of comment was that?

"Oh, this is delicious!" Maura moaned, not taking any notice of his stiff posture, taking a bite of the little sausages Scorpius had eaten earlier that he had labeled Dragon Tails. "You simply must try it!"

She held the piece she'd just bitten into up to his lips, red lipstick visible around where her mouth had touched, and he shook his head slowly, chuckling uncomfortably. "That's alright, Maura, I've got some of my own," he said, gesturing to his own plate that had a bit of everything on it. Also, ew.

They held him up for as long as he could stand, but he quickly became overwhelmed with the unwanted attention, his nerves on edge, and he was itching to get back to Draco, who was in deep conversation with Sam. He felt like a piece of meat thrown into a lion’s den standing here, and they looked to be having a much more pleasant time. He needed to get over there, now.

"If you'll excuse me, ladies, I need to go see if anyone else needs anything," he said, flashing them his most charming smile. A few of them sighed dreamily and he took the opportunity to slip away, noticing that Maura just followed him. He suppressed the urge to bang his head off the wall.

He sidled right up to Draco, practically gluing himself to the taller man's side, clutching at his sleeve where it couldn't be seen, just needing to ground himself slightly.

Draco looked down and smiled at him, immediately drawing him into the conversation. "Harry, Samantha was just telling me about the work she's doing with the War Victims. Have you heard? It's incredible."

Harry brightened at that. He truly loved hearing about the efforts people were still making for the victims, even seven years later, and he had no idea that Sam was working on such a thing. "I haven't! My best friend, Hermione, works with victims as well. What have you been working on? Perhaps you've heard of her program."

"Oh yes, Hermione Granger!" Sam said enthusiastically. "Her program is actually what inspired me to start doing more. So many people are still in need of help. My husband and I started a nursery of sorts. We had several greenhouses built on our property and we grow food to donate to victims who were displaced or lost everything in the war. It's been going quite well, we have plans to add an orchard in the summer."

"That was you? Hermione actually told me about it recently, said it was brilliant," Harry said, impressed. He couldn't believe that that had been Sam. What a small world.

Samantha flushed, pleased. "Thank you. It's hard work, but so worth it. My husband comes from old money, it seemed a waste not to contribute."

Maura snorted rudely, and they all turned to stare at her. "Anyone could do that, though," she shrugged. "It's not that special."

What the fuck? How dare she undermine someone else's efforts! He was absolutely shocked at her audacity, and Sam looked devastated. He had half a mind-

"Why don't you do it, then?" Draco said cooly, arching one perfect eyebrow at her.

"Excuse me?" she asked, offended.

"If anyone can do it, why don't you do it? What have you contributed to the victims? Surely you've done something; it's easy, after all," he challenged her primly.

She turned bright red, mumbling something under her breath about needing the loo, and slunk away.

Jesus. That was hot as fuck.

He needed to distract himself before he got hard at the party in front of nearly two dozen children.

Harry turned and smiled proudly at him, then glanced over at the kids before turning his attention back at Draco. "Are you ready to sing 'Happy Birthday'? The kids look like they're about done eating; we should cut the cake then let him do presents."

"Whatever you want, this is your show," Draco chuckled, and Harry beamed.

"Who's ready for cake?" Harry bellowed, walking over to the cake table.

About twenty little voices started running after him, screaming, "me, me, me!"

Harry arranged the candles so that when they were lit, it looked like the dragon was breathing fire and lit them, loving the little squeals of delight at the effect. He should have charmed the dragon to move. Draco joined him shortly after with Scorpius on his shoulders. "Here we go, birthday boy," Draco said, and Scorp giggled.

Everyone sang 'Happy Birthday,' loudly and off key, including Scorpius, and Draco crouched down so he could blow out the candles.

Harry began cutting the cake, laying slices out on paper plates for Draco to hand out, but Maura attached herself to his side, grabbing plates out of his hands to pass out instead, shooting him sappy looks.

He sighed internally. Well, whatever, as long as it got done, he supposed. But then Draco was there, inserting himself between Harry and Maura, irritation practically radiating off of him, but not at Harry.

"Thank you, but I can handle this," Draco said curtly when she opened her mouth to complain.

She crossed her arms, not budging, but Harry just began handing the plates to Draco instead, choosing to stay quiet, and she eventually gave up and walked away.

After the cake had been devoured, Scorpius surprisingly asked if they could bowl some more before opening his presents, to which Draco easily consented, and the kids all ran back to the lanes. Harry got them situated while Draco and Sam began tidying up. Harry joined them when he returned, but Maura chose to come back to help as well.

"Oh, Harry, let me help you with that," she said, snatching the stack of plates out of his hands and sending them to the bin with a flick of her wand.

"Thank you, but you're here as a guest. Please, go enjoy the party," Harry told her patiently.

Please, for the love of God, leave me alone.

"I don't mind helping. It will give us a chance to talk, alone," she purred, running her fingers down his arm, leaving them wrapped around his wrist. He felt trapped.

Harry chuckled uncomfortably, gently removing her hand from his wrist. "Maura, really-" he started, but she just moved in closer, walking her fingers up his chest, and he froze in alarm.

What the hell was she doing? There were kids here. His boyfriend was here!

"Oh, come on, Harry. I've seen you looking at me while we're at playgroup; there's no need to play coy with me," she said, grinning lasciviously.

He had no idea what she was talking about. He had never looked at her like anything. He barely looked at her at all, actually, and avoided her as much as possible. He had no interest in her. In fact, he had zero romantic desire for anyone who wasn't a 6'4" platinum blonde with a sassy mouth and a perfectly round arse. He was mortified.

He struggled to think of how to gently but firmly tell her that he was not interested in her without setting her off, but then Draco was there, wrapping a strong, comforting arm around Harry's waist and tugging him gently away from her wandering hands.

"Is everything alright, darling?" Draco asked, loud enough for everyone in the vicinity to hear him, his message clear.

It was an unmistakable claim, a territorial gesture. If it had been anyone else, Harry might have had alarm bells going off in his head, or been concerned at the very least, but it wasn't just anyone. It was Draco, and a warm feeling spread through his chest, followed by relief. Draco had smoothly saved him from a massively uncomfortable situation, without drawing more attention to it. How did he always manage to be so collected? Harry was so grateful to him.

Maura stiffened, a sharp gasp of shock flying past her cherry red lips.

"Everything is fine," Harry said shakily, leaning into Draco's side.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

He brought a hand up to caress Harry's cheek. "You already did so much work prepping for the party, I'll handle the tidying up. Why don't you go gather up the children for presents?" he suggested.

Harry nuzzled his face into Draco's hand for a moment, then nodded, trying to express his gratitude with a single look. "Thanks, darling."

He glanced back over his shoulder to catch Draco’s eye, but Draco’s gaze was locked on Maura, his face stoic, silver eyes absolutely glacial. He murmured something to her before she stormed off, looking offended, and Harry bit his lip, unable to stop himself from grinning widely as he made his way over to the kids.

"Is there a birthday boy here ready to open presents?" he called out enthusiastically.

"Me, me!" Scorpius shouted, running over to Harry and climbing up into his arms. "I want presents!"

Harry carried him over to the gift table, sitting him down on a chair that he'd pulled around to the front of the table so everyone could see him, and began handing him one gift at a time, making sure he thanked everyone who had brought him one.

When he got to his father's gift, Harry thought he would jump out of his skin.

"Papa, it's a broom!" he screeched, revealing the child sized broomstick. Not a toy; it was a real mini broomstick, small enough for a five-year-old. It was so cute.

Harry helped him mount it, then watched on fondly as he zoomed around the bowling alley for the rest of the party.

Harry had left his own gift at home, not wanting to bring a kitten to the bowling alley or around so many people in case she got scared. She was just for Scorp, and he should get to enjoy her on his own first. He couldn't wait to give her to him.

As long as Draco didn't kill him.

People slowly began filtering out once the presents had all been opened, thanking both of them for the lovely party.

Harry turned and observed the mess, feeling a mix of contentment and exhaustion, but his eyes caught on a small group of three little boys huddled together near Sam down by the lanes. Scorpius and Tommy were sitting next to Luca, who was crying, tears dripping down his little face. It was heart wrenching to see, and Harry didn't understand why he was crying. He looked like he'd had a great time today, actually running around and laughing with the other kids.

"Where's Luca's mum?" Harry asked Draco, who had his eyes locked on the boys. She should be the one consoling her son.

"She left while Scorpius was opening his gifts," Draco said irritably.

What?!

"And she just left him here?" Harry asked incredulously.

"It appears so," Draco said bitterly, walking over to where the children and Sam were gathered.

"Papa, Luca can't find his mummy," Scorpius told them, patting him on the back in comfort.

"We'll find her," Sam said firmly. "Boys, why don't the three of you start gathering up the bowling balls. Do you think you can get them all back on the racks for me?" They all looked at her with varying levels of disinterest, and she smirked. "Whoever puts the most away will win this Galleon," she said, pulling a single piece of gold out of her pocket.

They all lit up at that, bickering over who was going to win, and grossly overestimating what a single Galleon could buy them.

Sam turned to the two of them and sighed. "She didn't come back for him, I see."

"What are we going to do? I don't even know where they live," Harry said anxiously. How would he get him home? He couldn't believe that a parent would be so negligent as to just leave their child at a party with no way home, and not even tell the hosts that she was leaving. It was absurd.

"Oh, don't worry, I'll take him," Sam said. "His father's sister is married to my brother; that's how I know Maura. She's always been like this; you'd think she'd have outgrown it after having Luca or the divorce," she said, rolling her eyes. "I'll just take him home with me and call his dad, let him know what happened."

That's right. Of course Sam knew where he lived, they were family. That was probably why Maura had just taken off; she knew Sam would look out for him.

"Will he be alright?" Harry asked, glancing over to the boys.

"He'll be fine. Ryan, Luca's father, will pick him up later and handle her. Good for you, by the way," she said, grinning at Draco. "No one ever puts her in her place like that. I don't know how you stayed so calm with the way she was acting, but that was masterful."

Put her in her place? What had Draco done?

Sam got up and went over to the boys, gathering up Luca and Tommy to take them home, but Harry locked his eyes on Draco. "What did you say to her?"

"Not much," Draco shrugged. "Just told her that it was... uncivilized to present herself in such a manner while there were children present."

Harry arched a disbelieving eyebrow at him. "Is that all?"

"I may have added that she shouldn't touch things that don't belong to her. And called her a desperate floozy."

Harry burst out a laugh, warmth spreading though his chest. "Draco!"

"What? She was touching you. A lot," Draco pointed out, and Harry's heart flipped. He was jealous. Clear as day, it was all over his face. He was jealous that she had been hanging all over Harry. It made him feel a hell of a lot better about how jealous he had been of Theo.

"You were jealous."

"I was angry," Draco corrected. "You were clearly very uncomfortable. And I know you; you'd never say anything and cause a scene in front of all the children or do anything to ruin Scorpius' birthday, you'd rather just endure it. I wasn't going to let that happen."

Oh.

His heart flipped again, butterflies swirling in his stomach. How bloody sweet. Draco was looking out for Harry, again. Always so perceptive, always knowing when Harry needed him. He never hesitated to step in and say the things that Harry himself never could. He didn't care if he hurt someone's feelings, he only cared about Harry. It was exhilarating, knowing that his partner was always on his side, would always choose him. Harry had never experienced that, ever. He loved it.

Harry blinked, a little smile playing on his lips, then shook head fondly, giving Draco's hand a quick squeeze. "Thank you for defending my honor, baby."

"You're welcome."

"And you were totally jealous."

"...maybe."

*

They had cleaned up the bowling alley quickly, magicking everything easily back into place. Harry vanished the leftover food to their kitchen to put away when they got back, and Draco sent the gifts to the house as well and vanished the decorations.

"Hey, what did you get him, by the way? I didn't see him open yours, I must have missed it when I was talking to Red Lips."

Who? "Red Lips?"

"Luca's mum," he smirked, and Harry chuckled. Oh, my God.

"I didn't give it to him yet. Thought it might be overwhelming to give it to him here."

"Uh, okay?" Draco said skeptically, but didn’t ask what he meant by that.

The owner of the bowling alley came back right at six, and they all thanked him again, even Scorpius, and he gave Scorpius a bowling pin to take home. His face lit up like the sun, and he hugged the man before they left so he could lock up.

Draco Apparated them home from the closest Apparation point, and Scorpius began running in circles around the room, holding his bowling pin.

Harry quickly put up the food, then called Scorpius over to him, beyond ready to give him his gift.

"Scorp, come here."

Scorpius skipped over to him. "Did you have fun today?"

"It was the best birthday ever! Thank you for my party," he said, hugging Harry tightly.

"You're welcome, love. I'm glad you had fun. I have one more gift for you, though. Will you sit on the couch for me?"

Scorpius' eyes lit up at the promise of another gift, and he sat primly on the couch, bouncing a bit. "Very good. Now, I'll be right back, okay? I have to get it from Grimmauld."

Harry stepped through the Floo, quickly locating the kitty and scooping her up. He rubbed his face against her, pressing a quick kiss to her tiny nose and put her into the large box he had prepared for her. She would only be in there for a few minutes, it would be fine. He cast a Silencing Charm on the box in case she meowed, and paused before Flooing back ho- to Draco's.

Was this a bad idea? Maybe he shouldn't have gotten Scorpius a pet. He didn't ask permission, he didn't even know if Draco liked cats. He knew Scorp would love her, but... Harry wasn't his parent, no matter how much he felt like he was. He might have massively overstepped here.

Well. It was too late now, he supposed. If Draco was angry, which please, God, let him not be angry, Harry could just take her back home. Or Hermione would probably keep her. Something, so Scorp could still see her regularly.

Taking a calming breath, Harry stepped back through the Floo. Scorpius was still waiting on the couch, practically vibrating with excitement while Draco hovered nearby.

Harry set the box on Scorpius' lap and glanced nervously at Draco. "Okay, go ahead, buddy."

Scorpius lifted the lid off the box and peered inside. His jaw dropped immediately and he gasped loudly, then squealed, reaching in with both hands to pull out the kitten.

"Papa! Papa, lookie! It's a kitty! I have a kitty!" Scorpius squealed, shoving the kitten in his father's face. "Look at him, come see!"

Draco's face was doing something strange, like it couldn't decide which emotion to land on.

"She's a girl," Harry said softly, glancing back at Draco again, but he just raised his eyebrows, his face still unreadable. "Do you like her?"

"I love her! Thank you, Harry, thank you, thank you, thank you!" He jumped up and attached himself to Harry's legs, hugging him and the kitten at the same time, then he ran over to Draco, holding the kitten up to him. "Look at her, papa, isn't she cute? Hold her!"

Draco hesitated, then took the small, fluffy cat in his hands, bringing her up until they were eye level and stared at her impassively, examining her fuzzy little face. He moved her closer to his face, and she let out the tiniest meow before licking the tip of his nose.

It was adorable, and Harry desperately wished he’d had his camera on him.

Scorpius let out a peal of delighted laughter. "Papa, she likes you!"

He snapped his eyes down to his son, then handed him back his kitten hastily. Harry chewed on his lip, waiting for the lecture her knew he was going to get.

It didn't come.

"She needs a name," Draco told Scorpius softly.

"Fish!"

Harry suppressed a snort, but Draco blinked in confusion. "I'm sorry?"

"Fish, Fish!" Scorpius repeated.

"Scorpius," Draco said slowly, like he was concerned about his son's intelligence. "That's a cat, love, not a fish."

"Duh," Scorpius said, looking at Draco like he was daft, which... fair. Harry had no idea how he didn't get it. "Her name is Fish."

At the horrified look on Draco’s face, the snort escaped, and Harry quickly slapped a hand over his mouth, forcing his laughter back.

What an incredible name. Harry loved it.

"You want to name your cat Fish?" Draco asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Because cats like fish. If I call her something she likes, she'll like her name," he explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Er," he said, glancing back at Harry, who just shrugged helplessly, still trying not to laugh.

"Well then. Hello, Fish," Draco said resignedly. "Why don't you take Fish to your room and let her get situated? I'll be in to get you ready for bed soon."

"Can she sleep with me?" Scorpius asked, bottom lip jutting out.

"Of course she can," Draco said softly. Scorpius whooped loudly, running upstairs to his room with the kitten clutched in his arms, and Harry's heart leapt into his throat, but Draco corrected him before Harry could.

"Don't run! Be careful with her," Draco called to him, then turned back to Harry, waiting for an explanation.

"I- now, don't be angry, darling," he started nervously. "I know it was so presumptuous of me to do that, and I should have asked first, but I saw her and couldn't resist. She's so sweet. If you don't want her here, she can live at Grimmauld, and I can take care of her-"

"I'm not angry, darling."

Harry paused. "You're not?"

"Of course not," Draco said softly, pulling Harry into his arms. "You did something that you thought would make him happy, and it did. This whole day, all you've done is go out of your way to make him happy. I can never thank you enough for what you've done for him."

Oh, thank fuck. He'd worried for nothing.

"I was happy to do it," Harry said, hugging him back tightly. "I'm glad you're not upset."

"I'm never upset with you."

Harry smiled at that, heart pounding, and pulled Draco down for a kiss, licking eagerly into his mouth and he pressed his body in closer.

"Mmm. Been wanting to do that all day," Harry said, and Draco laughed.

"Me too, believe me."

"I am going to do unthinkably filthy things to you tonight, my love, but first we have to get the birthday boy to bed."

Draco groaned. "Alright, alright, responsibility first and what not. You're lucky I love you," he teased.

Oh, he knew. He absolutely knew. He was the luckiest man on the planet.

Harry grinned widely, dimple cratering in his cheek. "I know," he said softly. "I love you, too, you know. And Scorpius."

"And even our new pet cat named Fish," Draco added.

Harry's laughter reverberated around the room, and Draco grinned at him, his beautiful face lit up with joy.

Oh, he was lucky alright.

Harry hoped he was lucky enough to have this forever.

Notes:

This one was fun! The allergy scene was the first one I wrote for this story. Hopefully it was an interesting one!

As always, thank you so much for reading, and I love and appreciate any and all feedback. <3

Next up, Christmas!

Chapter 12: CHAPTER 11

Summary:

It's Christmasssss!

Notes:

Hello again! I am so terribly sorry it's taken me so long to upload! We ran into a bit of an unexpected financial disaster, and I've been working as much as possible to try and make up for what we lost, as well as prepping for my little one's fourth birthday this weekend. I should be back to a more stable upload schedule after her party on Sunday.
Thank you so much for your patience with this while I get it together.

"Are you ready to go see the Weasley's?" Harry asked, standing near the door with Ron and Hermione's anniversary gifts in his hands while Scorpius put his shoes on.

"Yeah! They didn't come to my party," he pouted, even though Harry had explained why to him about three hundred times already.

"Well, they just wanted to give you another party. You're special enough to get two," he joked, but Scorpius lit up.

"Ooo yay, another party! But wait! What about Fish? What will she do?"

"Cat things," Harry shrugged. "She'll probably just sleep. She has food and water and sunlight, she'll be just fine."

Scorpius bit his lip, then nodded. "Okay. I want to give Auntie 'Mione and Uncle Ron their present. But after the Burrow can we go see Dandy at Grammy and Grampy's? Please? Dandy always makes me chocolate crepes for my birthday. I want crepes."

"I don't see why not," Harry shrugged. The Malfoy's were always home, there was no reason why they couldn't stop by.

"Yay, thank you!" he reached his arms up so Harry could pick him up to Apparate them, then ran and knocked quite aggressively on the door until Molly opened it up for him.

"Hi, Mrs. Weasley!" he chirped, hugging her. "I missed you. I turned five yesterday! Are you gonna cel'brate with me?"

"Of course we are!" she said, squeezing him tightly. "We have a whole party for you inside, dear. Come in, come in. You too Harry."

Harry kissed her on the cheek as he entered the Burrow behind Scorpius, smiling at how he was already greeting everyone there with a hug. Arthur and Molly were there, as well as George, Percy, Ron, Hermione, and Neville. Ginny had practice, and Charlie and Bill obviously lived too far, but it was still a full house. 

Molly had hung up blue and green birthday decorations for him, and a wonderful smell was coming from the kitchen, making Harry's mouth water. He knew he was a good cook, but he was nothing compared to Molly Weasley.

Harry settled right in, watching Scorpius chatter away happily, sitting on Percy's lap, of all people. The first few times he'd met the little boy, he had been stiff and uncomfortable, but Scorp had worn him down, mainly by always asking Percy to explain his job to him. He seemed fascinated by his work in the Department of Magical Transportation. He apparently liked hearing about all the places Percy had to travel to, and Percy liked talking about himself. It worked out.

Ron and Neville came over to sit with him after a few minutes.

"How's he doing, Harry?" Neville asked, nodding to Scorpius, who was now standing on the sofa so he could get his face closer to Percy.

"Totally better," Harry said. He'd told them all about what had happened the day they came home from the hospital. "You'd never even know he was in the hospital. It was scary, though." Probably the worst scare of his life.

"I can’t imagine," Neville said, grimacing.

"Glad he's doing better, but damn, it's still so weird seeing him with Percy like that. I didn't think Percy actually liked anyone," Ron chuckled, sidling up to Harry after a bit.

"I know, it's bizarre," Harry laughed.

"So, how's the whole boyfriend thing going?" Neville asked quietly while Scorp was distracted.

"Amazing," Harry answered truthfully. "I never knew it could be like this."

Ron hummed. "How did it go yesterday? Was he weird around the other parents? I can't even imagine him in a bowling alley. He looks like a bowling pin, all tall and narrow."

"He does not, you wanker. He wasn't weird, though; at all, actually. I'm the one who tries to hold back in front of others for his sake, but he never lets me. Maura, you know, that pushy mum from playgroup? She was practically climbing up me yesterday, and he marched right over and pulled me away from her. Even called me 'darling'. It was so bloody smooth, and no one could have mistaken his meaning. Scorp could have seen, but he didn't seem to care at all."

He wished that Scorpius knew about them, but the right time to tell him would come.

"Wow," Ron said, looking surprised, then impressed. "How do you feel about that? You're okay with people knowing?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. I only worry about it being too much for him, because, well, you know. It’s me. But it's... Christ, Ron, it's just so nice," he said, biting his lip. "All I've ever really wanted was someone who was on my side, y'know? He's definitely that." And so, so much more.

"I'm really glad, Harry," he said quietly, blue eyes intense.

"I just hope it sticks," Harry said, looking down. Owen had been sweet in the beginning, too; granted, not to this degree, but still. He'd been fooled once, and he could only hope and pray that his intuition wasn't wrong this time.

"It better, for his sake. I don't want to have to kick his arse, but I will," Ron said, shocking a laugh out of Harry.

"It will," Neville said. "He still comes by to get Harry flowers about once a week, looking absolutely besotted. It's sweet."

Ron's eyebrows shot up, and Harry flushed, his smile growing slowly.

Draco did do that. He came home with sweet little gifts for Harry quite often, but mostly it was flowers. Harry absolutely loved it. Not that he needed money spent on him, that wasn't the point. It was the thought, the effort it took to go out of his way multiple times a week with Harry in mind, no matter how busy he was at work. He always made the time, and it mattered.

"Draco Malfoy, sweet," Ron said, shaking his head in disbelief. "Still can't get over that."

Neither can I, Harry thought. Best surprise of his life, that.

"Alright, you lot, time to eat," Molly called out from the kitchen, and everyone clambered to the kitchen, piling plates full of delicious food. Molly brought out the cake when they finished, and George let Scorpius sit on his shoulders while they sang 'Happy Birthday' to him.

Scorpius insisted that everyone get their cake before him, since he already had one birthday cake yesterday and he wanted to make sure everyone had some, and when it was time for presents, he ran back over to Harry.

"Harry! I need Auntie 'Mione and Uncle Ron's ann-versry gift!" He tried to whisper, but he was too excited to actually be any level of quiet.

Harry laughed, fetching the parcels to give him, and he ran back over to Ron and Hermione.

"Wait! I have presents first! Happy ann-versry!" he cried, handing them the gifts proudly. "Open Harry's first!"

Ron and Hermione both looked surprised, but accepted the gifts graciously. Hermione handed Ron the envelope with his name on it, and Ron exclaimed excitedly over the cheese of the month subscription Harry had ended up signing them up for, while Hermione rolled her eyes fondly. When she opened her envelope, though, she gasped so loudly she startled her husband, hand flying up to cover her mouth.

"Harry," She breathed, eyes locked on him, filling with tears. "The opera! Oh, and these seats! How did you-?"

He shrugged. "You've been talking about it for months. I know you wanted to go and that you'd never get the tickets for yourself."

She came over and hugged him tightly. "Thank you," she whispered, sniffing.

"Okay, mine now, please!" Scorpius demanded after a long moment. Hermione laughed wetly and returned to her seat, accepting the larger gift from him. She laughed in delight when she revealed the books, hugging him as well.

"Thank you so much, Scorpius. I don't own these yet."

"You like books and you like plays," he said seriously. "I picked it myself."

"And you did an excellent job," she said with a smile.

"What the hell is this?" Ron asked, holding up the puzzle, an incredulous look on his face.

"Ronald!"

"Bad word!" Scorpius cried. "It's a puzzle, silly. You have to put it together."

"But it's all blue!" he cried, and George and Harry burst out laughing.

"It's a prank," George cackled, snatching the box away from Ron to examine it, before laughing even harder. "He pranked you, little brother, for your anniversary! Good luck with that one! When can he come work for me, Harry?"

Scorpius lit up. "Can I?!"

"Absolutely not," Molly said firmly, but her eyes glinted with amusement.

"Darn," he whispered, pouting, then turned to Ron. "Do you love it, Uncle Ron?"

Ron blinked at him, then grinned, scooping him up to tickle him. "I reckon I do!"

"I'll make sure he puts it together, too," Hermione chimed in, winking at Harry, sending him into another fit of laughter.

By the time the party ended, Harry was full and happy. Scorpius had plenty of new gifts, and he'd thanked everyone half a dozen times.

Harry and Scorp said their goodbyes, giving out plenty of hugs, and Molly walked them to the door, pulling him into the tightest hug of all.

"You bring that boy of yours around, do you hear me? It's been far too long already. You tell him we've already taken in the little one, if that will make him feel better."

Harry smiled at her. "I'll at least bring him round for Christmas, yeah? It's not that he doesn't want to; it's his job, mostly. And the war, I think. I know he still feels uncomfortable, having the Mark, even if he doesn't outright say it."

"I assume you've told him we don't mind?" Harry nodded, and she set her jaw stubbornly. "Well, he'll just have to come see for himself, won't he? I need to meet the man who's making my son so happy."

He chuckled. "I'll see what I can do."

She softened, stroking his cheek. "It's so good to have you back, dear," she said. "I haven't seen you this happy in years. Maybe ever."

"I am happy," he said softly. "I'm so sorry I've worried you."

"Stop that this instant. It's a mother's job to worry, and it wasn't your fault. You didn't break your own heart, did you?"

He shook his head slowly.

"No, you didn't. But you're healing. These things take time. Be kind to yourself in the meantime, love. It's okay to still have broken parts, just don't let them take over the good parts of you, too."

Her hand was rubbing soothingly on his back, and he swallowed thickly. It felt good hearing that it was okay if he didn't have it all together, all the time. Draco told him that, and so did his friends, but it felt different coming from the woman he considered a mother for some reason. It felt like permission to not always have to be perfect.

"Thank you," he whispered, and she smiled warmly, kissing his cheek and disappearing back inside.

Harry glanced over to where Scorpius was talking into one of the gnome holes and smiled, feeling light, before walking over to him.

"You ready, buddy?"

"Yep!" Scorpius said, popping up. "I just had to say bye. They miss me when I leave."

Hufflepuff, honestly.

Harry Apparated them to the Manor, popping them up in front of the gates. Dandy popped up immediately, startling Harry.

"Dandy, hi! I came to see you for my birthday! Will you make me my favorite crepes? Puh-leaseee?" Scorpius begged him before he could even greet them.

Dandy blinked, then nodded. "Of course, little Master is always getting crepes for his birthday. Follow Dandy, please."

They followed him inside, and he started leading them to the dining room to wait, but Scorpius protested.

"Noooo, I want to watch you make them! Please, Dandy? Please, please, please?" He begged.

"If little Master wishes," the Elf relented after eyeing Scorpius' pouting face impassively.

"Yay! Thank you!"

They changed course, traveling down to the kitchens instead. Harry had seen them once before, on Draco's birthday, but he was still impressed by just how enormous the area was, but he supposed it made sense, considering the size of the Manor.

He watched the Elves whip up Scorpius' crepes, noticing how happy they all seemed, and when they sat down to eat, an idea struck him.

Kreacher. He could send Kreacher here. Draco paid his parents' House Elves; he'd told him that ages ago. They didn't get abused anymore, they were happy here. Maybe Kreacher could come live here instead of puttering around Grimmauld Place alone all the time. Narcissa was a Black, after all, he'd probably be beyond thrilled to work for her.

"Wait here, Scorp, I'll be right back," Harry said, waiting until the little boy nodded, happily shoving another bite into his mouth, then headed upstairs to hunt down Narcissa. He probably should have asked for help.

"Dandy?" Harry said hesitantly, not really expecting him to pop up, but half a moment later, he was there with a crack.

"Harry Potter is needing something?"

"Er, yes. Would you mind telling me where Mrs. Malfoy might be? I have a question for her."

"This way," he said, walking briskly towards the stairs, leading Harry up to the library, where both Narcissa and Lucius were seated on separate sofas, each reading a book.

They looked up when he entered the room, and he waved awkwardly. "Er, hello."

"Mr. Potter," Lucius greeted with a slight nod.

"Harry, dear, is everything alright?" Narcissa asked, setting her book aside.

"Everything is fine, Scorpius just wanted to come get his birthday crepes from Dandy; he's down in the kitchens. I actually had a favor to ask, if that's alright?"

Lucius frowned slightly, but Narcissa smiled at him. "Of course, what is it?"

"Er, I was wondering if I might send my House Elf, Kreacher, to come work for you, and possibly live at the Manor? I'm rarely home anymore, you see, and he's lonely. I'd pay him, of course, but I thought he might enjoy working for an actual, blood related Black rather than me anyway."

"Oh," she said, looking mildly surprised. "Of course, that's hardly a favor. We have several Elves here, but no shortage of work. You're more than welcome to bring him."

Harry grinned. "Excellent. Thank you so much. Do you mind if I go ask him if he'd like it? I can leave Scorp here and be right back with him if he wants to come."

Lucius' face soured at the nickname, but he nodded stiffly and stood up, waving Harry along. They walked downstairs with him, but branched off, presumably to go visit with Scorpius while Harry hurried to the Floo.

"Kreacher!" He called when he stepped through, and the Elf popped up next to him.

"Yes, Master," he greeted, bowing, but for once, Harry just ignored it instead of asking him to stop.

"Kreacher, how would you like to go work for the Malfoy's? You remember Narcissa Black?" Harry asked him.

Kreacher stilled. "Kreacher can go work for Miss Cissy? A member of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black?"

"If you'd be happy there, absolutely. I'm never here, and I don't need a House Elf, but the Malfoy's have agreed to let you come live with them if you'd like," Harry told him.

Kreacher's big eyes filled with tears, and he threw himself on the floor, sobbing for an uncomfortably long time, but Harry just let him be.

"Master is too kind to Kreacher," he sniffed when he got a hold of himself. "Kreacher cannot repay Master's kindness."

"I take it you'd like to go, then?" Harry chuckled. "You don't have to call me Master anymore, now, though."

"Kreacher will stay with Miss Cissy, but Kreacher is remaining loyal to Harry Potter. He is a benevolent Master."

"I don't mind if you'd rather belong to the Malfoy's, Kreacher. Their Elves get paid now. You'll get paid, too."

Kreacher looked horrified, pulling at his ears. "No, no, no, no, no, Kreacher is remaining loyal! I is not needing pay."

"Kreacher, stop hurting yourself," Harry said sternly, and he stopped, a sour look on his face.

"No pay," Kreacher said, stubbornly. "Kreacher will stay with Miss Cissy, and come back to clean the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black."

Harry huffed out an exasperated laugh. "Alright, then. Whatever makes you happy. We can go now, if you're ready."

Kreacher nodded, and Apparated them both to Malfoy Manor without wasting another second. They went down to the kitchens, where Scorpius was still chattering away to Dandy and his grandparents, but Kreacher interrupted them by sobbing again, throwing himself at Narcissa, bowing repeatedly.

"Kreacher! Don't be sad," Scorpius said, running over to hug the Elf. It startled Kreacher out of his hysterics for a moment, and he blinked at Scorpius before dissolving into more tears.

"Oh, dear," Narcissa laughed quietly. "You'd better run along or we'll be stuck here all evening," she told Harry in amusement. Lucius looked like he wanted to jump off of a cliff, and Narcissa tried to soothe Kreacher as Harry snuck Scorpius away.

*

Kreacher had settled in wonderfully at the Manor, and Harry was now staying at ho- at Draco's far more than he was staying at Grimmauld Place. Things were going well, for the most part, with one problem.

Something was definitely going on with Draco.

It was almost December, and Draco had been coming home later and later, looking more stressed every day. He wasn't eating again, but he hadn't mentioned anything going on at work, and Harry didn't know why. He knew Draco was private, that he didn't like talking about his problems or his feelings, but Harry was growing quite worried about him, and he wanted to try and cheer Draco up. What better way to do that than to bring Christmas home a little early? It was Harry's absolute favorite time of year, and he couldn't wait to get started.

When Draco left for work, Harry clapped his hands together once, spinning to Scorpius with a grin. "How would you like to go get a Christmas tree today?"

Scorpius' face lit up with excitement. "Yes, yes! Papa never gets the tree this early! He'll love it!"

Well, that was the hope, anyway. If Harry handled the decorating for him, it would be one less thing he'd have on his plate.

Harry got Scorpius bundled up and Apparated them to the little tree farm he always went to near Ron and Hermione's house, letting Scorpius run wild between the trees until he stopped in front of a beautiful, enormous tree. It was full and tall and fragrant, already smelling like Christmas when Harry stepped up to it.

"Scorp, it's perfect," he breathed. It was. Harry loved it immediately.

"It's the best one here," Scorpius nodded solemnly. "Papa will love it. He's not very good at picking out trees. They're never big enough."

Harry laughed, shooting up a quick signal for someone to come help them with the tree.

They purchased the tree, and Harry shrunk it down, carrying it in the small box the old wizard who owned the farm gave him, and Apparated them back to the house. Harry set the tree on the floor in front of the window, right where Scorp told him the tree always went, and cast Engorgio, watching anxiously as the tree grew, finally stopping when it was nearly brushing the ceiling. It took up most of the room, but it looked great.

"Do you know where papa keeps the decorations? We can get everything set up for him and make a fancy supper tonight to cheer him up, what do you think?"

"I think yes. Papa is sad, and grumpy. I don't like when he's sad," Scorpius said, looking rather sad himself. Okay, so it wasn’t just Harry who had noticed, then.

"Well, he'll have to be happy when he sees how hard you worked, right?"

"Right!"

Scorpius showed him a very small box of Christmas ornaments and decorations stuffed up on the highest shelf in his closet, neatly labeled 'Holiday Decor' in Draco's lovely, flowing script.

Harry opened it, thinking it must have an Undetectable Expansion Charm on it, but no. There was just hardly anything to pack away, just some ornaments, one branch of garland, two stockings, and a star for the top of the tree.

What the hell? Is this all Draco owned to decorate with? This wouldn't do at all!

"Okay, change of plans," Harry said. "First, we'll go by some more decorations and the food for supper, then we'll come decorate, yeah?"

Scorpius nodded, giggling, and they popped over to Diagon Alley, quickly purchasing the decor and food before heading back home, his pockets loaded down with shrunken down purchases. Harry may have gone a bit overboard, but it was going to look great.

Harry did manage to dig up a Christmas album of Draco's, and he put it on, both of them singing loudly as they decorated the house. They wrapped garlands around the fireplace and banisters and railings, and hung colorful fairy lights everywhere they could reach. Harry hung up the highest ornaments, laid down the tree skirt, and lifted Scorpius so he could put the star on top of the tree, then hung up the two stockings on either end of the fireplace. He didn't add one for himself, though, not wanting to be presumptuous. This wasn't really his house, even though he liked to pretend it was.

"Want to see the best part?" Harry asked Scorpius, waggling his eyebrows.

"There's more?" he asked, sounding awed.

Harry winked at him, then cast a fairly complicated spell at the ceiling, causing 'snow' to fall, disappearing before it touched anything. Harry stood back and studied his handiwork, then nodded.

"What do you think?" he asked Scorpius, who was staring at the snow.

"I love it!" he cried. "So pretty!"

"I think so too," Harry smiled. "Why don't you go put some of these leftover decorations up in your room, then you can come finish putting the ornaments on the tree. I have to start supper."

Scorpius agreed, dragging the mostly empty box up the stairs loudly, and Harry set to work in the kitchen, whipping up some beef wellingtons and popping them in the oven before he started in on peeling and boiling potatoes.

He worked happily, humming along with the music, dancing around the kitchen, tasting everything as he went. He'd just lifted a spoon filled with the sauce for the wellies to his mouth, when he heard an unexpected voice behind him.

"Darling?"

Harry startled, dropping his spoon and whirling around to face Draco, hand pressing to his racing heart. "Merlin, you scared me," he laughed, leaning up to kiss Draco quickly. "Welcome home."

"Mmm. What have you done to my home, darling?" Draco asked softly.

Harry grinned widely, flinging his arms out in excitement. "I decorated! It's almost December. I thought you could use some Christmas cheer with how hard you've been working. Do you like it?"

Harry saw the tension slowly seep out of Draco, and he softened, giving Harry that look that he loved so much, and his stomach flipped. "It looks lovely, darling. I love it. Why only two stockings, though?”

Harry shrugged. “Didn’t want to just assume.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, of course you should have one. You belong here, too. I’ll add it.”

You belong here.

Harry's heart flipped violently and he beamed, turning back to the stove. Draco hooked his chin over Harry's shoulder, examining the sauce he was stirring.

"That smells incredible. What are you making?"

Harry lifted the spoon to his mouth, letting him taste.

Draco moaned, licking a drop off his bottom lip. "Shit, that's delicious," Draco complimented.

Harry smiled shyly. "Thank you. I made beef wellington for supper. This is the demi-glace for it. It's like a red wine sauce."

Draco groaned again, trying to stick his finger in the pot, but Harry shooed him away. "Ah, ah! Hands off. It's almost ready. Why don't you go get Scorp washed up?"

"Fine, fine. You party pooper," Draco sniffed, and Harry barked out a laugh, shaking his head. Draco rubbed his nose behind Harry's ear, then tilted Harry's chin up so he could kiss him before he wandered off to find Scorpius.

Harry finished up the sauce and pulled the wellingtons out of the oven, letting them rest while he plated everything else and placed it on the table. When he finally sliced the meat open, he grinned, giving himself a mental pat on the back. They were perfect.

When Draco and Scorpius joined him at the table, Draco stared at the spread on the table, then slowly turned soft eyes to Harry.

"Harry," he said softly, reaching over to squeeze Harry's hand briefly. "Thank you."

Harry squeezed his hand back, happiness bubbling up in him. He didn't need thanks, truly he didn't, but it settled inside of him anyway, burrowing into his heart.

No, Harry thought. Thank you.

"You're welcome," is what he said instead.

*

It was time to talk.

Draco had been lying awake for hours while Harry hovered between sleep and consciousness, hyper aware of every shuddering breath, restless turn, or squirming wiggle Draco made. Waiting for Draco to come to him wasn't working. They were in a relationship now; he needed Draco to know that he could talk to Harry about anything. Harry wanted to know what was going on in his life, in his mind. He wanted to be there for him.

"What's bothering you, sweetheart?" he asked softly.

Draco jumped slightly, turning to face him, his silver eyes swimming with surprisingly unguarded emotion in the stillness of the night. "I'm sorry," Draco whispered, reaching up to brush gentle fingers through Harry's fringe, pushing it out of his eyes. "I didn't mean to disturb you. Go back to sleep, love."

"You can talk to me, you know," Harry told him, sliding closer until they were sharing a pillow. "It's okay if you don't want advice, or if you don't want me to say anything at all; I can just listen."

"It's not that," Draco said quietly.

"Then what is it?"

Draco hesitated, swallowing thickly. "I just- I'm ashamed."

"Ashamed? Of what?"

Draco remained silent, and Harry touched his cheek, fingers trailing down to trace his jaw, stroking the barely-there stubble that hadn't been shaved away yet as he waited patiently, and eventually, Draco finally opened up.

"One of the Healers at work is mistreating patients. I waited too long to report it, and my department head just told me today that not a single person backed me up. Now he thinks I lied. But I didn't. I saw it happen, on my first day," Draco revealed.

"I don't understand why it's being covered up by the Medi-staff, but it is, and there's nothing I can do about it. They're already leaving me high and dry with my own patients, like they're angry I dared to say anything at all. That's why I've been working over so much; I'm having to do basically everything by myself while also trying to make sure the patients are all safe, but he hasn't slipped up around me since. Not with patients, anyway. He's just such an arse."

Harry was flabbergasted. Why had he not mentioned this sooner? No wonder he was stressed out, this had to be eating him alive. And did he say that his coworker only hadn't slipped up with patients? What the hell did that mean?

"This has been happening since you switched rotations? Draco, why didn't you tell me? And what do you mean, he hasn’t just slipped up with patients?" Harry asked, a nagging feeling he didn't like one bit pulling at his chest.

Draco shrugged, avoiding eye contact. There was absolutely more to this story, but what he said next made Harry refocus his attention.

"I didn't want you to be disappointed in me," he whispered.

"Disap- sweetheart. Why would I be disappointed? This isn't your fault," Harry said emphatically.

"I should have reported it sooner. It took me almost two weeks to say anything," Draco said, sounding so guilty it made Harry's stomach twist.

"Yes, but you said it happened on your first day. That's the day Scorp was in the hospital. I think you can be forgiven for your mind being elsewhere," Harry said soothingly, rubbing comforting little circles on Draco's shoulder. "It was two weeks, not two years. What about everyone else? None of them said anything at all. At least you're trying, and you're just an intern. I'm proud of you, darling, not disappointed."

Draco remained silent.

"Isn't there anything you can do? Try to catch it? Set him up, maybe?"

Draco shook his head. "I can't risk a patient’s safety to get proof. He's awful enough as is. I can't put anyone in that situation. The things he said about my first patient were abhorrent, and that was in front of me. I called him out on it to his face; he knows I'm not okay with it. I can't imagine what he's like when he's around people he knows will stay silent, or worse, when no one else is around at all."

Harry looked at him sadly. "I'm sorry this is happening. I know it's not fair, but you're doing the best you can. Everything comes out in the end, though; the truth can only be hidden for so long."

Draco sighed. "I hope he keeps himself in line and Raube never has to find out I was right."

Harry gave him a small smile. "I'm so proud of you, you know? That's a really selfless way to handle this. I love you," he said quietly.

"I love you, too," Draco said, scooting forward enough to close the last few centimeters that remained between them.

Harry tried to kiss away his worry, licking into his mouth, whispering soothing words into his skin as he kissed his way down his body.

*

December passed far too quickly in a flurry of excitement. Draco was still working insane hours, seeing no improvement in his situation at work, and Harry had been putting in extra effort to help him relax at home, hoping to just help him get through the rest of his rotation as painlessly as possible.

Every day for the last month, Harry had something ready to help him get his mind off of his job. Sometimes it was a holiday activity, sometimes it was just an extra fancy meal, or new music, or another pretty present added under the tree. He knew Draco loved getting gifts, back in school, anyway, and he was hoping to spark some of that childhood Christmas magic back in him. It was the best time of year, and he just wanted Draco to feel even a fraction of the joy Christmas brought to him.

It seemed to be at least somewhat working, because he did start smiling more and eating more regularly again, looking happier, healthier. Hopefully Harry could keep it up after Christmas was over.

He had even bigger plans on his mind today, though. It was Christmas Eve, and today was the day. They were going to Scorpius about their relationship, tonight. Finally.

The last three months had been the best of Harry's life. He couldn't remember ever even coming close to being this happy, and he was equally eager and terrified to finally get Scorpius' opinion on their relationship.

He thought it would go well, but there was still that cruel little voice of doubt in his head, reminding him that if Scorpius wasn't happy about it, this would be it; it would be over. He could hardly bear to think about that possibility, though.

Last week, he'd Flooed to Ron and Hermione's mid-panic about it, and after quite a lot of reassurance from Hermione that it would be fine because Scorpius already loved him, and Ron calling him an idiot, he'd let himself believe them, managing to calm down and get himself under control, allowing his excitement to outweigh his nerves.

He just desperately wanted it to go well. It was the last thing holding them back, and he wanted to be able to love Draco properly, all the time. He wanted to hold Draco's hand at the dinner table and kiss him goodbye in the mornings and hello when he returned home from work without having to hide it. He wanted Scorpius to be able to cuddle up in bed with them at night if he had a bad dream or wasn't feeling well, and to wake up and make him breakfast in his pajamas, instead of pretending like he hadn't spent the night. He wanted to slip into a stable routine with both of them, and if that went well, maybe even someday be allowed to move in with them. He was here almost all the time anyway, he already thought of this house, this family, as his home.

It was rather poetic, now that he thought about it, telling him on Harry's favorite day of the year. He just hoped to hell that Scorpius would be as excited to be his family as Harry was.

Today had to be perfect. Tomorrow was Christmas, and as long as tonight went well, Harry and Draco would be able to act like a couple tomorrow when they visited the Manor. Draco, unfortunately, had to work in the morning and would miss visiting the Burrow, but Harry hoped he'd be home early enough to at least enjoy some of the holiday with them.

Harry had planned a special evening for them tonight to make up for it, though, and he'd promised Molly they'd come visit on Draco's next day off; she was getting rather impatient about meeting him.

But that was a worry for tomorrow. They had to get through today first.

Harry had made an exceptionally nice meal for tonight since they had so much running around to do tomorrow, and it was already finished, setting everything out on the table under Warming and Stasis Charms until Draco got home at some indeterminate later hour.

He had also made gingerbread, cut out in the proper shapes to make a house, and a bunch of tiny men to decorate. He had ingredients to make chocolate chip cookies and fun aprons for all of them ready to go for their fun Christmas Eve activity. He thought Scorp might enjoy making cookies for Santa.

He was so excited, unable to stop himself from checking the clock every few minutes, and Scorpius was zooming around the kitchen with Fish, asking to help Harry re-organize his mixing bowls, or count the eggs left in the box, or to magic the walls a different color until Harry sat him down at the island with a large handful of rainbow sprinkles, asking him to separate them by color for the gingerbread men later.

He breathed a sigh when that seemed to occupy him, but they both snapped their heads up when the Floo roared to life, grinning at each other before they both raced to the living room with Fish hot on their heels, practically tackling the taller man before he even had a chance to catch his breath.

"You're home early!" Harry said excitedly, while Scorpius just squealed, trying to climb up his father's body.

"I am. And I'm off tomorrow," Draco said with a wide grin.

Oh, my God!

Harry beamed, grinning so widely he could feel his dimple deep in his cheek.

"You are?!" Harry asked excitedly, while Scorpius cheered happily.

"Yay! Papa gets to be home on Christmas! He'll get to see what Father Christmas brings us! Harry, he can come to the Burrow!"

Harry laughed delightedly at the wonderful surprise. "Let's eat, then. We have things to do after supper."

"Yay, I'm hungry! Harry made a duck!" Scorpius said happily. He didn't waste any time, skipping to the dining room without waiting on them, Fish following behind him.

When he was out of sight, Harry hugged Draco tightly. "You get to spend Christmas with us. I'm so happy," he sighed.

"Me too, love," Draco said, carding his fingers through Harry's hair.

"Are you still wanting to tell him tonight?" Harry asked, pressing a kiss to Draco's jaw.

"Absolutely," Draco said. "Should have already done it, really, but I've been working so much, time got away from me."

"I'm glad we waited. It's fun telling him on Christmas. It'll at least be a big surprise," Harry said, and Draco chuckled.

They joined Scorpius in the dining room before he got restless, and tucked into the Christmas Eve feast Harry had prepared. When they were finished, Harry vanished the mess to Grimmauld. They needed the space, and he wasn't going to spend Christmas Eve washing dishes. He'd do it after Scorpius went to bed, if Kreacher didn’t get to it first. Harry still didn’t know how often he came by to clean.

Draco looked at him, confused, when he noticed the empty sink. "I'll deal with it later tonight," Harry said with a shrug. "I sent it to Grimmauld for now. We needed the kitchen space."

"For what?" Draco asked.

Harry slammed a bag of sugar onto the island. "We are going to bake cookies and make a gingerbread house!" He announced eagerly.

"We?" Draco asked, blinking.

"Yes, we," Harry said, tossing him the apron he'd bought him, then tying on Scorpius' snowman apron, which had a carrot nose sticking out from the front. He looked adorable.

"Potter, what is this monstrosity?" Draco said, horrified, holding up the apron, which had a giant reindeer face on the front, with a large red pompom for the nose, and actual twinkling lights sewn around the antlers. It was hideous. Harry loved it.

Harry grinned. "Figured you wouldn't go for ugly Christmas sweaters, so aprons it is!"

Harry had tied his own on while Draco stared on in horror. It had a tree on the front made entirely of tinsel, with little baubles hanging from the "branches". When Harry grinned at him, he let out a slightly hysterical laugh and finally tied his own apron around his waist. Harry snatched up his camera, snapping away. He had to preserve this memory.

Baking was so much fun; even Draco got into it when he figured out that he could sneak chunks of cookie dough out of the bowl if he distracted Harry by whispering seductively in his ear, sneaking a kiss onto his neck, or pinching his bum when Scorpius wasn’t looking.

They made sure to make extra for Scorpius to leave out for Father Christmas, and Harry put the rest of them in a basket to take with them to the Burrow tomorrow, then Harry pulled out the gingerbread.

The three of them had a blast decorating the cookies. Harry assembled the house while Draco and Scorpius frosted the little men, putting little icing bowties, funny faces, and colorful sprinkles on them, then they all tackled the house, Scorpius finishing it off by adding a row of gumdrops on top of the roof.

Harry tidied up the kitchen while Draco gave Scorpius his bath. When they finished, Draco placed the gingerbread house up on the mantle when it was dry and Harry declared it time for Scorpius to open one present early. Scorpius shouted with joy, zooming around the tree until Draco had him sit down next to him on the couch.

Scorpius opened the box Harry handed him, pulling out several new pairs of Christmassy pajamas for all three of them. Harry had bought matching family pajamas. There was even a little bow for Fish, which Scorpius put on her immediately. The little kitten tried to bite it off for about four seconds, then seemed to accept her fate, climbing up to the back of the couch behind Draco and falling asleep with the back half of her furry little body on the couch, front half on Draco's shoulder. Harry cooed at the sight, and Draco rolled his eyes, lips twitching. He may pretend to dislike the kitten, but Harry knew he secretly loved her, even if he refused to admit it.

The box also had two books inside, two of Harry's favorites, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. They were classics, and Harry remembered listening to his aunt and uncle read them to Dudley every Christmas while he listened with his ear pressed up against the cupboard door, just wishing desperately that Santa would finally bring something for him. He didn't want to think about that, though, not tonight.

Scorpius and Harry both changed into their pajamas, bringing mugs of hot chocolate back into the living room with them. Scorpius settled in next to Draco, and Harry sat on the little boy's other side, books in hand. He read them the stories, keeping his voice low and soft tonight to not interrupt the peace of the evening. Snow was softly falling, illuminated by the glow of the colorful lights outside while the fire flickered and crackled in front of them. Delicious smells swirled around them, and quiet music played in the background.

This truly had been the most perfect evening, the best Christmas of his life already, because he was spending it with his family. 

This... this was all he'd ever wanted. All he'd ever wanted was a family to call his own, and he'd given up hope that he'd ever have it. He had to swallow down the lump in his throat several times before the final story ended.

When Harry finished reading, Scorpius was beginning to rub his eyes, and Draco declared it time for bed. Scorpius pouted, but when they reminded him that Father Christmas wouldn't come if he was awake, he quickly scampered up to his room.

It was time.

Oh, God. This was it. Harry's nerves came rushing back, intermingling with his excitement. This would determine their future. Harry loved Scorpius so much. He wanted him, so desperately, every bit as much as he wanted Draco, and he prayed to every God out there that Scorpius wanted him back.

Harry was trembling when Draco took both of Harry's hands in his, tenderly kissing over his knuckles. "Are you ready, darling?"

Harry's mind was a whirlwind of emotion. "I'm nervous, but excited? I think he'll be happy, but there's still that tiny bit of doubt, you know? And I'm really excited that I'll get to hold your hand and actually be your partner tomorrow, not just a friend or the nanny."

If tonight works out.

Draco grinned widely. "I'm looking forward to that, too. You don't think the Weasley's will mind if I join you?"

Harry smirked at him. "Oh, I think I'll let you figure that out for yourself once we get there," he said, laughing. Molly was going to be thrilled. He should probably write to her in the morning as a warning, actually, and maybe ask her to tell Ginny to not frighten his boyfriend. 

"Alright," Draco chuckled, then threaded their fingers together as they made their way up to Scorpius' room.

"Lookie Harry, look at Fish, papa!" Scorpius said when they entered the room. He was kneeling on his bed, pointing to where Fish was cuddled up between his stuffies at the end of the bed, looking quite content.

"Well, that's adorable," Harry stated with a laugh. He pulled down the duvet so Scorpius could wiggle under the blankets, then sat on the side of the bed closer to his head like always, while Draco sat towards the end of the bed.

"More stories?" Scorpius asked hopefully, then pouted. "Or does Harry have to go home now?"

Now was the time; Scorpius had given him a perfect transition, but he was frozen, having no idea what to say. His heart was pounding, anxiety amping up even higher. How does one even go about telling their partner's child that they're dating their father?

Harry took a deep, shaking breath, but then he heard Draco speaking, taking control of the conversation, and Harry wanted to kiss him right then and there for somehow knowing that Harry needed help.

"Well, we thought that maybe Harry could have a sleepover here tonight," Draco told him.

"Would that be okay with you?" Harry asked cautiously.

Scorpius' face lit up. "Yay, a sleepover for Christmas! With me? You can sleep in my bed!"

Harry faltered. "Er..." he said, glancing at Draco helplessly. He sounded so excited, how was Harry supposed to say no to that?

"No, love. He'll sleep in my room," Draco told him gently.

Scorpius furrowed his little brow in consternation. "But you're not married," he said sternly.

Jesus Christ.

Harry choked, sputtering for a moment, but Draco just smiled calmly at him, vague amusement shining in his eyes. "We're not, but you don't have to be married to sleep in the same room, Scorpius. Auntie Pansy and Uncle Blaise shared a room before they got married, because they loved each other. Do you remember?"

Fuck, that was smooth.

Scorpius blinked, then nodded. "So, it's okay if you love each other?"

"That's right."

"Does that mean you love Harry?" he asked curiously.

"I do. Very much so," Draco confirmed, and Harry felt like he might die, hearing Draco tell the most precious person in his life that he loved Harry without any hesitation at all.

"And I love your papa, too. So much," Harry added softly. "Are you okay with that, buddy?"

Scorpius studied them for a moment, then his jaw dropped open a bit in surprise. He turned to Harry, eyes narrowing. "Are you dating my papa?! Like Auntie Pansy and Uncle Blaise?"

"I-" Harry started, but Scorpius cut him off.

"Because when people like each other, it's called dating, that's what Luca told me. His mummy dates a lot. She says when you think someone is pretty, it means you like them."

What the fuck. Harry didn't want to think about what Maura was doing in front of her four-year-old son for him to know that.

"Well, that can be true," Draco conceded, looking mildly disturbed, "but yes, I'm dating Harry. And I do think he’s pretty. Are you okay with that, love?"

Harry held his breath while Scorpius just stared at them, eyes darting back and forth between the two of them rapidly, like he was figuring out a puzzle.

After what felt like a lifetime, he launched himself up, jumping up and down on the bed, startling Harry.

"I knew it! I knew Santa would listen!" Scorpius cried out, grinning widely. His cheeks were beginning to flush, and his grey eyes were lit up with excitement.

"Listen to what?" Harry asked, confused, glancing at Draco, who looked equally perplexed. Harry had no idea what was happening, or what he was even talking about.

Scorpius jumped down from the bed and ran over to his window, pulling a piece of parchment off of the window seat and running back over with it, handing it to Harry before he climbed back into bed and cuddled up so close to him that the small boy was practically in his lap.

"I sent a letter with Grampy's owl, but I left this one out for him, in case it got lost. But he already knew! He must have gotten my letter. I told Father Christmas I wanted Harry to be my daddy for Christmas, see?" he said, pointing at his barely legible, childlike scrawl, and Harry's heart stopped. "I already have my papa, and I've been waiting so long for my daddy. I was so good and so patient all year, and now you're here!"

He was looking up at Harry with big eyes that were filled with adoration. "He got me 'zactly what I asked for. I'm really happy it's you, Harry. I wanted it to be you."

Harry couldn't breathe.

"You want me to be your daddy?" he whispered, voice cracking as he fought back tears. He'd never even dreamed...

Scorpius giggled, then poked Harry's cheek where his dimple always appeared, just like his father liked to do. "You are my daddy, silly."

Harry couldn't even grasp that sentence right now, his eyes drifting down to the parchment in his hands, reading the letter Scorpius wrote to Father Christmas.

Deer Santa,

I hope you had a very good holaday from work. I promis I hav been VERY good all year. I dont want you to bring me any presents this year, thow. All I want for Chrismas is Harry.

Harry takes care of me. He cooks for me, and plays with me, and hugs me when I am sad. He never gets mad at me, and he takes me fun places, and cudles me if Im sick, just like daddys are sapost to do.

So no presents please, I just want Harry to be my daddy. I love him so much and I was VERY good. I will still love you if you say no, but I will be very, very sad.

Happy Chrismas, Santa

Love,

Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy

Harry brushed his fingers reverently over the letter, reading it over and over, afraid that if he so much as breathed, he'd wake up, because this... this was beyond comprehension. He'd never even allowed himself to hope that Scorpius would ever want to call him dad, let alone so soon.

He was right, though; Harry may have been hired as a nanny, but this wasn’t a job, not to him. He adored this little boy, loved him like his own son, but he never thought Scorpius would love him back this much, enough that he didn't even want Christmas gifts if Santa would give him Harry instead. It was too much.

Scorpius wanted him.

Harry swallowed thickly, then he burst into tears, hugging Scorpius to him tightly. "Oh, love, I would love to be your daddy, but we have to make sure your papa is okay with that first," Harry murmured into Scorpius' hair when he was able to calm down, meeting Draco's eyes over his head.

Draco was watching them with the softest look Harry had ever seen on his face, his own eyes glossy.

Please let me have this, he silently begged. I know he's yours, and I'd never take that away from you, but I want him more than I need air. Please let me love him, too.

"Why wouldn't it be okay?" Scorpius asked, confused.

"I- well, because-"

"Harry..." Draco interrupted him, shaking his head helplessly, eyes wet, the most beautiful smile Harry had ever seen overtaking his face when Harry met his gaze. "Darling, didn't you hear him? You are his daddy."

You are his daddy.

It was permission. Draco was offering Harry the greatest gift he'd ever receive, the opportunity to be a parent.

Harry closed his eyes, more tears sliding down his cheeks. He swallowed thickly, trying to get himself under control, but it was so difficult when he had a war of emotions going on inside of him. There weren't even words to describe how unimaginably happy he felt, how privileged, how grateful.

Draco scooted closer to them, wrapping his arms around both Harry and Scorpius, and pressed his lips to Harry's neck, just under his ear. Harry's heart raced at the simple gesture, at both the thought that they could do this now, they didn't have to hide anymore, and at the knowledge that this was his family.

Fully, truly, they belonged to him now, and he belonged to them. It was better than he ever hoped for. All of the pain he'd endured, every single hardship and heartbreak, had been worth it if this was the payout. He'd do it a thousand times over to have this. He never dreamed he'd find this with Draco, of all people, but it felt so right, like this was what full circle really felt like.

This was it for him. This was his future. There would never be anyone else for him. He was going to marry Draco. He'd marry him right this second, if he asked, and he knew, knew, that they would be together forever. He couldn't imagine ever loving anyone else like this, couldn't imagine not having Scorpius forever. Even if they never had more children, this right here was more than enough.

Scorpius eventually fell asleep on Harry's lap, and he laid him gently on the bed, pulling the blankets up to his chest. He should leave, let him sleep. He managed to stand up, but Harry couldn't tear his eyes away, couldn't make himself move towards the door and leave his son, his baby.

Just one more minute, he thought, brushing white blonde hair away from his sweet little face. He loved him so much.

Harry had no idea how long he stood there, but eventually, he felt Draco press himself up against his back, pressing a gentle kiss to the back of his neck.

"Come on, darling. It's time for bed," Draco murmured, slipping his arm around Harry's waist, guiding him out of the room and across the hall, but Harry barely even noticed, still completely wrapped up in the events that had just transpired.

"He said- did you hear...?" Harry said in disbelief, finally looking over at Draco with wet eyes. He was standing over by the bed, sipping the tea Harry had left him earlier, and his hair was damp, like he'd showered, but Harry had no idea when he would have done that.

"I did," Draco murmured, setting his tea back down and coming over to where Harry was still hovering near the door.

"He told me I'm his daddy," Harry said, eyes blinking rapidly, still not totally sure that he hadn't imagined the entire thing.

"He said that because you are, darling," Draco said.

Harry sucked in a sharp breath at hearing Draco confirm it, again.

Draco dimmed the lights and began slowly undressing Harry; removing his glasses carefully, then the rest of his clothes until he was down to his pants, then led him over to the bed, guiding him to lay down under the covers. Draco quickly stripped himself down to his pants, too, and climbed in next to Harry, pulling him closer until he was half on top of Draco, wrapped up tightly in his long limbs, head resting on Draco's chest.

"I can't believe that just happened," Harry whispered, and he felt Draco press a kiss to the top of his head.

"I guess now we know why he never called me daddy," Draco said, chuckling quietly.

Harry perked up at that. He'd been wondering about that for months. "Why is that?"

Draco shrugged. "He was saving it for you."

Oh, my God. He was going to die.

Harry lifted his head to look at Draco, more tears gathering along his lashes, but not falling, his heart feeling like it was going to burst with how full of love it was. Draco needed to know exactly how much this meant to him. It- this was everything. He was everything.

"I love you. You're the best thing that ever happened to me. You've given me a family; one that's mine. Before I came here, I really was beginning to think I'd never get to have this; that no one would be able to see past my name and want me, but you do. I just- you're the love of my life, probably. I can't believe I get to keep you. Both of you," Harry said quietly, voice trembling.

Draco reached a hand up to cup his cheek, thumb brushing along his cheekbone, ghosting over where his dimple usually appeared. "I love you, too, sweetheart. You have us for as long as you want us. We're yours."

We're yours.

Yours.

Harry snapped, unable to hold back for one more second. He let out a whimper and surged forward, catching Draco's lips in a desperate kiss, tears slipping down his cheeks and wetting both of their faces as he devoured Draco's mouth, pouring every ounce of love and gratitude and want he was feeling into it, needing him to know.

"I love you. I love you so much," Harry gasped out between kisses, his voice surprisingly rough. He clutched onto Draco and rolled them until he was hovering on top of him, his legs caging Draco's in, grinding their hips together. "So gorgeous, can't believe you're mine."

All there was between them were two thin layers of fabric, but it was still too much. Harry snapped his wrist down, and then they were both naked, their pants vanished. Draco gasped when Harry's bare cock made contact with his own.

Harry felt almost mad with desire, mad with the animalistic need to be inside of him right fucking now. Draco was his, and he needed to claim him.

He slipped one leg between Draco's, using his knee to urge Draco to spread his legs. Draco did so easily, opening up to allow Harry to settle in between his legs comfortably. He summoned a handful of lube, and brushed wet fingers over Draco's opening before sliding one firmly inside, pumping a few times before adding a second, then a third, far too impatient to take his time with this. He knew Draco could take it.

He pulled his fingers out after only a minute or two and positioned himself, panting into Draco's mouth as he slid home.

Harry slammed his eyes shut and whimpered, drinking in Draco's wanton moan, committing it to memory as he clenched his jaw, every muscle straining.

Home is exactly what this was. Nothing has ever felt more right than this, being here, making love to the love of his life. He needed to worship this man, needed him to feel exactly how much Harry loved him, how much he appreciated him, how much he needed him.

Don't come, don't come, don't come, he chanted silently, and when he finally had himself off the edge, he quickly pulled out and thrust back in, rolling his hips to set a slow, steady pace.

Harry draped his body on top of Draco, wrapping his arms around him, holding him close as he thrust into him, hands touching everywhere he could reach. When he finally opened his eyes again, they locked on Draco's. He looked unbearably beautiful, hair splayed over the pillow like a halo, lips red and kiss bitten, eyes so dark with arousal they were almost black, and Harry couldn't look at him any longer if he wanted to keep it together.

He burrowed his face between Draco's neck and shoulder, pressing gentle kisses to his heated skin, whispering sweet words directly to his soul. Draco clung to him, legs wrapped tightly around Harry's waist, pulling him impossibly closer as he let Harry bring him closer and closer to orgasm.

Draco whined, high pitched and needy, clearly trying to hold on, but Harry just held him impossibly closer. "Shh, it's alright, baby, you can come. Come for me, darling," he whispered, grinding his erection inside of Draco, right on his sweet spot.

Draco came with a cry, his prick twitching as wetness spread between them. Harry tried to hold on a bit longer, but between the look on Draco's face and the feel of his hole clamping down tightly around him, he just couldn't, cursing quietly before he shoved in all the way, his orgasm slamming into him.

He held Draco to him as he rode out his climax, relishing the way Draco clung to him, the way he nuzzled his tear dampened face against Harry's shoulder like a sated kitten, not wanting to let go of this, not ever. He didn't want this to be over yet.

His cock was somehow still hard, even after that, but he ignored it and slipped out of Draco, having something else on his mind, something he'd been wanting to do for weeks, something Draco might just be fucked out and pliant enough to let him do.

Draco whined at him in protest when Harry left him empty, but Harry just shushed him, kissing him quiet, tongue stroking along Draco's lovingly before he pressed a line of kisses along his jaw and down his throat, leaving a trail of kisses as he slid down Draco's body, licking up the traces of come left on his stomach. He could feel Draco's eyes on him as he dipped even lower, gently spreading his legs apart before settling on his stomach between them.

"What are you doing?" Draco asked in alarm, his voice higher than normal in his confusion, weakly attempting to close his legs, trying to hide himself away from Harry's gaze. No fucking way.

Harry glanced up at him before locking his eyes back between Draco's legs, taking in the sight of his hole, reddened and still slightly open from taking Harry's cock, dripping with his spend. His dick twitched under him, and his mouth practically watered at what he was about to do.

"Cleaning you up," Harry responded simply, then quick as a flash, he pushed Draco's legs up and open, sealing his mouth over Draco's hole.

Draco cried out loudly, then whimpered, a violent shiver running through his body as Harry licked over his opening, lapping up the come that was leaking from him, soothing away the ache left there from their coupling. Draco was panting, wiggling around like he couldn't decide if he wanted to pull away or lean into it. His cock was stiff again, and Harry reached up to wrap a hand around him, jerking him off as he slid his tongue inside of him to get the mess he'd left there, too.

It might be the hottest thing he'd ever done, and his hips wouldn't stay still, rubbing himself against the mattress unconsciously as Draco's moans grew louder, his head thrashing against the pillow as he let Harry eat him out until he was coming again with a broken cry, moaning unrestrainedly, his body convulsing with the force of his orgasm.

It was beautiful, and Harry just licked him through it, working a hand beneath his body to pull himself off, not taking his eyes off of Draco’s satisfied face. He came quickly with a quiet groan, and eventually pulled away from Draco reluctantly, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and casting a gentle Cleaning Charm over both of them and the bed before scooping Draco's boneless body back up in his arms.

"Y'could have just done that in the first place," Draco slurred out.

Harry smiled against his temple. "Could have. My way was more fun, though."

"You're disgusting," Draco muttered half-heartedly, but Harry just nuzzled his face into Draco's hair, sighing contentedly.

"You liked it," he said smugly.

"...maybe."

*

Harry's eyes popped open the next morning when it was still dark out.

It was Christmas.

His first Christmas with his family; his boyfriend and his son.

Giddiness bubbled up inside of him, and he pressed a series of quick kisses to Draco's sleeping face before sneaking out of bed and grabbing his camera, practically skipping down the stairs.

He took in the sight of the tree, lit up prettily, casting a colorful glow over the room and snapped a few photos before Scorp tore into it all and made it even better, then he went to the kitchen, excitement thrumming through his veins.

Harry quickly prepped a batch of cinnamon rolls, using magic to skip the first rise. After he'd rolled them up into neat little spirals, he covered them with a towel to rise properly so they'd be ready to just pop in the oven whenever Draco allowed them to come downstairs, which would hopefully be sooner rather than later. He quickly put the kettle on, then hurried back upstairs to wake up his boyfriend.

Harry jumped on the bed, bouncing excitedly. Draco startled awake with a gasp, his limbs flailing, then let out a loud "oof!" when Harry jumped on top of him.

"Good morning, darling. Happy Christmas!" Harry told him when he opened his eyes, pressing a kiss to his nose.

"Wha' time 's it?" Draco slurred, rubbing his eyes.

"Early, just before six," Harry informed him. "I thought we should be up before him so he didn't sneak into the living room without us."

"Oh, good idea. I wanted to get breakfast started before he woke up anyway," Draco said with a groan, trying to sit up underneath Harry.

"Oh," Harry waved him off. "You don't have to do that. I have cinnamon buns ready to go; they just need to go in the oven."

"You're an angel," Draco groaned, pulling Harry into a sleepy kiss. "Happy Christmas, darling."

"Can we get up now?" Harry asked when Draco released him.

Draco chuckled. "Yes, yes. Let me get dressed."

Harry scrambled off of him and bounded downstairs to go put the cinnamon buns in while Draco got dressed and got Scorp up. He pulled down three mugs, preparing to pour tea for Draco and hot chocolate for himself and Scorpius when they entered the kitchen.

Harry grinned brightly at them. "Good morning! Happy Christmas!"

Scorpius screeched, running over to Harry with his arms up, and Harry grinned even wider, scooping him up for a hug. "Happy Christmas, daddy! Has Santa been?"

Oh, God, he wasn't going to survive this day, not with Scorpius calling him daddy like it was something he'd always done, like to him, Harry really was his other dad. It was the best gift he could have ever gotten.

He didn't even bother blinking away the wetness that gathered along his lashline, he just hugged Scorpius tighter. "Yeah, I think he has," he said thickly.

"Yay! Can we open presents now?" Scorpius said, oblivious to the emotional roller coaster he kept sending Harry on.

"I think that's a great idea," Draco said warmly.

They had a wonderful time opening gifts, gorging themselves on cinnamon buns and hot chocolate, watching Scorpius play with his new toys, but soon enough, it was time to head out to visit their families. The Weasley's were first, then they'd visit with Andromeda and Teddy at the Manor.

Draco bundled Scorpius up while Harry shrunk down a small mountain of gifts to bring with them and grabbed the basket of cookies. They were going to Apparate, not Floo in as Draco had never been there and he didn't feel comfortable Flooing straight into their home the first time meeting them.

"You're sure it's okay if I'm here, right? She knows I'm coming?" Draco asked apprehensively when they stepped onto the stoop.

Harry had assured him no less than a dozen times before coming here that they knew he was coming and were fine with it, but he was clearly still nervous about meeting them officially. He didn't have a chance to answer, though, because Scorpius started pounding on the door in excitement, and before Draco could fully panic, Molly was swinging the door open.

"Hi, Mrs. Weasley! Here I am, I'm here for Christmas!" Scorpius announced, and her face melted into a fond smile.

"So you are! Happy Christmas, dear," she said, ducking down to give him a tight hug and several kisses on his cheeks. "Go on inside, now; you've got presents waiting."

"Yay, thank you!" Scorpius squealed, then skipped inside.

"Happy Christmas, Molly," Harry said, giving her a tight hug, then he took Draco's hand and tugged him forward to introduce him properly. "This is Draco, my boyfriend."

Draco, polite as ever, held his hand out to her, smiling slightly, all trace of nerves tucked away, hidden from view. "Hello, Mrs. Weasley. Thank you so much for inviting me to your home for the holiday. It's so lovely to finally meet you."

She stared at his hand, her lips pressed into a thin line, and Harry tried not to burst out laughing. He knew that Draco thought she was judging him, but that wasn't why she was making that face and he knew it.

"Don't be ridiculous, dear, you're practically family. Now, why it took you nearly eight months to visit us, is what I'd like to know!" she scolded, pulling Draco into a hug while Harry smirked at him.

He looked absolutely stunned for a long moment, then he relaxed, letting himself melt into the hug. It was impossible not to, really; she was always so warm and inviting.

When he looked over, Harry just mouthed 'told you so,' with a wink.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. My work schedule is-"

"Call me Molly, dear. And no worries about that; you're here now, that's what matters. Come inside and meet everyone," she tutted, looping her arm in his and guiding him inside, Harry following closely.

"Papa!" Scorpius shouted when they entered the very loud, very crowded living room. Harry saw Draco stiffen a bit when the room quieted and no less than twelve pairs of appraising eyes turned to them, but he was distracted by Victoire, dressed in a pretty red dress, running to him at full speed.

"Harry!" she cried, and he scooped her up easily, twirling her around.

"Happy Christmas, sweetheart! I missed you so much, how's my little princess? Did Santa bring you lots of presents?"

"He did! I got everything I asked for, and I even lost my second tooth last night, see?" she said, grinning widely so he could see her missing bottom tooth.

"That's incredible! I hope you got an extra present for that one!"

She giggled, wrapping her arms back around his neck.

Ron and Hermione came over to hug him hello. "Harry, you finally made it!" Ron said, then turned to Draco, studying him briefly before nodding at him. "Malfoy. Glad you could make it, mate."

Draco looked absolutely shocked at Ron calling him 'mate', and Harry just laughed, grateful that he was trying to make Draco feel welcome. "I said we'd be here before eleven," Harry reminded him, wrapping the arm not holding Victoire around Draco's waist, rescuing him from Molly's grasp. "Hullo, everyone, Happy Christmas! This is Draco, and Draco, this is... everyone."

Harry went around the room, pointing to each person. "That's Arthur over there, and you've already met Molly, Ron, and Hermione. This sweet little munchkin is Victoire, and Bill and Fleur, her parents, are just there. Then there's Charlie, and you probably remember Percy, George, and George's wife, Angelina, from school, and then Ginny." Each one said hello or waved at him, and then they all turned back to their own conversations, not making a fuss over Draco, and Draco looked visibly relieved by that.

Harry let Victoire down to play with Scorpius, and handed out the gifts they'd brought with them. Molly swooped by and handed them each a plate of food while the children played and opened presents. Harry didn't stray far from Draco, not wanting to leave him alone his first time here; the Weasley's could be a bit daunting, with how many of them there were.

"Papa, daddy, lookie what I got!" Scorpius suddenly shouted, running up to Harry holding up a traditional Weasley hand knitted jumper, but his was blue and had a large dragon knitted on the front instead of a letter.

Harry's heart swooped at hearing Scorpius call him daddy again. "Wow! That's the best one of all! Look, now we can match, yeah?"

"Yeah! I want to wear it"

Harry laughed, helping Scorpius to put it on over his button up, and Scorpius giggled, spinning around to show it off.

"You look very festive," Harry assured him with a smile. He looked bloody adorable. He wondered briefly what Draco thought of his son wearing a Weasley sweater, but when he glanced over, Draco just smiled at him, one eyebrow slightly quirked.

Eventually, Hermione came over and pulled Draco away, sitting down with him to chat about something Harry probably wouldn't understand. He looked alright over there, and Harry knew he would be fine with Hermione, so he let himself focus on the kids until he looked back to check on Draco, but he was gone.

Harry frowned. "I'll be back soon, I just want to go check on your papa," Harry told the children, then walked over to where Ron and Hermione were now sitting alone.

"Where's Draco?" he asked.

Ron snorted. "Gin got to him. Pulled him into the kitchen."

Harry paled slightly, debating on whether or not to go save him, but Ron must have realized what he was thinking.

"Better let it be for a bit, mate. You know she'll just come back ten times worse if you don't let her have her way," he said, chuckling.

"Do you think he's alright? Did she seem...?"

"Nah. She'll probably just give him a bit of shit, then let him go. You know she's just looking out for you."

"I know," Harry said softly. He couldn't blame her, he just hoped she was being nice to his boyfriend. "Well, distract me, then. Any luck on the baby yet?" he asked, brightening up. He hoped so, he couldn't wait to have another little baby to dote on.

"Not yet," Hermione sighed. "We're going to give it six more months then go in to see a Healer, just to make sure nothing is wrong."

Harry squeezed her hand. "It'll happen, Hermione. I know it will. Maybe you're just too focused on it, or overworked?"

"That's what I said!" Ron cried out, throwing his arms out. "See? You're just overdoing it, love."

"It was just a suggestion, Ron, not a diagnosis," Harry said, wincing.

"Well, we can't exactly do anything about it right now, anyway," Hermione told her husband pointedly. "But speaking of babies, I definitely didn't imagine Scorpius calling you 'daddy' earlier."

"Fuck, that's right! What the hell, Harry! Why didn't you tell us?"

"It only happened last night," Harry defended, biting his lip. "I was going to tell you today."

"So, your chat with him went well, then?" Hermione asked eagerly.

"It- yeah. I was so nervous, but he was so excited. He told us that he'd asked Santa for me to be his dad for Christmas. That was it; no toys, he just wanted me. He had the letter he'd written laid out by the window and everything. He let me read it, and it was... it was the sweetest thing ever, 'Mione, I swear, I thought I was going to die. I cried like a baby."

"Fuck," Ron swore quietly. "Mate, that's..." he trailed off.

"Oh, Harry," Hermione cut in, blinking back tears and she pulled him into the tightest hug. "I'm so happy for you. That's the sweetest thing I've ever heard. I can't even imagine how that felt for you. This is all you've ever wanted, and I know that I keep telling you that you deserve this, but you do. Oh, look at what a mess I am!" she laughed wetly, dabbing her eyes with her sleeve. "Go on, you'd better go save him from Ginny. You have to leave soon, don't you?"

Harry glanced at his watch. Shit, they did, and he'd left Draco alone with her longer than he'd planned.

Please, Gin, please don't freak him out, he begged her silently as he hurried over to the kitchen, catching the end of whatever Ginny was saying as he entered.

"...not stupid enough to think you'd ever allow that if you weren't every bit as serious about him as he is about you."

Her eyes shifted away from Draco as she caught sight of him, her lips curving up into a smirk.

"Gin. Everything alright in here?" Harry asked, going over to wrap an arm around Draco's waist protectively, like he could shield him from her, quirking an eyebrow at her. He felt a nervous muscle ticking in his jaw, and he tried to clench it away.

"Of course it is," Ginny told him with an eyeroll. "We're just talking."

"Talking. Not interrogating?" he questioned, both eyebrows raised now.

"Nah," she said, waving him off. "Just talking. Now go away."

Harry looked at Draco in askance, but he just shrugged. "We're just talking, darling. I'm fine."

He sounded fine. Hopefully he would tell Harry if he wasn't; telepathically or something.

"Alright," Harry said to him softly, then turned to Ginny, eyes narrowing slightly. "Be nice."

"I'm always nice," she huffed, offended.

Harry stared at her, unimpressed. She absolutely was not always nice. The first time Owen had made him cry, she'd confronted him with a very colorful slew of insults and Charmed all of his underpants to feel like ice every time he'd worn them. Harry had never been able to figure out how to break that Charm, and had ended up just buying him all new ones.

The fallout hadn't been worth it at all, and afterwards, Harry had threatened to never confide in her again if she ever did anything like that again. Looking back, he knew she had only agreed because someone needed to keep tabs on him and make sure he was alright, but she had kept her word, aside from a snide remark to Owen here and there when they’d been forced to cross paths.

She threw her hands up. "That was one time! And he was a piece of shit, Harry. I'm not being mean to him!"

"She's really not, Harry," Draco assured him gently. "I promise it's fine. I'll be back out soon."

"Fine," Harry said with a quiet sigh. If Draco said he was fine, Harry was going to trust him. He'd just make Ginny tell him what she'd said to him later. Harry lifted up onto his tippy toes, leaning in towards Draco, and Draco leaned down enough so Harry could kiss him on the cheek. "We have to leave soon, so don't be too long."

"I won't," Draco agreed, eyes darting over to Ginny, who was just watching them with interest, a gleam in her eye.

Harry let them be, distracting himself with the kids, and after just a few minutes, his boyfriend was back by his side.

"Everything alright?" Harry asked him quietly.

"Everything is wonderful, darling," Draco confirmed, a smile softening his pretty face, looking nothing short of content.

*

By the time they left the Burrow, it was nearing supper time. Everyone had hugged them goodbye, and when Ginny had pulled Harry close, she’d leaned in to whisper, “alright, I approve,” to him, making him grin. Molly made Draco promise to come back with Harry and Scorpius soon, to which he easily agreed, and leaned down to let her kiss him on the cheek, the same way he did for Harry. It warmed Harry's heart beyond measure.

They decided to just Floo over to the Manor, and Narcissa swept into the room to greet them when they arrived.

"Darlings! Happy Christmas, I'm so glad you're here," she said, kissing Scorpius on the cheek, then Draco, then Harry. "Everyone is in the drawing room. I believe Teddy is getting impatient waiting to open gifts."

"Thank you for inviting me, Mrs. Malfoy," Harry thanked her, and she smiled softly at him.

"We wouldn't dream of excluding you, dear."

Teddy and Andromeda were already there, and Teddy ran over to greet them when they stepped into the drawing room. "Harry's here, Harry's here! Presents!" he cried, flinging himself at Harry before snatching up Scorpius' hand and dragging him over to the large tree, handing him a present to open.

"Woah, hold on," Harry said, enlarging the gifts they'd brought with them and quickly adding them under the tree. "Okay, have at it," he said, laughing when Teddy and Scorpius started digging through the pile of presents, handing all of them out to the person each was meant for.

Harry joined Draco on the settee, sitting close enough that their thighs touched, watching the boys tear into their own gifts.

"What is this?" a cold voice said from across the room. Harry looked over to where Lucius was holding up a Chocolate Frog like it might bite him.

"That's from me!" Scorpius said excitedly, running up to Lucius. "Open it, Grampy!"

Lucius sucked his cheeks in, but Narcissa cleared her throat, lifting an eyebrow at him. "Yes, darling, why don't you open it."

Lucius sighed but complied, opening the box and revealing the card he'd gotten. Harry's card.

Harry's jaw dropped. He did not, Harry thought, struggling not to burst out laughing at the look on Lucius' face. How did Draco even know his card was in there? The box wasn't even open!

Lucius' eyes widened, then narrowed at his son before he pasted a fake smile on his face. "What a surprise," he said dryly.

"It's your favorite! I wanted to just give you the card, but papa said I couldn't eat the froggy inside because it’s a gift. Do you love it?" Scorpius asked hopefully.

"Yes, Scorpius. I love it," he said tightly, setting the Chocolate Frog aside. “Thank you.”

Draco smirked and cast a wink at Harry, who couldn't hold back his snort of laughter any longer, clapping a hand over his mouth and trying to cover the sound with a cough. His boyfriend was fucking ridiculous, and he loved him so bloody much. Honestly, what a little shit. Lucius just glared at them, but there was little heat behind it.

After presents had all been opened and plenty of thank you's exchanged, they all ate the wonderful meal the House Elves had prepared. Draco sat next to his father who was seated at the head of the table, and Harry sat next to him, holding his hand under the table the whole time, thumb stroking the back of Draco’s hand lovingly.

Lucius' eyes were glued to where their hands were concealed, but he didn't comment on it. Harry knew Draco still hadn't told his parents that they were dating, but they weren't actively keeping it a secret any longer. Harry assumed they'd know for sure before they left today.

After supper, everyone retired back to the drawing room, where Teddy and Scorpius begged Harry to play Gobstones with them. Harry agreed easily, settling down on the floor with them while Teddy set the game up.

Draco was standing over near a small bar, speaking to his father with a glass of Firewhiskey in his hand, while Narcissa and Andromeda sat near Harry and the children, watching them play as they chatted quietly. It really was nice to see the two sisters so comfortable around each other now. It had taken them both quite a bit of time to relax around the other.

Harry played a round with Teddy, then a round with Scorpius, both of which he lost, and he laughed, vanishing the smelly substance the stones squirted at him.

"Again!" Scorpius demanded.

"Why don't you see if papa wants to play?" Harry suggested, thinking Draco might want an escape from his father. "I think it's his turn."

"Papa, come play with us! Daddy said it's your turn," Scorpius called to him, and Harry watched, fascinated, as Lucius choked on his drink. Well. That was one way to tell them, he supposed.

Narcissa gasped, her eyes darting quickly between Harry and Draco, looking delighted, while Andromeda just laughed. Harry saw Draco say something to his father before coming over to join them on the floor, but Teddy looked confused.

"Harry isn't your dad," Teddy said, causing Scorpius to frown deeply.

"He is too!" Scorpius said defensively, scrambling into Harry's lap, clutching at him like Teddy was trying to take him away with his words. "Papa even said so! I asked Father Christmas to make Harry my daddy, and he did! I was good all year and he's mine!"

Hearing his little voice sounding so fiercely possessive over Harry made his heart skip a beat, and he hugged Scorpius closer to him.

"That's not how that works," Teddy argued, looking quite irritated. “Santa can’t give you people.”

Harry was shocked by his tone, but then realization hit him.

Teddy was jealous. Quite obviously. His little face was pinched and he was glaring at where Harry had his arm around Scorpius. They were going to have to have a talk about this, but now was not the time or place. He'd visit them soon, alone. Preferably tomorrow. He didn't want Teddy thinking that Harry loved him any less just because he was Scorpius' dad. That would hurt him terribly.

"Sometimes it is," Harry explained gently. "I love Draco, and I love Scorp. They’re my family, and I told him he could call me dad if he wanted to. It's okay. We can talk more about it next time I visit, alright?"

"Yeah," Scorpius said, sticking his tongue out at Teddy, who crossed his arms.

"Scorpius, that's rude," Draco scolded sternly before Harry could.

"He was rude first," Scorpius argued, pouting.

"No, he just didn't understand," Draco corrected. "Apologize, please. We need to be kind, especially on Christmas."

"Sorry I sticked my tongue out at you," Scorpius said with a sigh.

"Fine. Sorry I said he's not your dad," Teddy said reluctantly, glancing at his grandmother before he got in trouble, too. Andromeda nodded sternly at him.

"Everyone good? Can we play now? I, for one, am dying to beat your papa at Gobstones," Harry said, trying to distract them both away from the topic for now, bumping Draco's shoulder with his.

After a few rounds where Harry suggested he and Teddy team up against Draco and Scorpius, Teddy relaxed, leaning into Harry comfortably. They played until Scorpius began to yawn widely, his eyes drooping. They decided it was time to get him home, so they bid everyone a good evening and Draco scooped Scorpius up before stepping into the Floo.

"Will you get him to bed, darling? I have to stop by the hospital," Draco asked him when they got back ho- to his house, running his hand through his sleepy son's hair.

The hospital? What on earth for?

"Of course," Harry said, frowning a bit. "You don't have to work, do you?"

"No, no, I just like to take gifts in for the children's ward," he said, handing Scorpius off to Harry. "I didn't get to it last night."

Oh. He had no idea Draco did that. Harry leaned up to kiss him. "That's so sweet," he murmured against his lips. "I'll see you soon, then."

Draco ran upstairs to grab a bag of gifts he'd apparently bought to donate, and Flooed away. Harry carried Scorpius upstairs, helping him change into his pajamas, not bothering with a bath when he was this tired, and tucked him into bed. His eyes were shut before Harry could even ask him if he wanted a story, and Harry smiled softly at him. This was his baby, his son. He felt so incredibly blessed.

"Goodnight, buddy. I love you so much," Harry said quietly, carding gentle fingers through his blonde hair.

"Love you, daddy," Scorpius mumbled back, more than half asleep.

Harry closed his eyes, swallowing thickly. Life couldn't possibly get better than this.

He lingered for just another minute, then forced himself to go back downstairs and let him sleep. He busied himself with making tea, then sat down on the couch, settling Draco's mug on his knee and scooping Fish up onto his lap, petting her silky black fur until she started to purr.

Draco stepped out of the Floo a few minutes later. "That was quick," Harry said with a smile, holding the mug out for Draco to take.

"Just had to drop them off. I don't like the kids knowing it's from me," he said, joining Harry on the couch, accepting the mug gratefully.

"Why not?"

Draco shrugged. "That's not why I do it."

Harry practically swooned. As if he needed another reason to love this man; more proof that he was nothing like the selfish child he had been when they were much younger.

He scooted closer to Draco, sighing happily as he stared at the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree. "Today was perfect," he said quietly. "I don't think it could have gone any better. Best Christmas I've ever had."

"I think so, too," Draco agreed. "I have one more gift for you, though."

There was more?

Harry looked at him curiously. "You've already given me so much, though. I don't need anything else."

"It's something I want you to have. But if you don't want it, that's okay too. I can put it back for later," Draco said softly, pulling a small, flat box out of his pocket. It was wrapped beautifully in shiny red paper with a tiny gold bow, and he handed it to Harry.

He didn't care as much for getting gifts as much as giving them, but he still felt a small thrill run through him every time he got one, a remnant of never being allowed to have them at all when he was young.

Harry sat up a bit straighter and unwrapped the little gift. Inside was a key. A skeleton key, to be exact. Pretty and golden and intricate, but he had no idea why Draco would have given him a key, of all things. Wizards didn't even use keys.

"A key? What's this for?" Harry asked, bewildered.

"Er. It's really more symbolic; it doesn't actually open anything," he said awkwardly.

Harry looked at the key again and then laughed as he realized what it must be. His boyfriend was so sappy. "What is it, the key to your heart?" he asked, eyebrows waggling.

"It's a key to my house."

Wait, what?

Did he just say...?

"A key to your..." Harry said, trailing off as the smile slowly slipped off his face. "But we don't use keys, we use wards."

"I know. That's why it's just symbolic," Draco explained nervously, looking at Harry with so much intensity, so much love that it made Harry's breath catch in his throat, his heart pounding so loudly he could barely hear Draco's next words. "I want you to move in with me. If you want to. Of course, you don't have to, I wouldn't be offended at all; it's awfully quick, after all and maybe..."

He was rambling, and Harry couldn't tear his eyes away from him. He could feel tears gathering along his lashes, but he didn't dare blink them away, afraid this might disappear if he closed them, even for a moment. Draco wanted him to move in with him. He wanted to live together, to share his house, his home, with Harry. He watched as Draco took a steadying breath, trying to collect himself, like he actually thought there was a chance in hell that Harry would say no.

"You don't have to accept it if you aren't ready," Draco told him softly. "I just know that this- you're it for me, Harry. I want to wake up with you every morning and fall asleep next to you every night. I want to hear your snuffling snores and see your face every day when I get home. You- seeing you smile at me the way you do, with your eyes all sparkly and your dimple out... I've never seen anything more beautiful. I want to see that every day, preferably forever. I want you to have more than just a drawer here, I want everything that's mine to be yours, too. I want everything with you, darling.”

He took a shaky breath, then gently took Harry’s hands in his. “Like I said, it's okay if you don't want this yet. I wanted you to have it anyway so you know where I stand. If you're not ready, I'll just hold on to it until you are. It will still be here for you, no matter how long it takes."

Harry stared at him, eyes swimming with tears. No one had ever said such beautiful words to him before; had ever wanted him like this and actually meant it. But Draco did. Harry knew it down in his very soul. If Harry had even the smallest shred of doubt before that Draco was The One before, it was gone. He was going to marry this man. He'd love him forever.

He was wrong earlier, when he thought life couldn't possibly get any better. It could. It just did.

He threw himself at Draco, wrapping his entire body around him, needing to touch every inch of him that he could. "Sweetheart. Of course I want to move in with you. That- you- Jesus, that could have been a proposal," Harry joked weakly, laughing wetly as he pressed his lips insistently to Draco's.

"Yeah? You want to?" Draco asked between kisses. Harry could feel Draco's heart beating rapidly where it was pressed up against him, like he couldn't believe Harry would say yes, but Harry had felt like this was home for months. This was home. His home and his family.

"Yes, I definitely want to," Harry confirmed with a laugh.

He pulled back just enough to meet Draco's eyes, molten silver boring into him, shining with love and happiness, and Draco brushed Harry's fringe back.

"Happy Christmas, darling. I love you," Draco said quietly, pressing another kiss to his boyfriend's mouth.

"I love you, too. So much," Harry replied, melting into Draco's touch. "Best Christmas ever," he added, sighing happily as he burrowed his face into Draco's throat.

It was. Nothing would ever top this, not ever.

"It really, really is," came the reply.

Notes:

Well, hopefully this was worth the wait! It's one of my favorite chapters in RFT. Any feedback is greatly appreciated, especially as I'm not totally confident I didn't botch something up. Happy reading!

Chapter 13: CHAPTER 12

Summary:

Comforting Teddy, a night out, and we find out what's going on at Draco's job! This one is a doozy.

Notes:

Okay, so I knew I'd eventually mess something up. I had Kreacher living in Hogwarts in RFT, and had him move into the Manor in this story, so I just went back and adjusted it in Room for Two since it was just a throw away detail in that story, but I built it into the storyline in this one!

This chapter is epically long and kind of sad, so I'm sorry if it's a bit much!

"Gran! Harry's here!" Teddy shouted, running to Harry when he stepped out of the Floo on Boxing Day.

He'd come over by himself to talk to Teddy about what had happened yesterday. Harry couldn't have him thinking that he was pushing him aside for someone else. He needed to make that abundantly clear before it festered inside of him and grew into actual resentment.

Andromeda called a hello to him from the kitchen, but didn't come in. Harry had written to her last night letting her know he was coming to talk to Teddy, and she'd agreed to give them some privacy.

"Where's Scorpius?" Teddy asked, crossing his arms and sounding rather moody.

"He's at the Manor. He wanted to play with the new toys he left there for a bit," Harry told him.

That was true; he just left out the part where Harry wanted to come alone this morning so he'd asked Scorp if he wanted to visit his grandparents instead.

"Oh. Good," he said approvingly, posture relaxing.

Ah. He knew there was a problem there. Harry's heart sank a bit, but he didn't comment on Teddy's pleased tone.

"So! Want to play checkers with me?" Harry asked him, waggling his eyebrows.

"Yep, I want black!" Teddy declared, running up to his room to grab his checkerboard, setting it down on the floor for them when he returned.

Harry sat on the floor across from him, legs crossed, and grabbed the little pouch full of pieces, handing a black one to Teddy, and taking a red one for himself. "Alright, flick!"

They both flicked their pieces towards the middle of the board, Teddy's way overshooting while Harry's stopped almost dead center.

Teddy huffed. "You always win Flick," he pouted, and Harry laughed.

"I just have more practice. Let's see if you can win the game, though."

Teddy did, indeed, win the game. And the next one. During their third round, though, Harry shifted the conversation.

"I was planning on taking Scorpius over to play with Victoire this afternoon before she goes home tomorrow. Do you want to come with us?" Harry asked.

Teddy looked up at him, eyes narrowed slightly. "No."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "No? Why not? You like Victoire, and we don't get to see her very often anymore. She'd be sad if you didn't come."

"She won't care," he muttered.

"Of course she will."

"She has him now. She doesn't need me to play with anymore," Teddy said, staring hard at the checkerboard before moving his next piece rather aggressively.

"You know, the great thing about friends is that you can have more than one, right?" Harry reminded him gently. "It's even more fun when you can all be friends. I never wanted to spend less time with you after she came along, did I?"

"It's different now," he said, pushing the board slightly away from him and crossing his arms.

"What's different?"

"You don't like me as much as you like him."

Ouch. That felt like a knife to the heart. The fact that Teddy could even think that was awful, and Harry felt horribly guilty that he'd done anything to make him feel that way.

"You know that's not true," he said softly.

"Yes, it is," he insisted. "You spend all your time with him."

"Well, I spend a lot of time with him, yes, but it was because I was working there, remember? He can't be left alone all day while Draco goes to work, and now it's because I live there. We come visit you at least once a week, don't we? Sometimes your gran wants time with you, too, and so does Aunt Cissy, and the Weasley's. I can't keep you all to myself."

"But you let him call you dad. It's not fair! He already has a dad!"

But I don't, was left unspoken, hanging in the air between them, and then Harry understood.

This wasn't about Scorpius. It wasn't even really about Harry; it was about Teddy being understandably jealous that he didn't have parents of his own. Harry knew that feeling all too well.

"Teddy, listen to me," Harry said, moving the game board aside and gesturing Teddy to come over to him. He came, albeit reluctantly, and Harry pulled him onto his lap like he used to when he was smaller, stroking his floppy brown curls.

"I know you miss them," he murmured. "I still miss my parents, too, even though I don't remember them. Of course you would, but you need to know that they loved you so much, and so does your gran, and so do I. The Malfoy's and Weasley's do, too. We all love you, and we all help raise you. I know it doesn't replace what you lost, but at least you have all of us."

Teddy was quiet, his little shoulders tense as he plucked at a loose thread on his shirt, but he didn't pull away.

"I'm your Godfather, right?" Harry asked him, and he nodded slowly, finally looking up at Harry with big, sad eyes, and Harry wanted to cry for him, for what he had lost.

"That's right. You're so special to me, and no one could ever take your place, not even if I ever have children of my own someday. I love you, and loving Scorp, being his dad... that doesn't mean I love you any less. I never could, not ever."

"I don't want you to replace me," Teddy cried, turning to hug Harry tightly.

"That will never happen," Harry promised him fiercely, hugging him back, "and Scorpius wouldn't want you to feel like that, either. He adores you. You're every bit as important to me as he is, okay? You always will be."

"Okay," he whispered, sniffling. "I'm sorry, Harry."

"You don't have to be sorry for how you feel, love. Trust me, I understand."

He did, probably better than most. He was just grateful that Teddy at least had plenty of people who loved him instead of being raised like Harry had been.

"I was mean to him yesterday," Teddy said quietly after a while, not lifting his head from Harry's chest.

"You weren't mean. Just a bit harsh, and you apologized," Harry reminded him.

"Yeah, but I didn't mean it," Teddy admitted. "I wasn't really sorry. But I am now."

Harry chuckled quietly. "Well, you can talk to him later if you'd like, or you can just let it go. You know you're sorry now, and he already thinks you are."

"I should tell him. It's not good to lie."

"I think that would be really grown up of you," Harry told him, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. "Will you come with us to the Burrow later, then?"

Teddy nodded, finally pulling away from Harry and wiping his red cheeks dry. Harry handed him a tissue, but didn't comment on his tears so he didn't embarrass him. There was certainly no shame in crying, but Teddy was almost eight, and he thought he was too old to cry like that.

"Yeah. I miss Victoire. I miss Scorpius, too."

Harry smiled at him. He was glad he came, they definitely needed to have that talk. They'd be alright.

*

If Harry thought things with Draco would improve after the holidays, he was wrong.

Nothing was wrong with them, quite the opposite. Harry had moved into Draco's house within a week, and it had been nothing short of domestic bliss. Harry adored getting to wake up with him every day and fall asleep with him every night, knowing that he no longer had to go anywhere else. He loved it.

He hadn't brought too much with him when he moved in, just the rest of his clothes, his photos, and some random things here and there, but he did bring a lot of his kitchen over since he spent so much time in there. Draco had pretty much given him free reign, allowing him to hang up pictures or rearrange the kitchen cabinets to his liking.

No, the issue was that clearly something was still going on with him. After their middle of the night talk nearly two months ago, Draco had kept his word about making more of an effort to take better care of himself, but that had all gone out the window after Christmas. 

Harry knew something was wrong. Draco wasn't eating again, but more than that, he was on edge constantly, and he clearly wasn't sleeping. Harry could feel him tossing and turning all night, and he had dark, bruising circles under his eyes that he hid with Glamours. Harry didn't know if he was still having trouble with his coworkers, or just with one particular coworker, or if it was something else entirely, but Draco still wouldn't really talk about it.

When Harry asked, he would just say it was fine and change the subject. Harry didn't know what to do besides just try to be there for him and make sure he was eating. He couldn't force Draco to open up, and pushing him was only going to make him shut down even more.

Thank God his time on this ward was almost over, only two more weeks left of this hell.

In the meantime, Harry had a plan to distract him, if only for one night. He needed to relax, so badly.

"When's your next day off?" Harry asked him one evening after getting Scorpius to bed.

"Er, Thursday, I think?" Draco replied, glancing up from his textbook.

"Great!" Harry said cheerfully, stretching out on the yellow sofa cushions and laying his head in Draco's lap. "Why don't you see if your parents want to keep Scorp Wednesday night? I thought maybe we could go out. Ron and Hermione have been asking; Neville, too. Maybe have dinner together first, just us? You seem extra tense lately; I thought you might like to relax."

"Sure, darling. Sounds lovely," Draco told him with a smile. "I'll owl them later."

He turned back to his book, propping it up on one knee so he could run his fingers through Harry's hair, and Harry preened under the attention. He missed this.

*

"Are you ready yet, love?" Harry asked him for the third time that evening.

Draco had returned home bit late from work that evening, but Harry didn't mind, because he'd come home with flowers for him.

He did that all the time. All. The. Time.

It wasn't just flowers, either; sometimes it was candy, sometimes it was wine, or a new flannel, always something he liked to wear. Once, he'd come home with a very large full-color caricature of the three of them that he'd gotten in muggle London. That had been his favorite of all, and he'd immediately hung it prominently above the fireplace.

Harry loved it. He just loved it. It wasn't the gifts he cared about, it was the thought, the effort. He loved that Draco thought of him when they weren't together, loved that he cared. It didn't take a lot to make Harry happy, it really didn't, and he knew that Ginny was right when she'd said that his standards and expectations were basically on the floor, but Draco wasn't just giving him the bare minimum. This was effort, and it mattered.

He couldn't wait for his friends to hang out with them tonight in a non-family setting, couldn't wait for them to get to see Draco, see how he was with Harry. He desperately wanted to show them that he hadn't chosen wrong this time, that they didn't need to worry about him anymore.

And maybe he couldn't wait to show off his disgustingly beautiful boyfriend at the pub, too.

If he wasn't taking fucking forever, that is.

"Yes, yes, I'm ready," Draco called out with a huff from the bathroom. "Why are you in such a hurry?"

"Because I really..." Harry started, but his voice trailed off when Draco emerged from the loo. Harry couldn't decide where to focus his attention because...

Holy fucking shit.

He looked like he'd stepped directly out of one of Harry's fantasies. He had on those same sinful black skinny jeans and the leather jacket from their last pub night, but this time he had on a black and white muggle band tee shirt, his hair was pulled up away from his face instead of flowing loosely around his shoulders, and he had smudged that bloody eyeliner around his eyes again, making him look edgy and dangerous.

Christ, Harry wanted to lick every inch of him.

"I- you- wow. You look..." Harry stammered, tongue darting out to wet his lips as lust clouded his brain.

He looked strikingly similar to the night they'd first gotten together, but this was even better. He wouldn't have to sit by seething with jealousy this time thinking that Draco was looking like that for someone else. This time, it was for Harry. Draco looked like sex personified for him, and he knew it.

God, he wanted everyone, literally everyone, to know that this gorgeous man was his.

He must have been staring for too long, because Draco crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway, a smug smirk crossing his face.

"You were saying, darling?" Draco asked,

"Er..."

"Because you really...?" Draco prompted.

"I really..." what the hell had he been saying? Oh. "Oh. Right! Because I really, really want to show you off," Harry finished lowly, his voice rough. "Christ, you look like a wet dream. Come here, baby."

Draco sauntered over to him, his silver eyes already darkening, and as soon as he was within touching distance, Harry reached out and ran his hands over Draco's chest, then traveled up his throat, applying the barest hint of pressure there with his thumbs, just to see his reaction.

It didn't disappoint, Draco's cheeks flushed and he practically panted, but Harry didn't linger, not wanting to start something he couldn't finish right now. Instead, he slid one hand around to the back of his neck, the other gripping his jaw and tugged him into a deep kiss.

Draco moaned as Harry plunged his tongue into his mouth, licking along the length of his tongue and teasing it out into his own mouth so he could suck on it gently. Harry gave him a little nip before pulling back, causing Draco to give a needy little whine that shot straight to Harry's cock.

Harry smirked, pleased at the reaction. "Behave," he said lowly. "If you're good tonight, you'll get a reward." He nipped Draco's bottom lip sharply before pulling away.

Draco swallowed audibly, staring at Harry with calculating, lusty eyes. "And if I can't behave?" he breathed.

Jesus. He wasn't going to survive this man. "Then I'll just have to punish you instead, won't I?"

Draco's breath hitched, and he let out a low groan of approval. Harry shot him one last dark look, then threaded their fingers together and Apparated them right out of their bedroom, landing neatly near The Wobbly. The Apparation was at least enough to make Harry's erection flag a bit, enough to not be noticeable.

The pub was busy, more busy than usual for a Wednesday, and Harry sighed inwardly, but he spotted his friends soon enough, waving at them with a grin.

"What do you want to drink, love?" Draco murmured hotly into Harry's ear, causing a shiver to run through him. So much for his boner issue.

"Just Firewhiskey, please," Harry said, voice still gravelly. “Wait. And Butterbeer, I think.” He rarely drank anything other than wine anymore, but one drink wouldn't hurt. He always kept control of himself now.

"Go sit down, I'll get it and be right over," Draco said, nudging him towards the table. Harry smiled and squeezed his hand before going over to join his friends.

"About time, Harry," Ron moaned, but Harry ignored him, kissing Hermione on the cheek when she stood to greet him.

"Hey, Neville. How's it going?" Harry asked pleasantly, taking the seat next to where Neville was sat on the end of the table, leaving the seat on his left open for Draco.

"Going alright. Had a date with Hannah Abbott over the weekend," he said shyly, and Harry's grin widened. Neville had been trying to ask her out for probably a year by now, but always got too flustered to get the words out properly.

"Well, alright! How did it go?"

Neville gave them a rundown of his date which sounded like it went incredibly well, but conversation paused when Draco approached the table, hands full of drinks. He took the open seat next to Harry, then nodded in greeting.

"Granger, Weasley, Longbottom," he said as he slid two of the drinks over to Harry.

Harry smiled gratefully at him, not wanting to kiss him in front of his friends in case it made Draco uncomfortable, but the other man surprised him when he caught Harry's hand in his, giving his knuckles a quick kiss before settling their hands together on the table and hooking one of his ankles around Harry's under the table, pulling his chair closer.

Harry vaguely heard Ron greeting Draco, but Harry was watching him with what he was sure were stars in his eyes. A slow grin spread across his face, dimple settling deeply into his cheek. He still wasn't used to this, wasn't used to someone just wanting to be close to him, especially in public.

When he looked away, he caught Hermione's eye. She was watching them with a soft look of approval, and he knew that with just that small gesture, so insignificant in the grand scheme of things but so important to Harry, something so simple that Draco probably had no idea what he'd done, he had won her over.

"Been alright," Draco shrugged, answering whatever Ron had asked. "I'll be glad when my current rotation at the hospital is over, though, I can’t lie."

Harry would be glad, too.

"Oh, do you not like the ward you're working on? I would have thought creature related injuries would be so interesting," Hermione said disappointedly.

"They are," Draco agreed, taking a long sip from his Firewhiskey, not elaborating on it further.

"What's been your favorite assignment so far?" Hermione asked instead, catching on to his reluctance, leaning forward in interest.

"Definitely Artefact Accidents," Draco grinned, tension leaving him as he described some of his more interesting cases. He'd had a patient come in with severe burns from a dragon that still made Harry shudder to think about.

They chatted like that for a good hour, only being occasionally disrupted by someone passing by them too closely, whispering so loudly about Harry that he could hear it. He ignored them all with practiced ease, feeling better about it having Draco here, but it seemed to irritate his boyfriend, who drank his Firewhiskey faster with a disgruntled look on his pretty face, and he kept scooting Harry's chair closer to him, like he was trying to shield Harry from the prying eyes with his body. It was so sweet, and he never once let go of Harry's hand.

Over time, though, alcohol and Harry's lack of reaction to the fans relaxed Draco, and soon he was chatting animatedly, laughing freely with them, especially at Hermione, whose sharp, dry wit matched his own perfectly.

Harry was in a debate with Ron about which quidditch team was going to make the playoffs this year when he heard an unfamiliar voice off to the side.

"Well, aren't you easy on the eyes."

Harry immediately stiffened, eyes darting over to see an unfairly attractive man with wavy blonde hair and bright blue eyes staring at Draco. At his boyfriend. His heart plummeted into his stomach and he could feel his shoulders creeping up as tension set in.

This man... he was handsome. Handsome enough for Draco. He was lean and sophisticated and blonde, charming, and radiating confidence as he smiled at Draco. Harry couldn't compete with that. He knew he couldn't.

Deep down, he knew something like this was bound to happen, that someone, someday, was going to come along and Draco would realize that he was wasting his time with Harry. Even if it wasn’t today in this moment, it would happen. The thought was incredibly painful.

Draco looked up at the man, and Harry tried to brace himself for what he feared was coming, barely daring to breathe, focusing on the fact that Draco was still holding his hand, at least for now.

"Me?" Draco asked for confirmation, pointing at himself.

The man grinned and nodded, looking like he'd won something. "Yes, you. You're stunning. Would you care to get a drink with me?"

Harry's heart practically stopped when he saw Draco look down at their hands, expecting him to pull away, but he just looked back up at the man, not moving an inch.

"Sorry, I don't speak English," he deadpanned.

Harry heard someone snort in amusement, but he couldn't think about that. All he could think about was that Draco had just- he'd just rejected this very attractive man without even batting an eye, in an admittedly incredibly rude manner.

Warmth spread through him and a small, shy smile creeped onto his face, his eyes locked on his lap, not trusting himself to look at Draco right now. If he did, he'd probably throw himself at him.

The man next to them huffed and stormed away while Ron was still chuckling. "Fucking brutal," he muttered, and Harry squeezed Draco's hand tighter, resuming his conversation.

"Do you want another drink?" Harry asked him a bit later, and he nodded, handing over his empty glass. "Anyone else need topped off?" he asked, standing up. Ron and Hermione both handed their glasses over, but Neville was still working on his.

Harry made his way up to the bar, waving slightly at Audrey where she was wiping out a few glasses. She smiled brightly in return, coming over to him.

"Hello, love, having a good night?"

Harry nodded at her. "I am, thank you. Busy night tonight."

She laughed. "I think it has something to with someone or other doing a book signing over at Flourish and Blott's earlier today."

"Oh," Harry said, surprised. "I hadn't heard about that."

She raised an eyebrow. "It was all over the papers."

"Well, that would be why," Harry laughed. "We don't get the papers."

"We?" she asked.

"Yeah," he breathed, glancing back at Draco. "He asked me to move in after Christmas."

"That's wonderful, Harry. I'm so happy for you. You two look gorgeous together, too," she winked.

He flushed, biting back a grin. He certainly hoped they did.

"How's it going with the little one? He's fine with it?"

"He calls me dad," Harry told her, that grin having no hope of being held back any longer.

She gasped, hand flying to her mouth. "Oh, Harry..."

Harry could feel eyes watching him, slowly getting closer to him as he chatted with Audrey, and he smoothly changed the subject to something less personal. He saw Audrey's eyes flit over and she shot him a sympathetic look before busying herself with wiping down the bar, but she mercifully didn't move away as two women approached him.

"Hi, Harry," one of the women said, smiling widely at him.

"Hello," he replied politely, giving her a short nod and turning back to Audrey, hoping to end the conversation there. No such luck, though. They just took his acknowledgement as permission to move closer to him, crowding into his personal space. 

"We just wanted to tell you how amazing you were in the Battle at Hogwarts."

"It was so good," the other woman gushed, and Harry stiffened.

They couldn't be serious? This was not the place for that conversation. There was no place for it. He didn't like talking about it, at all. He'd had to murder someone. A horrible someone, yes, and it had certainly needed to happen, but he'd still ended someone's life. It wasn't a pleasant topic or time in his life.

"Um..." he said, lost for words, but they didn't seem to notice. Their eyes were lit up with excitement, and he had no idea what to say to them.

"I mean, Expelliarmus? How did you even think of that?" she asked, flipping her hair.

"You must be really smart, figuring that out. I mean, who would have seen that coming?" The other said in a sultry voice, her eyes glinting as she reached out and placed a hand on his arm.

Harry stared at her with wide eyes, feeling incredibly uncomfortable. He didn't want to be touched; he didn't want to be flirted with.

He tried to edge away from them, but they just stepped closer. "It was just luck-" he tried with an uncomfortable chuckle, but they both laughed.

"Oh, don't be so modest! You can tell us. I mean, it was just so impressive, you know. How did you know that would be enough to win?"

He watched in horror as she reached up to towards his face, either to touch his face or his hair, he didn't know, and it didn't really matter. Harry carefully dodged her hand, running his own hand through his hair instead. "I- er, thank you, but really, I need to get back-" Harry replied, laughing uncomfortably again, gesturing back towards his table, praying that they took the hint.

He noticed their eyes lock on something behind him, their smiles dimmed a bit, eyes narrowing, and he hoped that meant that something else had pulled their attention, but they didn't pull away from him.

Instead, he felt someone press up to him from behind, and he panicked momentarily, trying to think of an exit plan. He didn't know how he would escape when he was caged in from both sides, and his eyes darted over to Audrey in alarm, but his whole body relaxed when the person leaned in closer and he caught a whiff of grapefruit and cedar.

Draco. Thank fuck.

Draco ghosted his lips along the shell of his ear. "Well, aren't you the loveliest thing here tonight," he purred lowly into Harry's ear, causing a shudder to run through his body. Draco flicked his tongue out against skin of Harry's neck, humming deep in his throat in appreciation. "Mmm, and delicious. Can I buy you a drink, gorgeous?"

Harry melted into his hold, turning his head to finally look at Draco. He nodded slowly, quirking an eyebrow at the game Draco was playing, and the women gasped, looking affronted.

"Excuse me, we were already talking to him!" one of them said shrilly, not removing her hand from Harry's arm, but rather tightening her grip. Draco frowned at that, and tugged Harry back a bit, forcing her to let go.

"Were you? I guess he found someone more interesting, because he's talking to me now. How unfortunate for you. Sucks to suck, I guess," Draco told them in a bored tone.

Oh, my God. Harry suppressed a laugh, watching as Draco glanced over at Audrey. "Audrey, could you send his drinks to my table, please?"

She pressed her lips together, then pulled out her wand and sent the tray of drinks Harry had ordered flying over to their table with a wink before she flitted away to take care of another patron.

"You can't just do that!" the other woman protested, looking angry.

"I can't?" Draco said, feigning shock. He looked at Harry, who just smiled at him, feeling completely safe here in his arms, then turned back to them with a smirk. He shrugged. "Looks like I just did. Bye," he said, guiding Harry back to the table.

They didn't follow, luckily, and Harry breathed a sigh of relief, leaning into Draco's side. When they'd both settled in their seats again, Draco placed a possessive hand on Harry's leg, squeezing slightly before stroking his fingers soothingly there. It grounded Harry, reminding him that his boyfriend would always have his back if he needed him.

"Well, they were pissed," Ron said cheerfully, raising his glass to Draco. "Stormed right back to their own table, didn't they?"

"As they should! I don't know why you won't just tell them to leave you alone, Harry; it’s so odd how total strangers think they have the right to touch you like that," Hermione lectured.

He understood her point, and he agreed with her, but he hated having to say anything. It was just easier to take it and try to end the interaction quickly.

Harry shrugged. "I just don't want to be rude," he said, leaning a bit more into Draco. "They mean well, and it's not like I can't or won't defend myself if I really need to, but I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings."

"What about Draco's feelings?" Hermione asked bluntly, startling him slightly. "Maybe he doesn't appreciate you letting people take liberties with you like that."

"I-," Harry faltered, glancing at Draco uncertainly.

He- he hadn't thought of that. What was wrong with him? How had he never considered how letting other people touch him might make his partner feel? He was being incredibly selfish, only thinking about himself.

"Does it bother you?" Harry asked softly. "I'm really sorry, I don't mean anything by it, I just..." he trailed off, not even knowing how to defend his actions. Maybe there was no defense.

"No, don't be sorry. It only bothers me to see you uncomfortable, darling," Draco said, pressing a kiss to Harry's temple. "I love you just how you are, and I don't mind being the rude one for you."

Harry felt relief flood him. Draco meant it; his ears didn't turn red. He smiled at that, mouthing “thank you” to him. Draco just winked at him, and downed his drink.

Things lightened up again after that, and Harry could see Draco getting tipsier as the evening wore on. He got very touchy when he drank, and he was certainly touching.

He started off with just a hand on Harry's knee, but that hand quickly began inching its way higher and higher up his leg. Harry fidgeted, trying to keep his arousal under control, but it was damn near impossible when his hotter than sin boyfriend was looking like he was, all loose and happy, and bloody touching him like that.

His cock was throbbing, and when that sneaky hand finally bumped into the bulge at his crotch, he made an involuntary strangled noise in his throat, ignoring the concerned look Neville shot him in favor of trying to breathe normally while his boyfriend was being a bloody fucking tease in public.

Draco didn't move away from him after that, instead focusing his touch directly on Harry's dick, driving him insane. He couldn't focus on the conversation, could only think about the way Draco's fingers were tracing along his length before he rested his whole hand there, applying just enough pressure to drive him mad.

Those long fingers curved around his cock, squeezing gently. Harry felt it twitching, unable to do anything about the pre-cum he felt soaking through his pants, then his jeans. Jesus Christ, how was he supposed to hide that?

Draco seemed quite pleased at the discovery, smirking smugly when he skated his fingers through the damp patch of fabric at the tip, rubbing teasingly, and- that was enough.

Harry gripped his wrist firmly, stilling his movements and waving his right hand over his lap to cast a Disillusionment Charm over himself, hopefully hiding the situation he had going on. Draco was being a little shit right now and he knew it. He was probably doing it on purpose, actually; the lusty look on Draco's face earlier when Harry had mentioned punishing him flashing through his mind.

"You're not behaving," Harry muttered darkly into his ear, and Draco finally looked over at him, his eyes huge and dark with arousal, cheeks flushed, and Draco had the nerve to bite his lip, trying to look innocent.

It was hot as fuck.

"I don't know what you mean, love, I am a delight," he said flippantly, poking Harry in the cheek, giggling when his dimple made a brief appearance.

God did he love Draco like this, especially with how tense he'd been lately, a fact that was only further proven when Draco leaned in and licked his cheek before attaching his mouth to Harry's, humming contentedly as he plunged his tongue in. The kiss was far steamier than was appropriate for public, but Draco seemed to be paying no mind whatsoever to where they were. He just leaned in closer, hand wriggling free of Harry's grasp so he could keep touching him, and Harry lost all semblance of sense.

At least until Hermione snapped him back to reality.

"Oh my!" she gasped, sounding scandalized and slapping her hands over her mouth. Her face was flushed from the wine she'd had, hair frizzier than usual, brown eyes wide and glassy as she stared at them in shock. "Harry! We're at the pub!" she hissed at him.

He turned startled eyes to Draco, who met his gaze and then just shrugged, clearly not giving one single fuck who might have seen them. It was absurd, and Harry could only bark out a laugh in response. They needed to leave before his dick fell off.

"Right. I think it's time for us to go," Harry announced, helping Draco to stand up. Or trying to, anyway; the alcohol had definitely kicked in by now, and Draco leaned heavily against Harry, grinning at the look of fond exasperation Harry gave him.

"You need some help, mate?" Ron asked him, looking amused, but Harry shook his head.

"No, I can handle him," Harry said, then Draco gasped loudly.

"Wait, wait, I have to pay! Take me to the bar, please, darling," he said, trying to stand up straighter, pointing towards Audrey dramatically.

"Uh, we can handle that, Malfoy," Neville told him, but Draco wouldn't hear it, shaking his finger at him.

"No, no, no. This was my treat. I'm paying, and you can't argue with me. I'll win," he said with a tone of finality, crossing his arms.

Neville held his hands up in surrender, and Draco grinned at Harry triumphantly. "You're not paying, either," he sassed, then he took off towards the bar, weaving his way through the crowd, occasionally using a random shoulder to steady himself while ignoring the perturbed looks he was getting, and all Harry could do was follow him helplessly, making sure he was alright and apologizing quietly to the people he was disturbing.

"Audreyyy!" Draco called out in a sing-song voice when he reached the bar, propping himself up on the bar top with his elbows, crossing his long legs at the ankles.

"What can I do for you, dear?" she said brightly, laughing eyes glancing over his shoulder at Harry, and he just shrugged, chuckling quietly.

"Harry says we have to leave now, but I need to pay you, love. And leave you extra in case they want to keep going," he said, gesturing back to where Hermione, Ron, and Neville were still sitting.

"Alright, then," she laughed. "Let me close your tab out, love, I'll be back in a mo’. Harry?" she said, tipping her head, indicating that he should follow her.

"I'll be right back, love," Harry murmured into Draco's ear, brushing his fingers along the back of his neck, gently before following Audrey a few steps away.

"What's up?" he asked her.

"I want to hold a fundraiser to donate to Hermione next month," she explained, and he perked up. "I was hoping you might be willing to help me come up with an idea or help plan it? I figured you could drag the rest along with you, but I wanted it to be a surprise for her. To celebrate the five-year anniversary of her charity. What do you think?"

Harry grinned. "That's a fantastic idea! Of course I'll help; I'll do whatever you need. Why don't I come in next week and we can talk more about it?"

"Thanks, love, I knew you'd be interested. I have a few ideas, but I thought maybe you-"

"-are you touching me? Would you move?"

Harry's head snapped over to Draco, to where he was leaned over the bar where Harry had left him, but now with that same handsome man who had hit on him earlier pressed up against him, effectively trapping him against the bar with his fucking hands on Draco's hips, and clearly Draco did not like it, judging by his tone and the beyond annoyed look on his face.

Harry saw red, storming over to where Draco was still stuck between the man and the bar.

"What are you doing here all by your lonesome, baby?" the man asked, calling Harry's boyfriend 'baby', like he had any right whatsoever.

Rage rose up and Harry grit his teeth, yanking the man away from Draco. "He's not by himself," Harry snarled, shoving the man away from Draco roughly and placing his body protectively between them. He didn't even care if he was being rude or violent; this brainless twat was lucky that Harry wasn't hexing him within an inch of his life.

"Do you make it a habit to touch obviously inebriated people after they've said not to? What's wrong with you?" Harry snapped at him.

The man scoffed. "I didn't do anything he didn't want. He had his arse sticking out like he was waiting for it."

Was he kidding? Harry knew that wasn't what Draco was doing, he was just drunk and floppy, using the bar top to lean on.

Draco made a high-pitched noise of indignation, but Harry just scowled, opening his mouth to really lay into him, or possibly Curse him, he hadn't quite decided, but he didn't get the chance.

"Harry, that's enough," Audrey said from behind the bar, then turned to the man, sounding uncharacteristically cold. "You need to leave, now, and you're not to come back here again. I won't have anyone here distressing my patrons."

The man stared at her in irritation, then rolled his eyes. "Whatever. He's nothing but a bloody tease anyway," he said, shooting Draco a disgusted look before he walked towards the door.

Harry wanted to smack him, but Draco seemed totally unphased, turning back to Audrey and digging a handful of coins out of his pocket, and all Harry could do was stand there, worrying that Draco wasn’t okay after nearly being assaulted.

“Here you are, darling,” Draco said. “Harry can help you count it later. He’s good at that. I’ll make sure he brings the blueberries.”

“Blueberries?” Audrey asked in confusion, then looked at the pile of coins. “No, no, this is too much,” she said, sorting the coins quickly.

"You keep that,” Draco commanded. “For our friend’s drinks, and you keep the rest. Put it towards your wedding," he said sternly, leaning back into Harry.

Wait, what? Her wedding?! How did Harry not know about this?

She apparently wasn't getting married, though, because she just laughed at him. "Oh? And who am I supposed to be marrying?"

"Theo, obviously. He's already planned the whole thing," Draco said proudly, and Harry tightened his grip on Draco's waist, jaw dropping slightly in shock.

"What?" she said, looking confused. "I'm not getting married to Theo."

"Not yet, love, but you will," Draco said, patting her hand. "He loves you. Theo never likes anyone. It's fascinating, really, I've never seen him like this before."

"Okay, I think that's enough!" Harry said loudly, trying desperately burst out laughing.  Draco was going to strangle himself in the morning, if he remembered any of this. "Audrey, thank you again, and please forgive him. I'm sure he'll be mortified in the morning."

Audrey was looking at Draco thoughtfully, though, a soft smile on her face. "Consider it forgotten," she said lightly, waving them away with the rag in her hand.

Harry dragged him out of the pub after that, pausing only briefly to wave goodbye to his friends, their friends. "Hold on to me, sweetheart," Harry told him once they made it outside, wrapping Draco's arms firmly around his neck, and Apparating them home.

The second they landed back in their bedroom, Draco was on him, cradling Harry's face in his hands, plunging his tongue into Harry's mouth with a moan as he walked them backwards, crowding him up against a wall.

"Want you," Draco panted, trying to peel off his jacket, then his t-shirt without breaking the kiss, grumbling when he realized it wasn't possible.

Oh, God, he wanted this, had been wanting it for hours, but he had to make sure Draco was okay after he'd basically just been assaulted at the pub.

"Wait," Harry said, panting as he forced himself to pull away. "Baby, wait."

Harry put his hands firmly on Draco's shoulders, stilling his movements, eyes flitting over Draco's face in concern, looking for any sign of distress. "Are you alright?" he asked softly. "Did he hurt you?"

Draco shook his head. "No. He was just annoying. I'm fine," he said, looking genuine. "You protected me, anyway. I thought you didn't like being rude?" he teased, but Harry didn't laugh.

He didn't like being rude, but this wasn't about him being rude, it was about doing the right thing and protecting his partner from someone else's unwelcome touch. No one should touch him, ever, especially not while he was drunk. It was wrong.

"That was different," Harry said quietly after a moment.

"Why?"

"Because it was you, and what he did wasn't okay. No one should touch you like that, especially not when you've had too much to drink."

"Not too much," Draco argued quickly. "Just enough. I feel good. You could make me feel even better, though," he said, tone sultry as he leaned back in to lick a stripe up Harry's neck. "So delicious," he mumbled, sucking the skin there between his teeth and biting down gently, and Harry moaned quietly.

"You, though," Draco kept talking between nips, causing Harry's breath to quicken, loving that Draco was marking him up, "you should have let me do this before we went out. Everyone always wants you, and I don't blame them, but you're mine," he growled, shoving the flannel off of Harry's shoulders, fingers working their way under his white tee shirt to trace over his hips and ribcage, causing the muscles of his stomach jump under the touch, breathy gasps escaping him when Draco dragged his fingertips over his nipples and chest.

Draco worked quickly, tugging his shirt up, up, until Harry finally yanked it over his head, knocking his glasses askew. He was already rock hard again. Not that it had ever fully gone down at the pub; Draco had been teasing him for hours.

Draco ducked down, sucking one nipple into his mouth and biting down sharply before soothing over it gently with his tongue, then repeating the action on the other side. His hands wandered down to the waistband of Harry's jeans, ghosting his fingers along his erection.

"You promised me a reward," Draco said breathily, trying to work his hand into the now far too tight trousers without unbuttoning them.

That’s right, he had. He’d also promised him something else, though, something that sounded a lot more interesting right now.

Quick as a flash, Harry flipped them around, and now Draco was the one pressed against the wall held in place by Harry's hips, his hands locked around Draco's wrists, pinning them to the wall so he could no longer touch.

"I promised you a reward if you behaved," Harry corrected him sternly. "Do you think you behaved yourself, baby?"

Draco bit his lip and nodded, groaning when Harry ground their hips together harder. "Do you, now? You think touching me like that in front of our friends or getting me hard in public was behaving?"

Draco whimpered, shaking his head, apparently either unable or unwilling to keep up the innocent act any longer, going totally pliant, exactly how Harry wanted him.

"That's right," Harry said lowly, tugging a strand of Draco's hair that had fallen loose. "You didn't behave. Do you know what that means?"

Draco squirmed and shook his head again, even though they both knew he'd known exactly what he was doing all evening. That was alright, though; Harry was more than happy to play along.

He spun Draco around so his chest was up against the wall now, Harry pressing into him from behind to keep him in place. His hand gripped Draco's hair, pulling his head back until his throat was fully exposed and he was panting heavily.

"It means I'm going to have to punish you, doesn't it?" Harry breathed hotly into Draco's ear. Draco whined, nodding frantically as best he could with Harry's hand still tangled around his messy bun.

The question now was, what kind of punishment should he give him? Ideas flit through his head until he finally settled on one, suppressing a groan at the thought of what he was going to do to him.

"That's right. Now, strip for me. Keep facing the wall," he said firmly, and watched, fascinated, as Draco scrambled to comply, shedding his clothes as quickly as he could, then positioning himself right back where Harry had him before, hands on the wall, legs slightly spread for balance, his round, firm arse perfectly on display.

Fucking stunning.

Harry came up behind him, slowly trailing fingers down Draco's spine, and delivering a quick pinch to his arse, causing Draco to yelp. "Beautiful," Harry muttered, nudging Draco until he turned around to face him. He was so hard it looked almost painful, cock jutting up towards his stomach, already dripping.

Harry cast a quick Lubrication Charm on his own hand then gripped Draco's leaking cock, pumping him quickly as he sucked a bruise right under Draco's ear. Draco bucked forward, his eyes squeezing shut like he was trying to hold himself back, probably assuming, incorrectly, that Harry wanted him to hold off. Not tonight, though. Harry wanted him to come.

"Come for me, darling," Harry said, quickening his movements until Draco came with a groan. Harry kept stroking him through it, until Draco began to shiver with oversensitivity, then he released him, cleaning his hand off with a quick wave, but leaving any smears of come that had landed on Draco's body where they were. Pretty.

"Kneel," Harry said evenly, applying gentle pressure to Draco's shoulder until he got the message and sunk to his knees, looking up at Harry in anticipation, but Harry kept his jeans on and just walked backwards until he was in the middle of the room. "Come here, baby," he said, beckoning Draco over to him, testing just how compliant Draco planned on being tonight.

Very, apparently; Draco whimpered, but did as Harry asked, shuffling forward on his knees until he was right in front of him again, kneeling submissively.

Harry brushed a piece of hair out of Draco's face, taking in his lust-filled gaze, eyes looking like pools of molten silver. God, he was gorgeous. He gathered himself for half a second, then stepped back to give him a bit more room. "Turn around. I want you on your hands and knees," he commanded, and Draco once again obeyed, turning until his back was facing Harry and lowered himself down to the correct position, presenting himself.

Draco was trembling when Harry moved to kneel behind him, hands trailing up Draco's thighs, up over his arse, keeping his touch gentle.

"I know you want me to spank you," Harry said conversationally, hands still trailing all over Draco, reveling in his labored breathing despite the fact that he'd just come. "But I think you'd like that too much. This is supposed to be a punishment, after all. Isn't it?"

Draco nodded fervently in response, a thin sweat breaking out over his body as he struggled to stay still. Good boy.

"Spread your legs for me, baby," Harry said in that same steady voice. "Show me your pretty hole."

Draco visibly shuddered, but did as he was told, slowly moving his knees further apart, lowering himself down to his elbows to expose himself further to Harry's gaze.

This wasn't so much about Harry wanting to see him as it was about exerting control, showing Draco that Harry was in charge right now, and that if he listened, Harry would take care of him.

"What are you-" Draco started to ask, but Harry cut him off with a sharp smack to his arse. He yelped, then moaned, dropping his head down between his shoulders.

"Don't talk, Draco. This is a punishment, remember?"

He opened his mouth to say something, then thought better of it, closing it again, staying quiet.

"Good boy," Harry praised him, and Draco moaned quietly, his cock thickening up quickly at the praise.

Harry briefly wondered if Draco had always been this turned on by submitting, by praise, or if what he'd gone through during or after the war had brought it on. He would have pegged Draco as being a bossy, demanding brat in bed, and sometimes he could be, but like this? He was beautiful like this, so soft, so malleable.

"You like that, don't you baby. You like being good for me?" Harry asked. His hand came up between Draco's thighs, ghosting along the length of his cock, trailing one finger through the bead of pre-come that had already gathered on the tip, then up over his balls until they settled back on his bum, spreading his cheeks further apart. Harry still didn't touch him there, though; he just looked, drinking in his pretty pink opening.

"Answer me, Draco."

"Yes," he gasped, a flush spreading down the back of his neck. "Yes, I want to be good!"

"What's your safe word, darling?" Harry murmured, blowing gently across Draco's exposed entrance. He was absolutely going to need that for what Harry had planned for him. He needed a way to tap out of it became too much. Harry was fairly confident he'd be able to handle it, though.

"I don't- er. Mango," Draco stuttered. Harry chuckled, then swiped his tongue over Draco's hole, not giving him any time to adjust to the sensation.

Harry ate him out vigorously, licking sloppily around his opening, bringing one hand up to wrap around Draco's dick while the other teased around his hole. Harry skipped using one finger, dipping in instead with two, nice and slick, immediately seeking out his prostate and applying steady pressure there.

Draco cried out, his body shaking as he tried to keep his arse in the air as directed through the assault.

"I want you to come again, Draco. Be good for me, darling," Harry said, redoubling his efforts until Draco fell apart a second time, thighs shaking as he came. He didn't come as much, but it didn't seem any less intense than the last one, and Harry stroked him through it until Draco was whining with oversensitivity.

"Harry!" he eventually gasped out, shivering violently, and Harry finally pulled away to re-cast the Lubrication Charm.

He heard Draco breathe a sigh of relief, probably assuming it was over, but Harry was far from being done with him. He pressed his clean hand to his own dick to relieve some of the pressure as he grasped Draco's slightly flagging cock once more. Draco cried out, trying to buck away from the obviously overwhelming touch, but Harry tightened his grip, the hand firmly grasping his hip keeping him in place as he worked him through the sensitivity relentlessly, stroking him back to full hardness.

"Hold still, baby," Harry soothed him, voice surprisingly steady for how turned on he was. "We're not done yet. I think you can give me two more, don't you? One for every time you got me hard tonight where anyone could see."

He could see his shock in the way his back stiffened. "Can't," he gasped desperately, still trying to squirm away. "Harry, please, I can't."

"You can," Harry assured him. "You can do it, darling. Just trust me. Be good for me."

Draco took a shuddering breath, and Harry could feel him trying to will his body to relax even though Harry hadn't stopped touching him.

"I trust you. Okay," he whispered shakily, and Harry pressed a kiss between his shoulder blades.

"Good boy," Harry praised him. Draco whined as his cock kicked pitifully, and Harry chuckled before pulling back from him long enough to flip Draco onto his back, casting a Cushioning Charm under him so he was more comfortable before he urged Draco's legs apart once again, settling in between them.

His own cock was straining uncomfortably inside his jeans, but he did his best to ignore it. This wasn't about him right now, and Harry had one last trick up his sleeve. He'd been saving this for the right opportunity, and this was it.

Harry summoned the vibrator from where he'd stashed it under the bed, slicking it up quickly and lining it up, sliding it steadily into Draco's hole, settling it snugly against his prostate. It wasn't as big as Harry was, but that wasn't the point of this. Another flick of his hand, and the vibrator buzzed to life.

Draco screeched, his back bowing up off the floor as his hands scrambled to find purchase on something, anything. Harry held his hand out for Draco to hold onto, and he gripped it for dear life, jaw clenched tightly against the vibrations rocking through his sensitive body.

Tears began sliding down his face as the sensations continued unrelentingly, and Harry bent down to suck his leaking cock into his mouth, causing Draco to practically scream.

He was babbling incoherently, begging in an endless stream of please, please, please, and Harry could feel him getting close again when his dick started twitching in his mouth.

"Come on, baby. You can come. Let go for me," Harry said, and Draco did, almost like his body couldn't ignore the command. Harry watched him as he bucked wildly, barely a trickle of come escaping him this time.

Harry kept stroking him, not allowing him to go soft. "There you go, baby, that's perfect. So beautiful, such a good boy," Harry soothed him.

The muscles in his thighs were twitching uncontrollably, and he looked absolutely fucked, lips bitten almost to the point of bleeding, face and chest flushed and sweaty, eyes wild and lust drunk. His long hair was a tangled mess, his bun long gone. Harry wondered if he was pushing him too far. He didn't want to hurt him, after all.

"You're doing so well, sweetheart, I'm so proud of you," Harry said softly. "Just one more, do you think you can give me one more? You're taking it so well."

Draco blinked blearily up at him, but didn't speak, and Harry grew more concerned.

"Baby, do you need to use your safe word?" he asked.

The vibrator was still buzzing away inside of him, and Harry didn't stop touching him, wouldn't, not unless he used his word, but he did bring his free hand up to touch Draco's face gently, to let him know that he was listening, that he was still there.

"I can do it," Draco slurred, voice cracking a bit. He blinked rapidly, trying to focus on Harry.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, brushing his hair out of his eyes tenderly, needing to be sure, but Draco just nodded.

"One more. Want you to fuck me."

"Just one more," Harry confirmed, leaning down to kiss him gently, silently hoping he wouldn't come instantly. He vanished his jeans and pants, then slid the vibrator out of Draco, pushing into him carefully.

He was so hot, still so tight, and Draco whimpered as Harry fucked into him slowly but steadily, until his shivers faded. He wasn't just going slow for Draco's benefit, though; he had been ready to come for what felt like forever, and he was struggling to hold back, needing to get Draco there one more time first, and he had no idea how long it might take after he'd come three times already.

Draco had other ideas, though, and he moaned, wrapping his legs tightly around Harry, urging him on. "More," Draco choked out, crying out loudly when Harry's cock grazed past his swollen, abused prostate. His body twitched, but he didn't try to get away from it this time, instead clenching down tightly around Harry.

"Fucking hell," Harry grit out through clenched teeth, his hips stuttering, and he redoubled his efforts, slamming into him faster, determined to get Draco to the edge, but he was clearly struggling to get there.

More tears slipped down his temples into his hair. "Harry! Please…! I need- I can't-" he sobbed desperately.

"Shh," Harry soothed him, slowing his movements. "Turn over for me, baby."

Draco scrambled to do so, presenting his arse to Harry once again, moaning weakly when he felt Harry slide back inside of him easily. He thrust in harder, hand coming up to finger along Draco's throat before he applied more pressure there, urging Draco up onto his knees. One hand gripped Draco's hip while the other stayed on his throat, holding him steady with his back pressed against Harry's chest. Harry squeezed the sides of his throat before sliding his hand up further, plunging two fingers into Draco's mouth while his other hand moved to grip his weeping cock.

"Suck," Harry commanded, and Draco let out another sob, sucking obediently on the fingers in his mouth, holding on for dear life as Harry rammed into his prostate.

This was what he needed. He needed to be forced to give up control completely, needed to surrender, to succumb.

Harry panted against his shoulder, beginning to lose rhythm. He was so close, and he couldn't hold on much longer. He slipped his fingers further back in Draco's mouth, teasing at the back of his throat until he could feel his throat restricting around them, trying to gag around the intrusion.

"Such a good boy, darling, the best," Harry whispered then and apparently that had been what he'd needed.

Draco shouted, voice hoarse, his orgasm slamming into him. He came dry, gasping wildly for air as he convulsed. He clenched so tightly around Harry that it almost hurt, and Harry pulled his fingers out, thrusting in once, twice more before slamming home and coming so hard he almost blacked out. Jesus Christ.

By the time he was able to gather himself and move again, Draco was still laying prone underneath of him, and Harry carefully pulled out of him, running his fingers through sweat-soaked blonde hair, not receiving a response. Harry pressed gentle kisses to his temple, then stood up on shaky legs, quickly drawing a bath before returning to scoop his boyfriend up and carry him to the tub.

Draco roused a bit when he was lowered into the steamy water, and Harry climbed in behind him, pulling Draco back against his chest so he could wash his body and his hair, gently cleaning away the sweat and come, murmuring sweet words to him until he was boneless.

"So beautiful, most gorgeous thing I've ever seen," Harry whispered as he massaged shampoo into Draco's sweaty, tangled hair. "You were perfect, sweetheart, always perfect for me. Still can't believe you're mine."

Draco just moaned quietly in response, letting his eyes drift shut. "I love you," Draco slurred out, and Harry pressed kisses to the back of his shoulder, hands not stopping their ministrations.

"I love you, too, baby," he replied, letting Draco drift off to sleep against him. He'd be alright; Harry would take care of him. He was his.

*

Their night out hadn't helped, much to Harry's dismay.

Over the next week, Draco only got more and more tense, his dark circles worsening, and he barely ate at all, despite Harry doing everything short of spelling him to his chair and forcing food down his throat, all of it culminating in Draco coming home one evening and announcing that he wanted to quit.

He hadn’t exactly said why, just that he hated it, and Harry had managed to talk him off the ledge, reminding him that he only had a few days left before it would get better.

But it somehow got even worse still when Draco had come home the day before and told him about a new patient with a mysterious severe injury that no one could figure out.

Draco had immediately become obsessed, spending all evening and night researching, trying to figure out what could have attacked her, and all Harry could do was watch helplessly, not having any knowledge that could possibly help him at all. He knew next to nothing about magical creatures. He'd Firecalled Hermione, to see if she could help, but she seemed just as mystified as Draco.

Draco had skipped dinner last night, then breakfast, and Harry almost cried when he saw that Draco hadn't even remembered to grab his lunch again. He couldn't go that long without eating; he was going to hurt himself or someone else if he kept starving himself like this.

"You ready to go see Teddy, Scorp?" Harry asked Scorpius.

They were supposed to go have lunch with Andromeda and Teddy, but Harry was going to see if Andy would watch Scorp just long enough for him to take Draco food, and make it clear that Harry knew he wasn't eating and that he was worried. He'd stay and watch him eat it if he had to.

"I'm ready!" he chirped, lifting his arms up so Harry could pick him up.

Harry laughed, scooping him up on one arm, and Draco's lunch with the other, then twisted, Apparating them to Andromeda's.

"Auntie Andy, Teddy, I'm here!" Scorpius hollered when they landed.

"We're in the kitchen, darling," Andromeda called out to them, and Scorpius skipped in, leaving Harry in the dust. Harry followed him more slowly, hugging Teddy hello.

"Hey, Andy," he greeted her, and she turned to smile at him.

"How's your day going, love?"

He shrugged. "Alright. Listen, do you mind if I leave him here for a bit? Draco forgot his lunch again, and I wanted to take it to him."

"Not a problem, take your time. He'll be fine here," she agreed easily.

"Thanks," he smiled at her, giving her a quick hug. "Boys, I'll be back soon, alright?"

"Where are you going?" Teddy pouted.

"Just taking Draco his lunch. I won't be long."

"Oh. Okay," Teddy said, satisfied.

"Tell papa I say hi. Bye bye, daddy!"

"I will " Harry chuckled, ruffling his hair. He peeked in the lunch bag, making sure there was enough there, adding an apple for him, then he Flooed over to the hospital.

Harry checked the directory, then took the lift up to the third floor, Creature Induced Injuries. He glanced around, not seeing Draco, so he approached the Medistaff desk. He recognized one of the Mediwitches behind the desk, the tiny girl with curly hair who had gone to fetch Draco when Scorp had been in the hospital. He racked his brain for her name, but came up short. He had been rather distracted that day.

He approached her anyway, giving her a warm smile when she looked up at him, eyes going wide with recognition.

"Hello, love. I was hoping you could help me?"

"I- yes, of course. What can I do for you?"

"I was hoping you'd know where I might find Draco Malfoy? He's an intern on this ward."

"Oh!" she lit up. "Healer Malfoy. He's with a patient right now, but I can go fetch him for you."

"Thank you, I'd really appreciate that."

She hurried out from behind the desk, taking off down a long corridor. Harry loitered around the desk, trying to look inconspicuous as he watched staff members hurry past him.

One of the Mediwizards, and older gentleman, came up to the desk to fill out some paperwork, and when he saw Harry he did a double take, then smirked at him, and Harry tensed.

"So, how did you like the last match against Puddlemere? You're a Cannons fan, right?"

Harry relaxed, grinning. "Yeah," he laughed. "It definitely could have been worse, right?"

"Eh, they'll get 'em sometime. Puddlemere needs knocked down a peg or ten," he said.

They chatted about quidditch for a few minutes, until he felt a familiar pair of arms wrap around him from behind, the warm, comforting scent of his boyfriend enveloping him.

"Well, isn't this a surprise," Draco said quietly, nuzzling Harry's neck with his nose, sending a small shiver up his spine.

"Hi. You forgot your lunch again," Harry said with one eyebrow quirked chidingly, turning around in Draco's arms.

"I did," Draco admitted, taking the bag from him. "Thank you, darling. Where's Scorpius?"

"He's having his lunch with Andromeda and Teddy. We went to visit them today, and I asked if she'd watch him for a few minutes so I could stop by and bring you something to eat. I thought you'd be hungry. You haven't been eating enough, I'm getting worried about you," Harry said softly.

It was an understatement, but he didn't want to freak Draco out. Not yet, anyway. If he didn't eat it, then Harry would have to double down.

"You're sweet," Draco said with a sigh. "And you're right, I haven't had much of an appetite lately. I'm sorry, I'll try to be better about it. It's just this ward..."

Well, at least it was something. More than he'd said about it in weeks.

"Are you still having a hard time here?" Harry asked, frowning. He didn't understand why Draco wouldn't just talk to him, he really didn't. He thought he'd been supportive enough, but what if he hadn't? He felt so disappointed, but he didn't know what else he could do to show Draco that he was just trying to be there for him.

"You could talk to me about it, you know? It might help just to get it off your chest. You don't have to go through everything alone, that's what I'm here for."

Draco looked rather guilty, and Harry didn't want him to feel bad, he just wanted to help. He wanted to be needed, that's all.

"I know," Draco murmured, tucking an exceptionally wild piece of black hair back behind Harry's ear. "I do know. I'm sorry, Harry. I was just trying to get through it, I only have five more days here. And I didn't want to upset or worry you, I wasn't trying to shut you out. Why don't I pick up a bottle of wine after work, and we can talk after Scorpius goes to bed?"

Oh, thank God. Just... thank God. That was enough, more than enough. He just wanted Draco to talk to him.

Harry managed a small, hopeful smile at that, dimple peeking out. "Okay. I can make dessert? Talking goes better with chocolate, right?"

Draco grinned at him, his pretty face lighting up. "Oh, absolutely," he said, leaning in to kiss Harry. "I have to get back to work, but thank you for bringing me this," he said, shaking the lunch bag.

"You're welcome. Just make sure that you actually eat it this time," Harry chided, but Draco only grinned wider. Harry felt heat rise to his cheeks at the soft look Draco was giving him, so full of love and appreciation.

"I love you," Draco told him, thumbing over Harry's cheek before kissing him again, a bit deeper this time, and not quite work appropriately, but Harry let himself get lost in it for a few seconds. Just a few seconds, that was all he needed.

"Woah, what the fuck?!" a loud voice shouted, startling them apart. They both looked around to see the cause of the outburst, and Harry panicked slightly, thinking he'd gotten Draco in trouble for kissing him at work.

A man, an absolutely gorgeous man, stood just a few feet away from them, jaw hanging open as he stared at them in horror.

He was tall. Almost as tall as Draco, but he had dark hair that was perfectly swept off his face in a quiff, dark eyes, and perfect skin and teeth. He reminded Harry a bit of Lockhart, actually, with his conventional good looks and arrogant posture.

Harry frowned in confusion, but Draco just rolled his eyes and took Harry's hand, leading him away without a word.

"Now, wait just a minute!" the man cried out as he followed them, bringing them to a halt.

Who the hell was that man? Why was he looking at them like that, like they were personally offending him?

"Who are you?" Harry asked him, bewildered.

The man carried on, completely ignoring Harry like he didn't even exist. "This is why you turned me down? You never mentioned that you were seeing someone!"

What?!

"Healer Ackford, we are at work," Draco snapped back at him. "I don't owe you or anyone else a run-down of my personal life, and it shouldn't matter if I have a partner or not. I said no several times, and that doesn't give you the right to keep pushing me until you get your way."

Harry’s blood ran cold. What the hell was he talking about?

Had he been- been hitting on Harry’s boyfriend? At work? Was this the coworker Draco was having trouble with? Was that what he meant when he'd said the man wasn't only inappropriate with patients? What the fuck had been going on here? Harry felt completely blindsided, and he had no idea how to react. Why hadn't Draco mentioned this? Why hadn't he ever told Harry that he was being harassed at work?

The man, Healer Ackford, apparently, looked incredibly offended. "Yes, but, you're seeing him? But, he's so- so... unimpressive! Plain! And you- you are decidedly not plain. Come on, you can do better than that. Why don't you let me show you what a real man can be like?"

Harry just stood there, stricken. That- that hurt, even coming from an absolute arsehole like that. Owen's words were echoing through his mind, intermingled with Ackford's voice now. He had just voiced every fear Harry had about their relationship out loud like it was nothing, like it was an indisputable fact.

Harry wasn't good enough for Draco, and everyone else apparently could see it.

Weeks of progress, of happiness, felt wiped out in a few short sentences, bringing his self-doubt back tenfold. It sliced through him like a knife, punching holes in the security he had found in his relationship. Harry's voice was caught in his throat. Not that it mattered; he had no response to what that man had just said. It wasn’t like he was wrong. Harry was unimpressive, plain. Boring.

Not good enough.

Draco, however, apparently did know what to say. His eyes widened in disbelief momentarily before he snarled, getting right up in Ackford's face, baring his teeth.

"A real man? You? Don't make me laugh. I know this might be difficult for your tiny, deluded brain to process, but you are the furthest thing from a real man I’ve ever had the displeasure to meet. A real man would know how to take no for an answer. A real man doesn't let his patients suffer just so he can stroke his own ego and play hero. A real man doesn't hit on anything that moves or make lewd comments about patients or other staff members behind their backs, or belittle people just because you mistakenly think you're somehow better than them. You have no idea what it means to be a real man, but he does," Draco said, his tone glacial as he pointed behind himself at Harry, advancing even more on the dazed man, using his height advantage to force him to back up, back further away from Harry.

All Harry could do was stare at him in shock, his heart pounding in his ears. He had never seen Draco this furious, not ever, not even in school, and he apparently wasn't done yet, tearing into him even more, defending Harry.

"He cares about everyone, not just people he thinks might benefit him. He listens to me instead of just assuming he knows what's best for me. He bends over backwards to help anyone who might need it. He is kind and selfless and genuine, things you clearly know nothing about. He loves my son, and he loves me; very well," he said, and Harry’s face flushed as Ackford's eyes grew even wider at the very clear implication. "He saved the entire bloody world, including your sorry arse. You might show a little gratitude. You don't deserve to breathe the same air as him, and you don't even come close to being the man he is. No one is a better man than him, least of all you. And now that your massive ego has hopefully been dented, maybe you'll finally hear me when I say leave me the fuck alone."

Harry was stunned. Absolutely shell-shocked. No one had ever stuck up for him like that before. Not- not like that. He sounded like he meant every word of that. Harry was shaking, he couldn't move; he was completely frozen, until Draco stalked back over to him, his whole demeanor softening considerably when he saw Harry's face.

"Come on, darling," Draco said quietly, sliding an arm around Harry's trembling shoulders to guide him away towards the lifts.

It wasn't until Harry felt Draco jerk away from him that he noticed that Ackford, the absolute fool, had followed them and latched onto Draco's arm.

"Baby, wait, we can work this out-" Ackford started, clearly gearing up to argue.

Fury like he'd never known flared to life inside of him.

This piece of shit was the reason why Draco had been going through hell for the last three months. He had tormented Draco to the point of physical deterioration, had upset him so much that he couldn't eat, couldn't sleep... he had almost quit the Healer Programme last week, something he had worked his arse off for, and now, he dared to put his filthy fucking hands on Draco again, in front of Harry? Was he insane? Something had to be mentally wrong with this man.

Harry wanted to kill him.

He snapped, drawing his wand, ripping Ackford's hand off of Draco before shoving the man physically away from him roughly with both hands, not letting the size difference between them intimidate him one bit. Harry could knock him flat on his arse in half a second, but he wouldn't have to resort to that, not when he was confident that he could Curse this man so badly he'd never be able to use his tongue again, even without a wand.

"Don't fucking touch him. Don't you ever touch him, and don't you dare call him that," Harry snarled, advancing on Ackford menacingly, wand steady and trained on him.

Ackford actually looked frightened now, which was probably the first smart thing he'd ever done in his life. Harry could feel his magic prickling under his skin, rage rolling off of him in waves.

"Do you need a vocabulary lesson? Did your mother never teach you what 'no' means? How about 'boundaries' or 'consent'? You're disgusting. If you ever put your hands on him again, I will hex you so badly that you'll wind up a permanent resident in Janus Thickey. What the fuck is wrong with you?" Harry grit out with disgust.

The man didn't answer, and Harry didn't back away, staring him down until he felt Draco place his big hands on Harry’s shoulders, squeezing gently.

"It's alright, sweetheart. Thank you, I'm alright now," Draco murmured to him, his voice calm and even.

Harry stiffened for a moment, then relaxed into the touch, allowing himself to relax, Draco's presence soothing him like a balm. He lowered his wand, allowing Draco to lead him away with a final warning glare at Ackford. He knew he needed to go home; he'd already caused enough of a scene. God, he hoped Draco didn't get in trouble for Harry's lack of self-control.

They were almost to the lifts when he felt a spell shoot past them, grazing his elbow. Harry jerked, then stiffened, jaw clenching tightly.

Don't react, don't react, it's what he wants, he chanted in his head, trying to remember that they were at Draco's work.

"You little fuc-" Ackford shouted, but a booming voice cut him off.

"Healer Ackford! My office, now!" a man with thinning ginger hair who must be Draco's boss roared down the corridor, storming towards them, looking absolutely furious, his face pinched and red, Scottish accent thick in his anger.

"Healer Raube, I-" Ackford tried to say, but Raube silence him with a severe look.

"Save it. My office. Move," he barked, and Ackford blustered for a moment before stomping off towards what must be the office. "Everyone else, back to work! The show is over! This is a hospital, not the bleeding theater!"

Draco tried to quickly usher Harry back to the lifts, but his boss stopped him. "Not you, Malfoy," he said sternly. "Wait outside my office. Mr. Potter can find his own way back to the Atrium."

It was an obvious dismissal. Harry needed to leave, now.

"Yes, sir," Draco said quietly, avoiding Harry's gaze and following his boss back to his office with slumped shoulders, disappearing around a corner.

Harry swallowed thickly, face burning with mortification. He couldn't believe he behaved like that, and at Draco's place of employment, at that. What if he got fired because of Harry? He'd worked so hard for this. Harry would never forgive himself.

People were staring at him, and he uttered a quiet, stuttered apology, then ignored the stares the best he could, walking straight past the lifts to take the stairs instead, practically running down to the Atrium so he could Apparate the hell out of here. He wanted his friends, but Scorpius was still with Andromeda, and he couldn't just leave him there, so he Apparated there instead.

He popped up in Andromeda's kitchen, and everyone turned to look at him. The boys turned to greet him, but Andromeda took one look at his face before standing swiftly and sweeping him from the room, ordering the boys to stay put, voice stern enough to broker no argument.

"What happened?" she asked, concerned.

"I-" he croaked, eyes watering. He didn't want to cry in front of her, and he didn't even know what he could tell her without betraying Draco. Andromeda was his aunt. Harry trusted her, but she was still his mum's sister, and Draco didn't like his family knowing his business. Apparently, he didn't even like Harry knowing his business, he thought sadly.

He took a shaky breath. "I don't-"

"What do you need, Harry?" she asked him kindly.

"Hermione," he whispered automatically, begging her silently to let him go.

She nodded. "Go. Take your time, I'll handle the boys."

"Thank you," he told her. She smiled at him and gave him a gentle hug, patting his cheek when he pulled away.

"Whatever it is, dear, it will be alright. Go on, now."

Harry nodded glumly, and Apparated to the Ministry. He kept his head down and took the lift up to the DMLE on level 2, bypassing the Auror at the front desk and going straight to Hermione's office. He knocked softly on her door, then felt terrible for coming to bother her when her harried reply came.

"Yes, yes, what is it this time? Will you let me get anything done today, Smith?"

She was clearly having a bad day. He should leave; she didn't need his problems piled on top of hers. He turned away, eyes burning even more now as he made his way back down the corridor.

"Harry?"

He paused, turning around to see her hovering in her doorway, hair a mess, but her face wasn't angry, just confused.

"I'm sorry, I was just leaving," he stammered. "I didn't realize you were so swamped today."

"Don't be ridiculous," she chided him, walking briskly over to where Harry was and grabbing his hand, pulling him back towards her office. "I need a break anyway. I swear, Smith is trying to break me with his incessant, pointless questions today. He does it on purpose, just to annoy me, I'd bet money on it," she rambled, closing the door behind them.

Harry hovered awkwardly near the door with a lump in his throat while she fluttered around the small room, shoving piles of parchment off of one of the chairs.

"You can sit..." she started, trailing off when she finally caught sight of his face. "What's wrong?"

Harry swallowed, lowering his gaze without answering. He really should go. She had enough to deal with right now, and he felt foolish for coming to bother her here, especially after what had just happened at Mungo's.

"Harry, you can talk to me. What happened?" she said, her voice gentle.

"I- I think I just got Draco fired," he said shakily.

"What do you mean? What could you have possibly done to cause that?" she asked, confused.

He just looked at her helplessly, not even knowing where to start, then burst into tears.

He felt Hermione's arms come around him, rubbing his back, soothing him, but all he could think about was what a bloody failure he was. He hadn't had a clue about the harassment his boyfriend was receiving. Draco hadn't told him a thing about it; probably never would have, if he hadn't shown up at his job today.

And that was fine, really. Of course, Harry wished Draco would have told him, but he didn't have to; he didn't have to tell anyone anything he didn't want to. That was his prerogative.

What must Draco be thinking right now? He couldn't even look at Harry as he walked away from him. He was probably humiliated. Or furious. Or both.

The simple fact was that Harry had failed him. He knew, he knew something serious was going on with Draco, knew it was most likely work related, knew his coworker was giving him trouble of some kind, and Harry hadn't done anything about it. He hadn't protected him, after promising him that he always would.

Sure, Draco didn't tell him details, but who cares? He didn't owe Harry his private thoughts, he didn't have to tell him anything he didn't want to. He'd been so stressed out that he'd been basically starving himself, he couldn't even sleep, and Harry knew, but he hadn't done a damn thing except go and humiliate him at his job.

He was the worst boyfriend ever. Just more proof that Harry didn't deserve him. It had been spelled out for him quite plainly today. Ackford being a prick didn't change the fact that he was right, regardless of what Draco had said on his behalf.

Hermione didn't push him, just held him and waited patiently until he could finally speak.

"I don't even know what happened," Harry whispered. "I went to Mungo's to take him his lunch... he's been so stressed lately, not eating right."

"Right, I remember you told us that's why you brought him to the pub last week," she stated.

He nodded. "Right. When I went in, he kissed me, and his coworker saw, I guess, and he was disgusted. I thought it was just because of public affection in the workplace, you know? But it wasn't. It was because of me."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, her eyes going sharp.

"He just..." he trailed off, face burning as those words echoed in his head. He shook his head, closing his eyes as a new wave of tears spilled over. "He basically just said that Draco is gorgeous and I'm not; I'm just plain and unimpressive, and that Draco deserves a real man. Someone like him. He's been asking him out for months, apparently."

"What utter rubbish," Hermione snapped, eyes flashing in anger. "Harry, that's not true. You have to know that's not true. Draco knows that's not true. Did he say anything about it?"

Harry nodded. "He tore into him about it, actually. But this has been going on for months, Hermione, and I had no clue. This is why he's been so miserable. I knew he was struggling, and I didn't protect him."

"Oh, Harry..." she said sadly. "What do you think you could have done? Draco isn't a teenager anymore; he's a grown man. If he didn't tell you, which he should have," she added with a pointed look, "then he probably thought he had it under control. You don't have to be his saviour, you just have to be his partner. This wasn't your fault."

"I attacked him," Harry whispered, and her eyes filled with surprise.

"In what way?"

"I almost hit him. He grabbed Draco when we were walking away, I lost it. I pushed him pretty hard. I could barely control my magic, and his boss saw. That was my fault," he explained. "I wanted to punch him in the face." He still did.

"So, he put his hands on Draco, and you reacted?" she asked, eyebrow arched.

He nodded meekly. "What do I do?" he asked desperately. "He's worked so hard... if he loses this internship, I'll never forgive myself. Do I go in and apologize? What do I do?"

Hermione reached up and wiped his face dry with her sleeve, and ran her fingers through his hair, attempting to tame it for him. "You clean yourself up, go home, and talk to your boyfriend. Find out if he even lost his job in the first place before you panic. Explain to him how you feel, and then decide together what you both should do. This is not your fault, Harry; you didn't cause this, and I doubt Draco is blaming you for any of it."

Harry swallowed, then nodded, eyes glued to the floor. All he could do right now was hope that she was right.

"Okay," he whispered. "I'm sorry, 'Mione. I didn't mean to make your day worse."

"Of course you didn't make my day worse," she rolled her eyes affectionately. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," he told her.

He was, he was just sad. It wasn't that easy to just get rid of the guilt or the cruel thoughts in his head that always spoke in someone else's voice, but he could at least tuck it away for now, just enough to get through the rest of this day. He still had to take care of Scorpius, after all.

He hugged her goodbye, and she told him to Firecall her soon and let her know what happened with his job, reminding him that Pansy was Draco’s best friend and a lawyer, and that she’d probably be more than happy to sue the hospital for wrongful termination.

"And Harry?" she called out when he opened the door.

He turned back to her, and she had a tiny smirk on her face. "I'm glad he stuck up for you. I'd have hated to have to send Ginny after him."

A small surprised laugh escaped him at that. He knew she was only half serious, but he was definitely grateful that wasn't necessary.

*

When Harry Apparated back to Andromeda's, the boys were upstairs in Teddy's room while Andy was tidying up the living room. She looked up at him and smiled.

"Feeling better, love?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I'm so sorry about that."

She waved him off. "Nonsense. Sometimes we just need a friend. The boys are upstairs. I told them that Molly needed your help getting a swarm of Pixies out of the yard, so have fun with that," she winked.

Harry chuckled, and made his way upstairs, preparing for the onslaught of questions he was going to have to make up answers for.

They stayed at Andromeda's a bit longer than he had intended, but eventually, they had to go. As far as Harry knew right now, he still had a relationship, and he still needed to feed his family.

Harry decided to make something fun and different for tonight, something that would hopefully at least offer Draco a bit of a distraction from his terrible day. American burgers. Draco got very animated when Harry made something foreign, especially something that had to be eaten with his hands. They stopped quickly at the shops to grab ingredients for supper, then Harry took them home.

The house was quiet when he arrived, but Harry's heart dropped when he saw a sleeping Draco curled up on the sofa. It was so early. That couldn't be a good sign, and his heart clenched painfully at the sight of those dark circles under his eyes.

His poor darling. He was probably so exhausted. He hadn't been sleeping for weeks, and now this.

"Papa!" Scorpius squealed excitedly, finally seeing his father in the living room.

"Shh, he's sleeping, love. Go play in your room for me, please, I'll come get you soon to help with supper."

Scorpius pouted, but Harry gave him a look that told him it wasn't up for debate this time, and he trudged away to his room.

Harry pulled the curtains closed then knelt down by the couch, carding gentle fingers through his hair, stroking along his eyebrows. He was so bloody pretty. It almost hurt to look at him.

Draco groaned, nuzzling into Harry's touch, but didn't wake up, and his heart ached even more. Hopefully he wasn't ill.

"Draco? Sweetheart, are you alright? Can you wake up, love? Wake up for me."

Draco blinked bleary eyes up at him, squinting into the darkened room. "Wha' time 's it?" he slurred out, struggling to sit up.

"It's not even five yet," Harry told him, helping him up. "How long have you been home?"

"Raube sent me home about half an hour after you," he croaked, his voice taking on a panicked edge. "You weren't here. Harry, I'm so sorry," he said desperately. "That never should have- I didn't want-"

Oh, no. Draco had nothing to apologize for, and he didn't need to think he'd done anything wrong. Harry had to know if he'd lost his job, though, it couldn't wait.

Harry smiled sadly at him. "Don’t worry about that right now. You didn't get fired, did you? I can go in and apologize, you shouldn't lose your job over me. I never should have caused a scene like that."

Draco blinked at him, eyes hazy and confused. "What? I- no, I didn't lose my job. Ackford did, though, thank Merlin. But even if I did, it wasn't your fault, it was about him."

Oh, thank fuck.

Relief flooded through him, and he sighed. It didn't matter whose fault it was now, all that mattered was the Draco hadn't lost his internship, that had been his main worry. It was a bonus that his arsehole of a coworker did lose his job, though. "Thank God, I was so worried for you."

Draco was still staring at him, though, eyes searching his face. "Harry. That didn't happen because of you, do you understand?"

"Okay," Harry said dismissively. It did, but he wasn't going to argue about it; it was irrelevant now. "Did you eat lunch? Are you hungry? I was going to make supper soon; I thought we could try American burgers. I’ve made them once before at the Weasley’s; they're really good."

Draco looked slightly disturbed by Harry's dismissal, and he sighed. "I didn't eat, I'm sorry, I just fell asleep. But... Harry, are we okay? I'm so sorry I didn't tell you about what was happening, I just kept hoping it would stop, and then I was so close to being out of that ward and I didn't want you to worry... Please don't be angry with me," he practically begged.

Draco thought Harry was angry with him? It was almost laughable. Draco didn't owe him an explanation. Hermione was right, they needed to talk, but now was not the time for this discussion, not while Scorp was awake.

Harry softened. "I'm not angry with you, darling. I promise. We can talk about it later, yeah?" he tried to reassure Draco.

Draco nodded, looking relieved. "Yeah. Okay. When Scorpius goes to bed?"

Harry nodded, giving Draco a small smile. "Lay back down, I'll come get you when it's time to eat. You look exhausted."

"Please don't leave," Draco whispered, but he let Harry guide him back down to the sofa, resting his head on one arm.

"I'm not going anywhere," Harry murmured, taking the hand Draco was searching for him with, stroking over the back of it lovingly. He was asleep instantly.

Harry would never leave him, not unless he had to. Deep down, though, he knew his time was limited. He knew it at the pub last week, he knew it when they first got together, and he had been reminded of it again today. Eventually, Draco would realize that Harry was nothing special, that he could do better. He felt an acute sense of loss, even though he hadn't lost anything yet. It was only a matter of time.

Harry draped a blanket over him, but then he did get up and fetch Scorpius to come help him with supper, reminding him to be quiet. When it was ready, he tried to wake Draco again, but the man was dead to the world, not budging even a centimeter.

Harry let him be, he obviously needed the sleep, and instead just fed Scorpius, placing his and Draco's meals under a Stasis Charm so they could eat together later. Harry didn't have much appetite right now anyway.

After supper, Harry played upstairs with Scorpius until bath time, then bathed him and got him ready for bed before finally allowing him to try waking up his father again.

"Alright, bud, go ahead and wake him up, but be gentle, yeah? He's tired."

Scorpius nodded eagerly, zooming down the stairs, shouting when he approached the couch in a decidedly not gentle manner.

"Papa, papa! It's time to wake you up now! I'm allowed to wake you up finally!"

Draco jerked awake, eyes wide and startled, when Scorpius started shaking his shoulder roughly.

"Scorp, I said gently," Harry hissed, pulling the small boy back a few steps. "Don't scare him like that."

Scorpius pouted. "Sorry."

"It's alright," Draco rasped, sitting up and letting the blanket slide down his shoulder, "Is supper ready? I should have helped cook."

"I ate a long time ago, papa. It's bedtime now," Scorpius told him sternly.

"What? You said you'd wake me," Draco said, looking at Harry in confusion.

Harry shrugged helplessly. "I'm sorry, I tried, but you were out cold. I figured you needed the sleep more. I did save you a plate, though."

"Harry, stop apologizing," Draco said, exasperated.

Fuck. Now Draco was annoyed with him. Why couldn't he do anything right? Harry bit his lip, his face falling, but not saying anything more.

"Scorpius, did you have your bath yet, love?" Draco asked, and the little boy nodded. "Okay, go pick out a story, I'll be in soon to tuck you in."

"Okay, but I want daddy to read it," Scorpius informed him. "You're not very good at it, papa."

Harry's shoulders tensed, worried how Draco would take Scorp still calling him daddy, but he only huffed out a laugh. "That's fine, my little star. Go on, now."

Scorpius pressed a wet, smacking kiss to Draco’s cheek and took off upstairs, but Harry hovered near the fireplace, watching Draco cautiously, not knowing what he was going to say.

Draco stood, swiftly striding over to Harry and pulling him into a tight hug. Harry melted into it almost immediately, clutching Draco back tightly, not wanting to let him go. He was still so fucking nervous, and he didn't know how to relax right now.

"Thank you for supper, darling, and for letting me sleep, I was exhausted. But I feel bad that you were left to handle the whole evening alone when I was here to help," Draco told him.

"You needed the rest," Harry sighed. "You haven't been sleeping well, or eating right. I fed Scorp, but I waited for you to eat."

"Thank you. Let's get him to bed, then we can eat. And we need to talk."

Harry nodded silently, begrudgingly pulling away to go get Scorpius settled in bed.

They got Scorp off to sleep easily enough, but Draco's stomach grumbled loudly the entire time, so badly that Scorpius noticed and teased him for it. Harry was an anxious wreck about it, though, worry practically smothering him.

He hadn't eaten his lunch, that was obvious. He needed food. Harry knew what it felt like to not eat for days; it wasn't a good feeling, and it wasn't safe. He didn't want Draco to suffer like that. Harry tried to think of a way to bring it up, but Draco surprised him when they got back downstairs by suggesting they eat in the living room. His prim and proper boyfriend, actually wanted to eat on the sofa?

Harry quirked an eyebrow at him. "Who are you, and what have you done with my boyfriend?"

Draco laughed. "I'm feeling rebellious," he said, grabbing a bottle of wine and two glasses. "Is this still okay?" he asked, showing Harry the bottle.

"Of course. I'll grab the plates," Harry said, slipping into the dining room to grab their plates. They met back in the living room, Draco pouring the wine while Harry set their plates down and cast a quick Impervius at the sofa.

"Burgers are messy," he explained with a shrug when Draco looked at him questioningly.

Harry watched him try to figure out how to eat his burger with slight amusement. Any other day, he'd be in stitches trying to watch Draco fit the enormous burger into his mouth.

"This is ridiculous," Draco finally said with a laugh, gasping when ketchup dripped down his chin. "Who eats this?"

"Loads of people," Harry said, showing Draco how to smash his burger down a bit to make it more manageable, and Draco moaned when he finally bit into it.

"Fuck, that's good," he said with a groan, taking another bite. Harry spent more time watching Draco enjoy the meal than he did eating himself, but when he did take a bite, he felt a bit of egg dripping down the corner of his mouth and chin. Oh well.

Harry glanced over and caught Draco staring at him, eyes dark. "Can we share?" he blurted out.

Harry was surprised, but couldn't help the small, pleased smile that pulled at his lips. "Of course we can. I put bacon and an egg on mine," he explained, ripping the rest of his own burger in half and offering the bigger piece to Draco.

Draco didn't take it, though, instead he pulled Harry to him by his shirt collar, tongue darting out to lick up the stray drop of egg yolk near the corner of his mouth, then attached his mouth to Harry's, tongue dipping inside immediately, kissing him deep and slow.

He was kissing him. Part of Harry had feared he would never get to do this again, and he let out a squeak of surprise, then a whimper, kissing Draco back fervently. He shoved his plate aside, practically climbing onto Draco's lap to get closer to him, straddling him with one knee. They kissed until Harry had to break away, gasping for air.

"Yours tastes better," Draco said roughly, quickly licking over Harry's bottom lip one last time before releasing him.

Harry released a shaky breath, slightly dazed. "You can have it," he breathed.

He watched Draco's throat bob as he swallowed, eyes filling with more emotion than Harry was even capable of unpacking right now.

"I love you," he said, voice thick. "Fuck, Harry, I love you so much, sweetheart. I know you're upset with me; I know I messed up, but please, give me a chance to fix it. Let me explain," he pleaded.

Harry frowned. "What? I told you I'm not upset with you."

"But you are," Draco stressed. He looked so distressed, and it was awful. "You're sad. I can see it. I don't want you to be sad, ever, but especially not because of me. I didn't tell you about Ackford because I didn't want you to be sad, or angry, or upset, and because nothing could have changed it. I just want you to be happy."

"Draco. I'm not upset with you, I promise," Harry said softly, taking his hands.

"Then what's wrong?" Draco asked desperately.

He was going to have to be honest about this, especially if he wanted Draco to ever feel comfortable being fully open with him, if he ever wanted Draco to fully trust him, but it was hard. His mind was a mess, and he didn't know if he was going to scare him off with what he had to say.

"I- I am upset, but at the situation, and at myself, not at you," he admitted quietly. "I'm not angry that you didn't tell me you were being harassed like that at work, I'm angry that it was happening at all, and I'm upset that I wasn't able to do anything to stop it. Of course, I wish you'd told me, but I can understand why you didn't. I knew something was wrong; you weren't sleeping, you weren't eating, you were so stressed out all the time, not acting like yourself... I didn't protect you. I feel like I failed you. And on top of that, I went and embarrassed you at work today. I'm so sorry."

"You didn't embarrass me," Draco denied. "You couldn't. I was horrified that he had the nerve to say those things about you, and that you had to hear that. Coming from him, of all people at that. It was shit, Harry, complete and utter bullshit."

It wasn't, though.

"He wasn't exactly wrong, though," Harry said quietly.

"What are you talking about? Of course he was wrong," Draco argued, bewildered.

"He wasn't. You could do better, you know. I am plain and unimpressive."

Draco stared at him, his mouth slightly parted.

"What?! Better than- are you mad? Harry, there is no one better than you, do you understand me? No one. You know you have nothing to worry about, right darling?"

Harry didn't reply. He didn't know that. Draco might think that now, in this moment, but that didn't mean he couldn't change his mind in an instant for the right person. It hurt to think about, but it didn't make it less true.

Draco studied him for a long minute, emotions and questions flitting through his stormy eyes until they widened slightly, understanding settling in his gaze before it turned painfully gentle. Harry hated it. Hated that Draco could probably see right through him, that he was looking at Harry like he was weak, broken. Hated that he was broken.

"Harry..." he said, cupping Harry's face, eyes locked on Harry's. "Is this why you get so freaked out when someone flirts with me? I can see how uncomfortable it makes you. But- you have to understand, you have to know, there's no one for me but you."

Harry smiled at him, sadness still tugging at him. "But there are better people than me. You... I don't think you realize how beautiful you are, how much you are. And I'm just... me. Just Harry. You heard that man today; I'm nothing special; I'm plain, and you are not. He's right. I don't have a fancy, exciting job, I'm not anything special to look at, I'm not anything. I have all this emotional baggage from how I grew up and the war, I make you play children's games with me instead of taking you to do fancy, extravagant things like you deserve, for Christ's sake..." Harry swallowed, eyes closing briefly.

Tell him how you feel, Hermione had said.

"You could find someone with so much more to offer you, and every time someone approaches you, I'm afraid it's going to be the time that you realize it. The thought of losing you absolutely kills me, but I couldn't blame you for it if you moved on."

"Oh, Harry..." Draco said quietly, looking terribly upset. "Sweetheart. That's- I don't want anyone else but you. I've only ever wanted you, since I was thirteen. It wasn’t even a secret, you know? Everyone in Slytherin knew, they all gave me shit for it, too, but I didn’t care. I chose you. Scorpius chose you. Do you have any idea what a big deal that is?"

Harry looked away, tears springing to his eyes. Thirteen? What- Draco had liked him when he was thirteen? Harry... he didn't know that. He'd never told him that. Other people knew about it, too, but Harry didn't.

There was so much Draco didn't tell him, and while he couldn't be angry at him for it, it still hurt. It ached.

Draco was still talking to him, and all Harry could do was listen, heart pounding.

"You think I'm beautiful, but darling, you... you're the sun. You are the most vibrant, sweet, giving, loving person I have ever met. Your friends all adore you, they are so protective of you because you're so special. You're the best person, and it is a privilege to have you in my life at all... I can't believe I'm lucky enough to get to love you. I couldn't have dreamed anyone better than you, don't you see that?"

Harry was silent, his eyes squeezed shut as a single tear slipped down his cheek. He felt gentle fingers brush it away, causing more to spring up.

"Please talk to me. Help me understand what you need so I can give it to you. I'll do whatever you need, darling, I just want you to feel safe with me. I don't want you to worry that I'm going to leave you if you aren't perfect all of the time."

That was the problem, though, wasn't it? He did feel like he had to be perfect, all the time. Especially if he wanted to keep Draco, because he didn't feel good enough, but maybe, if he was perfect, maybe he could be enough.

"I- I don't know what I need. I just know that I want to take care of you," Harry said softly. I just need you to need me.

“You do. I want to take care of you, too, though. You are allowed to need things, too. You don’t always have to give so much."

Harry just looked at him helplessly, not knowing what to say to that, and Draco closed his eyes.

"What happened before you came to work for me, love? What happened with your partners after Ginny?"

Harry blinked at the unexpected turn in subject, lowering his gaze. He didn't want to talk about it. He never did. He knew he needed to, though, at least to some degree.

Harry stared at his hands as he tried to drag up the courage to say the words out loud, picking at his cuticles until he winced, a small trickle of blood blooming along his nail bed.

Draco made a small noise in the back of his throat, taking Harry's hand and healing the small wound easily, but not letting go of him.

"Don't do that, darling," Draco said quietly. "You can talk to me. I promise, I'm not going to judge you, no matter what you tell me."

Harry was quiet for a long moment, then he sighed. "I don't know. It just never worked out," he said with a small shrug, keeping it vague. "They thought I was boring. I guess they wanted to be with someone more exciting, the newspaper 'hero', you know? But that's not- I'm not like that, not really. I only did what I did because I had to; because the alternative was letting everyone die, letting everyone suffer."

It was the truth. He only defeated Voldemort because the alternative was horrific. There had been no choice. It hadn't been because he was brave, it had been desperation to save everyone else. He was a fraud.

"But I'm not a hero. I was a kid, and I had no idea what I was doing most of the time. They found out pretty quick that I'm not really exciting or even that interesting. So, they stayed for a while, and I did everything I could to try and make them stay, but eventually they got bored, made it quite clear why I wasn't good enough, and left. It was rather anti-climactic, really, for the most part, and eventually, I just kind of stopped trying. It hurt too much."

It still hurt. The entire break up had been anti-climactic, but it had also been harsh and cruel and damaging. It hadn't just been Owen, either, although he'd been the worst by far. It had been everyone. Aside from Ginny, no one had ever actually cared about him, not until Draco, and that was why the thought of losing him hurt so badly.

Draco appeared to be digesting what Harry had just told him, then his eyes flashed with the same fury from this afternoon.

"Well, it's their loss," Draco said fiercely, angry tears making his eyes go glassy, like he was personally offended that Harry had been unappreciated. "It's not yours, and it's certainly not mine. I love those things about you. All those things that they thought were flaws, I see as gifts. I love how happy you get over the smallest things. I love how positive you always are, and how you always have something fun and new planned out for us. I love that you love board games and muggle holiday traditions and trying new foods and the color yellow. For fuck's sake, I have fun eating greasy food with my hands in my living room with you. I love how you're still you, even after people have tried to tear you down, I love how sweet you are, despite everything you’ve been through. I love how disgustingly domestic you are, and how much you care about literally everything and everyone. I love your mind, and I love your heart even more. Every day with you feels like an adventure. You are the best thing that ever happened to us, Harry, and I wouldn't trade you for all the 'excitement' in the world. I don't know what I did to deserve you, but I am never, ever letting you go."

Harry felt like he couldn't breathe. He knew he was gaping like a fool, but he couldn't help it. Draco- Draco liked those things about him? All the parts that everyone else hated but that made him who he was? He didn't understand why.

But maybe he didn't need to.

Something Draco had said was sticking inside of him, burrowing into his heart like a Niffler.

All those things that they thought were flaws, I see as gifts.

Hermione had said that to him. Months ago, when he'd first started nannying for Scorpius, almost word for word. 'They're going to view everything that you see as a flaw as a gift.'

This was what she'd meant. He had dismissed her comment like he always did, knowing that she just couldn't stand it when he got down on himself, but she had been right.

He should have known, she was always right, wasn't she?

Harry stared at him in awe, heart throbbing, then he turned and nuzzled his face into Draco's hand, more tears springing to his eyes as a slow, genuinely happy smile spread across his face, stretching his cheeks almost to the point of pain.

"Do you know what I love the most, darling?" Draco asked him quietly.

Harry shook his head, staring at him with wide eyes, not knowing what else he could possibly even say at this point to make this any better.

Draco pressed his thumb into Harry's left cheek, grinning widely when the dimple peeked out and his thumb sunk inside. "This. Right here, where your happy lives."

Harry raised his eyebrows, amused. "Where my happy lives?"

Draco nodded seriously. "Yes. Every time I see this dimple, it's because you're genuinely happy, smiling for real. It never shows up when you pretend to smile for other people, but it always shows up for me. I love it. It's definitely my favorite thing."

Oh. Apparently, it could get better. Harry felt love practically radiating from him.

"I love you," he said quietly.

"I love you, too. Thank you for being you. Thank you for loving my son. For loving me."

Harry kissed him, soft and sweet and tender, trying to convey all of the love he felt for this man, all of the affection and appreciation and gratitude. Maybe they would be alright, after all. Maybe he didn’t have to fear the end. Maybe… maybe he really could just have this.

"Thank you for letting me, darling."

Notes:

Hopefully this one was okay! I know it was one of the most important ones in RFT, but I hated doing this to poor Harry.

As always, thank you so much for sticking with me, and any feedback is greatly appreciated and really comforts my sad, romantic little soul lol.

Chapter 14: CHAPTER 13

Summary:

A little pre-emptive Valentine's day snippet

Notes:

I had been planning on combining this chapter and the next into one longer frankenchapter, but I got a little over halfway through and decided to keep them separate so I don't have to change the chapter count again. The good news is that means the next chapter will be up in a couple of days if not sooner, because it's already mostly written. Hopefully this helps answer some questions from Chapter 15 of RFT, though!

Harry was feeling so much better. Their talk had done him a world of good, and it must have been good for Draco, too, because the rest of his week on his ward seemed to be much less stressful. He actually seemed happy now, for the first time in weeks, and Harry was so relieved for him that he could cry. 

They had fallen back into an easy routine, but their bond had deepened. Draco was finally, finally being more open with him. He would come home from work and actually talk in detail about his day, even if nothing noteworthy happened. He was keeping Harry filled in on his progress with his mysterious patient, sharing details about his research, talking about how frustrated he was about not being able to figure out what had happened to her.

It was all Harry had wanted. He'd just wanted Draco to communicate with him, to trust him. He needed that, so that secrets or miscommunication between them didn't fester into insecurity inside of him, but he hadn't known how to ask for it before, how to convey how important it really was, how much Harry just needed some reassurance once in a while, but it seemed like Draco finally understood.

He didn't even say anything about it. He didn't brag about the fact that he was doing Harry a favor, he didn't complain, didn't call Harry too needy or annoying, didn't roll his eyes or act like he was inconvenienced. He just simply made the shift, like it was no big deal.

It was, though. It was a big deal. It made all the difference in the world.

It was finally Draco's last day on Creature Induced Injuries, and Harry couldn't wait for him to get home. He was in the process of making dessert for later when he heard the Floo roar to life for probably the sixth time that day.

"It's Uncle Theo again!" Scorpius shrieked, and Harry huffed out an exasperated laugh, watching Scorpius run to the living room to tell Theo, yet again, that no, Draco was not home yet, but his eyebrows shot up in alarm when he heard Scorpius squeal, then shout.

"You're not Uncle Theo!"

Harry cast a Stasis Charm on his batter and grabbed a towel to wipe his hands as he hurried into the living room, smiling when he saw Scorpius sitting on Pansy's lap.

"Hey, everything okay?" he asked.

"Oh, everything is perfectly fine. I just wanted to see if I could take Scorpius for the night. Blaise and I have his little cousin staying with us, he's Scorpius' age and it's been quite a long time since they've seen each other."

"Oh," Harry said, surprised. "Well, let's call Draco and ask," he said, digging the two-way mirror Hermione had charmed for them out of his pocket.

"Draco," he said into it, waiting several minutes before trying again, but got no reply. That wasn't like him, he always answered the mirror. He must be very busy.

He snapped the mirror shut, worrying his lip for a moment. He didn't want to overstep, but Scorpius was looking at him with huge, begging eyes, and it was hard to say no.

"Well," he hedged, "I don't want to give permission that's not really mine to give, but why don't you go ahead and take him, and I'll have Draco Firecall you later and let you know if he can stay. I know he's at least fine with daytime visits with whomever."

Which was the truth. Harry took Scorp to the Manor, or the Weasley's, or Andy's all the time. Pansy was Draco's best friend, it was probably fine, but it would be better to ask first, just to air on the safe side.

"Whatever you say, darling," she laughed. "Scorpius, go pack a bag, love."

"Yay!" he cheered, running upstairs to get his overnight bag.

"Perfect timing, honestly," Harry told her with a laugh. "It's his last day on that awful ward; it'll be nice for him to have a break."

"Oh, I know," she winked. "I thought you two might enjoy some privacy, if you know what I mean."

"Oh," he let out a slightly embarrassed laugh, cheeks heating up. "Well, thank you?"

Scorpius ran back down, hugging Harry quickly before going to stand in the fireplace, tapping his foot impatiently.

Pansy rolled her eyes affectionately, ruffling his hair.

"Don't mention it, darling," she called out to Harry, taking Scorpius' hand. "Enjoy your evening, and don't forget to have him call!"

They were gone, and Harry was left with not much to do now but wait. He chuckled, shaking his head, then returned to the kitchen to finish his dessert.

He was lounging on the couch, contemplating whether he should start supper or get an early shower when Draco stepped through the Floo. Harry grinned, jumping up and attaching himself to his boyfriend, standing on tiptoe to nuzzle his face into Draco's throat affectionately, breathing in his comforting scent.

"You're home," he sighed, relief washing over him. "You're finally done. Next time you go to work, you'll get a fresh start. Are you excited?"

"I'm mostly relieved," Draco replied, huffing out a laugh and wrapping his arms around Harry's shoulders, keeping him close. "Where's Scorpius?"

"Pansy picked him up a while ago. We tried letting you know through the mirror, but you didn't answer," Harry said. "I told her it was okay to take him, but that you'd let her know if he was allowed to stay when you got home. I didn't want to make a choice like that for you."

"Shit, sorry. I must have forgotten to grab it this morning," Draco winced. "But I'm fine if he stays, I don't have to be involved in every decision, I trust you; as long as I know where he is, it's fine. And it's just Pansy and Blaise."

"It's okay, you had a lot on your mind. But are you sure? It's not really my place-"

"Harry. You're his parent, too. I am completely fine with you making plans for him or making decisions if I'm not around. We're a team, yeah?" he said softly.

Oh.

Harry hadn't thought of it like that. Hearing Draco say those words, that Harry was equally Scorpius’ parent, that they were at team... it felt like a dream.

"Yeah. Okay," Harry said breathed, pressing his face even closer into Draco's throat before pulling back suddenly. "Oh! I almost forgot; Theo has called you about six times today. I told him you were at work, but he seemed really excited about something. You might want to call him back."

Draco frowned. "Right. I'd better do that, then."

He gave Harry a quick kiss, then focused back on the fireplace, settling down on the floor to make his Firecall while Harry headed to the kitchen to give him some privacy and start supper. 

Draco talked to Theo for a while, and Harry was chopping up a head of broccoli, humming quietly to himself, when Draco joined him.

"Everything alright?" he asked, glancing up at him.

"He's got a date with Audrey," Draco informed him.

"Does he?" Harry asked, pleasantly surprised.

Draco nodded, going over to stand behind Harry, resting his chin on Harry's shoulder, watching him work. "Needed a bit of help figuring out how to woo her."

"Well, you are an expert on wooing," Harry said seriously, and Draco laughed.

“I’m not really that surprised, though, you did tell her he was in love with her,” Harry told him mischievously, reminding Draco of his drunken conversation with Audrey.

“What?! I most certainly did not!” Draco protested, looking positively scandalized.

“Oh, but you did,” Harry laughed, reaching up to pat his cheek. “Last time we went to the pub. You gave her an uncomfortably large tip, and told her to save it for her wedding to Theo. She said she wasn’t marrying him, but you argued with her. I believe your exact words were, ‘Not yet, but you will. He loves you; Theo never likes anyone.’ It was rather sweet, actually.”

Draco stared at him, horrified.

“No. Absolutely not. That never happened, Potter. Not a word about it, ever, to anyone. Don’t even think it, he’ll be able to see it all over your face. You’ve got absolutely no slyness in you at all.”

Harry laughed loudly at that, rolling his eyes fondly. “Fine, fine. My lips are sealed. Are you hungry?" he asked, leaning back slightly into Draco.

"Not very," Draco said lowly, settling his hands on Harry's hips. "It can wait."

"Okay," Harry agreed easily, eyes falling shut as his boyfriend pressed in closer to him. "It can wait."

Draco made a small noise of contentment. "So," he said, leaning in to kiss Harry’s neck gently. "We have a free evening. Any ideas for how we can spend it?" Draco asked huskily, grinning against Harry's skin when Harry's pulse quickened under his lips.

"I can probably think of a few ideas," Harry breathed.

"Do you want to tell me, or do you want to show me?" Draco said, pulling away with an eyebrow arched in challenge, already shedding his robes as he headed for the stairs.

Harry growled, chasing him out of the kitchen and pinning him to the stairs, kissing the breath out of him.

Draco moaned, arching up into Harry, and Harry flicked his wrist, vanishing Draco's robes, reveling in the sharp gasp he let out when he felt the cool wood against his bare, heated skin, a flush already spreading down his chest.

“You’ve got to stop vanishing my clothes, Potter,” he groaned.

“Is that so?” Harry asked, smirking, reaching down to palm at his cock. “But then how would I do this?” he asked, fingers slipping lower to brush over his entrance.

Draco grunted, canting his hips up to grind up against Harry. “Fuck it, I’ll buy more.”

Oh yeah, this was definitely a better way to spend the evening.

*

“Draco Lucius Malfoy!” Astoria’s voice rang out through his living room later that week.

Draco had started his new rotation, and it was already going better than the last, even though it had only been two days. Apparently, his new Lead Healer was the man who had helped Scorpius when Harry had brought him in with anaphylaxis, and he was also working with Healer Swynford, the lovely woman who was assisting him. He’d told Harry that they were married, and he seemed to really like them both, having nothing but good things to say about them. Harry was so happy for him.

Scorpius was in bed, and Draco was currently studying up on plant and potion poisoning while Harry laid sprawled out on the sofa, his head in Draco's lap and Fish sleeping peacefully on his stomach while Harry dozed lightly.

He jumped at the unexpected voice, however, dislodging Fish from her comfortable perch. She meowed pitifully in protest until Harry stroked her little back and she settled back down. He waited for Draco to nudge Harry off of his lap so he could get up, but he seemed content to completely ignore her.

“Draco, I can hear you moving around in there,” she said impatiently. “Don’t you dare ignore me! I will come through this Floo!”

Harry glanced at Draco, who hadn't even looked up from his book before he scooped up Fish, getting up and wandering over to the fireplace with her to answer the Firecall.

Astoria’s eyes flashed with surprise when she saw Harry instead of Draco, then a smug grin spread across her face, eyes sparkling with mischief.

“Oh, Harry, darling, how are you? I haven’t spoken to you in ages! You look wonderful.”

“Hello, Ms. Malfoy,” Harry greeted her pleasantly. “It’s nice to see you again. How are things going for you in Spain?"

“Call me Astoria, honestly!” she scolded him.

"Alright," he chuckled. "Really, though, how are you?"

"Oh, you know, same as always. I never thought I could grow bored of throwing parties, but it seems that I have. I might be forced to switch to simply attending them instead for a while."

The smirk on her face let him know that she was joking, and he laughed. "How tragic," he conceded.

"Indeed. Truly, though, I've begun a new job. Just something to help pass the time. And it doesn't hurt that the owner's son is quite easy on the eyes," she winked.

"I'm sure he's positively riveted by you," Harry told her, amused. No wonder Draco had liked her; she was quite funny.

“Of course, he is! Now where is Draco? Please tell me that he’s finally gotten himself together around you. That man never did know how to handle being around you, you know, especially when you would wear those strange muggle trousers back in school? You know the ones; grey, made of some kind of flimsy cotton fabric? Did you know they were so worn out that they were almost see through? Didn’t leave much to the imagination, did they?” she said with a tinkling laugh.

Oh, my God.

Harry's mouth fell open, his face going bright red as he barked out a shocked laugh.

She had to be joking. That was actually mortifying. He did own a rather threadbare pair of joggers, though, and had worn them quite a bit, especially in Eighth Year when he couldn't be arsed to put jeans on.

“Astoria!” Draco cried out in horror, almost falling off the couch in his effort to get over to the fireplace, face flaming. Harry stifled his laughter behind his hand as Draco floundered, trying to get her to stop talking. “What in the flying fuck is wrong with you?! Why on earth would you say that! What if I hadn’t told him anything yet!” he shrieked.

Apparently, she wasn't joking, then. Well, he couldn't be mad about that, could he? He loved that Draco apparently had such an obvious crush on him in school. Obvious to the Slytherins, anyway. Draco might be embarrassed, but Harry was hopelessly endeared.

“Oh, stop it, Draco,” she rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Obviously I already knew you’d gotten together; Pansy told me, since you couldn’t be bothered to call and thank me yourself.”

Harry was still chuckling, cheeks still warm with embarrassment at the thought that an unknown number of people might have actually accidentally seen his dick, and slight arousal at the thought that Draco specifically had been intentionally looking at his dick. He leaned in and kissed Draco on the cheek, depositing Fish on Draco’s lap.

“I’m going to go shower, darling. Enjoy your chat.” Harry told him, getting up and heading for their bedroom without waiting for a response, shutting the door behind him.

Christ, he definitely needed that shower. And probably a wank. He looked down at the slight tent in his trousers. Fuck.

Definitely a wank, then.

*

Valentine's Day was quickly approaching, and Harry was feeling a bit disheartened. He'd casually brought it up a few times, just trying to gauge and see if Draco had any interest in celebrating at all, trying to see if he should plan something for them, but he just... didn't seem to care.

Every time Harry mentioned it, he'd just hum distractedly or smile before changing the subject, and Harry had finally accepted that it just wasn't Draco's thing.

That was okay. A bit disappointing, but really, it wasn't that big of a deal. Harry had gone ahead and gotten him a gift, but he wasn't going to force a holiday he wasn't interested in on his boyfriend; Harry had just never gotten to celebrate it before and was hoping that Draco might want to spend the day with him. And who knows, maybe Draco would come around. There was still a week left, after all.

Harry needed a distraction, and the perfect one was coming up; it was finally Harry's turn to host playgroup for their Valentine's party, and he had some fun ideas. Even if Draco didn't want to celebrate the holiday, he could still have fun with Scorpius, and the rest of the kids at playgroup, too.

Harry was currently on his way to visit Audrey to help her with the charity fundraiser she wanted to host for Hermione, and he figured he could run his ideas for the playgroup by her while he was there.

"Audrey?" Harry called out when he entered the deserted pub. She'd asked him to swing by in the morning before she opened for the lunch rush, but it was still surprising to see the little pub so empty.

"In the back, love! I'll be out in a mo'!" she shouted out from what he assumed was her office.

Harry removed his coat and hopped up on a barstool, spinning around idly until she popped in.

He stopped spinning and smiled sheepishly at her. She gave him an amused grin in return, eyes dancing with laughter, but didn't comment on his childish behavior, just took the stool next to him and set a few scrolls of parchment and a couple of quills down on the table.

"So! What are your ideas? I'll be honest, I've never done this sort of thing before and truly haven't a clue where to start," she admitted.

"That's alright, I've done a few charity events, and I go to all of Hermione's. The most important thing is to know your audience. You won't want to host a stuffy Ball for the people who come here, right? You want to appeal to the people who already patron your business; that's your crowd."

"That makes sense," she nodded. "What were you thinking?"

"Well, I was actually thinking that maybe it could become a standing event if it goes well," he hedged. "Monthly Trivia night? Muggles do it all the time, it's really popular. You advertise it as a charity event and sign up teams. Each team will pay an entrance fee and the team who gets the most questions right wins a prize. If you planned on donating a portion of your sales, I thought that you could track your drink sales and I would match them each month, if you wanted to keep doing it."

"Oh, that sounds so fun, what an excellent idea!" she gushed, squeezing his arm. "And thank you, love, that's so generous of you."

It really wasn't; it's not like they couldn't afford it. Draco probably had more money than anyone could spend in a lifetime, and Harry had plenty of his own. He was more than happy to donate to people who needed it, and he knew Draco would be, too. He'd already donated to Hermione's charity, after all. Unknowingly, but still.

Harry smiled at her. "Well, great! Did you want me to help you coordinate it? Maybe just the first one? I can probably have Draco come up with the questions, he's smart, and I'm sure he'd be happy to help."

"That would be wonderful."

Harry stayed quite a while, helping her flesh out the details of the event. Audrey would be putting on the first one in April, as that was the anniversary month of Hermione's charity, and Harry had agreed to help act as the host for her, reluctantly admitting that his presence would probably draw a larger crowd, at least until it got off the ground. Hopefully he could wrangle Draco, Ron, and Neville into helping, too.

Either way, Harry was practically bursting with excitement for Hermione. This was so important to her, and he would make sure this event went well, for her, and for Audrey, too.

*

"Alright, buddy! Are you ready to go shopping?" Harry asked Scorpius.

Valentine's Day was tomorrow, and Harry wanted to get Scorpius a cute, festive outfit for the playgroup party, especially because Harry suspected that Scorpius had a bit of a crush on one of the little girls at playgroup. It was adorable how shy he got when she spoke to him, but Harry wanted to give him a bit of confidence.

Obviously, he was too young for a relationship, but he wasn't too young to begin learning how to treat someone he liked. Over Harry's dead body would he grow up to be a toxic arsehole of a partner.

Truthfully, he could use the distraction. Draco had still shown exactly zero interest in what tomorrow was, and Harry was desperately trying not to be overly disappointed. He'd hoped that Draco would come around, give him any indication that he cared about the day at all, but he just hadn't. He clearly either didn't like or didn’t care about the cheesy holiday, and that was fine. Totally, perfectly fine. Really. It was fine.

Draco had to work tomorrow, anyway, but Harry would at least get to spend the day with Scorpius. Maybe he could convince Draco to go get ice cream or something with them after work, though. The man had an enormous sweet tooth, so maybe the lure of something sweet would be enticing enough to get him out of the house.

Harry did get him a couple of simple gifts that he'd left at Grimmauld Place, but he could even save them for another time. They weren't anything crazy; he'd just had his favorite photo of them blown up on a large canvas to hang somewhere in the house, and then he'd also made Draco a box of homemade assorted chocolates. They were safe gifts, things he knew Draco would like regardless of the holiday, and hopefully wouldn't be annoyed by them.

"I'm ready!" the little boy chirped, holding his arms up to Harry. He really was getting too big to carry around, but Scorpius still liked to be held when they Apparated, and Harry wasn't about to deny him that. He'd miss it terribly when Scorp finally decided he didn't want to be held anymore.

The deep, painful longing for a baby reared up inside of him momentarily, but he quickly shoved it away. That was never going to happen, and he needed to let it go. Scorpius was enough, truly. More than enough. More than he ever thought he'd have, and Harry was so grateful to have him. He'd just snuggle Ron and Hermione's baby when they finally had one. Which hopefully would be soon.

Harry was starting to get a bit nervous for them, to be honest. He could see the discouragement on Hermione's face every time he asked them if they'd had any luck conceiving yet. It made his heart ache for them. They'd be such wonderful parents, and he wanted them to have everything they wanted.

His thoughts were getting a bit too morose, so he shook himself out of his head and hoisted Scorpius up onto his hip. He thought through his options for a moment before deciding on where they should go, and Apparated them just outside of Twilfitt and Tattings in Diagon Alley.

"How's this?" Harry asked him, setting him down on his feet, and Scorpius nodded in approval.

"Papa likes this one."

"Perfect," Harry grinned, leading him into the store. He saw movement outside the window, and turned to see a stranger waving at Scorpius. He frowned deeply and quickly moved Scorpius further into the store, away from the view of the window.

A store clerk came up to them almost immediately, distracting Harry from whatever the hell that had been, and just about fell over himself to help them when he recognized Harry, offering them drinks and a seat while he went to fetch items for them.

Harry smiled at him and assured him that they would be fine, and they'd let him know if they needed any help. He really just wanted to pick the outfit out by themselves and have some privacy.

They wandered around the store, pointing out fancy shoes and rich, expensive fabrics that Harry would never buy in a million years if he weren't dating a man who would die of horror if he dressed his son in something as common as polyester.

"So, are you thinking of asking anyone to be your valentine?" Harry asked conversationally as they browsed a display of child-sized ties.

"What's that?"

Harry raised his eyebrows. "You know, your valentine. You ask someone you're sweet on to spend time with you, or give them a special gift to show them that you like them."

"Oh," Scorpius frowned, looking contemplative.

"Do you like anyone?"

His little cheeks went pink, and he mumbled something under his breath.

"What was that?" Harry asked, amused, and Scorpius huffed.

"I said, I like Olivia. I like her braid. It's pretty."

"It is a very nice braid," Harry said seriously. "And she's nice to you, right? I see her come over and talk to you sometimes."

"She's the nicest. Luca even thinks she's nice," Scorpius said with wide eyes.

Scorpius and Luca had gotten very close since his birthday party. The shy little boy had finally begun to trust Scorpius after he'd been so nice to him when his mum left him alone at the party, coming up to talk to him willingly the next week, and Scorp had taken that opening and run with it, giving Luca no choice but to be his friend after that. He had decided that Luca was going to be his best friend because he needed a best friend, and Scorpius hadn't stopped trying until the other boy accepted it. It was a bit... aggressive, but now the two were nearly inseparable; even closer than he was with Tommy. Harry thought it was very sweet. Scorpius wasn’t exactly wrong; clearly Luca needed a good friend, and Scorpius wanted to be that for him. He was still amazed at how emotionally intelligent the small boy was at only five years old.

He was such a little Hufflepuff.

"Well, if Luca thinks so then she must be extra nice," he chuckled.

"Maybe Olivia can be my bal-time!" Scorpius said excitedly.

"Val-en-tine," Harry pronounced carefully. "And you can absolutely ask her if she'd like to be."

That seemed to make him happy, but a minute later he was frowning again. "What if she says no?"

"Well, then you tell her that's okay, and that you can still be friends."

"But I want her to like me back. She has to say yes," he pouted.

"She doesn't," Harry explained gently. "We have to respect people's choices, yeah? You can't force someone to like you, and that wouldn't be very kind of you to pressure her. But you can still be friends. There are other fish in the sea."

"We aren't on the sea," he said, looking incredibly confused.

Harry laughed. "No, it's a figure of speech. It means that there are a lot of people out there. If one doesn't like you, it doesn't mean no one ever will. And you’re only five, love," he pointed out.

Scorpius nodded very seriously. "Okay. I can still hope she says yes, right?"

"Of course you can," Harry said softly, squeezing his hand. "And we can make sure you look very handsome tomorrow, too."

That seemed to make him happy enough, and they returned their attentions to the shop. "Ooo, Scorp, check these out!" Harry said enthusiastically, pointing to a display of colorful suspenders. They would look adorable on him.

"I like those!" Scorpius giggled, pointing at a pair of bright red ones.

Harry grinned, grabbing the suspenders off the rack and handing them to him. "Let's see what we can find to match these, yeah?"

They ended up choosing a pair of black trousers, a short-sleeved button up covered in tiny red hearts, and even a little red bowtie to match. He would look precious.

When Harry went to check out, the same man from earlier came up to them, complimenting their choices.

"Thanks!" Scorpius chirped. "It's for my playgroup party. Papa says you should always look your best at a party."

The man's eyes flicked over to Harry, but he smiled. "That's very good advice."

"Can you help my daddy, too?" Scorpius asked suddenly, his silver eyes lighting up. "He should look nice for the party, too!"

"Oh, no," Harry tried to protest, cheeks warming. "I'm fine, I have clothes at home-"

"No, no! You have to look han-some on val-times day, too, daddy! Don't you want papa to think you're pretty?" Scorpius said earnestly, putting out his bottom lip. "Puh-leeeease?"

He really didn't want to. He didn't like dressing up, and he had nowhere to go, anyway, but Scorpius was pouting at him, and Harry could feel his resolve cracking. What harm would it do? He finally turned back to the very interested store clerk and just shrugged helplessly.

"Yay!" Scorpius cheered, swinging Harry's hand back and forth before hugging his arm.

The man grinned widely, ushering them to the men's section of the shop, and insisting that Harry and Scorpius sit down while he ran around pulling things off racks for him to look at.

Harry grimaced, feeling incredibly self-conscious, then guilty as he shook his head at option after option. It was all far too fancy for him. These were probably things Draco would certainly enjoy, but they weren't Harry.

"Mr. Potter, why don't you tell me what your plans are?" The clerk said kindly, looking a bit frazzled after fifteen minutes of rejections.

"Erm... I don't-" he said awkwardly, face flaming, not exactly wanting to tell this total stranger that he didn't have a date for Valentine's Day. "I um. I'd really just prefer to be comfortable..."

The man studied him for a minute, eyes sweeping over Harry's body, then smiled. "I see. One moment, please."

Harry watched him disappear, and Scorpius climbed onto his lap, humming contentedly.

When the man came back, he had only a few items with him this time. "What about this? This seems more... you, if you don't mind my saying so," he said, holding a simple red shirt and a pair of jeans out to Harry. Harry didn't even know they sold jeans in Diagon Alley. These were definitely better quality than what he usually wore, but they were casual, comfortable.

He breathed a sigh of relief, giving the man a small smile. "Yeah, I think this is better."

The man, whose name he hadn't caught, shot him a relieved smile in return. "Excellent. This way, please. Fitting rooms are over here."

Harry and Scorpius both tried on their clothes, and the man cast a few complicated looking spells at them so that the clothes adjusted themselves to their bodies properly.

Scorpius looked as cute as Harry knew he would, but he was surprised by how much he actually liked what the man had picked for him. The shirt was made of the softest fabric he'd ever felt, and it was now fitted to his body instead of being slightly oversized like he was used to. The neckline scooped down a bit, showing off his tanned skin and collarbones, and the jeans were surprisingly comfortable as well, hugging him in a the right places without feeling too tight. This would work, and he thought Draco would probably like it, too.

"You like it?" he asked Scorpius, who nodded enthusiastically.

"Yep yep yep! I like the hearts!"

"You look very festive," Harry agreed, then turned back to the man. "We'll take it all."

He rang them up quickly and packaged up their purchases, thanking them profusely for shopping with them. Scorpius giggled, but Harry just thanked him and led Scorpius outside, breathing a sigh of relief that it was over.

He saw a flash out of the corner of his eye, and someone shouted, "hey, kid!", but by the time he looked over, the person who had taken his photo was already running, probably the same prick who had been stalking them from outside of the store.

He grit his teeth in irritation. Great. Now he'd have to visit the damn Prophet office again to make sure they weren't printing pictures of Scorpius.

Instances of running into the press had amped up again after Christmas, and he didn't know why. Maybe it had been too long since he'd sat for an interview, but he just wanted to live his life. He wanted to focus on his family and spend time with his friends, and not have to constantly be fielding reporters or fans. They were literally everywhere, and it was beyond exhausting. Being rude to them just made it worse, though, and he was tired of having to give pieces of himself to the rest of the world. He just wanted to be left alone. Hadn't he given enough?

He sighed. "Scorp, do you want to go visit George and Uncle Ron at the joke shop?"

"Ooh, yes! And can we get a toy for Fish? Please?"

"Sure," Harry agreed. He knew Ron was working today, but even if he wasn't, George wouldn't mind watching Scorp for a few minutes while he went over to talk to the editor of the Daily Prophet.

The bell above the door rang when they entered, but the shop was packed. He spotted Ron and George behind the counter, busy ringing people up. Shit.

They made their way up front anyway, waving at George when he noticed them, and George nudged Ron, nodding to where Harry was standing off to the side to not block the guests.

"Harry!" Ron greeted cheerfully, hurrying over to give him a quick hug. "What's up?"

"Hey, Ron. Listen, I am so sorry to ask, but can I leave Scorp here for a few minutes? I have to go talk to Cuffe. I can't take him there," Harry said quietly. "I can come help you guys out when I'm done, I know you're slammed."

Ron frowned. "More pictures?"

Harry nodded glumly.

"Go on. Of course he can stay. We'll just put him to work. Right, buddy?" Ron asked Scorpius with a wink.

"Right! I can help!" he piped up happily.

"Thanks so much. I'll be back as fast as I can," Harry said.

Ron waved him off. "Do what you gotta do, mate. We'll be here. He's no trouble."

Harry watched Scorpius zoom into the back room and come back with a little step-stool, placing it behind the counter so he could see the customers, already chattering away. Harry smiled softly at him, giving them a wave before turning and exiting the crowded shop, making a beeline for the Prophet offices to speak to Barnabus Cuffe.

He didn't bother knocking, he just went inside and made his way up to Cuffe's office, ignoring the girl at the front desk who was simpering after him, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

Harry was a very patient man, but enough was enough. There had to be some middle ground here, some better compromise. He had a family now, he didn't want to constantly be on alert, constantly be coming down here to offer them something in exchange for privacy... when would he be able to have a break?

Harry knocked firmly on the door labeled Editor in Chief, Barnabus Cuffe only once, then entered the small office without waiting for a response.

Cuffe was hunched over his desk, puffing on a smelly cigar, and he glanced up sharply when Harry opened the door, lip curling.

"Potter. To what do I owe the pleasure," he snipped, sounding anything but happy to see him. The feeling was mutual.

Harry rolled his eyes, taking a seat without being asked. "One of your reporters took a picture of my son when we were coming out of Twilfitt and Tattings. Intentionally of just him. I wanted confirmation that you're not going to publish him."

Cuffe's eyes glinted when he called Scorpius his son, but Harry didn't flinch, meeting his gaze stonily. He wasn't going to give this slimeball anything he could use, but he wasn't going to deny his relationship to Scorpius, either, not even to this leech; that would only hurt his family.

Cuffe smirked, leaning back in his chair, eyes glinting like he'd won something. "Well, you know I can't promise you what will or won't get used in the papers, Potter. We've been hearing whisperings, you see, and we wouldn't want to deny our readers the privilege of seeing you happy, would we?"

Harry clenched his jaw, feeling a muscle ticking near his eye as his hands curled into fists.

"We have a deal," Harry said lowly.

"It's an old deal, dreadfully outdated," Cuffe dismissed. "I'm afraid it's simply not enough anymore. The public wants more. Shallow interviews aren't cutting it, we have to give them something new."

No," Harry said, anger rising.

"No?" Cuffe asked, eyebrows raised.

"No," Harry ground out. "The only thing I have ever asked you for is privacy for my kids and my family. None of this has anything to do with them. You won't print that photo."

Cuffe narrowed his eyes, aloof mask gone. "I'm afraid you don't hold the cards here this time."

"Not. Scorpius," he bit out through clenched teeth. "Don't forget, I can and will sue you if you print him."

"A loss we are prepared to take, if we don't win. We have lawyers, too, Potter, and I suggest you reconsider your cooperation with us. We need more photos, it's non-negotiable. Unless you’d prefer that we delve into the past of your little Death Eater? I’m sure that will make headlines."

Harry wanted to kill him, and he wanted to cry. Cuffe had him over a barrel and they both knew it. If Harry pissed him off, there was no telling what he'd print. He'd done it before, after all, and he couldn't stand the thought of Draco or Scorpius going through this, being so completely exposed to the public, having Draco’s past dug up, having outright lies said about him, having the public go after him. It was awful enough for Harry, who was universally liked, how would it be for Draco, who was on the wrong side of the war, who had worked so hard to escape that image, to rebuild the name his father had ruined, to expose Scorpius to that...

He couldn't put them through that.

Aside from that, he had promised Draco that he would do whatever it took to protect his son, and Draco, too. If he had to give this monster even more of himself to assure that his family was safe, that's what he would do.

"I want your word, first," Harry said, trying not to show that he'd been beaten. "Scorpius is off limits. In writing. Dated."

"I think we can manage that," Cuffe said smugly, scribbling out a note quickly and signing it.

Harry snatched it from his greasy fingers and read over it, looking for a loophole, but it was fairly cut and dry. Satisfied, he pocketed it. "Fine. Set up the photos or interview or whatever. Owl me."

He didn't wait for a response, he just stormed out of the building, heading back to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. He needed to breathe for a minute. He was so frustrated. He felt like he had no recourse at all. He was never going to have any privacy, and he just... had to accept it. If he didn't, he was going to drive himself insane.

Harry blinked back tears, drawing in a deep breath and plastered a smile on his face before going inside to get Scorpius. Mercifully the store had cleared out while he had been gone. Ron noticed something was amiss immediately, but Harry just shook his head slightly, not wanting to talk about it.

"Daddy, hi! I helped Uncle Ron take monies!" Scorpius squealed when he saw Harry, running up to hug him.

"That's great! Did you help him count it so he gave people the right change?"

"Yup! And he almost gave someone way too much twice! He's very lucky I was here."

Harry stifled a laugh, hugging the little boy tightly. "He sure was," he murmured. "The luckiest."

Harry stayed and helped Ron at the register until it was time to go home and start supper, promising that he'd stop over soon to talk. They dipped into the shops to pick up food for supper and some for tomorrow so he didn't have to shop for groceries after playgroup, then Apparated them both home.

When they got back home, Harry sent Scorpius up to give Fish her new toy and he started in on the simple supper he'd picked up, feeling a bit too down to make anything fancy. He'd make them a nice supper tomorrow. At least he'd know it was a special Valentine's Day dinner.

Crippling disappointment flooded through him, and he squeezed his eyes shut, forcing the tears back. He knew he was just feeling overwhelmed from what had happened with Cuffe and it was making him emotional, but that didn’t excuse the fact that he was being selfish. He had no right to be this upset over not having a date for Valentine’s Day. It was just a stupid holiday. It didn't really mean anything, and it wasn't like Draco didn't show Harry that he loved him every single day. He did, and Harry appreciated him so much. He had just hoped that he might get to actually celebrate it, and celebrate it with someone that he knew loved him back.

It wasn't even that he wanted Draco to dote on him; Harry would have happily planned the whole day himself, would have loved to spoil Draco and show him how much he loved him, if Draco had shown a single modicum of interest. But he hadn't, and Harry wasn't going to push him into doing something he quite clearly didn't want anything to do with.

He'd be fine. They'd get through tomorrow, and then he wouldn't have to think about it anymore. Maybe next year, Harry could just not mention what day it was and try to plan something small for them to do together. Draco might not even notice.

He sighed, trying to push the thoughts out of his mind, but he couldn't push away the heavy stone of disappointment that had settled in his stomach.

The Floo roared to life some time later, and Harry smiled as Scorpius ran to greet his father, following him at a slower pace. Draco lit up when he saw him, and something in Harry's chest ached painfully.

It's not a big deal.

"Hello, darling," Draco murmured, pulling Harry closer for a kiss. "How was your day?"

"Hey. It was, um. Interesting," he said carefully. "Scorp got to help Ron and George at the shop today."

"Yeah! I helped Uncle Ron with the monies! He's real bad at counting."

Draco tilted his head back and laughed. "Why am I not surprised to hear that."

"Be nice," Harry chuckled quietly. "Supper is ready, if you're hungry."

"Starved," Draco told him, pecking him on the cheek before following Scorpius to the dining room.

Dinner was fine. Harry knew he was quieter than usual, and Draco seemed to notice, casting him furtive glances now and then, and slight crease between his brows, but he only asked once, and when Harry assured him that he was fine, he had let it go.

After they got Scorpius bathed and in bed, Harry pulled Draco into their bedroom. He didn't want to stay up any longer. He didn't even want to have sex, he just wanted to be held.

When they were both in bed, Harry scooted as close to Draco as he could, wrapping his body around him and resting his head on Draco's chest, listening to his heart beating steadily under his ear. Long fingers came up to card through his hair, and Harry sighed quietly, allowing himself to relax into the touch.

"I had a... meeting over at the Prophet today," he said carefully.

Draco's hand didn't falter. "Did you?"

Harry nodded. "A reporter caught us coming out of a shop today. I just went in to make sure that they weren't going to print Scorp."

Now his hand stilled, his stomach tensing under Harry. "And what did they say?"

Harry shrugged his free shoulder. "That they wouldn't print him." Or go after you, as long as I cooperate, he thought bitterly.

Draco didn't need to know how far Harry was going to go to protect him. Harry didn't even know how far he'd have to go yet. He'd tell him once he knew, but he didn't need to worry Draco preemptively. It didn't matter, anyway. There was nothing he wouldn't do to keep them safe, and nothing Draco said could change that.

He felt Draco relax under him, his hand resuming its soothing motion through his hair. "Good. That's good."

Harry was quiet for a long moment, until he felt Draco's breaths even out, assuming he was asleep. "I'll keep you both safe. Whatever it takes," he whispered, pressing his lips to Draco's chest.

He startled slightly when Draco mumbled to him sleepily in reply, but relaxed again quickly enough, burrowing even deeper into Draco's arms.

"You already do, my darling. You already do."

He could get through this. As long as he had this, nothing else mattered.

Notes:

Hope you enjoyed! The next one will be up very quickly, it's already over half written. ;)

Chapter 15: CHAPTERR 14

Summary:

Valentine's Day <3

Notes:

Here we are! The much anticipated Valentine's date. Hope it lives up to your expectations! Happy reading. ;)

Harry woke to the feeling of soft lips peppering kisses all over his face. He basked in it for a few moments, but when those lips finally landed on his, he couldn't hold back his hum of contentment, bringing an arm up to wrap around Draco, holding him close to him.

When Draco pulled back, Harry blinked sleepily up at the silver eyes that were shining down at him.

"Well, good morning," Harry chuckled roughly.

"Good morning, darling. Happy Valentine's Day," Draco said quietly, pecking his lips one last time.

Valentine's Day.

His heart stuttered. He'd forgotten about it in his sleep, and... did Draco actually just acknowledge that it was Valentine's Day?

A slow smile spread across his face, stretching his cheeks. "Happy Valentine's Day, love," he replied softly. It was more than he expected today, to be honest, and just the acknowledgment had perked him up, setting his mood for the day.

"I made you breakfast," Draco said, floating a loaded tray over to the bed.

"You made me breakfast in bed?" Harry asked, shocked, trying to sit up in the bed faster than his body wanted to move. His eyebrows shot up when he saw the food, a delighted laugh escaping him.

This breakfast was festive, to say the least. Draco had made him heart shaped pancakes topped with whipped cream and red, pink, and white sprinkles, along with bacon arranged in the shape of a heart, sausages, and scrambled eggs, also roughly formed into a heart. It was cheesy and ridiculous, and Harry loved it.

No one had ever done anything like this for him before, and he suddenly desperately wished Draco didn't have to go to work so he could show him exactly how much this simple act meant to him.

"Heart shaped breakfast? Where on earth did you get just red, pink, and white sprinkles?" he asked curiously.

Draco shrugged nonchalantly. "Picked them out of the jar in the pantry."

Picked them...

"You picked them out by hand?" Harry asked him, his amusement fading into unbearable fondness when Draco nodded, flushing slightly. That... why had he done that? That had to have taken him ages. Draco looked so pleased with himself, though, that all Harry could do was smile.

"Thank you, darling. I love this," he said sincerely, leaning over to kiss Draco on the cheek. "You want to share with me?"

They did share the food, which was surprisingly good considering Draco wasn't much of a cook. Draco focused on the food, but Harry couldn't take his eyes off of him, feeling inordinately, ridiculously happy.

He'd been so down all day yesterday, thinking Draco didn't care about Valentine's Day at all, but here he had gotten up early and gone out of his way to make Harry a lovely, heart themed breakfast. It was better than he could have hoped for.

Maybe he could actually get Draco to get ice cream with them later after all.

Too soon they heard Scorpius moving around in his room, though, and breakfast had come to an end.

"Thank you so much for breakfast," Harry told him again with a deep kiss. "I'll go get him; you have work soon. Go get ready."

"You're welcome, love. I left him breakfast on the island, too, so you don't have to cook. I'll be down soon."

Harry grinned, quickly throwing on the clothes he'd bought yesterday, and slipped out of the room, giving Draco privacy to get ready.

Scorpius was downstairs, running around the living room in circles. "Daddy! It's val-times day!" he said excitedly.

"It's Valentine's, and yes, that it is. Are you ready to get dressed? I think papa would like to see your outfit before he leaves."

"Okay!"

He skipped back upstairs, tossing his new clothes onto his bed, letting Harry help him with the buttons on his shirt and his bowtie. When he was dressed, Harry styled his hair, brushing it back from his face in a neat little quiff before they went back downstairs so he could eat.

Scorpius was happily munching away when Draco joined them downstairs, but he jumped down to give Draco a hug.

"Good morning, papa! Do you love the new clothes I got? It’s so I look han’some for the party today!"

"I do love it," Draco confirmed. "Harry's right, you look very handsome."

"Yay! I wanted to look extra nice today for when I give Olivia her balentime!"

"And who is Olivia?" Draco asked in surprise, looking over at Harry in question.

"A very nice little girl at playgroup," Harry informed him, then mouthed crush at him, and Draco's eyes widened in understanding. "And it's valentine, buddy."

"She's the nicest! She shares her lunch with me, and her mummy puts ribbons in her braids. I'm going to ask her to be my valentine," Scorpius said seriously, carefully pronouncing the word correctly for the first time.

"I see. Well, I'm sure that she'll be flattered," Draco said with a wry smile. "But what will you do if she says no?"

Harry waited for the answer he'd taught him, and he wasn't disappointed.

"Then I tell her that's okay, and that we can still be friends. Right daddy?" Scorpius said, puffing out his chest a little as he looked at Harry.

Harry grinned. "That's exactly right. Very good. We have to respect people's choices, right?"

"Right!"

Draco looked at Harry, biting his lip, eyes soft before looking back to his son. "I'm proud of you, my little star," he said, scooping his son up into a hug. Scorpius giggled, then wiggled to get down.

"Don't give me wrinkles, papa," he scolded, and Harry snorted.

"Christ, he's just like you," he laughed, and even Draco chuckled.

"I hope you have so much fun at your party later, love. I'll see you after, alright? I have to go to work now," Draco said, kissing Scorpius on the cheek so as not to mess up his hair before coming over to give Harry a kiss as well.

"Have a good day, darling. We'll see you for supper, if you're not stuck over too late. I was hoping maybe we could go for ice cream this evening, if you get done before they close?" Harry asked hopefully, holding his breath.

Draco smiled, running his fingers along Harry's jawline. "Of course we can. I'll let you know if I'm going to be late so you can at least take Scorpius, alright?"

Harry grinned happily, excitement welling up inside of him. That was perfect. Just perfect. He couldn't wait. Work was going to drag on forever.

"Thank you," Harry said, kissing Draco's throat. "Don't be late."

Draco gave him one last kiss, then hurried to the Floo, disappearing in a flash of green.

Harry turned back to Scorpius. "Well, it's just us now! Want to help me make the snacks for the party?"

Scorpius eagerly agreed, and Harry cast an Impervius Charm on him so as not to ruin his outfit, and they got to work, baking cupcakes and cookies, making little heart shaped sandwiches and sticking strawberries together on toothpicks to form hearts. He even made a sweet-smelling pink punch that tasted like raspberry lemonade, but bubbled and sent off a swirling, pink vapor.

Harry was in the middle of frosting the cupcakes when an owl tapped on the window.

"Mail!" Scorpius cheered.

That was strange. The mail usually came much earlier. Harry frowned a bit, but went over to let the unfamiliar owl in, removing the letter that was tied to his leg and giving him a piece of bread in thanks. The bird took it gratefully, hooted at him softly, then left.

"What is it?" Scorpius asked, trying to peer at the writing inside the scroll.

"Probably just a note for your papa," Harry chuckled, unrolling it unceremoniously to check who it was from and make sure it wasn't urgent, but he froze at the sight of the familiar, heavy scrawl.

Owen?

Why in the actual fuck was Owen writing to him, on Valentine's Day, of all days? Why would he do that? He had destroyed Harry, left him a complete mess without a second thought, left him with damage he was still struggling to undo. He was the last person Harry ever wanted to hear from again. What could he possibly have to say that was important enough to send a letter?

Harry stared unseeing down at the partially unrolled parchment in his trembling hand for a long moment before abruptly deciding he didn't want to know. Whatever it was, it didn't matter. Owen was his past, where he should stay, and he was not going to let him ruin this day for him, this day that was meant to celebrate his relationship with Draco, the love of his life, the person who was always there for him, who listened to him, and made him feel like he mattered, who took care of his fragile heart like it was precious to him, and who loved him, really, truly loved him.

Owen had no place in his heart anymore, and Harry wouldn't give him one more second of his time.

He carefully rolled the scroll back up without reading it, lighting it on fire with an aborted twitch of his fingers.

"Hey! Why did you burn up papa's letter?" Scorpius shrieked accusingly.

"It wasn't for papa," Harry told him, voice calm and steady. He'd tell Draco about it later tonight, but Scorpius certainly didn't need to know the truth. "It was from my friend about a surprise I'm planning for Auntie Hermione, and it lit itself on fire after I'd read it so she didn't accidentally see it," he lied through his teeth.

Scorpius lit up. "A surprise?! Can I know the secret?"

"I don't know, do you think you can keep it a secret? It's very important that she not find out about it," Harry told him seriously, all the tension that had accumulated in his shoulders upon receiving that letter melting away at Scorpius' wide-eyed, pleading look.

This was all that mattered. The past was the past, but this, right here... this was his present and his future. This was what mattered.

"I promise!" he begged, and Harry smiled, telling him all about the plans for their Trivia Night charity event as they finished frosting the cupcakes, letting the note slip from his mind entirely.

When they finally finished the food, it was time to go decorate the classroom for the party. Harry gathered up the supplies he'd bought the previous week along with the food and shrunk everything down, loading it all up in a large, wicker basket before he Apparated them to the school. They were the first ones to arrive, which was what he'd been hoping for.

"Alright, buddy, why don't you go play while I set everything up, yeah?"

"Okay," Scorpius agreed, wandering over to the blocks.

Harry set out the food and drinks, then pulled out his wand, unshrinking everything before he sent a flurry of heart shaped confetti and pink bubbles raining down on the whole room, making Scorpius giggle wildly.

He transfigured three of the large floor pillows into tables, and set out three different activities for the kids to do during the party. He had one where they could make cards for their parents or friends, one where they could paint, and then on the final table, he laid out instructions for a little scavenger hunt for the kids, where they'd have to go around the room and collect the different heart shaped, red, and pink items he had listed for them to find. Anyone who completed the list would get a little prize. Harry had bought a small collection of plushies from a toy shop for them to choose from that he had set out on the table with the lists.

It wasn't much, but he thought they might have fun with it, and it would at least keep them occupied.

By the time the other parents and children started to trickle in, Harry had everything set up to his satisfaction. He was a bit worried that he'd done too much, but the way the kids' faces were lighting up when they saw the room soothed that worry away.

He waved at the parents he'd become familiar with as they entered, and breathed a quiet sigh of relief when Luca arrived with Sam, and not his mother.

Luckily, the novelty of having Harry Potter attend their children’s playgroup had worn after the first few meetings, and most of the parents acted much more normal around him now. A few still acted starstruck or harbored some kind of hopeful attraction, but not enough to really bother him, and Maura often skipped group altogether after Draco had embarrassed her at Scorpius' birthday party. When she did come, though, she alternated between being rude and overly sweet to him, like she couldn't decide if she liked him or hated him. It was bizarre, and he tried to steer clear of her as much as he could. He was quite happy that she'd chosen not to come today. Luca always had a better time when she wasn't here, anyway.

Harry should ask Sam if the boys could have a sleepover sometime. Scorpius would probably love that.

As if she could read his mind, she sidled up to him after the boys took off to find Scorpius, smiling widely at Harry. She looked lovely, dressed in a bright red dress that complimented her dark skin beautifully, her hair twisted up in a scarf that had little hearts all over it.

"Of course, you would get to host on a holiday and put the rest of us to shame," she teased, and he laughed.

"You know I have very little self-control," he shrugged, and she snorted.

"Well, the children love it," she mused, looking at the kids running around excitedly, popping the floating pink bubbles.

"Believe it or not, that was the goal," he said, laughing when she shoved him.

"Oh, hey, I was thinking that the boys might like to have a sleepover sometime. What do you think?"

Sam smiled warmly. "I think that's a wonderful idea. They'll love it."

"Do you think Maura would let Luca come to our house?"

"Oh, I'll bring him. Let's just plan it for a week his dad has him."

"Perfect. Just owl me, we'll figure it out."

A few of the other mothers came over to chat with them after a bit, complimenting Harry on the party, chatting about the kids. Harry kept with the conversation the best he could, but he had one eye on Scorpius the whole time, watching him watch Olivia from a safe distance at the card making station. He wasn't going to interfere, but he was curious if he'd end up talking to her at all today.

Eventually, he saw Scorpius look at him, his little face slightly worried. Harry just smiled at him, nodding encouragingly, and he watched as Scorp picked up the card he'd apparently been working on and marched boldly over to Olivia, tapping her on the shoulder. She looked at him, and he thrust the card towards her, his mouth moving rapidly.

Harry held his breath, grinning when the little girl giggled, taking the card from him then taking his hand, pulling him over to the reading corner with her.

Scorpius looked over his shoulder at Harry, grinning widely, and Harry laughed, flashing him a thumbs up.

"Isn't that sweet," one of the mother's cooed, looking over at where Scorpius and Olivia were now looking through a book together. 

"They're adorable," he agreed, still watching them. He tuned out most of the conversation again until he heard his name.

"What about you, Harry?"

"What? Sorry," he said, blinking, looking to who was asking him the question, a Pureblood, uppity woman named Shelia.

"Well, I've heard that Maura's got a fancy date with her new younger man tonight, which is why she's not here, and Leslie got an upgraded wedding band from her husband. So, what are your big plans for this evening? Hot date?"

"Oh. Um. No, no big plans," he shrugged.

"What?! But you're Harry Potter!" she gasped loudly, like Harry Potter not having a date was the most tragic thing she'd ever heard, hand over her chest.

He just stared at her, then shrugged again uncomfortably, smiling sheepishly, not really wanting to justify himself or accidentally throw Draco under the bus. He wasn't going to be sad that they didn't have a date tonight, he was happy enough that Draco had remembered at all.

"Well, that's alright. You know, Kim's husband had the nerve to forget what day it is entirely, the poor dear. I keep telling her she should spruce herself up a bit if she wants his attention to stop wandering, if you know what I mean," she fake pouted, while poor Kim looked utterly humiliated. Harry wanted to hug her. What a horrible thing to say, honestly!

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean, but maybe she deserves better than someone who can't appreciate the lovely wife he already has," he pointed out, his tone chilly. He gave Kim a small, encouraging smile, and she looked at him in awe, stars in her eyes. He cleared his throat, cutting his eyes back to Shelia, who appeared unmoved and wholly unembarrassed by her rude comment.

"Hmm. Perhaps. Well, my husband gifted me new diamond earrings and a vacation to Paris, and he's made us reservations at that fancy new restaurant in Diagon Alley. Do you know the one? Something or other Italian," she boasted. He definitely knew where she was referring to. Hopefully she'd have better luck with the service than they had. He certainly wasn't heartbroken over not eating there tonight.

A few of the women looked at her enviously, and Sam rolled her eyes, but Harry just smiled tightly at her. "That sounds just lovely, Shelia. I hope you have a great time."

"Oh. Well, thank you," she said, looking flattered. "What about you, Samantha?"

"Oh, I've planned a nice dinner at home for tonight," she replied.

"You planned it?" Shelia asked, looking unimpressed.

"That's right," Sam said brightly, not offended at all.

"How gauche," Shelia sniffed judgmentally.

"Not nearly as gauche as butting your nose into everyone else's business," Sam said, lifting an eyebrow at her.

Shelia's face soured and she huffed, but she did stop nibbing into everyone else's plans.

The rest of the party passed by very pleasantly. Kim never took her eyes off of him, but Sam had huddled in closer to him to discourage her from hovering, and she hadn't pushed it, which he greatly appreciated. Harry was actually enjoying the company, and the children enjoying the food and crafts and games. He hated for it to be over.

Maybe he could take Scorp to the park, or go visit Molly or something before starting supper. He'd gotten a gorgeous piece of swordfish and a nice steak for tonight, thinking they could share them.

"Oh, no," Harry laughed, gesturing over to where one little girl was chasing one of the boys around the room with a handful of heart confetti, trying to launch it at him while he screeched about her throwing 'cooties' on him. Kids were so ridiculous. "Good thing he can run faster than-

Harry cut himself off abruptly when he suddenly felt warm lips brushing the back of his neck and a solid body press against him from behind. He stiffened, alarm rising.

"Are you having fun, darling," a familiar voice murmured against his skin, and a long arm snaked around him from behind, presenting him with a single, red rose.

Harry froze, breath catching in his throat before he whirled around in shock, eyes practically falling out of his head at the sight before him.

There stood Draco, looking like he'd stepped straight out of a romance novel. He was wearing fitted, black trousers and a baby pink button up, tucked in to accentuate his trim waist and paired with a slim black tie and his nicest gray blazer. A burgundy handkerchief peeked out of his breast pocket, and his hair... his hair was soft and bouncy, flowing around his face and down to his shoulders like an angel, softening his sharp features and giving him a romantic air.

He looked fucking edible, but Harry was too shocked seeing him here, at playgroup, to do anything other than gape embarrassingly at him until Draco smirked smugly, reaching forward to gently close his mouth for him.

"Well? Are you?" he asked, holding the rose out to Harry again.

He took it with barely a thought, a hot flush working its way up his face, still trying to figure out what was happening. He was supposed to be at work. Why was he here? It wasn't even four o'clock yet; Harry didn't expect him until at least eight on a holiday.

He shook his head a bit, cradling the rose close to his chest to keep it safe.

"What- You- what are you doing here?" Harry stuttered, bewildered.

"Taking you out for Valentine's Day, of course," Draco said casually, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Harry sucked in a sharp breath, brows furrowing as cautious hope flooded through him.

"You are?"

Draco nodded, smiling slightly. "I am."

"But- but what about work? You didn't tell me we had plans..." he said faintly.

"Well, that would have ruined the surprise, now, wouldn't it?" Draco chuckled. "I took a half day."

"You did?" Harry repeated. "But, what about Scorpius?"

"He's having a sleepover with Aunt Andromeda and Teddy tonight. Everything is taken care of. I'm taking you out."

Everything was handled. He didn't have to do anything? Harry felt warm. Too warm. He might actually faint. He blinked heavily before a slow smile broke out across his face, unable to hide his excitement. "We have a date?"

They had a date. Draco was taking him out. For Valentine's Day. He hadn't blown the day off at all.

"That we do. Are you really that surprised, darling?" Draco asked him softly, reaching up to smooth a wild piece of black hair back behind his ear.

"I mean, you never said anything," Harry said quietly, a bit ashamed that he had ever thought for one moment that Draco would blow him off for something that was clearly so important to Harry. He hadn’t exactly been subtle, and Draco had never, not once, let him down. "I brought it up a few times, but you seemed indifferent, and I didn't want to push. I just assumed..."

"I just wanted to surprise you," Draco said assuredly. "I would never forget about you, sweetheart."

Harry looked down, biting his lip, pleased flush spreading down his neck now.

"Well, you'd better get going, then. Wouldn't want to be late, would you?" Sam said cheerfully, squeezing Harry's shoulder and shoving him slightly towards Draco, reminding him that they were still at playgroup and were most definitely not alone.

Sam looked absolutely delighted, and while Shelia looked like she might burst into flames from envy, her face sour. Poor Kim looked quite distraught that Harry was clearly not single or having relationship troubles, but that was a problem for another day. He could barely think about anything but Draco right now.

"Right. Let me go get Scorpius," Harry said happily, making a beeline for where he was still sitting with Olivia, handing her pieces of heart shaped confetti. He had a date! He paused after a few steps, turning back around and rushing back to Draco. Harry threw his arms around him, nuzzling his face into his throat affectionately, breathing in the heady smell of grapefruit and cedar that always followed him.

"Thank you," he breathed, and Draco wrapped his arms around Harry in response. Harry hummed, then pressed a quick kiss to his Adam's apple before actually going to collect Scorpius this time.

"Scorp, someone special is here to see you," Harry said to him in a sing-song voice, luring the boy's attention away from Olivia.

He let out a surprised shriek when he saw his father. "Papa! You're here, you're here! You're at my playgroup!" he squealed, running at Draco full force.

"He'll be back to say goodbye," Harry assured Olivia at her bewildered look, chuckling when she smiled at him, satisfied.

Harry watched some of the other mothers in the group stare longingly as Draco swung Scorpius around in his arms, grinning broadly, and he felt smugness settle in his chest, rather than jealousy. That man was jaw-droppingly gorgeous, especially when he showed how fantastic he was with his son, and he was here for Harry. Harry was the one who got to have this man on his arm, who got to show him off, who got to touch and kiss, taste and fuck him. They could look all they wanted, but Draco was his.

And fuck, was Draco going to get laid so fucking good tonight for this.

Harry blinked, wrenched out of his daydream when Scorpius ran back over towards where Harry was still standing with a white carnation in his hand, but he bypassed Harry to offer it to Olivia.

"Here's your special Val-tine gift," Scorpius told her. "It's pretty, like your braid."

She looked from him to the flower, then shyly took it, thanking him sweetly before waving goodbye and running over to her mother to show her her new flower.

Scorpius looked incredibly pleased with himself, and he and Harry made their way back over to Draco, who was watching his son with a soft look on his face.

"She liked it!" he told his father proudly. Kim practically cooed at him, and Harry could relate to that. He was such a little doll. "What are we doing today, papa?"

"Well, I thought you might like to have a sleepover with Teddy tonight. Does that sound fun?" Draco told him.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes!" Scorpius cheered. "When can I go? Can I go now? Please, please, puh-lease?" He begged, bottom lip jutting out in a pout.

Harry laughed, and Draco huffed out his own laugh. "Yes, we can go right now. Aunt Andromeda is expecting you."

"Yay!" Scorpius shouted, then turned towards the room. "Bye, everyone! Bye-bye, Olivia. Happy Val-tines day!"

Most of the children returned the sentiment, even Luca, and Scorpius practically dragged them out of the building.

"Do we need to stop home first?" Harry asked after they'd finally escaped. "Get his bag?"

"I already took his things over," Draco replied. Oh. "Everyone hold on," he said, picking up Scorpius and gripping Harry's hand tightly before Apparating them to Andromeda's.

Teddy greeted them enthusiastically at the door like he'd been waiting, giving Harry a big hug and Draco a shyer wave, before grabbing Scorpius' hand and running off upstairs with him.

"Well, that was easy," Harry laughed, giving Draco a crooked smile as he followed them inside.

"It was. Do you want to change, or are you comfortable with what you have on?" Draco asked him.

Harry looked down at the new, but very casual outfit he had on, then back to his very much not casually dressed boyfriend. He bit his lip. Yeah, no.

"I should probably put on something nicer if you're wearing that," he said with a very nonchalant shrug. He didn't own anything nearly as nice as Draco, but then it would be an effort in futility to try and match him appearance-wise. There was simply no comparison. "You look bloody fantastic, by the way," he blurted out, realizing he hadn't even complimented Draco yet. How tragic. "Like you belong the cover of one of the romance novels Hermione reads."

Draco laughed. "Thank you, but if you're more comfortable like this, you don't have to dress up."

"No, no, I want to," Harry said. "We can just pop home real quick so I can shower and change, yeah?"

"Nope," Draco said, shaking his head, and Harry's eyebrows furrowed.

“No? But I thought you just said-”

Andromeda bustled into the living room at that moment, shaking her head. "No, absolutely not. You can get ready here, dear," she said, kissing each of them on the cheek. "Your things are in the bathroom. Take your time."

What? How did his things get here? What things?

"Oh, but-" he tried to protest, wanting to go home and dig through their closet to find the nicest thing he owned and something to try and tame his wild mess of hair, but she ignored him entirely, ushering him up the stairs and shoving him in the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

"Come down when you're ready!" she called out, her voice colored with laughter.

What the fuck. Bossy.

He sighed, turning to glance around the bathroom, surprised to see a hanging garment bag and a bag full of his own toiletries, even his own shampoo and a bottle of very expensive conditioner that was definitely not his.

Well, if this is what Draco wanted, then alright. When he said he'd handled everything, he really meant everything. Harry smiled to himself, just barely resisting the urge to do an excited little shimmy and stripped down, jumping in the shower.

He washed his body, then his hair with his apple shampoo and whatever sweet smelling conditioner Draco had brought for him. He stepped out of the shower and dried his body and his hair with a drying charm before digging through the little bag that he kept most of his seldom used toiletries in. He pulled out his contact case, pleased to find it in the bag, but kept digging, finally coming up triumphant with a small body of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion, courtesy of Hermione 'for dire situations'. She'd even taught him how to use it.

He set the two items aside and brushed his teeth and shaved his face carefully, then he took a deep breath, and began to tackle his hair. It took longer than he remembered, but by the end, he'd managed to wrangle it into something that actually looked decent. He had such thick hair that it had kept its volume, but was sleek and soft and shiny. He'd somewhat parted it on the side and brushed back from his face in a sort of pseudo-quiff that Ginny once told him made him look like a prince. He smiled at his reflection. It was a massive improvement. If it didn't take so bloody long, he'd do this more often.

Satisfied with his hair, he finally turned to the garment bag hanging on the far wall. He was actually pretty curious to see what Draco had picked out for him, if not a little nervous that whatever it was, he might not be able to pull it off. He slid the zipper down, and his jaw dropped.

Holy shit.

This was an outfit. There was a pair of black trousers nearly identical to Draco, but where Draco had stuck to softer colors, he'd gone deep and sultry for Harry. He had a black button down with teeny tiny white polka dots all over it, a black belt, and even socks, pants, and brand new, polished shoes, but the part that caught his eye was the deep burgundy blazer with two buttons.

Harry would have never chosen something like this for himself in a million years. It was far too nice, but Draco had picked this out specifically with Harry in mind, and if there was one thing Draco knew, it was how to dress. If he thought this would suit Harry, then it probably would. He smiled softly when he noticed the tiny bit of baby pink peeking out of the breast pocket in the exact color as Draco's shirt, remembering the matching burgundy handkerchief he'd had tucked into his own pocket. He wanted them to match.

He was suddenly very, very eager to finish getting ready. He pulled on the clothing, leaving the top two buttons of the shirt undone. He hated having anything restricting near his throat, and he was grateful Draco hadn't bothered with a tie. He'd wear one, but he didn't like it.

When that was done, he strapped his watch onto his wrist and shrugged on the blazer, leaving it open for now, then pulled on the shoes before popping his contacts into his eyes, blinking rapidly as he tried to adjust to them. A strand of hair escaped his carefully crafted style, falling into his eyes, and he frowned, cautiously returning it back to its place.

"Stay," he demanded sternly, satisfied when the hair obeyed.

The last thing to do was a spritz of cologne, and he was ready. He allowed himself a final once over in the mirror. The blazer was growing on him. It looked better than he expected it to. Hopefully Draco would approve.

Harry finally left the bathroom, making his way downstairs as he fiddled with the cuffs of his sleeves to give him something to do with his hands. He entered the living room, and glanced up at Draco anxiously.

Draco was standing still as a statue, staring at Harry with an almost indecipherable look on his face, more emotions flitting through his blazing mercury eyes than Harry could even begin to identify before those eyes locked intensely on Harry's hair, his cheeks going pink. He looked rather overwhelmed, and he let out a slightly hysterical laugh, running his big hand through his own pristinely styled hair, which of course fell right back into place perfectly.

He was looking at Harry like he was a meal, but also like he had gone and hung every star in the sky personally for Draco. That had to be a good sign, right?

Harry bit his lip, meeting his intense gaze hopefully, and Draco crossed the room in just a few long strides, wrapping one arm around his waist securely as his other hand came up to cradle Harry's face gently, like he was something wonderful and precious and beautiful before kissing him deeply, his tongue prodding along the seam of Harry's lips, begging for entrance.

Harry made a small noise of surprise, but melted into the kiss, meeting Draco stroke for stroke, the rest of the world falling away.

At least until a horrified little voice cried out, "ew!"

They startled apart, and Harry's head whipped around to the doorway where Teddy stood with his hands covering his eyes while Scorpius gave him the most offended look Harry had ever seen. It took all of his willpower not to burst out laughing at him, and it appeared that Andromeda was having a similar struggle.

"Don't say that! They're not yucky," Scorpius scolded him. "They love each other!"

"They can love each other in private," Teddy huffed, standing up without uncovering his eyes, and Harry's face turned bright red in his effort not to laugh. "Come on, let's go play in my room. Bye, Harry, bye, Draco," he grumbled as he slipped past them before running up the stairs blindly.

Scorpius went more slowly, giving each of them a hug goodbye. Before he left, he tugged Harry down to whisper in his ear. "You should ask papa to be your Val-tine. He thinks you're pretty. I know because his face gets all hot when he thinks you're extra pretty. Don’t be scared, I know he'll say yes."

Overwhelming fondness for this sweet little boy swelled up in him, and he just hugged Scorpius tighter. "I think you're right."

Scorpius gave him one last squeeze before trotting off after Teddy.

Draco held his hand out to help Harry back up from his crouched position, but didn't let him go, kissing him again, softer this time.

"You look so lovely," Draco murmured, and Harry's happy flush only deepened, a shy smile playing on his lips until that damn stubborn, errant strand of hair fell into his eyes again.

Harry huffed in annoyance, reaching up to tuck it back into place, but Draco gripped his wrist, stopping him, and Harry shot him a bewildered look.

"Leave it," he said softly "It's more you like this."

Oh.

You don't always have to be perfect for me to love you.

"Okay," Harry said with a pleased little chuckle. "These clothes are so nice, thank you for this, darling."

"This isn't even the surprise. We better get going, though. I figured we could just side-along, alright?"

Harry couldn't imagine what more of a surprise there could possibly be, but it didn't matter. He'd do whatever Draco wanted tonight happily. This was already beyond his imagination.

Harry nodded eagerly, and they bid Andromeda good night, thanking her again for keeping Scorpius, and Draco held tightly onto Harry's hand, turning on the spot and Disapparating with a loud crack.

They popped up at an Apparation point in muggle London that Harry wasn't familiar with, but Draco seemed to know where he was going. He offered Harry his arm, and led them to nearby building.

"First stop," he said, holding the door open for Harry like a total gentleman.

Harry glanced up at the sign and a jolt of excitement shot through him. "Pinot and Picasso?" he asked. "Is this a Paint and Sip?"

Draco nodded, and Harry laughed brightly. "How on earth did you come across this?" he asked incredulously, and then another thought occurred to him. This was a muggle establishment. A pre-pay muggle establishment. Draco struggled immensely with muggle money, to the point that he avoided going anywhere muggle unless Harry was there to help him count the bills and coins out.

"You figured out muggle money for me?" he asked softly.

"I did. I thought you'd enjoy this, it sounded fun," he replied, and Harry's heart swelled.

"It'll be fun, alright," Harry said with a wink, then grabbed Draco's hand and dragged him inside. He couldn't wait.

It was fun. They drank their wine, laughing and chatting amicably with the other couples surrounding them. No one stared at them, no one treated Harry like he was special, because in the muggle world, he was just a regular person. It allowed him to relax fully and just enjoy himself and the activity.

Harry took the seat next to Draco, and they ended up making a side-by-side painting of a tree at nighttime, so each piece created one complete painting when they were hung next to each other. Even Harry, who was God awful at art, had managed to follow the instructions and create something that wasn't terrible. He couldn't wait to hang it up at home. He wished he had his camera.

"That was so fun," Harry breathed after they told their instructor goodnight. "I've never been to one before. Always wanted to."

"Well, I am thrilled to give you your first muggle painting experience," Draco said, easily siphoning any errant paint off of their clothing before taking his hand and leading him another few blocks away, in the opposite direction of the Apparation point. They stopped in front of what appeared to be a Winery.

Draco once again held the door open for Harry and he flushed happily, threading their fingers together before going to take their seats. Harry smiled at the other couples there, giving them a friendly wave, which everyone returned except for two sour looking couples sitting near each other a little way away from them.

He saw one of the women's eyes lock onto their clasped hands, eyes narrowing, and he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He'd encountered enough homophonic people in the past to know the signs, namely the Dursley's. Gay couples were very normal in the wizarding world, but it was still taboo in the muggle world. The way they were treated here was getting better, but it was still disturbingly similar to the way muggleborns had been treated before and during the war. He didn't like it, but this wasn't his world and he knew by now to just ignore it. It was their problem, not his, and he certainly wasn't going to let it ruin his time here today.

Harry fiddled with their flights of wine glasses until the host came out and began the tasting, collecting everyone's preferred flavor profile and informing them that they could either share with their partner or keep them all to themselves.

"Do you want to share?" he asked Draco, hoping he'd say yes. It would be more fun if they did.

"Sure, darling, whatever you want," he murmured, and Harry grinned, sipping from his first glass before handing it off to Draco.

They followed the order the sommelier recommended, pairing each one with whatever food Draco told him would go best with it, and Harry found almost all the wines they tried quite pleasant, but one in particular stood out to him as exceptional.

He did notice the two rude couples throwing glares at them throughout the evening, especially whenever Harry laughed a bit too loud or when they touched, but he ignored them with practiced ease, for once grateful that he had so much experience tactfully ignoring overzealous fans.

He could see Draco casting them an occasional look of confusion or irritation, but Harry would explain it to him when they left. He'd probably never faced something like this before, and he didn't want Draco to get upset or draw more attention to it while they were here.

"Which one was your favorite, darling?" Draco asked him when they'd worked their way through both flights.

Harry pointed to the glasses labeled 1990 Château Haut-Brion. He had no idea what that meant, but Draco grinned, so he assumed he'd chosen well. Draco signaled to the sommelier, requesting a bottle to take home with them. The man looked delighted, and Harry didn't even want to know how much that bottle cost.

"You have wonderful taste," Draco told him when the sommelier disappeared to fetch the wine, kissing Harry softly, but he pulled away with a start when someone scoffed loudly from across the room.

Harry glanced over, and noticed the four rude guests looking at them with disgust, one of the women looking downright furious.

"Do you have a problem?" Draco snapped at them before Harry could say anything.

The woman who was glaring the hardest rolled her eyes at him, but it was her husband who spoke up.

"Yes, I do, actually. You have some nerve coming in here and flaunting your disgusting tendencies in public like this. This is a good neighborhood; we don't need your kind coming around, giving our area the wrong kind of reputation," he spat.

Harry narrowed his eyes at the man, while poor Draco looked incredibly confused, then almost afraid, turning to look at Harry with panicked eyes, and Harry felt protectiveness well up inside of him.

"Our kind?" Harry said with a dry laugh. "This is Islington. I assure you; we are far from the only gay couple to darken your local establishments."

Draco looked like he'd been slapped, rearing back in shock at Harry's words. He'd probably never been discriminated against for his sexuality before, and the shock of it had rendered him speechless. That was fine, though. Harry would handle this.

"We are upstanding citizens, and we shouldn't have to see a couple of fairies in public, flaunting your abnormalities," the man bit out, his horrible wife nodding along like a puppet. "It's not proper. Children could see!"

Oh, for the love of- Harry glanced over at their wine glasses pointedly before turning back to the man with a quirked eyebrow. "Yes, at this child friendly wine tasting. How ignorant of us," he deadpanned, and the man's face turned red as he sputtered in indignation.

Harry heard a few titters of laughter, but he didn't pay them any mind. He wasn't going to be run out of here. They had as much right to be here as anyone else, and they didn't have to hide the fact that they were a couple for some stranger's comfort. Fuck that.

"Darling, it's fine-" Draco said quietly, looking like he wanted to be anywhere else right now, but he was cut off by the man's wife before Harry could comfort him.

"You're both sickening," she said waspishly, standing up and gathering her coat, forcefully dragging her husband to his feet before turning to the sommelier, who had just re-entered the room with the bottle Draco had requested. "We won't be back. I refuse to give money to any business that supports deviant behavior."

Harry could feel nothing but pity for her at that statement. What a sad way to live your life; so caught up in worrying about the way two total strangers chose to live their lives, something that didn't affect her in any way, that she'd ruined any possible fun she may have had here tonight. He actually felt sorry for her. For all of them, and anyone like them.

He looked at her with sadness. "How miserable you must be," he murmured, and she scoffed, storming out without waiting making sure her husband was following. The other couple quickly followed them without a backwards glance, probably going off to rant loudly about how their date was ruined.

The sommelier looked at them in confusion, but Draco just pulled out his wallet, handing over quite a large amount of paper money, not bothering to count it. Harry remained quiet, wanting to give Draco time to process what had just happened.

When the sommelier returned with their change, Draco accepted it and the bottle of wine with a thin smile, but he did take hold of Harry's hand. "Thank you so much," he said evenly. "It was lovely."

"Thank you, gentlemen," the oblivious host said, offering Draco and Harry a much warmer smile in return. "I do hope we'll see you here again." Harry nodded at him politely, and waved goodbye to the remaining guests who hadn't been disgusted by them before they exited the Winery.

When they made it back outside, Harry pulled Draco into a tight hug, rubbing one hand soothingly up and down his back. "Don't let it bother you, darling. It's not worth it."

"How were you so calm?" Draco whispered shakily. "I didn't expect that at all. I thought they somehow knew we were wizards."

Ah. He wondered what Draco had been thinking about the dirty looks. It made a lot of sense, that he thought that they somehow knew they were wizards and hated them for that, because that's how Harry's family had been. At least that was somewhat understandable to him.

"Because that's just how some people are, unfortunately," Harry soothed. "Some people are just hateful, or afraid of things they can’t understand. I grew up around comments like that, and one thing I've realized is that if my family said it, it was probably the wrong way to think. It's too common in the muggle world still, but it's getting better. Same sex couples can't even get married here yet," he explained sadly.

"It didn't upset you? Being talked about like that?"

Harry thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No. I know I avoid confrontation as a rule, but this was different. I will never let anyone make me feel ashamed for loving you. No one should have to hide their love for someone else's comfort."

Draco appeared to swallow this, and Harry took his hand. "Let's not let it ruin the night, yeah? They weren't important," Harry assured him.

"Okay," Draco said, swallowing thickly. "You're right. I'm sorry, Harry, I was just caught off guard."

"No apologizing. I, for one, am dying to continue our date," he said, waggling his eyebrows exaggeratedly to draw a genuine laugh out of Draco.

"Right. Well, the next part is in Diagon Alley," he said.

Harry grinned, linking their arms together as they walked to the Apparation point, chattering away to distract Draco from what had just happened. Harry knew he was shaken, probably thinking that the date he'd clearly meticulously planned was tainted, but it wasn't. Nothing could ruin this.

When Draco Apparated them to Diagon Alley, Harry looked up eagerly to see where they'd be going now, and barked out an incredulous laugh when he saw where they were.

"You are determined to make this place work, aren't you?" Harry asked him fondly.

"Yes. And tonight, it will," he said confidently. He marched them inside, bringing Harry with him up to the hostess stand to check them in, resolutely ignoring the stares Harry was absolutely drawing this time. Oh, well, the anonymity had been nice while it lasted, but it wasn't going to bother him today. Today wasn’t about anyone else.

"Good evening, welcome to Osteria Della Bacchetta," Jade, the sweet hostess greeted in a much more professional tone than usual. "Name?"

"Black," Draco said, and Harry tightened his grip on Draco's hand. There was no way he was trying to skip the line on Valentine's Day. There had probably been a waitlist for reservations!

But Jade looked up and smiled at them. "Of course, Mr. Black. I have your reservation."

"Draco!" Harry hissed, embarrassed. "We need to wait our turn; we can’t keep skipping the line."

"I actually did make a reservation this time, love," Draco said in amusement.

Harry narrowed his eyes at him, then looked at Jade for confirmation. When she nodded, smirk playing on her lips, Harry let himself relax.

"Oh. Alright then," he conceded.

"Gentlemen, if you'll please leave your coats here and follow me to your table."

They laid their blazers on her stand as she indicated and they immediately disappeared, presumably to some hidden coat check room, and then they followed her upstairs again, bypassing their usual table and instead following her through a pair of double doors.

When they opened, Harry gasped, and even Draco's jaw dropped. They were standing on a wide balcony with only two tables on it, surrounded by greenery and lit up with thousands of twinkling fairy lights. Despite the February cold, they were as warm as they had been indoors, and soft music played softly in the background.

One of the tables was occupied, but there was a Charm placed around the table that prevented them from hearing, or even seeing, whoever was sitting there. Privacy Charms, most likely. This was so fancy… it was incredible.

"I had no idea this was even here," Harry whispered in awe. "You can't even see it from below."

He never knew this place even had a balcony, but sure enough, they could see out across the entire shopping district, the sky above them lit up with stars. It must be completely hidden by magic.

"This is our VIP section," Jade informed them, looking pleased with their reaction. "We keep the chef's table open for special guests who come in on a whim, but I booked you up here for the evening."

"Thank you so much," Draco told her. "This is stunning."

"No problem at all. Your table is right this way."

She led them to the empty table, and Harry could feel the wards activate around them when they took their seats, giving them complete privacy. They could still see everything, but the din from the street below was gone, and they could just enjoy the view of the shops lit up in the dark and the small amount of people milling about below.

He suddenly felt very overwhelmed with emotion. This... this was so, so perfect. Everything about this day had been absolute perfection, from the moment he woke up to playgroup, through surprise after surprise, until right now, sitting at this gorgeous table with this gorgeous view with this gorgeous man. Harry loved him more than he ever thought it was possible to love another human. When he was younger, he had no idea that they could grow up someday to be this. He wished he'd known, so he could have had a whole lifetime with Draco, so he could have loved him longer, but what they had right here, right now, this was perfection.

"It's perfect," Harry said quietly, eyes locked on Draco. He wasn't talking about the restaurant. Draco looked over at him, and he softened, eyes shining like pools of molten mercury that Harry wanted to swim in. He was breathtaking.

"Your server will be up momentarily. Enjoy your evening," Jade said, slipping away quietly. 

Harry couldn't help but think of Eileen, the rude, pushy waitress they'd had the last two times they'd been here, but Draco clearly noticed his apprehension and gave him a reassuring smile, reaching across the table to take his hand, threading their fingers together, letting him know that it would be alright. Of course it would be.

"I hope you're hungry," Draco said, and Harry nodded, relaxing.

"I am. Are you getting the veal again?"

"I think so. It was incredible."

"Hopefully they have it tonight," Harry joked with a chuckle.

"I don't think it will be a problem tonight."

As if summoned, their server appeared just then, setting off the wards moments before he sidled up to the table.

"Good evening, gentlemen," the man said kindly, smiling at them, but not even batting an eye at Harry. Harry relaxed even further at not being fawned over, and he couldn't help but grin widely, dimple settling into his cheek. "My name is Anthony, and I'll be serving you tonight. Can I get you started with something to drink? A bottle of our finest wine, perhaps?"

"That would be wonderful, Anthony, thank you," Draco surprisingly agreed. They'd already had quite a bit of wine today, after all.

Harry waited until they put their drink orders in before he looked at Draco in amusement. "Are you trying to get me drunk, darling?"

Draco just laughed, not offended at all. "I just want you to be relaxed and have a good time."

The wine and water came out quickly, and they put their orders in without any issue this time. Draco, creature of habit that he was, did order the Veal Parmigiano again, and Harry ordered the Chicken alla Cacciatora.

Dinner was flawless. The food was immaculate, and their server was prompt and professional, but he didn't linger and disturb their date. Drinks and conversation flowed easily, and Harry laughed more than he had in what felt like ages, not a single worry to be found. He was pleasantly tipsy by the time the food and wine were both gone, and Draco paid the bill, leaving an unconventional tip for their server for being so professional, and led Harry back downstairs with an arm around his shoulders. Both of their faces were slightly pink from the wine, and Harry couldn't peel his eyes away from Draco's face. His pretty, pretty face. His pretty face and his sweet soul and thoughtful heart. Harry loved him so much.

Marry me, he almost blurted out, but he managed to keep those words inside. He wouldn't ruin this date with an unexpected proposal; wouldn't put Draco on the spot like that in public, but he was thinking it. Fuck, he needed to kiss him. And maybe suck his cock up against the nearest wall.

"Thank you for dining with us this evening," Jade's voice cut through his thoughts, jerking him somewhat back to the present, but not clearing the fog of arousal from his mind. "I hope everything was to your liking tonight, Mr. Black," she continued as they passed the hostess stand, handing them their blazers.

"Everything was perfect," Draco told her sincerely, and Harry nodded enthusiastically.

"It was brilliant. The food, the atmosphere, the service, everything. Thank you so much," he told her earnestly, and she smiled warmly at them.

"I'm so glad to hear that. I hope we'll see you again," she said.

"I think that's a safe bet," Draco said, helping Harry into his blazer before he slipped his own on. "Have a good night, love."

"Are you ready to go home?" Draco asked Harry as they walked to the door, but Harry didn't answer, choosing instead to pull him into a ferocious kiss the moment they stepped outside, one that was far more heated than what was strictly appropriate for the very public space they were currently in, but he didn't give a single shit about that right now. All he cared about was getting closer to this man who was everything he'd ever wanted and so much more. Harry clung tighter to him, pulling their bodies together as his tongue delved deep into Draco's mouth, tasting the wine and a little hint of mint and chocolate from the after-dinner mint he'd eaten after they finished their meals. Harry groaned, trying to walk him backwards to snog him up against the building, but a bright flash startled them apart, followed by an excited shout.

Harry's heart leapt into his throat, realizing what was happening. The press. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. They must have camped out here or something, hoping to catch anyone famous coming out of the restaurant on the holiday. That, or someone who recognized Harry inside called in a tip. It didn't matter. He glanced over at Draco, who looked bewildered, then alarmed, then horrified as reporters started shouting questions at them.

"What-?" he tried to say, but he couldn't even finish his sentence, cut off by even louder shouts.

"Harry! Harry Potter! Over here! Is this your date for the evening?"

"Harry, what are you wearing? Where do you do your shopping?"

"How long have you been sleeping with a Death Eater, Mr. Potter?"

"Harry, is this your new favorite place to frequent? Are you friendly with the owner?"

"Mr. Malfoy, what type of Love Potion did you use on Harry Potter to get him to go out with you? Is this part of an elaborate plan to kidnap him?"

"Potter! Are you with Malfoy for his looks? Or is it his money, perhaps?"

"Harry, are you under the Imperius Curse? Blink if you need help!"

"Harry, aren't you ashamed to be seen publicly with a Death Eater? Is this a trick to bring You Know Who back? Have you changed your allegiance?"

"Malfoy, tell us what Potter is like in bed! Dedicated fans want to know!"

"Potter, Malfoy, who has the bigger cock? There's been quite a bit of speculation about Potter’s over the years!”

“Malfoy, can you confirm or deny that it's ‘impressive’, as other sources have stated?"

"Will you both be spending the night together?"

Harry heard Draco gasp, his jaw hanging open, clearly shocked by the disgustingly inappropriate questions being hurled at them. Harry was used to this, though, and he knew they couldn't react to their goading; that was what they wanted, and Harry refused to give them what they wanted. They'd only double down and come back even more aggressively in the future if he shouted. His conversation with Cuffe yesterday was still fresh in his mind, and it made him more determined than ever to remain calm. They were just words, after all.

Harry quickly tightened his grip on Draco, sliding a protective arm around his waist to tug Draco closer to him, trying to shield him as much as he could.

"Don't say anything to them, sweetheart. Don't look at them, just keep your head down," Harry said evenly into his ear, speaking loud enough to be heard over the crowd of screaming reporters. "It's alright, I've got you, just stay close."

Draco nodded tightly, indicating that he'd heard, and Harry led him through the throng of reporters, shouldering his way through them and expertly ignoring their intrusive questions. Draco was trembling, though, and Harry desperately wanted to get him away from this, away from their horrible people who didn't care who they hurt as long as they got their story, but they were surrounded and he couldn't Apparate them out of the crowd safely.

Suddenly he heard Draco let out a yelp, and Harry felt him jerk sideways as he was yanked out of Harry's protective grasp. His head snapped over to see Draco nearly stumble to the ground as one of the male reporters tugged roughly on his arm as he practically shouted into Draco's face.

Draco looked terrified, and Harry moved faster than he'd ever moved in his life, catching Draco with his left hand before he could fall and pulling him safely back into his side as he whipped his wand out of his pocket, slashing it towards the throng of reporters, specifically towards the man who had dared to put his hands on his boyfriend without hesitation.

"Depulso!" Harry snarled, watching as the man and several of the people near him were thrown back away from them. Several of the reporters screamed or gasped, and the flashes began coming even more rapidly, but Harry held his ground, wand trained on the man that had touched Draco. The air around them crackled with barely restrained magic, and he didn't even bother to try and control himself this time. They needed to know that he was serious.

"Never do that again," Harry said, his tone glacial. "I cooperate with you. I give you interviews and photographs and almost anything you ask for in exchange for privacy for the people I care about. If any of you ever put your hands on my partner again, I will never speak to another reporter again, and I'll not only have your job, but I will have you blacklisted from every newspaper in the United Kingdom. Do I make myself clear?"

The man nodded, looking frightened. Good. He hoped he was frightened. Enough was enough. Harry wasn't going to stand for his partner being assaulted. These people thought that they were entitled to every single aspect of his life because he was a public figure, but he had to draw a line somewhere. Putting their hands on Draco, sneaking photos of Scorpius... it was unacceptable. They could do what they wanted to Harry, but not the people he loved. He was going to kill Cuffe.

"Good. Now, let us pass."

His tone was firm, and no one dared argue, letting them pass through the remaining reporters who hadn't scampered away until they could safely Disapparate.

Harry twisted them on the spot, and then they were standing on their front porch, alone, and Harry was pulling Draco close again, hands coming up to cradle his face.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked seriously, and Draco just nodded weakly, looking miserable.

"I'm sorry," he croaked out, voice cracking with emotion. "Darling, I'm so sorry. This was supposed to be a fun, relaxing date for you, and I've ruined the whole thing."

What?! Ruined? Draco hadn't ruined a single thing! It wasn't his fault that the press had been there. If anything, it was Harry's fault. He was the one they wanted; poor Draco was just a casualty by association. Harry would be dealing with that at a later date, but even with that whole ridiculous debacle, this was still the best date he'd ever had by a landslide. Harry didn't care one single bit about any of the hiccups they'd run into. None of it mattered. Draco had put so much thought and time and energy and care into this day... he couldn't ruin it if he tried. Harry didn't understand what on earth he was talking about.

Harry frowned, eyebrows drawing in in confusion. "What? What are you talking about? You haven't ruined anything. None of that was your fault. They must have been just camped out there, hoping to catch anyone famous out for the holiday," he echoed his earlier thought about the situation.

"Yes, I have. I didn't defend you. Not with the muggles, or the reporters... I ruined our first Valentine's Day together," he said, refusing to meet Harry's gaze.

Harry didn't release his face, stroking his fingers lovingly over Draco's jaw until he raised his eyes, breath hitching when he finally locked eyes with Harry. There was no way on earth that Harry was going to let him feel bad or blame himself for even one moment.

"Sweetheart. No. Are you kidding me?" Harry asked him incredulously. "Draco, just the breakfast was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. This was... I can't even believe all the trouble you went to for me. This was incredible. It was the best date of my entire life, and it still would be even if every single thing had gone wrong today because I got to spend the day with you. That's all I care about. None of those people matter; they didn't ruin anything. Not for me. Don't let them ruin it for you."

Draco stared at him for a long time, eyes flooded with emotion, gaze flickering between Harry's eyes, like he was searching them for a lie. He wouldn't find one, though. Harry meant every word.

Finally, he took a shaky breath, letting it out slowly before kissing Harry gently. "Okay. You're right. All that matters right now is us, and the night isn't over yet."

"It isn't?" Harry asked in surprise. "But we're home," he laughed, nuzzling his nose against Draco's cheek. "What else could there possibly be?"

Draco didn't answer him, just opened the door, letting Harry inside.

Harry walked in ahead of him with a quirk of his eyebrow, taking off his jacket, but when he saw the living room, he froze, gasping loudly in shock.

Harry was staring at what looked like a botanical garden inside the house. Hundreds of flowers of every variety Harry could imagine were arranged around the entire room, flowing into the hallway and kitchen and even up the stairs, all reds and whites and pinks. It was stunning.

What even was this? It was like a scene from a romance film, one of those things that people fantasized about, but no one actually did. When had Draco done this? Was this why he had Harry get ready at Andromeda's? His mind was whirring with so many questions, but all he could do was turn to stare at his perfect, perfect boyfriend in awe.

Draco looked uncharacteristically shy, and Harry felt like he might explode from how much he loved this man. Draco fidgeted under his gaze for a bit before he just shrugged helplessly. "Happy Valentine's Day, Harry."

"You did all of this for me?" Harry whispered, and Draco nodded slowly. "Sweetheart... baby, this is... I can't-" Harry stumbled over his words, trying to choke back his overwhelmed tears. "How did you even do this?"

"There's more," Draco said instead of answering, glancing up at him a bit more confidently now.

Harry let out an incredulous laugh. "More?"

What more could there possibly be? What was left?

Draco took his hand, leading him upstairs past the vases and flower petals that lined the stairs, through their bedroom which was decorated with even more flowers and more rose petals on the bed, straight to the bathroom.

Draco entered first, and when Harry stepped in behind him, all he could do was gape at the sight. Draco had candles lit on every surface of the room and a steaming bath awaited them with even more petals floating on the surface and another bottle of wine chilling next to the tub. The air in the room felt thick, steamy and heady with a heavenly aroma that was wafting out of the tub. This- God.

After he took everything in, Harry just stared at Draco in utter disbelief. He couldn't believe he thought Draco didn't care about Valentine's Day, didn't want to celebrate with him. This was unimaginably romantic. He could scarcely believe that his boyfriend, who was emotionally frigid with everyone who wasn't Harry, apparently, had done this. Every step of this day, Harry kept thinking that it couldn't possibly get better, but here they were.

If Harry didn't get inside of him within the next five minutes he was going to die. They weren't wasting that glorious bath though. Not a chance in hell.

"I thought you might let me give you a bath," Draco told him quietly.

"No," Harry said, shaking his head, and Draco faltered.

"No?" he questioned hesitantly.

"Nope," Harry said, eyes pinned intently on Draco, already stripping off his clothing. "I want you in the bath with me."

"Okay," Draco breathed, eyes tracking each new bit of skin that Harry revealed until he was fully nude, his heavy cock already more than half hard.

Draco looked half in a daze as Harry carefully undressed him and led him over to the tub urging Draco to sit down with his back against the tub before Harry climbed in after him, straddling his lap and planting his arse right on Draco's lap, his cock twitching underneath of Harry, before immediately sealing their lips together, tongue plunging in to taste him. Draco kissed him back, sliding his tongue sensually against Harry's, sending a shiver up his spine.

"You," Harry said, breaking away to trail kisses down Draco's jaw and throat, "are the absolute best. Just... the best thing ever. I can’t even believe… I love you, love you," he panted, bringing their mouths back together. "Love how thoughtful you are, love how much you care. Love you so much."

Draco groaned as Harry started moving his hips in little circles against him, and Harry could feel his length hardening where it was still trapped under Harry's arse.

"So fucking good to me," Harry murmured, nipping at Draco's bottom lip then soothing over it with his tongue. "Let me be good to you."

"Harry," he croaked out needily, and that was all the permission Harry needed to scoot backwards off his lap. He pulled Draco with him until their positions were reversed, with Harry now sitting on the tub floor, back leaning against the opposite side while Draco hovered over him, knees straddling Harry's thighs. Harry wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him closer and reattaching their lips.

He trailed his unoccupied hand through Draco's hair, along his jaw, down his neck and shoulders and back, until it finally reached that perfect, round arse, squeezing and kneading the flesh there.

Harry spread his legs a bit, nudging Draco’s knees further apart before his fingers sought out Draco's opening, sliding between his cheeks to rub against his hole, the skin there smooth and impossibly soft, the oils from the tub making the glide a bit slicker.

Harry just touched him lightly, circling, circling until Draco was panting into Harry's mouth, gasping out needy little moans and trying to impale himself on Harry's fingers. Harry had no intention of teasing him tonight, not after everything Draco had done for him. Now it was Harry's turn to take care of him.

He conjured up a handful of lube, coating Draco's entrance with it before sliding two fingers inside of him, immediately focusing his attentions on that little bundle of nerves that drove Draco insane.

Draco broke away from the kiss with a moan, panting, and Harry kept touching him just there, alternating between rabbiting his fingers against his prostate and rubbing firm little circles into it until Draco was crying out, grinding down against Harry's hand, hole clenching wildly around his fingers, desperate for more.

Harry would never get over how bloody tight he was every single time and his cock ached, desperately wanting to be inside of him, but he wasn't going to rush this, not tonight.

He added a third finger, stretching him open languidly until Draco suddenly grabbed hold of Harry's cock, squeezing him demandingly. Harry grunted into the kiss at the unexpected touch, hips bucking up unconsciously, causing Draco to tighten his grasp even more.

He couldn't wait any longer, and apparently neither could Draco. Harry yanked his fingers free, causing Draco to let go of him in surprise, and Harry didn't waste any time in lifting him up and guiding him onto his cock, gritting his teeth as he lowered him slowly, until Draco had taken Harry's entire length.

They both moaned at the feeling when he finally bottomed out, and before Harry could even catch his breath Draco was already lifting himself back off of Harry's cock and dropping back down, whimpering quietly before doing it again, harder, then again even faster. Water sloshed over the sides of the tub, splashing up against them, probably making a giant mess on the floor that Harry would have to clean up later, but he didn't care about that right now, not when he was buried to the hilt inside of his boyfriend, feeling his inner walls clinging tightly to him.

Harry met him thrust for thrust, rocking up into Draco, reveling in the way his whines got higher and higher as he was pushed closer to the edge. He loved that he could make Draco, who could have anyone he wanted but chose Harry, fall apart like this. He didn’t think he could ever live without him again.

"I love you," Harry grunted, suddenly needing to voice his thoughts as he sped up his movements. "So bloody perfect. I need you; I always need you. Love you so fucking much..."

His babbling trailed off, taking too much effort, but Harry still had his eyes fixed on Draco's face, drinking in every twitch in his expression, every moan, every whine. He was gorgeous like this. He was always gorgeous, but like this, falling apart on Harry's cock, taking him so well, he was almost otherworldly.

Harry couldn't hold on much longer. He reached down and grasped Draco's neglected prick, stroking it in time with his thrusts, and it only took another minute or so before he was coming, his head thrown back and biting his lips almost bloody as he whimpered through his orgasm. The sight sent Harry groaned as he crashed over the edge, slamming inside of Draco one final time, coming deep inside.

"I love you," Draco whispered when his breathing was more under control, pressing long, lazy kisses to Harry's neck. He whined when Harry slipped out of him, but Harry shushed him and pulled him closer, brushing Draco's sweaty hair away from his face before kissing him again, much more tenderly than their heated kisses from before.

The heat of the moment had died down, but his love for the man in front of him hadn't, not one bit. It never would. Draco was the love of his life. They were meant to be, fated to be together. He thought about his parents, about how they were soulmates, even down to their Patronus forms, how he had dreamed for years of finding a love like that. He didn't know if he and Draco were soulmates like that; it was so incredibly rare, and Harry didn’t really expect to have that, maybe not in the same way they did, but he couldn't imagine ever loving someone more than this. It wasn't possible.

"Everything about today was perfect," Harry murmured quietly. "I can't believe I've only really had you for a few short months. It feels like it's been a lifetime, and no time at all, like you've always been a part of me, but it also feels new and exciting. I can't even describe it, but I am so, so glad you gave this a chance."

Draco studied him for a moment, silver eyes searching his face.

"Thank you for coming back that day," he eventually said quietly. Harry knew what he meant. He meant the day Draco had shut down and kicked Harry out and Harry had come back, forcing him to admit his feelings. "I never thanked you for it, not once. If you hadn't come back and practically forcibly removed my head from my arse, we'd never have this and it would have been all my fault. You forgave me way too easily, to be honest, but I'm so glad you didn't give up on me. Just... thank you."

Harry smiled softly at him. "I'd never give up on you, darling. You were always meant to be mine."

They kissed for a while longer before Harry changed out the dirty water for some new hot water, getting rid of the remnants of their coupling so they could actually wash, and Draco cracked open the bottle of wine he'd left for them, and summoned... ice cream?

Why was there ice cream?

Harry looked at him in confusion, and Draco laughed. "You said this morning that you wanted ice cream. So, I got you ice cream."

Oh, my God.

Harry huffed out a laugh. "Christ, I love you," he said fondly, digging in to his dessert.

By the time they emerged from the tub, they were both pruned up, but it had been a wonderful bath. They both pulled on briefs, not bothering with pajamas, and Harry sprawled out on the bed with his wine glass, sleepy, sated, and happy.

Fish jumped up on the bed with him, purring loudly, having been released from the magical barrier Draco had used to trap her in Scorpius' room so she wouldn't destroy the flowers. Harry stroked her soft fur, waiting for Draco to join them.

When Harry felt a slight dip in the bed, he looked over, but it wasn't Draco. It was a gift box. A fairly large, beautiful gift box.

What the fuck.

"You don't think you've given me enough today?" Harry asked seriously. He felt enormously guilty, suddenly remembering the pathetic 'gifts' he'd gotten for Draco that were still hidden away at Grimmauld. Draco had done so much already, he couldn't possibly accept whatever this was. "I don't even have a real gift for you because I thought this whole time that you weren't interested in Valentine's Day..."

Draco shook his head, his face soft with understanding. "I don't care about that," Draco said firmly. "That's not why I did any of this. I did this because you deserve this, darling. You deserve to be treated this way, always, and it's absolutely tragic that you haven't been in the past. I wanted to do this for you."

Harry blinked, eyes burning, trying not to cry at the beautiful things Draco kept saying to him like they were no big deal when they were the biggest deal. "But this is too much. I can't even imagine what could be in there that I'd possibly need," he protested.

"Just open it, Harry," he said softly, nudging the box closer. Harry wasn't going to win this argument and they both knew it.

Harry made a small noise in the back of his throat, but he eventually did as Draco asked, carefully untying the beautiful bow and lifting the lid off the box and setting it aside, movement stilling as he took in what was inside the box for a long time. What was all of this? The box was full of what appeared to be a random assortment of items and trash, but Harry recognized his own handwriting on a slip of parchment. It was the first note he'd ever written Draco, the one he left on his first day here.

But Draco kept those in the drawer, he thought. Why was it in this box? His breath hitched and his heart was pounding, blood rushing through his ears as he finally reached a trembling hand inside, rifling through the items inside.

"What is all of this?" he whispered, picking up a movie stub from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, examining it closely with a small crease between his brows. Draco had kept this? This was from before they even got together.

He laid it down on the bed next to him gently, before reaching back in the box, this time picking up the note and setting it aside as well. He pulled out receipts from the restaurant, from both times they visited, and one from Honeydukes, from the mountain of Chocolate Frogs Draco had bought on his birthday. That was the moment Harry had realized he was in love with Draco. He ran his thumb along the total with a ghost of a smile before setting it aside.

Harry found the wristbands from when they'd gone to Laser Quest and miniature golfing, and brushed his fingers reverently over the first photo the Prophet had published of them. This copy had creases worn soft and fragile, like Draco had folded and unfolded it a thousand times. Tears slid down his cheeks as he leafed through even more notes that Harry had written, and copies of some of the photos of them that Harry had taken over the months. He laughed wetly when he pulled out his and Scorpius' the pasta drawings from their first visit to the restaurant. There was a dried flower from the first bouquet Draco had given to him, a napkin from the Wobbly, even a red ribbon that Harry had once jokingly tied around his bun, just to see what he looked like in red.

All of these things... these were mementos, tokens from all of the wonderful memories they had shared together. This box was them. Every single one of these things represented a part of their relationship, of their journey to get to where they were right now. Draco had saved these things for a reason. He'd saved them because he loved Harry, because he'd loved him longer than Harry could even comprehend. This was the first time that Harry felt the true weight of what this relationship must mean to Draco. This was... Harry didn't even have words for what this was. It was the best gift he'd ever gotten.

The box was nearly empty when Harry finally looked up at him, tear tracks staining his face. Draco was watching him with the softest, most tender look Harry had ever seen, and it took his breath away.

"It's not empty yet," Draco told him before Harry could form words. He reached forward and gently brushed a tear off of Harry’s cheek before reaching into the box and pulling out the last few items and handing them to him.

First, was an old badge, painfully familiar. It was one of the awful ones that Draco had made in Fourth Year that said Support Cedric, Potter Stinks, only this one said Support Potter. Harry blinked at it uncomprehendingly.

"I only made one like this," Draco explained, his cheeks flushing. "Wore it under my robes all through Fourth Year. No one ever knew I did it. I'm really sorry about that, by the way. And this," Draco said, handing him the next item, "is a letter I wrote you near the end of Sixth Year. Never got the nerve to send it. Don't- don't read that now," he grimaced, taking it back from Harry and setting it aside. Harry frowned a bit, wanting to know what Draco could have possibly had to say to him back then, but he let it go. Draco was right, whatever it was, it was too heavy for tonight.

"But this," he said, handing Harry a small slip of parchment with coordinates written on it, "this is the last part of your gift."

How could there possibly be more?

Harry took it hesitantly, glancing over it quickly. It was just random numbers written in Draco's elegant handwriting. "What is it?"

"I'll show you. Come with me," he said, holding his hand out for Harry, guiding him into the hallway.

Draco cast a Warming Charm on both of them before pulling open a small latch in the ceiling. A ladder extended down, and Draco motioned Harry up.

"I had no idea this was up here," Harry said in surprise when he'd reached the top. They were standing in a large, spacious attic. It was fairly clean, only a few boxes scattered about, with a huge telescope featured prominently on the far side, pointing at an even bigger window.

"Astronomy is a bit of a hobby. I haven't had much time to come up here since I started my internship, though," Draco explained, opening the window before putting his eye to the telescope and twiddling with the knobs on the side expertly.

"Look through there," he directed Harry when he was finished. Harry obliged, putting his eye up to the lens, trying to figure out what Draco was trying to show him. One of the stars was bigger than the others surrounding it, and he assumed that's what he must be meant to see.

"Do you see it?"

"The star?" Harry asked, bewildered. He didn't understand why Draco was showing him a random star. "What star is that?"

"It's your star."

Harry pulled away from the telescope, frowning. "What? What do you mean, my star? I'm not named after a star."

"You're not," Draco conceded. "It's named after you."

What?

Harry's jaw dropped slightly. "What? What are you talking about?"

Draco handed him a certificate made of printer paper instead of parchment. It had the same random numbers on it, which he now understood were coordinates, along with Harry's name, birthday, and the name Draco had given the star.

Harry's name.

Draco had named a star after him.

He was going to faint. Actually, legitimately, going right pass out, right here. He could feel himself trembling, but Draco had started speaking again, and he tried to focus on what he was saying.

"When I was signing us up for the wine tasting, I saw an advertisement in a nearby shop, saying that I could pay to have a star named after someone." Draco took Harry's shaky hands in his, stroking tenderly over the knuckles. "I love you. I think a lot about how much I want to give you. I want to give you everything, Harry, and I'd give you the moon and every star in the sky if I could. I haven't figured out how to give you all of the stars yet, but I thought I could start with just one."

His breath hitched. "You bought me a star?" Harry said faintly, staring intensely at Draco.

This man wasn't real. This- this was a fantasy. Harry wanted to pinch himself, to make sure he wasn't dreaming, to make sure he hadn't imagined this entire day, but Draco... he just met Harry's gaze and nodded, smiling that pretty, pretty smile at him.

"I'd buy you all of them if I could, darling."

Notes:

If you want to know what I had envisioned for Harry's date night hair, just google Zayn Malik Night Changes. You're welcome.

As always, thank you so much for sticking with me! We are nearing the end, but I've already somewhat started two new fics. another long fic, and a second shorter one, so there will definitely be more coming. Any questions or feedback is much appreciated!

Chapter 16: CHAPTER 15

Summary:

Fallout from the press, Draco's letter, and a very drunk Harry.

Notes:

This is one of my favorite chapters in both stories. I really hope you like it!

Harry woke early the next morning, blinking his eyes open to see Draco, still sleeping peacefully next to him. Harry never woke up first, so he took this opportunity to just stare at his boyfriend, watching him sleep.

Yesterday had been... God, he couldn't even describe it. It had been like a fairytale, and he had been completely blown away. Never in his life did he ever think he'd be treated anything like that, and the best part was, he knew that Draco hadn't done it to try and win Harry over; he already had him, so there was no need to go through all that trouble. He'd done it because he wanted to, because he thought Harry deserved it. Harry didn't know if he deserved that, but he was so grateful for it anyway.

And that gift...

Harry suddenly remembered his own gifts. They were nothing compared to what Draco had given him, but Harry still wanted to give them to him anyway.

He slipped out of bed quietly, checking the time before sneaking out of the room and Flooing over to Grimmauld without bothering to get dressed.

The house was freezing, the February cold permeating the old, empty house, and he hugged himself as he hurried upstairs to his old bedroom.

He picked up the canvas, studying it for a long moment. This was his favorite photo of them, a black and white still muggle photo. He'd intended for it to be serious when he'd taken it, a 'selfie'. Harry had pressed their cheeks together at first, both of them grinning for the camera, but when Harry had grinned widely, Draco had unexpectedly pulled away a bit, just enough to turn to look at Harry, before he reached up and poked his finger into Harry's dimple, which in turn caused Harry to turn to him and grin even wider.

That was the moment in this photo. Harry had pressed down on the shutter at the perfect moment; Harry's face beaming with joy, his laugh frozen in time forever, while the Draco in the photo gazed at him, his own face so soft, eyes brimming with love so strong it almost felt tangible just looking at it. He looked so besotted, so in love. He looked exactly how Harry felt when he looked at Draco, and he loved it.

He smiled at it, quickly casting a spell to wrap both gifts before grabbing them and hurrying back to the Floo, shivering from the chill of the house.

Harry tiptoed back upstairs, sneaking into the room. He set the gifts down carefully next to the bed, leaning the huge canvas up against the bedside table before he climbed back into bed, wanting to snuggle back up to his sleeping boyfriend and have Draco warm him up, but when he looked over at him, he saw silver eyes peering back at him, causing him to yelp in fright.

"Jesus, you startled me," Harry laughed breathlessly, hand over his pounding heart.

"No need to invoke the muggle God, darling," Draco said, making Harry laugh again.

"You're ridiculous."

"Where were you?" he asked curiously.

"Oh. I just went to pick up your Valentine's Day gift," Harry said, brushing Draco's hair away from his face. "I was keeping them at Grimmauld to give you yesterday, but then you surprised me with the whole..." he gestured around helplessly, "well, everything, and by the time I remembered, I didn't want to leave to go get it."

"You got me a gift?" Draco said, smiling slightly.

"Sort of. It's not anything like what you did for me," he said quietly, disappointed with himself now that he hadn't done more. “But I couldn't let the day go by with nothing at all for you, so... here."

He handed Draco the chocolates he had made. They weren't anything fancy; just little truffles with a few different fillings. Some had white or dark chocolate ganache, some had strawberry creme, some had peanut butter mousse, and some had a thick, rich caramel sauce. They hadn't exactly been easy, but they weren't over the top by any means.

Draco sat up in bed, leaning over to kiss Harry on the cheek. "Thank you, Harry. You really didn't have to."

He lifted the lid on the box, making a delighted sound in the back of his throat when he saw the truffles, and he immediately picked one up and took a bite, groaning loudly, eyes falling shut.

"You didn't have to, but Merlin, am I glad you did. These are amazing. Where'd you get these?"

He shoved the rest of the truffle in his mouth, examining the rest of the box.

Harry smiled. "I'm glad you like them. I made them for you."

Draco's eyes widened. "You made them? Seriously, where did you learn to make desserts like this? You didn't have to go through all this trouble, sweetheart, but thank you so much."

Harry smiled shyly. "You like chocolate. I wanted to do it. I figured even if you didn't like the holiday, you wouldn't say no to chocolate. Didn't really learn anywhere, though, it's mostly just experimenting. I baked a lot after the war; it helped get my mind back in a better place."

"Well, I love it," Draco said, picking out another random candy, moaning when he bit into it.

"I have one more," Harry said. "It's nothing crazy, but I just thought maybe we could hang it in the room or something..."

He handed Draco the picture, placing the truffles back on the bedside table. Draco gave him a small smile before he tore into it, movement stilling when the gift was revealed. Harry chewed on his lip as he watched Draco stare at the huge picture, a myriad of emotions flickering across his face in silence.

"Do you like it?" Harry asked him nervously, and he finally tore his eyes away from the picture to lock eyes with Harry.

"This might be my favorite thing," Draco said softly. "Darling, I- thank you. I love this so much."

Harry relaxed, tension leaving him, and he smiled. "I'm so relieved. I didn't know if you'd like this one because we aren't looking at the camera, but it was my favorite."

Draco immediately stood on the bed, grabbing his wand and attaching the canvas to the wall directly above their bed with a Permanent Sticking Charm. That would never come off. Draco wanted this photo of them to stay there forever.

He hopped off the bed and stood back, appraising the picture before nodding decisively.

"Perfect," Draco said quietly, eyes still fixed on the photo.

Harry climbed up on the bed, kneeling near the edge. "Come here, baby," he said, motioning Draco back over to him, sliding his hands up Draco's chest and over his shoulders when he got close enough to stand next to the bed, before sliding them back down, exploring his mostly undressed body, stroking his fingers along Draco's stomach, his hips, his bum.

"What time is it?" Draco asked, leaning down to kiss along the side of Harry's neck. Harry tilted his head a bit to give him easier access, and Draco's eyes fell shut as Harry rumbled out a quiet groan of approval.

"Early enough for this," Harry informed him, his hand coming to rest on Draco's half hard cock, cupping him gently through his pants.

"Thank Merlin," Draco grunted, cursing when Harry flopped onto his stomach, pulling Draco closer to mouth at his cock, dying to thank him yet again for yesterday.

*

"What?"

Harry was jolted awake far too early by Draco's irritated tone. He startled, blinking rapidly in confusion.

"Wha' sa'matter?" he slurred, trying to sit up, rubbing his eyes. "What is it?"

"Bloody owls," Draco snapped. "At five o'clock in the bleeding morning on my day off."

Oh. That's what that tapping was.

Harry groaned, flopping back down on the bed. "Tell them to go away."

"They're birds, Harry, they won't listen to reason," Draco said irritably, climbing out of bed to go take whatever they'd brought.

Harry waited patiently for Draco to return to bed, watching as he removed the owls’ burdens. Were those newspapers? Why on earth were they getting newspapers? Neither of them subscribed to any.

Draco rolled his eyes, moving to toss the papers on the dresser, but then he froze, slowly bringing the stack closer, eyes glued to the one on top. He scanned it quickly before scoffing quietly, dropping it to the floor before scanning the next one, then the next.

Harry didn't grow concerned until Draco's demeanor shifted from bored annoyance to disgust. His eye twitched as he read over one of the papers before dropping it to the ground, then frowned deeply at the next one, paper crinkling as his grip slightly tightened before dropping that one as well.

Harry was sitting up now, watching him carefully. Something was wrong. A feeling of dread was blanketing him, and he felt alarm rise as Draco's jaw dropped, his face draining of all color as his hands began to shake, gripping the paper so tightly his knuckles were white. He looked like he'd seen Voldemort rise from the grave, and when Draco finally looked at him, wide, gray eyes full of abject panic, Harry was on full alert. Draco opened his mouth, but nothing but a strangled whimper escaped this throat.

Harry was up in an instant, flying over to him, cupping his face gently. "Baby, what's wrong?"

Draco didn't answer him. Harry didn't even know if he heard him. His skin was clammy, and he was trembling like a leaf, his breath coming out labored now, and Harry felt fear spike through him.

He was having a panic attack. He knew the signs; Harry had his fair share of them himself. He had to calm him down; he had to stay calm.

"Draco, darling, look at me, baby," he murmured soothingly, ignoring his own pounding heart. "Focus on me, okay? I need you to breathe for me, can you do that? Just breathe."

Harry watched as he struggled to suck in a breath, ragged, painful sounding gasps tearing from his throat as pure terror filled his eyes when he couldn't get enough air in, and he shook his head violently, like he was trying to force air into his lungs.

Stay calm, stay calm, stay calm.

Harry kept murmuring soothingly to him as he pried the paper from his fingers, Draco's tight grip tearing the pages, but he managed to get it away from him and dropped it on the ground without a glance before he gently lowered Draco down to sit on the floor with Harry kneeling over him, his hands caressing his neck and throat, trying to encourage him to breathe.

It was like Draco didn't even know he was there, though, unable to see or hear him at all, tears streaming down his face. Panic gripped his heart, and Harry grabbed his face, forcing him to look at him, shoulders relaxing the tiniest bit when Draco managed to lock eyes with him, silver eyes wide and scared.

"Draco. Baby, look at me. You have to breathe. Come on, love, you can do it. Just breathe with me."

Harry took Draco's hand pressed it firmly against his chest so he could feel Harry's breathing, feel how his chest rose and fell with each steady breath.

"Do you feel that? Try to breathe with me, in... and out. In... and out. You can do it, baby."

Draco squeezed his eyes shut, more tears slipping down his cheeks. His breathing was still ragged, but he at least appeared to be trying. That was a good sign. Harry's chest loosened a bit.

"That's it. You're alright, sweetheart. Breathe with me. One... two... three..."

Draco looked at him helplessly, eyes watery and so pale he almost looked gray, but Harry wasn't deterred. He was fairly sure that Draco could hear him now, which was a good sign. He kept talking to him, trying to calm him down.

"You can do it, baby, just breathe. In... and out. That's perfect, just like that. Keep going, you're doing great."

It seemed to be working, because his trembling was slowing, and after another minute or so, he gasped loudly, some color returning to his face as he finally got a full breath into his lungs. He exhaled on a sob, curling into himself as he sucked in more air, trying to catch his breath.

Relief flooded through Harry. Thank God. "You did such a good job, sweetheart. That was perfect, I knew you could do it," he said softly as Draco took great, heaving breaths.

He stroked his hands along Draco's face, his hair, his back and shoulders, trying to gently urge him closer, wanting to hold Draco until he was calm enough to talk, but his heart dropped into his stomach when Draco flinched violently away from his touch.

Hurt sliced through him, followed by that same feeling of dread from earlier but magnified. What- what had happened? Why was he acting like he was- was afraid of Harry?

The papers. He'd read something in the paper that had caused him to have a panic attack. Nausea rolled in his gut as every horrible possibility flew through his mind.

They wrote about his past, his Death Eater activities.

They broke their word and printed photos of Scorpius.

They wrote that Harry had cheated on him.

Draco was staring at him in horror now, mouth opening and closing silently, and Harry glanced down, carefully picking up the crumpled, slightly torn paper that he'd pried away from Draco, needing to see what had caused this reaction.

Draco made some kind of panicked noise of protest, like he didn't want Harry to see the paper, but he looked anyway, eyes scanning the photo, which was a weirdly zoomed in photo of Harry, but not his face. It showed him from the waist down only, slightly blurry, but zoomed in on his crotch, then his arse as he turned around in the photo. He frowned deeply at the picture in confusion before going stiff, eyes glued to the headline.

POTTER'S PARTNER TELLS ALL!

Partner tells all.

Harry felt like he'd swallowed a stone, a cold feeling spreading through his chest as he robotically scanned the article. The article described his sex life, specifically exactly what his cock looked like, in a disturbing amount of detail. This was practically porn. They'd even included quotes from Draco. He couldn't even read those, feeling bile climb up his throat as he stared blankly down at the paper in his hands.

What the fuck was this? It wasn't even what was said about him that was making him feel sick; the worst had already been done when his entire childhood trauma had been spread all over the news four years ago. This was embarrassing, but it wasn't the worse thing about him, and it's not like having a sex life with your boyfriend was anything to be ashamed of.

It was the betrayal.

He couldn't wrap his head around this. Draco talked to the press about him? Why would he do that? When would he have done that? They were always together. That- on top of that, this didn't sound like him at all. It didn’t even sound like how he usually talked. This didn't make any sense to him. Harry never, not in a million years, would have suspected that he'd do something so invasive, so vile, so... so Owen. 

This sounded like Owen, not Draco.

He suddenly was reminded of the letter Owen had sent him yesterday. He'd forgotten about it entirely, but what were the odds that he'd hear from him for the first time in years just before this happened? It was too coincidental. Something wasn't right.

Draco had begun babbling at him, sounding absolutely panicked. "Harry, I- that wasn't me, I swear... I would never, please believe me, I didn't-" a sob tore out of him, gasping. "Darling, I would never, ever do that to you, please."

He looked absolutely devastated. Harry had never seen him look so distraught, so desperate, so pained, like the thought that Harry might think that he'd actually done this, think that he'd actually gone to the press to spill intimate details about their sex life, caused him actual, physical pain. He looked petrified.

And... Harry believed him.

He knew something about this felt off. Draco had never, not once, given Harry a reason not to trust him. He let his son call Harry 'daddy'. Why would he do that just to turn around and destroy everything they'd built? For what? He didn't need money. Doing this certainly wouldn't curry him any favor in the Wizarding world, not when Harry was still so well liked. This wouldn't help his reputation, it wouldn't help his career, it wouldn't make his child happy. There was just... no reason for him to have done this. None at all.

He had to trust his gut. Hermione always told him to trust what he could see, and what he saw right now was his boyfriend, scared to death that Harry wouldn't trust him. He wasn't scared of being caught, he was scared of losing Harry, scared of this hurting Harry.

He didn't do this.

The panic that has been squeezing his chest eased, allowing him to breathe easier. Poor Draco looked like an injured animal, and Harry's heart clenched in sympathy. It was his fault that Draco was going through this right now, his fault that the world was going to think that he was a two-faced, backstabbing snake of a partner.

He had to protect him from this somehow. He couldn't let anyone else believe that Draco had done this to him. He had to talk to Hermione, and probably Pansy, too, but not right now.

He very carefully moved closer to Draco, moving slowly to give him a chance to pull away if he didn't want to be touched. He let Harry pull him into his arms, though, and Harry held him close, cradling his head against his chest, stroking his fingers through sweaty blonde hair. He was trembling like a leaf, and Harry pressed his nose to the top of Draco's head.

"Of course I believe you," Harry whispered. "Shh. It's alright, my darling. I believe you. I won't let anyone else believe that you did this."

Harry felt Draco sag against him, tears wetting his chest as long arms came up to wrap around Harry, clinging to him like he thought Harry might disappear. Harry just whispered quiet reassurances to him, telling Draco that he loved him, that he believed him, that he'd keep him safe, until he stopped shaking so much.

"I don't know how they got that information," Draco whispered. “I’ve never talked about anything we do with anyone. I’d think they just made it up, but it was pretty accurate. I’m so confused, I just don’t know how they knew.”

Harry knew, though, even if he didn't know why, and he absolutely knew why Cuffe had printed it. It wasn't meant to target Harry so much as it was meant to target Draco, to make him a public pariah. This was a punishment. It was a punishment for the way Harry had reacted to the press on Valentine's Day. They'd just had a meeting about Harry giving them more information, more photos, and Harry had blasted Cuffe's reporters away from them and threatened them in a rage. He'd been protecting Draco, but Cuffe wouldn't care about that. Harry had broken his part of the deal.

Now he was being punished, and Cuffe knew that the only way to really punish Harry was to hurt the people he loved. It was disgusting, and infuriating, and heartbreaking, but what could Harry do?

"Oh, I have an idea," Harry said softly after a moment, voice hollow, thinking of the stupid note he'd burned. He wished he hadn't now. He wondered if it had been a warning, or a threat, or if it was maybe jealousy that had driven it? Maybe he'd seen Harry in the papers with Draco before or something. He didn't read the paper, so he had no idea what they printed about him on the daily. It didn't matter now, he supposed.

"What? Where?" Draco asked, confused.

"Same place they got their inside scoop from last time, I’d imagine."

Harry didn't elaborate further, and Draco was quiet for a moment until his back went rigid, realization clearly hitting him.

"But- but why? I don't understand why someone would do that. Or why the paper would print it at all."

"Because I made them angry," Harry told him truthfully. "I threatened that reporter. The Prophet probably just sought him out and paid him a pretty penny to talk. It's punishment. As for who did it..." Harry trailed off, not really knowing how to explain it when he didn't know himself. "I can't really say why. I haven't publicly been with anyone since him. Maybe seeing us out like that triggered him, or something. I don't know. It doesn't really matter," he ended with a small shrug.

That was the truth of the matter, wasn't it? It didn't matter. He couldn't do anything about it. What's done was done; people couldn't unsee it, and clearly, going down to talk to Cuffe had only made everything worse. What was the point of trying anymore? He'd never be allowed to just live a normal life, and he had to stop hoping for it if he wanted to remain sane.

Cuffe was clearly sending him a message. Cooperate, or he'd destroy Draco. How much worse would it be for him if Harry fought them again? He couldn't do this anymore. Guilt practically swallowed him whole, thinking of how upset Draco had been over this, upset enough to have a panic attack. Harry couldn't put him through this again. He had to just... let it go. He couldn't fight anymore.

He felt so fucking resigned, so helpless. He hated it.

"Aren't you upset?" Draco asked him.

“Of course, I am. But mostly because it upset you so much. It makes you look vindictive and cruel, and I know you’re not. You’ve worked so hard to rebuild your reputation, and I hate that they’re trying to ruin that for you. I’m so sorry, darling,” he said, feeling absolutely wretched.

"Harry, no, I'm sorry," Draco said, pulling back to look at Harry's face. "Isn't there anything that can be done?"

Nothing that wouldn't make it worse.

Harry just shrugged again. "There's no point. It's out there, you can't make people unsee it. At least it's not really anything too bad, you know? No photos or anything, just… vivid descriptions." Very vivid descriptions.

"That's bullshit," Draco snapped. "You could sue-"

"I'm not going to do that," Harry said gently.

It would do no good for either of them. Harry had tried that route, and Cuffe had basically told him that he didn't give a fuck, that he'd fight him in court or pay the settlement. He wouldn't back down. He made too much money selling Harry to the public.

As long as Harry gave him what he wanted, he'd leave Draco alone. He needed to make sure Draco understood that he couldn't do anything about this, that he had to let it go, too. If Harry acted like it was no big deal, if he acted like he didn't care that there were very detailed descriptions of his cock in the paper, Draco would hopefully calm down and drop it. 

"I don't understand how you're so calm," he said, sounding frustrated.

"Because getting angry won't change anything, sweetheart. They printed it; it's done. I can either let it eat me up, or I can accept it and move on. It’s embarrassing, yeah, but I’ve dealt with worse, and really, I don't have anything to be ashamed about."

Draco appeared to swallow this, looking quite unhappy. "Do you think they’ll speak to him again?" he asked hesitantly.

That was a good question. Harry had no fucking idea, but Owen didn't have anything else on him. Nothing true, anyway.

"I mean, maybe? I wouldn't really know, would I? He doesn't have any other information, though, so it would be a waste of their time.”

"I suppose so," Draco murmured glumly, frowning as he lost himself in thought for a few long moments before focusing back on Harry, his sharp eyes taking in Harry's defeated posture. He held a hand out to him, beckoning Harry closer again.

"Come here, Harry," he said softly. Harry went easily, and allowed Draco to pull him onto his lap and wrap him up in his arms.

"I'm sorry, darling," Draco whispered. "I'm sorry this happened to you. I'm sorry I panicked like that. But you're right; you have nothing at all to be ashamed of. They should be embarrassed."

"It's okay," Harry murmured, closing his eyes.

He didn't want to think about the fallout this would cause. As if he didn't already have enough unwanted attention. Tears pricked behind his eyes at the thought of having to fend off even more people, of receiving fake sympathy, of what he was going to have to face with the public and with the press, hating the fact that he was Harry Potter. At least it couldn't possibly be worse than last time. Nothing could be worse than that.

"It might not be that bad, you know?"

Draco sighed. "I hope not. Let's go back to bed, yeah?"

Harry nodded silently, and they moved back to the bed, cuddling up underneath the blankets. Draco ran his hand through Harry's hair until his eyes fell shut, exhaustion taking over.

He'd get through this. Somehow. He had to. Draco and Scorpius needed him.

*

They slept nowhere near as long as Harry had hoped. It was Draco's day off, but they were soon woken by Scorpius banging on their bedroom door, asking them if they were ill.

Draco still looked exhausted, and Harry told him to stay in bed, as he got up to tend to Scorpius. He threw on some comfortable clothing and hurried over to the door, shushing Scorp before closing the door quietly behind him.

Harry's body felt heavy, sadness weighing him down. He had to shake himself out of this, though. The situation was what it was, and he hadn't been lying earlier when he told Draco that dwelling on it wasn't going to make it go away. He just needed a distraction, a reminder of why he was going to do this.

"Good morning, love. Are you hungry?" Harry asked him, giving him a tired smile, eyes flickering back over the multitude of flowers that were still flowing down the stairs, allowing them to calm him.

Scorpius nodded eagerly. "Morning, daddy! I'm so hungry," he groaned, holding his stomach.

Harry led him downstairs, and was halfway through cooking up some eggs when the owls started arriving.

"Mail! The mail is so early!" Scorpius squealed, running over to let the owls in.

"No!" Harry shouted, grabbing him and holding him back. He had no idea what the owls had brought, and he didn't want Scorpius anywhere near anything potentially dangerous.

"Why not?" he pouted, oblivious to Harry's worry. "I want to give them treats."

"You can give them a treat after I collect the mail," Harry said, handing him a pouch of owl treats from the pantry.

Harry opened the window carefully, relieved to see nothing but plain letters. He untied them all from the owls’ legs, let Scorpius feed them a few treats, then locked the window again. He tossed the letters aside without a glance, and hurried back to his eggs, frowning.

Burnt. Shit.

It took three more attempts to get any decent eggs, as more and more owls kept coming and interrupting him. Harry was a nervous wreck, hands shaking and flustered as he finally plated some acceptable eggs for Scorpius and some for Draco, forcing himself to choke down a few bites before giving up and writing a quick note to Ron and Hermione, telling them that he'd stop by tomorrow to explain, begging them to not believe what the papers said about Draco and to please pass the message along to anyone pertinent until he could talk to them.

"Stay here and eat, please. I'm going to take these up to papa," Harry told him, and Scorpius just nodded, digging into his eggs.

Harry carried the plate and fork upstairs, setting it down on Draco's bedside table, noticing even more owls outside of their window. He closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath before deciding to ignore the birds for now, instead quickly vanishing the offending papers from the floor by the window before leaning down to press a kiss to Draco's brow.

Draco's eyes fluttered up at him, blinking in confusion.

"Hey," Harry said softly. "I brought you something to eat. You don't have to get up, though." He was probably exhausted after his panic attack earlier.

Draco shook his head, sitting up slowly in bed. "No," he rasped out. "No, I need to get up. Bloody birds keep waking me up anyway."

"I'm so sorry about that," Harry said, and Draco gave him a weird look.

"It's not your fault at all," he assured Harry, patting his hand before reaching for his plate.

By the time Draco finished eating, even more owls had gathered outside, and Harry sighed, going over to let them in. He started a stack of letters on their dresser, then went to check on Scorpius before jumping in the shower.

When he emerged, feeling a tiny bit better, he dressed in the same clothes he'd thrown on earlier, then wandered downstairs, finding Draco sitting on the couch, surrounded by open letters.

Harry made an involuntary noise of protest. Draco absolutely did not need to read the horrible things that were probably written in those letters.

"Don't- don't read those, darling. You don't need to see that. I should have just burned them, but I didn't know if they had anything dangerous inside."

Draco looked up at him, eyes sad. "They're honestly not too bad," he said quietly. "Hardly anything negative about you. Mostly just people asking if they could see you naked, or suck your dick. A lot of them are angry at me. Not that I blame them," he added, voice wavering.

"Fuck them," Harry said firmly, plucking the letter out of Draco's hand and tossing it into the fireplace. "They don't know us and they don't know you. I don't care what they say, this isn't your fault. I'm so sorry this happened," he repeated, feeling sick.

Draco just nodded, handing the rest of the letters to Harry to burn. They sat quietly on the couch, watching Scorpius play until the first Howler came through. Draco spotted it first, the deep scarlet envelope standing out amongst the sea of cream-colored envelopes.

"Harry," he said urgently, sitting up straight as a board and motioning to the window.

Harry saw the Howler, and noticed a few owls with packages as well, and that was all it took for Harry to throw up strong wards to refuse the post. They couldn't get rid of the owls that were already here, unfortunately, but it did stop new one from getting close, and Scorpius didn't need to be exposed to this.

"Go upstairs, Scorpius," Harry said immediately, giving him a stern look when he opened his mouth to protest. He huffed, but did as he was told, running up the stairs and out of sight. Harry quickly extinguished the flames in the fireplace before running over to pluck the smoking Howler off of the owl carrying it and chucking it into the fireplace with a pinch of Floo powder, sending the blasted thing to Grimmauld Place just as it began to shriek, where no one could hear it. He followed suit with the packages they received before burning the rest of the letters.

He watched the letters completely turn to ash before relaxing, turning back to Draco without a word, taking his seat next to him.

"Are you alright?" Draco asked him quietly.

Harry nodded. "I'm fine," he breathed. "Really. Just... stay with me, yeah?"

"I'll never leave you," Draco promised.

Usually, a statement like that would soothe Harry, but not today, not after this mess. What if Draco decided staying with Harry wasn't worth the trouble anymore? It was always something, something disrupting the peaceful life he'd built for himself with his son. He felt awful, but Harry couldn't lose him.

If he were less selfish, he'd let him go, let him find happiness with someone who didn't come with constant drama, but Harry needed him. He didn't know if he could live without him, without Scorpius. The thought of having his family ripped away from him... it was too painful to even think about. He couldn't lose them. He couldn't.

After Harry had warded their house from the post, their evening settled down a bit. Both of them were trying to act like everything was normal, trying to just have a peaceful evening together, but the flowers were getting to be... a bit much.

He loved them, but they were literally everywhere to the point that it was difficult to function normally in the house. He'd had to move them several times while making dinner, and he wondered if Draco would mind if they donated some of these to the hospital for the patients to enjoy. He can't imagine that they'd be upset having some pretty flowers brighten up their rooms.

The only problem was that he didn't want Draco to be angry or offended that he wanted to downsize them, didn't want him to think Harry didn't appreciate what he'd done with them. It ate at him, and halfway through dinner he finally bucked up the courage to speak up about it.

"Sweetheart?" he said hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"D' you maybe think... not that I don't appreciate and absolutely love them, of course, please don't take this the wrong way," he babbled nervously, "but, I was wondering if we could maybe donate some of these flowers to the hospital? To put in the patients’ rooms who don't really get visitors that often. I just thought it might cheer them up, and I don't really need to keep this many..." he trailed off, chewing on his lip aggressively.

Draco smiled warmly at him. "They're your flowers, darling. You can do whatever you want with them. I think that's a wonderful idea, actually. I suppose I didn't really consider what we would do with all of them after the holiday," he chuckled lightly.

Harry relaxed instantly, tension leaving his shoulders. Draco wasn't angry. Thank goodness.

Conversation flowed much easier after that. It had been such a stressful day, and Harry was finally able to push some of that aside and just enjoy his family.

That evening, after they'd gotten Scorpius to bed, Draco grabbed Harry and pulled him over to the couch before shoving a glass of wine into his hand. Before Harry could even ask what he was doing Draco disappeared for a moment, then reappeared with the Scrabble box.

Harry perked up immediately. Draco almost never pulled out the board games first, but Harry loved when they played this together. It would hopefully get their minds off of this dreadful day.

"Well, aren't you in a fun mood," Harry laughed, setting up the board and taking the little velvet bag from the box to pull out his letters for the game, lining them up neatly on his tray.

"I suppose I am," Draco said amusedly, joining Harry and picking his own letters out of the pouch. "You can go first."

Harry started the game, playing the word cute with a smirk. Draco rolled his eyes, but did huff out a laugh, playing his own word.

They continued on like that for a while. Harry tried not to fidget too much as they played, but it was difficult. Draco looked so serious, and his unwanted nerves crept back in. He couldn't help it, but he tried to hide his bouncing knee and twitching hands the best he could as the game wore on.

About halfway through, Harry realized he was actually getting more points for once. He was slightly suspicious, wondering why Draco was playing such small words, but then he laid down the word empathy, ruining Harry's theory that Draco was letting him win.

"Oh, good one!" Harry said, impressed by the long word.

"It is," Draco agreed quietly.

Harry played his next word, just adding an 'S' onto a word from earlier. He was having a hard time concentrating, and he twisted his fingers in the hem of his shirt to ground himself a bit as Draco stared at the board for longer than usual.

"You know," Draco suddenly said lightly, not taking his eyes off of the game board. "I'm not sure I ever told you what happened Sixth Year, did I?"

Harry stilled, turning to look at Draco, confused as to why he was bringing the topic up when they've never talked about it before. He wanted to talk about this now, on this already terrible day? It was certainly not what he would have chosen, but if Draco wanted to open up to him, Harry wasn't going to discourage it in any way.

"Uh, no. No, we never discussed it," Harry replied softly.

"Right. I didn't think so. It was such a terrible year for me. Worse even than Seventh Year in a lot of ways, which I imagine sounds hard to believe," he said self-deprecatingly as he finally played his next word, adding an 'F' to one of Harry's earlier words, making the word fear. "Your turn, darling."

Harry stared at him. He wanted to keep playing? Where was he going with this? It was such a somber, serious, topic, probably traumatic for him to even think about, let alone say out loud. Why did he want to talk about this in the middle of a game?

Harry was about to ask him if he wanted to stop, to maybe move up to the bedroom or the bathtub, something, but Draco turned to look at him, eyebrow quirked expectantly, and Harry panicked a bit, quickly playing the first word he saw, barely looking at the board.

"We don't have to keep playing," Harry told him quietly, but Draco just quirked his lips, turning back to the board and continuing his story.

"I don't know a lot of what went on that year, outside of my own predicament, at least, but I know you watched me a lot, followed me. I could always feel you; I could feel your eyes on me all the time. I used to dream about what that might be like, having your attention like that. But it was nothing like how I'd imagined."

Well, that hurt.

"Draco..." Harry said, placing one hand on Draco's forearm, squeezing gently. He felt so guilty, for being so suspicious of him, for knowing, but not really knowing, for never helping him. "I'm so-"

"No, no. I don't want you to apologize, Harry," Draco cut him off, gently but firmly. "You did what you had to do, I get it. You had no idea what was happening; you didn't know how I felt, and we both know that even if you had, it wouldn't have changed anything. I hated it, though."

It could have changed everything, though, he wanted to argue.

Harry watched helplessly as Draco just kept playing, laying down a C, A, and R on top of the E from 'empathy'. Care.

"Your turn."

Harry made a disgruntled noise, but dutifully faced the board. He couldn't even think about vocabulary right now. He didn't know how Draco was coming up with such weirdly relevant words.

"I never asked how bad it was for you," Harry said quietly after a minute or two of silence. "I could see it, though. How stressed you were. How scared. I knew something was wrong. The whole year, I knew." Harry finally laid down a few letters with little fanfare.

"I was scared," Draco admitted, refocusing his attention on the board. "I've never been so scared in my life, like I was just living on borrowed time until I inevitably died."

Harry's heart clenched painfully at his assertation, and Harry wanted to hug him so badly, but Draco kept going, his voice quiet and steady.

"I knew it was coming. That day you found me in the bathroom, I knew I had already lost. I cracked. Then you came in and I saw you looking at me through that mirror with so much compassion, like you actually cared that I was terrified, like you wanted to help, and what did I do in response? I tried to Crucio you. Because I was scared and embarrassed and angry. I could never just be normal around you. I always had to kick up a fuss, and it almost killed me."

He laid down another word. Fool.

"I'm so sorry," Harry whispered, eyes wet with unshed tears. This was- God, this was so hard to hear.

"You don't need to be sorry, darling. You didn't do what you did on purpose. You didn't know what that spell did. But I knew what mine did, and I used it anyway. I was a horrible person."

"You weren't-"

"Yes, I was," Draco cut him off gently. "I was, Harry."

Draco turned his attention back to the board, eyes roaming for a spot to play for several long moments. "I wrote to you that night, after Severus left me alone to recover."

Harry inhaled sharply, looking towards the stairs. "Is that-?" The letter...

Draco nodded. He pulled the letter out of his pocket, handing it to Harry silently.

Harry took it, fingers trembling, and opened it carefully, seeing Draco's beautiful script flowing across the parchment.

Potter  Harry,

I don't know why I'm writing this. I expect you'll tear it up before even reaching the end, once you realize who it's from. I can imagine that I'm the last person you ever want to hear from, especially after our 'duel' in the bathroom, but I fear I have reached a point of desperation that surpasses both my pride and my dignity. I no longer have anything left to lose, so here I am, baring my soul to you in hopes that you'll see something in me worthy of saving.

I can't do this, Harry. I can't continue on like this, pretending like I have a single chance of succeeding in this horrible mission I've been given. I don't want to do this. I don't want to hurt anyone; I don't want to kill Dumble anyone. I can't. This is a death sentence, and I'm no longer too proud to admit out loud that I am terrified.

I'm terrified of what my failure will mean for me, and for my family. I expect that we'll all be dead before this is over, but Harry, I don't want to die. I'm only sixteen. I haven't even lived yet. I have seen things that I wouldn't wish on anyone, and the only thing I've learned from it is that muggles are not the monsters that I'd always been taught that they were. They're just people. Different from us, but still just people. They aren't trying to steal our magic; they aren't a threat to us. My father was wrong. I was wrong.

I hate my father for getting us into this mess, but I also still love him, and I don't want him to die, either. I know I've been a hateful, arrogant fool, but I never wanted any of this. I can't save myself, and I am under no delusion that I can.

I know that you're suspicious of me, and you're right to be. I can feel your eyes on me all the time, watching me, burning through me like you can see my every thought, my every mistake, my every failure. You saw me today; saw my fear. I know you did; it was clear as day on your face. You cared, and in response to that care, instead of falling to my knees and begging you to help me as I should have done, I lashed out, too afraid that you'd know how pitifully weak I am. Perhaps it would have been a kindness if your spell had simply killed me.

I am truly sorry for what I've done, and even more sorry for the Curse I tried to use on you. I knew it wouldn't work. How could it, when I've loved you for so long?

I can imagine that's shocking to hear. Draco Malfoy, the main cause of your torment throughout the years, in love with you. It's laughable, I'm sure, and I can't blame you for finding this revelation either amusing, or repulsive, or both, but it's the truth nonetheless.

Don't fear, Harry; this is not a plea to have you return my feelings, I'm not fool enough to think you could ever look at me with anything other than revulsion. This is merely a long overdue confession, in hopes that you might understand me better. I’ve got nothing left to lose, as I said earlier.

I have always admired you, Harry. I grew up hearing stories about you, and I wanted your friendship so badly. Who wouldn't want to be friends with the boy so powerful he defeated the darkest wizard ever known as a mere baby? But you rejected me, rightfully so. I've always been a horrid brat. I didn't deserve your friendship.

I couldn't let you go, though. I never moved on, I simply became obsessed with catching your attention in any way possible, most of which were horribly cruel, and I am so painfully sorry. But despite all of my terrible choices and even worse actions, I still admired you.

How could I not be drawn to you? You, who are everything I'm not, everything I could never even hope to be, and over time, that admiration shifted into more. I found myself staring for a different reason. I suddenly wanted to know if your ridiculous hair was as soft as it looked, I wanted to see how deep that dimple in your left cheek went, I wanted to know what soap or cologne you used that always left the tart scent of apples wafting after you enticingly. I wanted to know if you tasted like the treacle tart you always ate. I admired watching you in your quidditch uniform, wishing we shared a changing room. I wanted to hear your laugh all the time, and I was painfully envious of everyone who got to spend time with you when I didn't. It was rather confusing at first, but I eventually realized that I was so obsessed because I loved you.

You're just so good, is the thing. It's not just attraction. It's who you are, your heart. I love how you dive into everything you do without fear or hesitation, You’re always so brave. I have no idea what that feels like, to be brave; I’ve never been anything more than a coward. I love how you care about everyone, how you'd do anything to protect anyone who needs it. You save people, Harry, even if they don't deserve it, because that's just who you are.

I have no right to ask you for help now, I know this, but as I said earlier in this far too lengthy letter, I have nothing left to lose. I need to lay myself bare to you, need you to understand.

Please. Please, Harry, please help me. I don't know how to get out of this, and there is no way for me to succeed. I'm not supposed to. I don't want to hurt Dum anyone, I don't want to die, I don't want to follow the Dark Lord, but he has branded me, and you are the only person who can save me from this. I know I don't deserve it, but please help me. I know you hate me, and you should, but I am hoping that your desire to help those who are willing to ask for your help will overpower that hatred. I don't even know what you can do, I just know that if anyone can save me from this, it's you. If you can't save me, maybe you could just help my mother. She doesn't deserve the fate my father has thrust upon her. She is not marked.

At the risk of sounding cliché, you are my only hope, my last hope.

I will be anxiously awaiting your reply, and I will accept whatever choice you make. If you've made it this far, thank you, Harry.

Sincerely,

DM

"Sweetheart..." Harry said, voice cracking, tears finally escaping, slipping does his cheeks, pain slicing through him so acutely it was like someone was stabbing him in the heart.

If he had gotten this letter, even back then in the midst of everything, he would have helped him. He would have made Dumbledore help him. No one deserved what Draco had had to endure at sixteen, no one.

By the end of the letter, the handwriting had gotten so shaky it was difficult to read, and several words were smudged by what he assumed had been tears.

Harry could picture sixteen-year-old Draco, sitting alone in Snape's chambers or the Hospital Wing, sobbing as he spilled his heart out in this letter that had never been sent. Why hadn't he sent it?

His heart ached, ached for the pain, and fear, and suffering Draco had endured, how desperate he must have felt to even write this in the first place. Harry can't even imagine how terrified he must have been.

He wished so badly that he hadn't been so hotheaded when he was younger, that he'd seen Draco's attack in the bathroom as the cry for help that it was, that he'd just offered his help despite the fight. Obviously, he couldn't have known everything in the letter, but he still wished it had been different.

"I wanted you, even then," Draco said. "Even after we attacked each other, even after I almost died, even after you watched me do unspeakably horrible things just to save myself and my mother, and I just knew that you could never look at me with anything other than disgust... even after I had no hope left in me at all. I still wanted you. I couldn't let you go."

He swallowed heavily, finally meeting Harry's eyes. Harry didn't interrupt him, wanting to give him a chance to say what he needed to say, but it hurt. Draco was right, knowing this, it did help him understand him more. It would have helped then, too. He wished Draco had sent the letter.

"So, you see, I- Harry, there is nothing, nothing you can do or say to me that's ever going to change anything for me. No amount of shitty newspaper articles or invasive reporters or inappropriately flirty fans will change anything. Not for me. I don't want you to be worried that I'm going to be angry with you or leave you if you upset me or offend me or hurt my feelings or need something you think is unreasonable. I can't be angry with you, I just... I can't."

Harry opened his mouth, to say what, he didn't even know, but Draco plowed on, obviously not finished yet.

"But even if I could be; even if we got furious at each other and had full on, knock out screaming matches and threw hexes, or couldn't stand to look at each other for a while because we were so angry, I'm still going to turn to you, and long for you, and need you. I am still going to love you. You're my soulmate, Harry. Nothing is going to change that."

Soulmate. He sounded so sure, like he didn't have a single doubt in his mind that Harry was his soulmate. Harry was speechless.

Draco laid the last of his letters on the board, using the 'V' in what must have been his last word 'forgive' to make his next word. Devoted.

Suddenly, he understood why Draco was telling him all of this. He wasn't doing it for him, he was doing this for Harry. He wanted Harry to know that Draco thought he was worth the trouble. He wanted Harry to understand him more, to know how important Harry was to him, and he did.

Harry carefully set the letter aside before slowly climbing onto Draco's lap, his thighs bracketing Draco's, and just hugged him. He pressed as much of his body as he could against Draco's and wrapped his arms tightly around him, caressing every inch of him that he could reach. Just because he was trying to assure Harry right now, didn't mean Draco didn't need reassurance of his own, and Harry tried to pour all of the love, all of the protectiveness, all of the pride he felt for Draco into that hug.

Draco was wrong. He was so brave. He had survived the Dark Lord living in his house, giving him a death mission, at sixteen years old. He was the bravest person Harry knew.

Draco gasped, wrapping his own shaking arms back around Harry, clinging to him like he might disappear if he loosened his grip even a little.

"Okay," Harry murmured into his ear, not pausing his ministrations. "Okay, darling. It's okay. I'm right here. You have me now; I'm not going anywhere. I'll keep you safe, now. I'll keep you."

Harry could practically feel Draco crack. A great, shuddering sob tore out of him, sounding so pained it made a fresh wave of tears spring to Harry's eyes. Harry just held him as he cried, whispering soothing words about how brave he was as gut-wrenching sobs wracked his body until they both fell asleep on the sofa, fully clothed in a tangled mess of limbs, game long forgotten, just holding each other like they couldn't bear to let go.

When Scorpius woke them up the next morning by jumping on them excitedly, giggling about how silly they were for sleeping on the couch, Harry felt... lighter; more secure.

He scooped Scorpius up, tickling him until he squealed, and when he looked to Draco, relaxed grin and dimple firmly in place, Draco just returned his gaze, nothing but love shining in his beautiful, silver eyes.

They were okay. They belonged together.  Soulmates. They'd get through this, and anything else life could throw at them.

*

"Hi! Hi, Tommy, hi Luca! You're at my house!" Scorpius screeched excitedly when Sam stepped through the Floo with Tommy and Luca.

Harry had gotten together with Sam after the hate mail was under control, having rerouted all of their mail through Hermione at the DMLE before any normal mail was allowed to come to the house. They’d arranged the sleepover for the boys like they'd discussed on Valentine’s Day, and Scorpius had been jumping out of his skin all day waiting for them to arrive.

"Scorpius, go ahead and take Tommy and Luca up to your room to put their bags away. I'll have lunch ready for you all soon," Harry instructed him.

Scorpius grabbed their hands and practically dragged them up the stairs, and Harry turned back to Sam, laughing.

"Well, I was going to ask if you needed help with the three of them, but I think they're going to be just fine," she said with a smile.

"Oh, for sure. I have plenty for them to do, and I planned to set up the tent Scorp got for his birthday down here for them to sleep in."

"Ooh, does that sound fun?" She teased. "I'll be back for them tomorrow after breakfast. I need to get Luca back to his father before Maura comes to pick him up."

"That's fine, we'll be here," Harry assured her, and he kissed her on the cheek before she disappeared back through the Floo.

The boys played in Scorpius' room until lunch was ready, and they all trooped downstairs together when Harry called them to eat. They seemed to be having a great time, and Harry was in absolute shock at Luca. He was nothing like he was at playgroup. He was giggly and talkative and full of imagination. It was incredible seeing him blossom like that in a place where he obviously felt comfortable enough to be himself.

After lunch, the boys went outside to play with Scorpius' new broomstick for a few hours, taking turns chasing each other around the garden and catching the Quaffle Harry kept throwing at them. When they grew tired, Harry had them wash up and sat them down at the kitchen island to help him with supper.

He was making pizza again, letting each boy add the toppings to his own personal sized crust while Harry made a bigger one for himself and Draco to share. They had a lot of fun arranging their toppings to look like faces, except Scorpius, who made what he claimed was a dragon on his.

The boys had finished with pizzas and were running around the kitchen, burning off some energy while Harry washed up the dishes when Draco arrived home. Harry smiled when Scorpius shrieked and the three boys ran out of the kitchen to greet Draco before running back again.

"Harry?" he heard Draco calling for him.

"Yes?" Harry replied, poking his head into the living room.

"Did you Duplicate my son?" he asked in confusion.

Harry barked out a laugh. "What? No, you lunatic. He's having a sleepover."

"A sleepover," Draco deadpanned.

Harry smiled, coming into the room to give Draco a kiss. "Yes, darling. A sleepover. The sleepover I told you I had arranged during the playgroup Valentine's Day party."

Draco blinked blankly, looking totally clueless, and Harry laughed. "You forgot, didn't you?"

Draco shrugged, smiling sheepishly.

"That's alright," Harry said, patting his cheek. "A lot has been happening. Luca and Tommy are here for the night, though. I'm making pizza again for dinner; it's what Scorp wanted. I have everything under control if you want to go shower and relax for a bit."

"I had hoped to relax with you," Draco said in a silky, seductive voice, pulling him closer and lifting an eyebrow, hand sliding down Harry's stomach and coming to rest on his cock.

Harry gasped, jerking his hips away, but his cock twitched in interest anyway. "We can't," he whispered desperately, eyes darting back towards the kitchen where the boys were.

Draco smirked. "I suppose it can wait until tomorrow," he conceded, stepping away.

That was just unfair.

Harry bit his lip, glancing back towards the kitchen again to make sure the boys were occupied, then quick as a flash, he yanked Draco forward into a heated kiss, tongue delving into his mouth, twisting around Draco's before pulling away, tongue darting out to lick Draco's bottom lip a final time. He shot Draco a wink, then disappeared back into the kitchen while Draco just stood there, gaping at him.

Harry smirked to himself, knowing he'd won that time.

Draco ended up going up to change and take a shower before he joined everyone back downstairs in time for supper.

"Hi, papa!" Scorpius greeted, waving from the table.

Luca and Tommy looked to him as well, a bit shy. They didn't really know Draco, after all. Harry went to playgroup every week so they were familiar with him by now, but Draco worked.

Draco smiled warmly at them, though, clearly wanting them to feel comfortable with him. "Hello, boys. Are you having fun?"

"Yeah!" Scorpius said. "Daddy made us pizza, and we got to pick our own toppings, and he says there's popcorn after supper, and that we can set up my tent in the living room to sleep in!"

"Did he?" Draco said, smirking at Harry.

"He did," Harry confirmed, shooting him a crooked smile. "I have ice cream, too. And games." He'd planned the whole sleepover meticulously, loving every second of having the extra children here. The three boys cheered, and Draco chuckled at them, shaking his head fondly.

After supper, Draco helped Harry set up the tent, transfiguring a few pillows into extra beds, then Harry set them up with a few of the games they owned, popcorn, fruit, ice cream, pumpkin juice, and quite a bit of candy he'd picked up for them before laying out the ground rules.

"Alright boys! Rules," Harry said, clapping his hands together. The three boys were lined up in front of the tent, all eyes on Harry, listening attentively as he laid out the rules. It was adorable. "You have free reign in the tent. You can do whatever you want in there as long as it's safe, so no one gets hurt. That means no fighting and no flying the broom in there. You can eat as much as you want, and no bedtime." The boy's eyes lit up at that, and they giggled madly. "But if you need anything outside of the tent, aside from the bathroom, you need to come get one of us, alright? Just knock on the bedroom door, we'll hear you. Sound good?"

"Yes, Mister Harry!" Luca and Tommy said in unison.

"Yes, daddy!" Scorpius chirped.

Draco snorted quietly. "Alright, go on, then," he said, ushering them into the tent and setting a few wards around it that would alert them if one of the boys left the tent, or if it got too loud inside so they could check on them.

"What now?" Draco asked, turning to Harry, and Harry shrugged.

"We let them play. We can hang out down here or go upstairs, we'll know if they need anything. They're safe in there."

"Alright. I suppose I remember my parents leaving me alone when I had friends over at that age. Mostly. The House Elves watched us," he said, frowning. "I tormented them a bit, I think."

Harry snorted, pushing him towards the stairs. "You? No, I'd never believe that."

Draco laughed. "Hush, you."

 

*

"We're going out," Harry announced one evening several weeks later. "Get dressed." His voice was firm. This wasn't a negotiation.

Draco was a little over halfway through his new rotation now, but he'd had an incident at work the previous week that was eating him alive. He'd made a mistake. It had been a bad one that had almost been disastrous, which of course was bound to happen at some point because he was human, but he couldn't seem to get past it.

He was right back to what he always did; half starving himself, not sleeping, not existing outside of studying non-stop, and Harry was not letting this continue for another moment. Draco had to learn to cope with stress in a healthier way, a way that didn't risk his health and drive Harry spare with worry.

So, Harry had planned an evening out for them to get Draco out of the house and out of his head, and hopefully give him some perspective. He'd had a life outside of work, and he couldn't just forget about everything else every time something went wrong.

He'd owled Theo this morning with the idea, who then contacted the rest of their friends, and were all going to meet Harry and Draco at the Wobbly Broomstick tonight for drinks, with the exception of Neville, who had another date with Hannah. It would be their first time hanging out together with Draco as a combined friend group, and their first time really going out since the Prophet had printed that garbage article.

He was nervous about going out in public, but he still thought it would do them some good to get out of the house. Hary had practically been hibernating inside with Scorpius since the article, and he missed his friends.

He'd already taken Scorpius over to the Manor for a sleepover, which Narcissa and even Lucius had been thrilled about. Harry was dressed in his newish jeans, a fitted black t-shirt that he knew Draco loved on him, and his favorite worn brown leather jacket. He was already ready to go. Draco wasn't getting out of this.

"What?" Draco said distractedly, lifting his head from where he was hunched over his textbook.

"We're going out," Harry repeated.

"Since when?" Draco asked, eyes glued to Harry's thighs.

"Since earlier today when I owled Theo. You're doing that thing where you drown yourself in work again, and you need a break before you give me a nervous breakdown." Harry said firmly.

"But I-"

"No. This isn't negotiable. I already dropped Scorpius off at the Manor. We're going. Go get ready."

Harry crossed the room and gently pried the book from his hands, marking his page before he vanished it up to Draco’s office.

"Harry!" he cried out in protest. "I can't just leave; I have to study. And when did you even take Scorpius over to my parents'?" he asked, bewildered.

"Like, two hours ago. He said goodbye to you. You're so absorbed in your book you don't even remember. And you didn't eat, again," Harry said pointedly, giving him a stern look, then he softened, coming to sit on Draco's lap, hand running through his hair. "Darling, I worry about you. I know you're upset about what happened, but you can't do this every time something bad happens. You have to eat; you have to be able to focus on life outside of work. This isn't healthy. You made a mistake, but you caught it in time, and he turned out to be fine. It's okay to take a break. Please? I miss you."

Draco chewed on his lower lip for a moment before sighing in defeat. "Alright," he agreed, pressing a kiss to Harry's throat. "You win. Give me half an hour."

Harry grinned, dimple digging into his cheek, before ushering him up the stairs.

Draco took a surprisingly quick shower and dressed himself in a different pair of obscenely tight muggle jeans, this pair a very deep blue, still with a few tears in the legs. He'd chosen a plain white t-shirt where Harry had black, and he'd donned his own black leather jacket, skipping the eyeliner this time, but pulling his hair up out of his face into a bun. He'd gone more casual, probably to match Harry, but he still looked incredible, as always.

"Gorgeous," Harry murmured when he came downstairs, tugging Draco closer by the lapels of his jacket to kiss him a little before wrapping an arm around him and Apparating them away.

When they entered the pub, Theo spotted them right away. "Draco!" he called over to them, waving wildly from Harry's usual table where Ron, Hermione, Pansy, and Blaise were also seated, and Harry was so happy to see them, relaxing instantly and ignoring the stares they wer getting thanks to Theo’s big mouth.

Harry had visited Ron and Hermione the day after their emotional Scrabble game to explain what had happened with the press. It hadn't really taken that much convincing before they'd softened, accepting his explanation and appearing to believe that Draco truly hadn't done it. They gently reminded him that they had enough experience with that rag to know that almost everything they printed was an exaggeration at best, or an outright lie at worst. He should have known, really, that they'd be on his side.

Hermione had obviously wanted to push back against the Prophet for daring to print something so intimate and then lie about the source, and it had taken an exhausting amount of arguing to get her to just let it go. She hadn't been happy about it, but she could see how terrified he was of Cuffe going after Draco even worse if he retaliated, and Harry would never fight dirty like Cuffe. He didn't want that on his conscious, and he wouldn't stoop to his level. His morality was the one thing he had left, and he wouldn't let Cuffe take that from him, too.

After Ron and Hermione were filled in, he visited Neville, then the Burrow. Molly had been much harder to convince, but he got her there in the end with some helpful goading from her husband and George. Draco's friends and parents hadn't needed convincing at all, as they already knew he'd never have done such a thing to Harry.

He'd saved Ginny for last, thinking she'd be the hardest to convince, remembering how fiery her temper was and how scary she'd been to his past exes, but when he got to her tent, she just hugged him for a long, long time before telling him that she already knew the paper was a load of shite and she didn't believe a word of it. He actually cried at that, so relieved that Ginny didn't hate Draco.

It was so important to him that they all understood that he wasn't just being naive for trusting his partner, and he loved them so much for trusting his judgement and for always being exactly the support he needed. He'd figure out a way to thank them all properly. At least the surprise charity event for Hermione next month would be a start.

Draco looked surprised to see everyone together as they joined their small group of friends at the table, taking the two seats that had been saved for them.

"I'll get the drinks!" Theo volunteered, and was up out of his seat before they could even tell him what they wanted.

"At least get food!" Draco cried out before Harry could, and Theo just made an obscure gesture back at him, indicating that he'd heard him.

Draco sat stiffly and quietly at first, but he seemed to relax a fair bit when he realized that everyone was comfortable with each other. As they should be, Pansy, Blaise, and Theo were now a staple at their Friday night pub nights, the three of them showing up more often than Harry did now.

When Theo finally returned with their drinks and a basket of fish and chips, Draco had grown more comfortable with the intermingled group and was chatting easily with Hermione about her work with House Elf liberation.

"Let me tell you,” Theo said loudly when he returned to his seat across from Draco and Harry, passing around Butterbeers for everyone, “thank fuck you finally put him out of his misery.”

Harry blinked at him in confusion, unsure if Theo was talking to him, until his next sentence confirmed it.

“I swear, if I had to watch Draco pine after you like a lovesick cruppy for much longer, I might have had to put him out of his misery," he laughed, raising his glass to Harry.

Harry's eyebrows shot up.

"Theo!" Draco hissed, cheeks flushing a pretty pink.

"What?" Theo asked, oblivious to Draco's irritation. "You know it's true. You were obsessed with him all through school!"

Oh, this was too good. Harry already knew that Draco had a monstrous crush on him in school, but it was different hearing it from Draco's best friends' perspective.

"Was he, now?" Harry asked mischievously, egging him on. "And how do you know that?"

"We all knew, mate, he's not as sneaky as he thinks he is. I remember the Prefects changing the password to something about you any time they wanted to fuck with him. It was hilarious."

Harry blinked, a bark of surprised laughter escaping him. That was definitely not something he'd heard before. He could picture poor Draco with a sour face every time he had to say something nice about Harry out loud in front of the other Slytherins. Harry was so endeared by the vision, and he scooted even closer to his boyfriend.

"It was not hilarious," Draco said through clenched teeth, his eyes narrowed at his friend.

Harry was about to tell Theo that was enough, but Ron cut in, looking like someone had just told him that Santa Claus was real.

"What else did he do?"

"Theo, I will murder you," Draco said, but Theo ignored him.

"Oh Gods, his hookups all looked like Potter-"

"Theo!" Draco cut him off loudly now, banging his hands on the table. "Shut the fuck up."

His face was flaming. He was clearly mortified by what Theo had just revealed in front of Harry, but all Harry could do was stare at him in awe.

All of his hookups looked like Harry?

He didn't even have to ask if that was true; Draco's reaction answered that question loud and clear. That was... Christ, he didn't know what that was, but he knew that he felt unbelievably flattered by it, even if Draco thought it was embarrassing. It wasn't, though, not one bit. Not to Harry.

Theo must have finally noticed that Draco was dead serious, because he sobered up pretty quickly. "Sorry, mate. Didn't mean to embarrass you. It was actually kind of sweet, you know, especially now that you're together. It's like, some epic love story to tell your kids."

"I think it's really sweet," Harry said quietly, still staring at Draco with stars in his eyes, reaching out and thumbing over the back of his hand soothingly, trying to let him know that there was no need to be embarrassed. Harry had had unrequited feelings too, after all.

As if he could read his mind, that was exactly what Ron said next. "Harry liked you, too, y' know. All Eighth Year. I told him to talk to you, but he wouldn't."

Draco looked stunned. Had Harry really never mentioned that? He thought about it often, but maybe he never had said it out loud. Well, he was going to say it now.

"You did?" Draco asked in a small voice, sounding like he could hardly believe it.

"Yeah," Harry confirmed, shrugging unashamedly. "You're gorgeous. You were different, you know? I noticed. I really thought you were straight, though. Thought you'd hex me if I tried flirting with you."

Theo snorted so loudly Harry jumped. "You thought Draco was straight? Mate, are you blind? He's the ponciest bastard on the planet!"

"He's not, and that doesn't mean anything," Harry said defensively. Just because Draco dressed well and cared about his appearance didn't automatically mean he was gay.

"Whatever, you both figured it out now. I'm thrilled for you, truly," Theo said sincerely. "I'm getting another round."

He wandered back off to the bar and Ron smoothly changed the subject to something less sensitive. When he returned, he had more with him than just Butterbeer, though.

"Here you are, lads! Drink up!" Theo said cheerfully, sliding a glass of something bright green that smelled of licorice towards them. What the hell was that? It looked dreadful.

"Theo," Draco hissed at him. "I am not drinking that!"

"That's not for you, you uppity git. It's for Potter," he said with an eyeroll, sliding Draco a nice, normal looking glass of Firewhiskey.

Draco stared at Theo like he'd lost his mind. "Absolutely not," he said, immediately swapping glasses with Harry.

Harry still didn't know what was in the glass that was meant for him, but he suddenly wanted it. True, he didn't drink anything heavier than wine for the most part anymore, but one night of letting go wouldn't hurt him. He hadn't gotten drunk in years. He wanted to have fun. He could handle it.

"Boo. You're no fun," Theo pouted.

"I can drink it," Harry said quietly.

Draco laughed, like the thought of Harry drinking- whatever that was- was comical. "No, you don't want that, love," he assured him.

"What if I do?" Harry said stubbornly, raising his chin in challenge.

Draco quirked an eyebrow at him, looking intrigued. "Are you sure about that?"

Harry nodded decisively, and Draco studied him for a moment, probably to make certain that he was sure. Harry was sure, though. It was just a drink; how bad could it be?

"Alright, darling, whatever you want," Draco relented with a chuckle, sliding the glass back over to Harry, taking the Firewhiskey for himself.

"I can handle it," Harry assured him, picking up the glass of green liquid and taking a sip, almost sputtering at the intense licorice flavor and the horrible burn it left going down.

Oh, God.

Harry stubbornly took another sip. He could handle it.

*

Harry felt good.

He didn't know how long they'd been sitting here, but he'd downed two of those weird, green drinks and he was so comfortable, resting his weight against Draco, feeling his body heat radiating all the way down to Harry's bones. He could hardly take his eyes off of his boyfriend, tracing the curve of his brow, the slope of his nose, the sharp cut of his jaw with his eyes until he could see it with his eyes closed.

He was so fucking pretty.

His friends kept talking to him, and he answered them, laughing, wide grin never leaving his face. He was so happy to be here with everyone, to see them all getting along like this.

"Here you go, Potter, drink up," Theo told him with a wink, handing him a glass of Firewhiskey this time. Thank God. That green drink was disgusting.

Harry hummed happily, sipping at the whiskey, sighing at the feeling of pleasant heat sliding down his stomach instead of a screaming, sharp burn.

He downed that one quickly, and before he could blink, another drink was being shoved at him. He grinned at Theo, raising the glass in thanks and snuggling closer to Draco until he was half hanging off of his chair. Draco wrapped his arm around Harry, supporting his weight.

Such a good boyfriend. The best.

"You are absolutely off your face, mate," Ron said, laughing.

Harry frowned, reaching up to feel his face. It was still there. Ron was a liar. That's okay, though, they could still be best friends, even if he did tell weird lies about Harry's face being gone.

"My face isn't off, you wanker," he said petulantly, sticking out his tongue at Ron, who just sputtered out a laugh, sliding him a glass of something clear.

Harry tasted it and wrinkled his nose. This was just water. He didn't want water. "Where's my drink?"

"You finished it love," Draco told him, showing him his empty Firewhiskey glass. Oh. When had he done that?

"Oh. Can I have more?"

"No, drink your water," Draco said nudging the glass of water closer.

Harry pouted, but Draco wasn't budging, and his mouth felt like he had been chewing on cotton balls, so he obediently sipped at the water, preening under Draco's satisfied smile.

"Harry, are you hungry?" Hermione asked him. "Maybe you should eat something."

"Nah. Just thirsty," he assured her with a lazy grin, then he froze, sitting up straight. "Wait. I need the loo." He really had to piss.

"Come on, darling, I'll take you," Draco said, offering his hand to Harry.

"No, no, no, I can go by myself," he argued. "You stay. Drink, be social, enjoy your night out. I'll be back."

Draco arched an eyebrow at him, but he did let Harry go on his own. Harry wandered over to the restrooms, happy to see that the men's room was empty. He closed his eyes and sighed in relief, tilting his head back as he relieved himself.

He felt so light right now, like when he was flying. He should go out on his broom when he got home. It was easier than riding on a dragon, but less exciting. He wondered what it would be like to have a pet dragon. Or a fleet of dragons. That sounded even better. He could give his friends some of his dragons and they could all ride them together. He just needed names. Smoky. Or maybe Biscuit. He liked biscuits.

He was ripped out of his dragon fantasy, jumping a bit when the door slammed open.

Harry looked over to see Theo, who had his eyes locked on Harry, mouth hanging open.

"Theo. My dick is out, mate. Mind looking somewhere else?" Harry said conversationally, and Theo snapped his eyes up, smirking, looking anything but embarrassed.

"Merlin, Potter, no wonder Draco always looks so bloody happy," he joked.

Harry laughed, tucking himself away. Theo was weird. He started washing his hands carefully, mesmerized by the bubbles sliding over his skin. He washed his hands for a long time, then looked over to Theo.

"If you get me a towel, I won't tell Draco that you were staring at my cock," Harry offered generously, waggling his eyebrows.

Theo's jaw dropped, a bark of laughter escaping him. "I'll just tell him myself, you know. He deserves a congratulatory shot for taking that monster," he told Harry, but he did walk over to the stack of towels, bringing one to Harry. Ha. Harry won that one.

Theo held a rough, scratchy looking towel out towards him, but Harry ignored him, wiping his hands on the much softer looking towel right in front of him.

"Hey! That's my shirt," Theo complained, trying to move away, but Harry tightened his grip, frowning.

"Shh. Towels don't talk."

Theo snorted and rolled his eyes, beginning to walk away, taking Harry's towel with him.

Harry hurried after him, finishing drying his hands anyway on their way back to the table, making sure they were extra, extra dry. The driest. When they reached their friends, Harry squinted at Theo.

"You're a weird towel," he informed him, plopping back down in his chair while Draco laughed, pulling Harry's chair closer to him.

"You alright there?" he asked Harry with a raised eyebrow.

Harry grinned at him. He was so alright. "Did you know," he said loudly, leaning over the table so everyone could hear him. This was good news for everyone. When they were all looking at him, he continued. "If I had forty-seven dragons, I'd give you all one. But only one. Except you," he said to Draco while Ron snorted with laughter. Rude. Harry ignored him. This was about Draco now. He was most important. "You can share all of my dragons. They can be our dragons, baby."

"Thank you, darling," Draco told him with a smile, brushing his dark hair out of his face. "That's really kind of you."

"I know," Harry said proudly. "I've already named them all Biscuit. Where's my drink?"

"Right here," Draco said with a chuckle, sliding a glass of clear stuff closer to him.

"What's in this?" Harry asked, sticking his finger into the water and spinning it around to feel it. Nice and wet, exactly how the best drinks always were.

"It's vodka, mate," Theo told him. Harry perked up, drinking half the glass in one go. Wow. That was the smoothest vodka he ever had; it just tasted like water. Incredible. Magic was the best.

He focused on his water-vodka while everyone else chattered around him until a large slice of cake suddenly appeared in front of him. Why was someone giving him cake? Was that red velvet? He hated red velvet.

"Here, love, eat this," Audrey's voice told him.

"But it's not even my birthday!" Harry exclaimed. He stayed quiet after that, not wanting to hurt her feelings by telling her he didn't like it.

"It's not, but you can have it anyway," she said with a smile before walking back to the bar.

"I don't like red velvet cake," Harry whispered to Draco when she was gone.

Draco furrowed his brow at him in confusion, but handed him a fork anyway. "Yes, you do, it's your favorite," he chuckled.

"But I don't even like peanut butter," Harry argued. He hated peanut butter. It made him nauseous, and it reminded him of when Scorpius had his allergic reaction.

Draco sputtered out a bewildered laugh, looking no less confused.

"There's no peanut butter in red velvet," Ron said, looking equally confused.

"There's not?"

"No."

"Oh. Then what am I thinking of?"

"Not a clue, mate," Ron laughed. "You are bloody pissed. Eat your cake before I eat it."

Harry thought the fuck not. This was his favorite cake. He didn't want to share. He shoved a large bite in his mouth before Ron could steal it, guarding it carefully with his arms.

Ooh. That was good. Harry ate the rest of his cake, licking his fingers when he was done, humming in contentment as Hermione told them something or other about her charity. She was going to be so excited about the Trivia Night next month. He couldn't wait, even if he did have to talk in front of people he didn’t know. He loved Hermione enough to do that for her.

"Hello," a deep voice that Harry didn't recognize said suddenly, interrupting them. Harry looked over to see a man standing there, staring at Draco like he was a piece of meat. Staring at his boyfriend.

Harry frowned at him, narrowing his eyes, but the man ignored him. That was rude.

"You're quite lovely, and I was wondering if you maybe needed your drink topped off?" the rude man said, far too smiley, and no. Draco was his, this stranger couldn't have him, even if he was annoyingly handsome.

Harry climbed onto Draco, grasping onto his shoulder for balance so he could half kneel on Draco's leg, making his position clear to this stranger. Draco's arm wrapped around his waist, pulling Harry closer and keeping him steady, because he was so sweet. The sweetest. Best boyfriend ever.

"No, no, that's mine," Harry told the man emphatically, eyes glaring, fingering gently along Draco's jawline and ear, showing the man that only Harry could touch his face like that. "You can't have him. That's my boyfriend."

"Er," the man said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck, still looking at Draco for confirmation, like Harry didn’t just tell him Draco was taken.

Draco just shrugged. "I'm his boyfriend."

Smugness washed over Harry. Ha. Draco turned down this pretty stranger for him. Because he was Harry's boyfriend. He was so lucky.

Harry was fucking winning at life.

"Ah. Sorry about that. Thought he was just a touchy drunk," the man apologized, walking away without a fuss. Good. The man was clearly not very smart, anyway, Harry wasn’t drunk at all. Showed what he knew.

Draco was still watching the man walk away, so Harry cupped his face, turning him back to face Harry. "You're my boyfriend," he reiterated.

"I am," Draco agreed, and Harry grinned widely at him, dimple popping into place.

"Thank goodness," he sighed happily, licking the corner of Draco’s mouth possessively before slumping against him in a hug, nuzzling their cheeks together. "You're so pretty."

"Thank you, darling," Draco murmured, squeezing Harry's shoulder tightly.

Harry sat back up, suddenly noticing that they had chips on the table. Harry loved chips. He should make them at home more often. He turned around, not leaving Draco's lap, carefully calculating how many chips were in the basket and how much ketchup he needed for each one.

"I need at least seven packets of ketchup, or I'm fucked," he muttered.

Harry ate his chips after Hermione very kindly brought him ketchup, but he didn't remove himself from Draco's side again. Draco didn't seem to mind at all, casting Harry amused glances every time he wiggled happily, until Pansy huffed at them.

"Would you two get out of here? You're disgusting. Stop being so... whatever that is," she said, gesturing vaguely at them.

Harry frowned, offended. What was wrong with cuddling? Maybe she should cuddle Blaise more. She might he less grumpy.

"Don't be jealous, Pansy, I'm sure Blaise will cuddle you, too, once you're back in the dark hole you crawled out of," Draco told her.

"Blaise knows I'd string him up if he ever tried anything of the sort," she said flippantly, but Draco just laughed.

"Whatever you say," he mused, draining the last of his drink.

Draco kept talking, but Harry tuned it out, suddenly very tired. His eyelids were droopy, and his tongue felt very thick, like it was wrapped in a flannel. It was hard to move it. Draco looked over to him at one point, and Harry just stared back, blinking slowly. Draco smiled at him, then turned back to their friends, saying something to them before he stood up, helping Harry out of his chair.

"Time to go, sweetheart," he said quietly, helping to keep Harry steady on his feet.

"Byeee," Harry told everyone, waving at their friends.

Everyone shouted goodbyes to them, and Draco grabbed his waist, half carrying him outside to the Apparation Point. "Do you want me to sober you up?" he asked, and Harry shook his head.

"Just wanna sleep," he slurred out, struggling to keep his eyes open.

"Alright. Hold on, sweetheart."

Harry wrapped himself around Draco and held on tightly as Draco twisted them, popping them up right inside their bedroom. The second they landed, Harry stumbled to the bathroom, stomach lurching. He was hot. Why was it so hot in here? He peeled off his jacket, then his jeans, leaving them in a heap on the floor and opening the window, letting the chilly night breeze in before making his way over to the toilet to have a wee.

The nausea passed quickly now that he wasn't so hot, and he was feeling much better by the time he had finished washing his hands and returned to the bedroom.

"What happened to your trousers?" Draco asked him, and Harry looked down, shocked to see that he had no pants on. He had no idea where his trousers had gone.

He looked back up and held his hands out, arms spread wide. This was a teachable moment. Who needed trousers? Harry felt free. "I've lost my trousers, but I've found myself."

"Oh, my Gods," Draco whispered, shaking his head in fond exasperation. "Come here, you idiot, come get in bed."

Harry grinned and bounded over to him, stripping his shirt off along the way.

"You should get naked," Harry said as Draco helped him crawl into bed. He wanted to touch his skin. It was so soft. Unnaturally soft. He loved Draco's skin.

"We'll see. Stay here, I'll be right back."

Harry nodded, and Draco brushed his hair back and helped him take off his glasses before he disappeared from Harry's view. Harry rolled over onto his side, curling up a bit as his exhaustion came flooding back. Tonight had been so fun. Harry should have brilliant ideas more often.

Harry felt the bed dip, and he scooted over, attaching himself to Draco, pleased when Draco pulled him close, wrapping Harry up in his arms.

"I love you," Harry mumbled against Draco's neck, feeling so happy, so content. This was all he wanted for the rest of his life.

Just let me love you forever, was his final thought, the comforting scent of cedar and grapefruit lulling him to sleep.

Notes:

Ahh, we're nearing the end! Only two chapters and an epilogue to go!

I hope you enjoyed this from Harry's perspective and understand his reaction to the article a bit better now! As always, any feedback is so appreciated, and I'll be back soon with the next chapter! Patronus magic coming up!

Chapter 17: CHAPTER 16

Summary:

This chapter posted twice for some reason, but I've fixed it and deleted the duplicate! So sorry for any confusion!

Notes:

Getting close to the end! Just one chapter and an epilogue to go!

"Daddy! There's an owl!" Scorpius shrieked from the living room. Harry was halfway through supper, but he stopped what he was doing immediately, rushing in to join him.

"Go in the kitchen, buddy. See if you can find the potato masher for me. I can't find it anywhere," Harry told him.

"I'll find it! I'm good at finding things," Scorpius said seriously, skipping to the kitchen.

Draco had solved his mystery case shortly after their night out, and luckily his eating and sleeping habits had returned to normal, but they were still re-routing their post through the DMLE. If Robards had sent this letter along to the house, he knew it was clearly nothing dangerous, but he didn't want to take any chances. They hadn't gotten anything since he put the wards up. His friends just sent him a Patronus or Firecalled him if they needed something, and Narcissa sent her letters to the hospital instead.

Harry opened the window, but froze when he saw what the owl was carrying. A newspaper. Irritation flared to life, and he quickly untied the burden, trying to shoo the owl away. It stubbornly didn't budge, holding out its leg so he could put money in the little pouch tied to it.

"I'm not paying for a paper I didn't ask for," he snapped at the bird, and it puffed up its feathers angrily. He yelped when it nipped him harshly before finally flying away.

He sucked on his bleeding finger and tossed the paper aside without looking at it in annoyance before returning to the kitchen.

Scorpius was standing in the middle of the kitchen with his arms crossed, potato masher in hand, looking less than impressed.

"It was where it always is, daddy. You didn't look very hard."

Harry stifled a laugh. "Sorry, Scorp, I guess I just didn't see it. Want to help me mash the potatoes?" Scorpius agreed, and they finished up supper together.

It wasn't until he had Scorpius in the tub that evening that he remembered the newspaper, and now that his anger had faded, curiosity got the best of him. He left Scorp alone in the tub after washing his hair, wandering downstairs to look over the newspaper. It would be better to be prepared for what was to come, especially if it involved Draco. He needed to be able to have a calm handle on whatever the situation was.

When he unrolled the paper, though, he froze, eyes stuck on the front page.

There was no headline, just a giant photo of him and Draco together, the same one from that first article speculating about them in front of Fortescue's, but this one had the word RETRACTION slashed through it in bold, red letters.

Retraction? The Prophet had never printed a retraction about anything, they just clung to their lies for dear life.

Harry skimmed the article, blood turning to ice. They had retracted the sexual article about him, stating that they had gotten confirmation that their source hadn't been Draco Malfoy at all, merely a jilted fan using Polyjuice Potion to impersonate him in an attempt to tear the Saviour's relationship apart. It concluded that they could no longer prove the information they'd received was accurate and factual, and they were thereby printing an official retraction to "uphold their good standing in the Wizarding community as a true and honest news source".

Fear gripped him as he finished reading. What the fuck was this? It was dated four days from now, which meant it hadn't even been run yet. Someone had sent this to him early, but why? Why did they print this? They knew when they printed that article in the first place that they hadn't spoken to Draco, so why go back on it now? Why this bizarre lie about someone Polyjuicing themselves into Draco in order to trick them? What had changed?

This was going to make everything worse. Someone had made Cuffe retract his article, the article that had been meant as a punishment for him. Who knew how he would retaliate now! What-

Harry dropped the paper, Firecalling Hermione at her office immediately.

"Harry! What a-"

"How could you?" he burst out. "Hermione, you promised. You promised me you wouldn't go after Cuffe. This was exactly what I was trying to avoid. He's probably furious now, and he's only going to go after Draco even more! Why-"

"Harry, wait. What on earth are you talking about?" she asked, looking incredibly confused, and he faltered. He didn't expect that reaction, at all.

Did she not do this? He had assumed it had been Hermione, because she had such a strong propensity for fighting injustice, but she looked like she genuinely had no clue what he was talking about.

"The article... someone sent me a copy of the printed retraction. You didn't send me this? You didn't talk to Cuffe?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"I never spoke to him. You asked me to let it go, and I did. Even though it was mistake," she said pointedly.

Oh.

"Well, who did, then? Someone talked to him. He wouldn't print that or send it to me for no reason," he told her, confused. "Did Pansy visit him?"

"I doubt it. I told her why you didn't want to pursue anything, and she understood. She wouldn't do anything that might hurt Draco," Hermione explained.

"Then who the hell did? He didn't do this on his own," he said in frustration, thrusting the paper through the fire for her to read.

He waited impatiently while she scanned the article with sharp eyes before pulling it back. "I don't know, but Harry, isn't this a good thing? People will know Draco didn't do it, and you’ll stop getting hate mail."

"No, it's not a good thing! He threatened, me, Hermione. If I don't cooperate, he'll go after Draco. Why would he just go back on that? This could just mean he has something even worse planned!" He felt hysterical, but he didn't understand what game Cuffe was playing at with this.

"Harry-" she tried, but his mind was whirling in a panic.

"If you didn't do this, and Pansy didn't, who did? It had to be someone who has a leg to stand on or he'd never cave, and I need to make them apologize to him so he doesn’t print this. Who else-"

Harry cut himself off abruptly, realization slamming into him.

Draco.

It had to be Draco. He was certainly not above stooping to Cuffe's level, and he still had his Malfoy contacts, even after the war, he'd mentioned it before in passing conversation about his father. Harry didn't know how he did it, but he knew with almost scary certainty that Draco did this somehow.

Terror at what this would mean for Draco welled up inside of him before being almost immediately overpowered with anger like he hadn't felt towards Draco in years.

"I'm going to kill him," Harry said through clenched teeth.

"Harry..."

"I'm so sorry for accusing you, Hermione, but I have to go."

"Harry! Please, be rational-"

He pulled his head out of the fireplace without answering her and whipped the newspaper across the room before pacing furiously, tugging on his hair.

What was Draco thinking? Harry had specifically told him that he didn't want to do anything about the article, that it would only make things worse. He didn't want to open the door for Cuffe to go even further. Didn't he understand that Harry was trying to protect him? He'd been dealing with that bastard for years, he knew what buttons shouldn't be pushed, and moreover, what had he done to even cause Cuffe to retract the article? He couldn't even think about it; it made him nauseous.

Harry was angry, but he was also terrified. What would Cuffe print about him next? Surely something that would outrage the public even more, possibly even put him in danger. Harry couldn't protect him from everything; he couldn't always be with him. And what about Scorpius?

Oh, when he got home, Harry was going to-

"Daddy! I'm all done!" Scorpius called from the bathtub, and Harry jumped, glancing at the stairs. He'd almost forgotten that Scorp was still in the tub, Christ.

"I'm coming!" he called upstairs.

He wanted to scream. He tugged even harder on his hair before taking a deep breath. He had to calm down. He never got angry like this anymore, and he didn't like it at all. Focus. He had to get Scorp to bed, first and foremost. Focusing on something else would help cool his anger, hopefully.

Harry slowly went upstairs and got Scorpius out of the tub and ready for bed, reading him his usual bedtime stories until he fell asleep. Draco still wasn't home, so Harry sat and watched him sleep for a few minutes, running his fingers through his white blonde hair.

He had to keep it together, for Scorpius' sake and the sake of his relationship. Raging at his boyfriend when he got home wasn't going to fix anything, and it would only make him more miserable. He didn't want to fight, but he couldn't just let this go, either. What Draco did, deliberately going behind his back after Harry explicitly asked him not to, wasn't okay.

He took one more calming breath, then slipped out of the room. When he was back downstairs, he ignored the housework he'd left unfinished for once and went to pour himself a glass of Firewhiskey instead, gathering up the newspaper off the floor carefully before planting himself on the sofa to wait, trying to work out what he wanted to say. He stared at the paper in his lap, reading the words over and over until they blurred together.

When Draco finally arrived home, Harry didn't get up to greet him. He didn't even say hello. He just felt even more sick. He at least felt more under control, but his anger was still there, just simmering beneath the surface. He needed to hear what Draco had to say for himself first. He wanted to give him a chance to explain, to justify what he'd done. He didn't know how angry he should be, and he didn’t want to overreact. He didn't want to under react either, though. The tiniest part of Harry hoped that he was wrong about this, that Draco hadn't really been the one to do this, but he knew it was a long shot.

Harry just hoped to hell that he didn't try to lie. He didn't want this conversation to go like that, didn't want to lose trust in his boyfriend or have this turn ugly. They've never fought, and he didn't exactly want to start now.

Draco had clearly noticed Harry waiting for him, because he just hovered near the fireplace for a moment before taking a hesitant step forward.

"Harry?” he said softly, and Harry finally looked at him, calmly raising his eyes to meet Draco's. Harry watched the bob of his throat as he swallowed thickly, clearly sensing that something was wrong.

"Would you like to tell me what this is?" Harry asked, keeping his voice cool and steady, cutting through the thick tension in the air. He held up the newspaper for Draco to see, and Draco froze when he saw what it was, eyes skimming over it rapidly before lifting back to Harry, panic flashing across his face. That was all the confirmation Harry needed, and disappointment washed over him.

"It looks like a newspaper to me," Draco tried to joke weakly.

"You think?" Harry asked sarcastically, irritation flaring up at the deflection. "Why did I get this in the post today? It's dated four days from now. Why was this sent to me early? Why was this even written? What did you do?"

"I- now, don't be angry, darling-"

"Don't be angry?" Harry cut him off with a humorless laugh, voice low. "Oh, darling, I'm angry. I just haven't decided how angry yet. What did you do, Draco?"

"I just had a meeting with him," Draco hedged.

"And what was said at this meeting?" Harry asked impatiently, just wanting a straight fucking answer. This wasn't a game; this affected all of their lives, their safety. He needed to know how serious it was and how to handle it, and Draco beating around the bush was just pissing him off more.

Draco sighed and took a seat in his armchair, pretense falling. "I asked to speak to him, and when he refused to recant the article when I asked politely, I merely suggested that it might be in his best interest to not get on my bad side."

Harry's jaw clenched tightly. "You threatened him," he said flatly. He wanted to bang his head against the table.

Draco crossed his arms petulantly. "I did not. I just... blackmailed him. A bit."

Blackmailed?! Jesus Christ, was he insane? Was he trying to get arrested?

"Draco!" Harry snapped, anger taking over. He stood up quickly, pacing in front of where Draco was still sat, running a frustrated hand through his already wild hair. "Why would you do that? How did you do that? Where did you even- no. You know what?" He stopped pacing to point accusingly at his idiot of a boyfriend. "I specifically told you that I wanted to let it go. I didn't want a fight with them, it wasn't worth it. Did I not say that?"

"You did. And you did let it go. But I never said I would," Draco argued calmly, far calmer than Harry was capable of being right now. "I'm sorry for going behind your back, darling, truly I am, and I'm sorry that you're upset, but I'm not sorry that I did it."

Harry’s mouth opened in outrage, but Draco held his hand up to stop him. "No. Listen to me," Draco said evenly, voice firm and confident, not leaving room for argument. Harry stilled, staring at him in irritation, but he did give him a chance to speak. This was supposed to be a conversation, he reminded himself.

"I'm not sorry, Harry," he repeated seriously, his gaze intense, burning into Harry. "I have sat here and watched you suffer because of that stupid paper and its reporters time and time again. I watched you suffer in school because of it, and yes," he said sharply before Harry could interrupt and remind him that that had mainly been his fault, "I know that a lot of it in school was my fault. I know. I was so wrong for that, and I am so sorry. But this," he said furiously, slamming his finger down on the discarded newspaper on the coffee table, his calm demeanor cracking to show how upset he still was about the original article, "this is different. This isn't some stupid article about you sneaking into the Triwizard Tournament or some ridiculous lie about you dating Granger. This was them vindictively seeking out deeply personal information with the sole intention of hurting you. They printed an article about your cock, Harry, and made it seem like I was the one who told them about it! Don't you understand why I'm so upset by that? That could have..." Draco swallowed thickly, blinking back tears, and Harry felt his acute anger melting away.

Harry knew what he was going to say. That could have caused Harry to leave him. And he was right; it could have. The possibility that Harry might have left him over the article was quite obviously still weighing heavily on him.

He remained silent, giving Draco a chance to collect himself. Harry watched as he took a shaky breath before continuing, sounding calmer, but no less emotional.

"I could have lost you because of it, don't you see that? And not only that, but they printed an article about your childhood, talking about how you were abused, for Merlin's sake, like it was hot gossip and not something horrific and traumatizing. That- that's fucked up, Harry. They literally stalk you; they show up wherever you are, they swarm you and pressure you and invade your privacy, invade our child's privacy... Darling, this had to stop. I am trying to protect you. Please understand that. They deserve to have consequences for what they've done. So does your absolute tosser of an ex," Draco added with disgust. "He's a fucking loser."

Harry frowned, digesting what he was saying. This... this was affecting him. It was affecting him on a level that Harry didn't fully realize before. He suddenly felt terrible for trying to brush it under the rug and act like it wasn't a big deal when it definitely was, for both of them.

Maybe... maybe he hadn't handled this correctly. He had only been trying to protect Draco and Scorpius, even at his own expense, but clearly it was hurting Draco to see Harry hurting. He hadn't thought about the fact that Draco may feel equally inclined to protect him. He was so used to always being the one to sacrifice, being the one who had to fix everything and take the hit to keep everyone else safe, he hadn't once considered that now, he had someone who wanted to protect him, to keep him safe. Maybe Harry didn't always have to throw himself on his proverbial sword. Maybe they should have worked this out together, as a team.

Draco was watching him carefully, and after a few moments, he softened. "I was going to tell you what I'd done as soon as the article came out, but fucking Cuffe sent it to you early. You can be mad at me if you want to be, I can accept that. I expected it, actually; but even so, I don't regret what I did, not one bit."

Harry stared back down at the floor, frowning, hands hanging limply by his sides. He could understand that, and it did actually make him feel better, knowing that Draco planned to tell him what he'd done instead of hiding it. The future date of the paper proved that Cuffe had sent it to him early, probably as a bit of revenge for being forced to retract his shitty article. It didn't make what Draco did okay, blackmailing someone wasn't okay, but... Harry could understand why he couldn't let it go.

He now had another concern, though, after that comment about Owen. Had Draco gone after him as well? Threatened him? That wasn't okay, either. He didn't want that part of his life re-opened, and Draco didn't even know his name, so how would he have found him? The last thing he wanted was his boyfriend going to Azkaban for stalking and harassment, or fucking blackmail.

Christ, this was such a mess.

He huffed in frustration, crossing his arms. "Did you go after my ex, too, then? I never even told you his name," Harry asked, bewildered.

"I didn't," Draco said evasively, and Harry's head snapped up, eyeing him suspiciously. That wasn't a direct no.

"Draco. What did you do?"

Draco bit his lip, then gave a tiny shrug. "I just... sicced Ginny on him."

Harry stared at him, stunned, for what felt like forever before he barked out an incredulous laugh, which quickly devolved into slightly hysterical laughter. 

"Oh, my God. You didn't," Harry gasped out between laughs.

He sent Ginny after Owen? Fucking hell. She'd been itching to have a go at him for years, literal years. He probably made her entire adult life by asking her to handle him. He had no idea what she may have done to him, but whatever it was, it was probably horrendous. Ginny was scary, and an unrestrained, angry Ginny was downright terrifying. He was going to have to make sure she didn't actually murder him. It was still funny.

"He deserved it!" Draco defended. "He had no right to talk about you that way!"

Harry looked at him a bit helplessly for a moment, lips twitching as he tried not to burst out laughing again before closing his eyes. He took a very deep breath and released it slowly, blinking his eyes back open and fixing them on Draco in a far less angry gaze. Fuck, it was hard to be mad at him.

Harry walked over and climbed onto Draco's lap, arms resting loosely on his shoulders for a moment, taking in his shocked, slightly suspicious face before Harry leaned in and hugged him, pressing his body up against Draco's, arms snaking around his back, holding him close.

"Okay. Alright, darling, okay. You win. But I need you to know that I do not approve of what you did. I really, really don't. And I should be angry at you. I am angry," Harry said sternly, needing to make it clear that he wasn't okay with Draco stooping to their level, and Draco's eyes grew sad as he swallowed thickly and averted his eyes.

"But," Harry continued, "I suppose I can understand why you did it. And I can't pretend that I don't appreciate you trying to defend my honor. Next time, though, let me handle it, yeah? I don't need you getting yourself in trouble for blackmailing anyone else."

Hopefully there wouldn't be a next time, and if there was, Harry would make sure they came up with a plan together, but it would definitely be him implementing it so Draco didn't get in trouble for going scorched earth.

Draco relaxed at that, melting into Harry, pressing a kiss to his forehead. "I really am sorry that I upset you," Draco whispered. "I just... I couldn't let it go, Harry; I just couldn't."

"I get it. Honestly, I probably would do the same for you. I mean, not blackmail, but you know what I mean. I did threaten that reporter for you. And Ackford," Harry added, frowning as he remembered his horrible behavior, before shaking his head slightly to clear his thoughts. "Whatever. I just wish you'd talked to me about it."

"I'm sorry. I knew you wouldn't want me to do it, though," Draco explained, and well, he had a point. Harry definitely would have talked him out of it.

"You're right," Harry said quietly. "And I don't want to know what you used to blackmail him. Please. I don't want any part in that. I don't want to have to live with the secret of whatever horrible thing he's done. I don't want it on my conscious. If that's alright with you."

"I didn't expect you would," Draco said with a wry smile. "I handled it, it's done. They won't be printing anything else like that about you. And they won't be crowding you in public anymore. Actually, you won't be seeing them at all for a while."

What?

Harry blinked. "What did you even ask for?"

"The article retraction. And the sleazy journalist who wrote the article's job... and for them to turn over all the dirt they had on you and leave you alone until you reach out to them," Draco said with a shrug, and Harry gaped at him, heart fluttering.

They were going to leave him alone? He was going to have peace? ...oh, God. He was actually going to be left alone?

"The 'dirt' they had on you was pathetic, by the way," Draco continued, oblivious to Harry's excitement. "Couldn't have done anything with it if they wanted to, unless they wanted to write about how you bewitched Longbottom’s plants to attack students or that you feed our son too much ice cream."

He faltered, frowning at that. "Seriously? That’s it? Am I really that lame?" That was actually rather disheartening, reinforcing what he'd always been told about being too boring. Fuck.

Draco laughed, though, not looking put off at all. "I wouldn't call you lame, darling. I'd call you... settled. You just have your priorities in order and don't feed into drama. You're so bloody nice to everyone, and you're focused on the people you care about. You mind your own business. It's not a bad thing at all; I think it's admirable."

Oh.

Harry gave him a small smile at that. "That definitely sounds a bit better than just being boring."

"You're never boring," Draco murmured, leaning in to finally kiss Harry, slow and sweet. Harry kissed him back eagerly, his tongue begging for entrance, and he felt the tension leave Draco's body. They kissed until Harry could feel Draco grow hard beneath him, arousal pressing up insistently where he still had his arse settled comfortably in Draco's lap.

"So, am I forgiven, then, or do I need to beg?" Draco said when he broke the kiss, voice low and sultry and he quirked an eyebrow at Harry.

"Oh, you definitely need to do some begging," Harry growled, pinning his wrists to his chest, devouring Draco's mouth once more.

*

The very next day, Harry was standing in front of Ginny's training tent, waiting impatiently for her to answer him. He knew she was in there, he had her training schedule, and the team wasn't allowed to leave the training grounds on weekdays without advance notice.

Finally, after what felt like forever, her tent flap opened and she leaned against the front of the tent, smirking at him as a random, very large man with a thick beard exited after her, doing a double take at Harry in shock before Ginny wiggled her fingers at him, shooing him along.

"Sorry about that. I was a bit preoccupied," she said, pulling him inside the tent.

"Christ, Ginny," he muttered, waving his hand to freshen up the air inside. It reeked of sex in there.

She just shrugged unabashedly, though, looking completely unapologetic. "So, my dear little Harry, what brings you to my poor, isolated neck of the woods with no notice whatsoever?"

Harry stared at her. "You're so weird."

She laughed at that, throwing herself down on her bed. "Seriously, what's up? You never just show up here for no reason."

Wow, way to make him feel guilty. He made a mental note to visit her more often, but didn't comment on it now. This was actually serious.

"Why did you believe me right away when I told you about the article? You didn't even question it. How did you know he didn't do it?"

"Because I'm brilliant," she said, throwing one arm up dramatically.

"Ginny."

She huffed and sat up. "Harry. You clearly already know why, so I don't know why you're asking. And to be fair, I really did already know before he owled me and told me what happened. He's disgustingly in love with you, like he'd ever do anything that might make you want to dump him," she said pointedly, rolling her eyes.

Harry sighed. "What did you do to him, Gin."

"Nothing he didn't deserve. He's lucky you didn't let me at him after he broke your heart or had his last article published."

Harry stared at her, unimpressed until she sighed again, sitting up on the bed. "I tried to just talk to him, you know. I asked him why he did it. He didn't even deny it, he seemed like he was proud of himself. Claimed he missed you. More like he missed everything you used to do for him," she scoffed in disgust. "He told me that he wrote you a letter telling you that he was willing to give you a second chance. To 'make it up to him'," she said sarcastically, and Harry reared back in shock. 

That's what that letter had been? Thank fuck he'd burned it. What a complete prick!

"O-kay," he said slowly. "So, if he supposedly misses me, why would he go to the Prophet?"

"That's what I wanted to know!" she cried. "Apparently, he saw you on Valentine's Day. He was at the restaurant you went to, that fancy Italian place? He told me that you both walked right past him, didn't even notice him. It pissed him off, so he went to Cuffe, probably out of jealousy, hoping it would break you two up. It just happened to work out in Cuffe's favor as well, and he ran with it."

Harry swallowed, feeling slightly sick. Owen had done that on purpose to ruin his relationship. He hadn't broken Harry enough when he left him, now he had to come back and try to ruin the happiness he'd managed to find? What was wrong with him? Why was he still trying to hurt him?

"I just don't get it," he said quietly. "I don't understand why he's doing this, why he supposedly cares all of a sudden."

"He's a piece of shit, Harry," she said softly, coming over to hug him. "He never deserved you; he's just a miserable fuck. He won't be able to hurt anyone else, though, I made sure of that," she told him.

"What did you do to him?" he asked warily.

"Not much, really. I just hit him with particularly nasty Bat-Bogey and Knee-Reversal Hexes. And then glued his tongue to the roof of his mouth."

Harry frowned. That didn't sound too bad. Shockingly tame for Ginny, actually.

"With a Permanent Sticking Charm."

Harry's jaw fell open in shock. Permanent?! They'd never be able to reverse that! He'd had to blow out the entire wall that Walburga Black's portrait had been attached to in order to get rid of it; nothing else had worked, and he'd tried everything. 

"Ginny! Oh, my God!"

"What? I'm sure someone found him and fixed his bloody kneecaps, at least. He wanted to run his mouth to the press, let's see him run it when he can't ever move his tongue again," she said flippantly.

Harry was a bit scared of her. "Will he even be able to eat?" he asked, concerned.

She shrugged. "Probably not solids, but I'm sure he can get a straw in there."

"You're terrifying," he muttered, and she grinned brightly.

"Thank you. At any rate, I definitely scared him off of fucking with you anymore. He screamed like a little girl."

Ginny chattered away after that, clearly deciding the subject was closed when Harry didn't lecture her further, and Harry made a mental note to never, ever piss her off.

*

"Harry?" Draco asked one evening, wandering into the kitchen where Harry was pulling hot rolls out of the oven for supper. Scorpius pouted, and Draco scooped him up for a hug. "Hello, my little star."

Scorpius giggled and hugged him back tightly.

"Yeah, love?" Harry replied distractedly as he checked the bottoms of the rolls, then turned to kiss Draco and Scorpius, on the cheek.

"Would you maybe help me with something later?"

"Ooo, papa needs help," Scorpius said under his breath, and Draco chuckled.

"Shocking, I know, but it does happen on occasion," Draco told him, poking his belly.

"Of course I will. What do you need help with?" Harry asked curiously.

"Teach me how to cast a Patronus. I'm pants at it," Draco admitted.

A thrill shot through Harry. He'd been anxiously anticipating Draco's Patronus form for ages, wondering if they'd be anything alike, like his parents. He was so excited to find out.

"Papa said pants!"

Harry laughed. "Sure, darling. You didn't have to do that alone, you know, I told you ages ago that I'd help you, but you never mentioned it again."

"Yes, well, I was trying on my own first," Draco grimaced. "Unsuccessfully, obviously."

"What's a 'Tronus?" Scorpius asked.

"Pa-tronus," Draco corrected. "It's a protection spell. And it can be used to communicate. They take on a different shape based on your values, and your spirit."

"Ohh," Scorpius said, his eyes widening, shining in delight. "I like that!"

"Do you want to see?" Harry asked, and Scorpius nodded eagerly.

Harry drew his wand and conjured his silvery stag with practiced ease, watching it bound around the room before disappearing again as he ended the Charm.

Scorpius stared at where the stag had been with enormous eyes, jaw hanging open.

"That was the prettiest magic ever," he whispered. Harry couldn't agree more.

"It is quite lovely," Draco said quietly, staring at where the Stag had been longingly. He chewed his lip, glancing at Harry. "Can you show me?"

Harry smiled, coming over to show him how to stand properly, and the right angle to hold his wand. When Harry was confident that his posture and incantation was correct, he had Scorpius sit out of the way so he didn't accidentally get hit.

"Okay. Show me what you can do so far, and we'll go from there, yeah?"

Draco nodded, closing his eyes to concentrate, and when he cast, a bright wisp of silver escaped his wand. He looked absolutely thrilled, so Harry assumed that was the closest he'd ever gotten.

"Okay, that's great!" Harry told him excitedly. "Good start. That's something. What are you thinking of?"

"When Scorpius was born, " he answered, and Harry smiled softly.

"Me!" Scorpius cheered. "Am I a good memory, papa?"

Draco smiled at him, and Harry could see the love he felt for his son written all over his face. "The best, love."

"Okay, how are you thinking of it?" Harry asked him.

"Uh... with my brain?" Draco said, looking bewildered. Harry suppressed a laugh.

"No. You need to think of it here," Harry said, tapping his finger on Draco's chest, over his heart. "Let it fill you up here, not just in your mind."

"Okay..." Draco said, frowning. He closed his eyes and tried again, but nothing happened at all this time.

Again; nothing.

Again.

And again.

He made a frustrated noise, and Harry's heart went out to him. He could tell that Draco was overthinking it, not fully understand what Harry meant when he said to feel it, and he clearly wanted this to work so badly.

"I can't do it, Harry," he said, defeatedly.

"You can, love. Look, it's getting late, why don't we get Scorp to bed, and I can help you some more after? Take a break. Go shower, clear your mind, alright?"

Draco nodded stiffly, and hugged his sleepy son tightly goodnight.

"Night night, papa. Good luck with your 'Tronus," Scorpius said.

"Goodnight, love. Thank you," he said softly, kissing Scorpius' head, then Harry's cheek before going up to shower. Harry and Scorpius followed closely behind, and Harry got him to bed, reading him Cinderella until his little eyes started to droop.

"Goodnight, love," Harry told him, kissing him on the forehead. Scorpius hummed, then let out a little snore. Harry chuckled quietly, then padded out of his room and back downstairs to wait for Draco.

When he came back downstairs, he looked a bit more relaxed, hair damp and face scrubbed pink.

"Okay, ready to try again?" Harry said, rubbing his hands together.

Draco nodded, and he tried again few more times without success before Harry stopped him again.

"You're overthinking it," he explained gently. "I can tell by your face. It's not..." he paused, blowing his fringe out of his face. He wasn't as good at words as Draco was, he didn't know how to explain what he needed to do in a way that made sense to him.

"Okay. Let's try this," he tried, switching tactics. "You remember what the memory looked like, right?"

Draco nodded, looking at him like he was dense.

"Great. Now what about your other senses? What sounds did you hear? What about any smells? Babies smell good, do you remember it? How did his hair feel when you touched it, or how did his hand feel when it held on to your finger?"

Draco closed his eyes again, looking a bit more relaxed this time. He raised his wand, and cast again, and Harry's heart leapt when a silvery must erupted from his wand tip and floated around the room. It wasn't corporeal, but it was much closer.

"That was much better! You're almost there," Harry said. "Now that you have that part down, how did it feel?"

Draco blinked at him blankly. "I don't understand what you mean," he said in irritation. "I was already imagining how it felt."

"You were imagining what you were touching, not how it felt," Harry said, shaking his head. "I don't mean your sense of touch; I mean your emotions. Just- here," Harry said, moving to stand behind Draco, his front pressed firmly against Draco's back. He squeezed his shoulder before sliding down his arm to cover the hand holding his wand, his other hand wrapping around Draco's waist to rest lightly on his stomach, feeling his stomach tighten under the touch. Harry lifted up on his tip-toes so his mouth was closer to Draco's ear.

"Breathe, darling," he murmured quietly, breath ghosting across his ear, and Harry could feel him obey, his body practically melting back into Harry. "Find your memory. Don't just remember it, feel it. Remember how you felt, remember the emotions running through you. Were you overwhelmed, or happy? Think of how much love you felt. Take yourself back there. Live in it."

Harry felt a shudder run through Draco, and he stayed as still and silent as he could, not wanting to disturb his concentration. He finally understood. Harry could tell by the way his breathing grew a bit more ragged, and he trembled slightly under Harry's touch. When he finally raised his wand again, Harry knew it would work this time.

"Expecto Patronum," Draco whispered, and he flinched as a blinding light erupted from the tip of his wand.

He did it. Harry couldn't see what it was yet, Draco's taller form blocking the view, but he tightened his grip in anticipation. He was almost afraid to look. What shape would it be? Would it be a doe, like his mum's? Something else that matched Harry's? He hoped it was. He wanted that so much, proof that what Draco had said was true; that they really were soulmates.

He could hear Draco gasp loudly, and he knew he'd seen it. Harry plucked up his courage and peered around his shoulder, heart dropping when he saw an absolutely stunning silvery swan floating around the room. A swan.

They weren't soulmates.

Tears pricked his eyes, and he blinked them away immediately, chastising himself for thinking such a selfish thought for even one moment.

He wasn't disappointed. He wasn't. This was an incredible moment for Draco, one he'd been waiting for for years, and Harry wasn't going to ruin it for him.

"Sweetheart," Harry said softly, his cheek resting on Draco’s arm. Draco's hand clutched onto Harry's hand that was still resting on his stomach, squeezing him tightly. Harry could feel his heart beating rapidly where his chest was still pressed up against Draco.

He was so happy for him, truly. This wasn't about him. This swan was gorgeous; elegant and sophisticated and so very Draco. It was truly perfect for him.

"It's a swan," Harry said reverently, and Draco released a harsh breath.

"It's a black swan," Draco whispered, like he was afraid of scaring the beautiful creature away. He was right, Harry realized. His swan was much darker than Harry's stag usually appeared. Still silver, but a darker, stormier shade instead of the bright, almost white tone that his own Patronus form always held.

This was okay. They didn't need matching Patronus forms. It didn't mean their love wasn't real, and it didn't mean it wouldn't last. It was just a silly spell. It didn't mean anything, it didn't.

"It's gorgeous," Harry finally said. "Just like you. It's perfect for you, darling."

Suddenly, a small, black fur ball raced up to the swan, jumping at it wildly. Harry barked out a laugh, startling Draco.

"What?" Draco asked, and Harry pointed at where Fish was now chasing the swan around the room, trying to catch it.

Draco couldn't stop the bright laugh that spilled out of his lips, and Harry couldn't be disappointed, not really, not when his boyfriend looked so incredibly happy.

They may not be soulmates, but he was still Harry's, for as long as Draco would have him.

*

"Harry!" Draco called out one evening the moment he stepped out of the Floo. He was home late, and Scorpius was in the bath, but Harry didn't even have a chance to run in and check on him before Draco was sweeping into the kitchen, catching Harry around the waist and spinning him around before kissing him soundly.

Harry let out a surprised huff of laughter, kissing him back before pulling back to take in his boyfriend's face, silver eyes lit up.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Harry asked him.

"The Aurors found my patient's party," he said. "Healer Raube called me in today to let me know."

Harry perked up at that. His mystery patient from last month, the one that had driven him half mad trying to figure out. He'd told Harry that his patient had been with a group, and that they had somehow ended up on some unplottable island where a hoard of Quintapeds had gotten to them. Last he'd heard, they hadn't yet been found. Draco had been quite distraught over it.

"Darling, that's fantastic news!" Harry told him, pulling him in for a hug. "They're alright, then?"

"They're alive," he confirmed. "Raube said they weren't well, but they're alive, and they're going to be alright. I'm so relieved."

"I'm so happy to hear that, sweetheart. I know how worried you were about them. We should celebrate; do you want to grab a bottle of wine?"

"That's not all," Draco said, demeanor turning more somber.

Uh oh, that didn't look like it was quite as happy news. "What's wrong?"

"Raube filed a lawsuit against Ackford."

Harry's eyebrows shot up in surprise. He somehow did not expect that. The man had been fired, and he hadn't been back to the hospital, Harry had assumed that was the end of it.

"He did?"

Draco nodded. "On behalf of the patients he'd harmed or harassed or mistreated. Raube wanted me to join the lawsuit for sexual harassment," he grimaced.

"Are you going to? You know I'd support you one hundred percent if you decided to join in. Or if you didn't. Whatever you want to do, I'm on your side," Harry told him earnestly. Draco should sue him, for how miserable that wanker had made him for months, but judging by his face, he wasn't going to do any such thing.

Draco confirmed his suspicions a moment later. "Thank you, darling, but I have no interest in taking part in a lawsuit. It's about the patients, not me. I did agree to cooperate with the hospital's lawyer, though, and give a statement to help the case."

Harry wasn't surprised. Draco probably just wanted to move on. He deserved compensation for what he'd gone through, but it was ultimately his decision. Harry wasn’t going to push him. He was confused, though.

"But wait, I thought you said there wasn't any record of his conduct? How he can he file a lawsuit without proof? A paper trail, or corroboration, or something? Did you even file a report against him?" Harry asked.

"I never filed an official report, no. But apparently HR turned over a mountain of complaints that some employee he'd been fucking had buried for him. When he got fired, he broke things off with her and she sang like a canary to Raube, trying to get revenge, apparently. All she got was herself fired, too. It looks like he had bribed the staff to look the other way, and with the buried files, it was easy for him to hide his behavior."

"Jesus," Harry whispered, shocked. How awful. It was actually scary that he'd gone that far. What had he been thinking? "I hope everyone else who took part in this got fired as well. That's actually terrifying."

"They did," Draco confirmed. "Raube lost around half of his staff with this, and the dealing with the lawsuit, trying to make it right... he looked terrible. I actually feel quite bad for him," Draco said, frowning.

Harry was so proud of him. Proud of him for standing up and doing the right thing, proud of him for everything he'd done to keep the patients safe while working with Ackford, proud of him for having empathy for the man who'd allowed him to be repeatedly put in uncomfortable situations for months. Harry was so, so proud.

Harry traced his fingers along Draco's jaw, stroking his thumb along his cheekbone before nuzzling up to him, pressing little sucking kisses to his throat. "I think you're incredible," he murmured. "And I also think you need a reward for sticking it out like you did. Let me take care of you, baby."

Draco relaxed into Harry, going pliant, his throat bobbing under Harry's lips. "Okay," he breathed, groaning when Harry dropped to his knees.

*

"Are you ready yet, darling?" Draco asked him for the third time that evening. They were both dressed and ready to go to Audrey's surprise fundraiser for Hermione's charity, and Scorpius was at Andromeda's for the night, but Harry kept finding little things to stall. This time, he was re-reading his cue cards for what had to be the fiftieth time that day.

It wasn't that he didn't want to go. He did, truly, but he was so nervous about having to speak in front of a massive group of strangers, most of whom were 'fans', that he wanted to vomit. Harry was usually quite social, but with his friends, people he knew. Not things like this. 

Audrey's advertising for the event had gone shockingly well, and when people noticed his name on the flyers, she had signed up so many groups that Harry didn't know how they'd all fit in her tiny pub. He also didn't know how they'd managed to keep it all a secret from Hermione, but they did.

Harry had agreed to help her coordinate the event, but she had somehow roped him into hosting it for her so she could man the bar and keep track of her drink sales. He was going to do it, and he'd do his best because he'd given his word and he would do anything for Audrey, and especially for Hermione, but he just... needed a minute.

Draco walked over to where Harry was sitting on the bed with a stack of index cards, and he tugged them gently out of his hands, sticking them in his back pocket before tilting Harry's face up to meet his gaze.

He looked amazing with his hair pulled back and that damn black eyeliner smudged around his eyes, skin tight jeans in place, but his face was soft with concern. He leaned down to kiss Harry gently before rubbing his nose against Harry's in a soothing gesture.

"Harry, you're going to do fine, okay? You can do this. You know these notes inside out, and remember, you're not alone; all of your friends will be there tonight, and so will I. Just focus on us, not the strangers. It's just Trivia Night at the pub, not a speech for the Ministry Ball. There's nothing at stake here if you aren't perfect. Granger is going to be thrilled even if you blubber your way through the whole evening."

Harry released a shaky breath. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm so nervous. I know it's not a huge deal, but God, I just hate giving speeches and public speaking so much." He hated being the center of attention, unlike Draco who thrived in it.

"No apologizing. I'll be right with you the whole time. I'll stand up there with you if you want, yeah? I'll even strip down to my pants so you don't feel so nervous," he joked, and Harry huffed out a quiet laugh at the muggle reference. "Seriously, though, just tell me what you need from me, sweetheart. I'm yours all night," Draco reassured him.

Harry leaned his face into Draco's touch, turning slightly to press a kiss to his palm. "Thank you. I love you. I think I'll be alright once I get going."

"You're going to be great," Draco said confidently.

Harry nodded, letting Draco pull him up from the bed. "Alright. We can go now. I need to help Audrey finish setting up anyway before everyone arrives. Ron is supposed to get Hermione there right at nine."

"Well, I'd say that I expect him to be late, but Granger would never allow it," Draco said, and Harry laughed, some of his nerves receding now that he had something else to focus on. Draco Apparated them to the pub, and they hurried inside, freezing at the sight. It was bigger. A lot bigger. How was it so much bigger?

Aside from the unexpected expansion, there were quite a few more tables, each set up with anywhere from four to ten chairs, and a little place card with each group name in the center. They had to be expecting over a hundred people. Audrey had done an excellent job advertising.

"Draco!" Theo called out, rushing over to them excitedly and slapping Draco on the back. "Looks great so far, doesn't it?"

They both agreed, and Harry looked around for Audrey. He spotted her off to one side, where she had apparently set up a small stage, fussing with balloons, but she turned when she heard Theo call out to them. "Hello, loves! Just in time! Can you help me with these things? I can't get them to change color properly."

"I've got it," Harry said, leaving Draco to catch up with Theo while he helped Audrey turn all the balloons varying shades of blue.

"How did you make it bigger in here?" he asked. "It looks great."

"Oh, I just applied for a permit to use an Undetectable Expansion Charm. Temporarily, of course," she explained, and yeah, he should have guessed that, honestly. "Are you all ready for tonight? I've heard quite a few people saying last night how excited they were for the event. This was such a good idea, Harry."

He smiled at her. "I'm really glad I could help."

"You can help more yet," she winked, patting him on the cheek, then handed him a stack of blank parchment, ink bottles, and quills to set out at each seat so people could fill in their answers. The questions were spelled invisible for now; each one would be revealed as Harry read it out loud so that no one could cheat or skip ahead.

Draco had provided most of the questions for tonight, and Harry had thrown in a few as well, to try and even out the more difficult ones Draco had come up with. Harry certainly didn't know exactly how many times Wendelin the Weird had been burned at the stake, or how many Goblins died during the Goblin Rebellions, but he did know what a muggle television was.

About an hour later, the pub was ready to go, and Theo was situated at the front door, checking-in and collecting entrance fees from everyone coming in. The pub would be closed to anyone who didn't register in advance tonight, but they had so many groups coming in it hardly mattered.

As more and more people piled in, Harry's nerves returned, and he tried to ignore it, busying himself behind the bar with Audrey until he spotted Ron and Hermione walk through the door. Hermione looked around the expanded pub in awe. She looked radiant tonight in her red dress; she was practically glowing. She knew they were going to be hosting a new Trivia Night, but she still didn't know this event was a charity event at all, let alone that it was for her charity, to honor her. She wouldn't know until Harry announced that all of the proceeds from tonight were going to her Charity in a few short minutes.

Harry grinned and hurried over to greet them. "I'm so glad you guys made it," he said, giving them both a quick hug.

"Oh, I do wish you'd told me sooner! What a fantastic idea! I would have loved to help, I adore trivia," Hermione chastised him, her eyes bright as she returned the hug. "It looks wonderful in here, though. Audrey did an excellent job."

"She really did," he agreed easily. "And really, it was just a last-minute idea, I'm impressed she pulled all of this off in just a couple of weeks," he lied. "You look lovely, by the way."

Hermione lit up even more at the compliment. She glanced around them quickly, then at her husband, who nodded before jerking his head back towards the door. 

"What-" he started to ask, but Hermione just grabbed his hand and dragged him outside and off to the side where they were hidden from view, Ron following closely behind them.

"We have news," Hermione burst out before he could ask what the hell they were doing, her brown eyes shining. "We were going to wait, but, oh, Harry! I just can't wait to tell you any longer!"

She placed her hand on her stomach, eyes filling with tears, and he knew before she even whispered, "it finally worked. I'm pregnant."

"You're-" he cut himself off with a delighted laugh, gently pulling her into his arms. "You're pregnant. Hermione! Oh my God!"

"I know! I was so worried we wouldn't be able to... you know how long we've been trying," she sniffled when he released her to hug Ron as well, congratulating him.

Harry did know. They'd been trying for well over a year, and he knew how upset she'd been about it. He'd tried his best to be optimistic for them, but even he'd begun to worry for them recently. He was so happy for them. They were going to be the best parents.

"How far along are you? Who else knows?" he asked, brushing a tear off his cheek.

"Only around eight weeks," she told him. "We just got confirmation a few days ago."

"Mum knows," Ron chipped in. "She's the one who told us, actually. Said Hermione felt warmer than usual and declared she was pregnant. We didn't really believe her, but we made an appointment to get checked anyway, and sure enough," he laughed. "No one else knows yet, though, so don't say anything. We don't want to announce it until we know everything is alright, you know, since it took so long. We had to tell you, though, you're our best friend."

"Of course I won't tell anyone," he promised, sinking to his knees, hands hovering over her stomach. "Can I...?" he practically begged, and she nodded easily.

He placed his hands reverently on her stomach, rubbing gently. She didn't feel any different yet, but she would soon. He couldn't wait. "Hey there, little one," he murmured, pressing a kiss right below her bellybutton. "I'm your Uncle Harry. I'm so excited to meet you. You be good now and grow up big and strong for your mummy and daddy so you can play with me, alright? I love you so much already."

He murmured to the baby for a few more moments before he stood back up, brushing off his knees. Hermione had tear tracks on her face, and she yanked him in for another hug, Ron briefly bracketing him from behind before he pulled away again, clapping his hands together loudly.

"Alright, enough blubbering, you two! We have some trivia to answer! My wife is going to destroy everyone in there," he said, grinning. Hermione rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

"Come on inside before Audrey kills me for disappearing on her," Harry laughed.

They made it back inside with just an arched eyebrow from Theo, and he followed them in. Apparently, everyone was here then.

Ron and Hermione went to go sit with George, Angelina, Neville, Pansy, and Blaise, and Draco, and when Draco spotted Harry, he raised his eyebrows in question, but Harry just shook his head, shrugging helplessly. He couldn't tell him why he was out there, so hopefully he'd just chalk it up to secret best friend business and forget about it once the night got going. Harry still had to make his speech.

He glanced around the very loud, crowded pub, seeing Audrey waving him along urgently, and took a deep breath. He wished he had his cards, but Draco had confiscated them. He also wished he'd taken a bit of Calming Draught. Or a shot. Christ, he was nervous.

Harry stepped up onto the small stage and pointed his wand at his throat with a trembling hand. "Sonorus," he said, amplifying his voice so he could be heard over the roar of the pub.

"Good evening, everyone," Harry started, and the crowd hushed aside from a few excited whispers and fingers pointing his way. "Er. I'm a bit pants at this, so please, bear with me," he joked weakly. A quiet wave of laughter spread through the crowd, and he steeled himself to continue.

"Welcome to what will hopefully be the first of many Charity Trivia Nights here at the Wobbly Broomstick. Firstly, I'd like to thank Audrey for hosting this event, and doing so much work to prepare. She's done an incredible job, hasn't she?"

Audrey rolled her eyes, but waved pleasantly when the crowd clapped for her. "Don't let that one fool you, this was mostly his idea," she called out loudly, and he cleared his throat awkwardly, ignoring his burning cheeks.

"We'd like to thank everyone for coming tonight to show your support to the cause, and to celebrate the five-year anniversary of the Victims of War Charity Foundation, which was founded and headed by Mrs. Hermione Granger-Weasley."

The crowd clapped and whooped loudly, and Harry locked eyes with Draco, who nodded at him, smiling proudly, then with Hermione, who looked absolutely shell-shocked. He winked at her and continued his speech, focusing on her instead of the crowd of strangers. This next part was for her.

"Hermione has been my best friend for nearly fifteen years, and in that time, I can tell you that besides being exceptionally brilliant in everything she does, she has always fought tooth and nail against any injustice she becomes aware of, for what she believes is right. She has always gone above and beyond to help anyone who may need it, especially those who can't fight for or defend themselves.

"She created this Foundation five years ago in the hopes that it might help even one person eat, find a home, or get the help they needed after the devastation of the War, and it quickly metastasized into the incredible organization it is today. This Foundation is responsible for helping hundreds of victims regain stability by providing them with access to food, fresh water, and shelter. It has helped them receive medical treatment and Mind Healing, find employment, and has even reunited several families that had been torn apart.

"Hermione has worked tirelessly, and often thanklessly, to make the Foundation what it is today. Her commitment to the cause is admirable, and so many lives have been touched by her, including my own. I am so proud to know her and to call her my best friend, and I am beyond proud to honor her, her hard work, and her accomplishments here tonight."

Harry took a deep breath, smiling slightly at Hermione, whose face was now flushed pink and had tears streaming down her cheeks for the second time tonight.

"All contributions raised tonight will be going directly to the Foundation, including the proceeds of all drink sales, the total of which Draco Malfoy and I, myself, will be matching. Audrey also has a donation box set up at the bar for anyone so inclined give a bit extra. Remember, all donations will go directly to helping victims. Every knut counts and will help make a difference. Together, we can create a brighter future for those still facing dark times, and we hope you'll continue to support the cause in the future. Thank you again for being here tonight."

Harry took a shaky breath and lowered his wand, heart pounding as applause and plenty of cheering for Hermione broke out across the room. He felt someone tugging on his hand and he looked over to see Draco guiding Harry off the stage into his arms.

"Darling, that was so good," he breathed into Harry's ear. "Granger sobbed like a baby. You did incredible. No one could tell you were nervous, I promise."

Harry laughed weakly. "Thank you. I have to actually start the main event, now, though." Fuck, was it going to be a long night. It was worth it for Hermione, but he probably did actually need that drink.

"I think you've done enough, love," Draco told him, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek.

"What-?" Harry started in confusion, but before he could finish, he was being shoved slightly towards a waiting Hermione, who practically threw herself at him.

"Oh, Harry!" she cried into his neck. "That was so wonderful. Thank you so much. I can't believe you surprised me with this whole thing!"

Harry hugged her back, chuckling. "It really was Audrey's idea. She wanted to hold a fundraiser to celebrate your anniversary, I just helped her plan it."

"Trivia was your idea, and you helped her put the whole thing together. And you wrote that beautiful speech. Ronald already told me," she told him sternly before softening again. "Harry, thank you. This means so, so much to me. You're the best friend I could have ever asked for."

"So are you, 'Mione, and you deserve this. Listen, I'll come chat with you when it's over, yeah? I really need to get back-"

The words in his throat died when he turned around to see Draco taking the stage in his place, clearing his throat before casting a Sonorus on himself, introducing himself and quickly laying out the rules for the game.

Harry gaped at him. What was he doing?

Draco caught his eye. "You'd better take your seat, Potter, and take Granger with you. If you hope to have any chance of winning, you'll need her to help you answer the questions," he joked, voice still magnified, and the crowd laughed.

Harry blinked at him, and Draco just winked, turning away to keep going down the list of rules.

He was taking over the host role. He was going to run Trivia so Harry didn't have to. He was going to do this, for Harry, because Harry hated public speaking. Oh, God.

"Fuck, Hermione, I have to marry him," Harry blurted out in a whisper, his eyes wide.

Hermione smirked knowingly at him. "I have no doubt that you will."

She pulled him over to sit in Draco's now abandoned seat, and Harry watched him, almost in a daze. He looked incredible up there, confident and charming and gorgeous, taking charge with the type of practiced ease that only someone meant to be the center of attention could have. No one was jeering at him, no one glared or made nasty comments. He'd earned respect, commanded respect, regardless of his last name, regardless of that shitty, now retracted, article, and Harry was so bloody proud.

Trivia Night was a smashing success. Harry's cheeks hurt from laughing so much, and it looked like everyone else had an equally good time. The questions were hard, but not impossible, and they hadn't received a single complaint. They would definitely be making it a monthly event; so many of the guests asked when the next one would be on their way out.

When all was said and done, they'd raised over four thousand Galleons for Hermione's Foundation, including the money Harry and Draco chipped in doubling Audrey's alcohol sales for the night.

Hermione was in tears again, and at the end she'd gotten up and thanked everyone profusely for their generosity and support, and hugged Harry, Draco, and Audrey more times than he could count. Ron eventually managed to drag her home, but Harry and Draco stayed to help Audrey and Theo restore the pub to its original state.

"That was fucking awesome, mate!" Theo gushed when the work was finished.

Harry laughed. "It went quite well, I think."

"Thank you both so much," Audrey told them. "This was so much better than I ever expected when I first brought it up. This is fantastic for the Foundation, and fantastic for business, too. I promise, I'll find someone else to host next time, love," she said, patting Harry's cheek.

"Thanks, Audrey. I appreciate that," he chuckled.

They both bid the two of them goodnight, and Harry Apparated them home, popping them up right in their bedroom. He clung to Draco with a sigh, letting the taller man support his full body weight.

" 'm so tired," Harry mumbled into his chest before looking up at him, his chin resting on Draco's chest. "Thank you so fucking much for doing that for me. You have no idea how much that meant to me."

"You worked so hard helping set up that event, you didn't need to be uncomfortable all night," Draco said, brushing Harry's fringe out of his eyes.

Harry closed his eyes and hummed, exhaustion making him feel so warm and heavy. "I really want to get my tongue and my cock in you, baby, but I'm gonna be honest, I don't think I can stay awake long enough to get you off right now," he half-slurred.

Draco chuckled, pressing a kiss to his forehead before beginning to strip him out of his clothes. "How about a rain check on that?" he asked, guiding Harry towards the bed.

"Okay," Harry muttered, climbing under the duvet and snuggling up to Draco as soon as he joined him, a huge yawn nearly splitting his head in two. "I love you so much, y'know."

Draco laughed throatily, and Harry was asleep before he heard his response.

*

"Have the best last first day," Harry told Draco as he kissed him goodbye a few weeks later. He had finished his rotation on Plant and Potion Poisoning two days ago, but had chosen to skip his two days off between rotations to finish faster. He was moving on to his final rotation today; Long-Term Spell Damage. Only three months left until he finished his internship, and Harry was so excited for him.

Draco smiled at him. "I'll do my best, darling. You have a good day yourself."

When Draco disappeared through the Floo, Harry decided to take Scorpius to the park. The early May weather was perfect for playing outside, and he hoped to wear him out a bit by letting him run off his energy.

By the time they returned home, he was pretty sleepy, and Harry let him take a short nap while he prepared supper. He was awake again by the time Draco returned from work, and they both greeted him as usual, Harry asking too many questions about how his first day had gone.

He seemed rather tense. He was a bit paler than usual, and his eyes looked... hollow. Almost haunted. Harry didn't understand why, and Draco didn't explain, just telling him that he'd gotten to meet his Quintaped patient's friends who had been found, and that they seemed to be doing extremely well.

Harry tried to keep up his enthusiasm, and, deciding Draco needed a distraction from work, suggested that they have game night. Draco agreed, and waited on the couch while Harry pulled out Monopoly.

He was clearly still caught up in his head, though, not really paying attention to the game, skipping out on buying property several times without even noticing. It wasn't like him at all; Draco was usually ruthless when they played Monopoly, buying up the expensive properties and building hotels on them as fast as possible. Something was definitely wrong.

When the game was over, they got Scorpius bathed and put to bed with little fanfare, and as soon as they'd closed his door, Harry took Draco's hand, leading him to their bed. He handed Draco his tea, and let Fish in the room, who curled up at the foot of the bed right away, then stripped down to his pants, climbing under the duvet.

Draco drained his tea, then joined him, letting Harry tug him over until his head rested on Harry's chest. Harry ran his fingers through his long, blonde hair, and Draco released a shaky breath.

"Rough first day?" he asked quietly, and Draco nodded.

"Yeah," he whispered.

"Want to talk about it?"

Draco shook his head. "Not- not now. But eventually."

"Okay," Harry said quietly, not stopping his ministrations until Draco fell asleep, a frown still marring his pretty face. Harry just hugged him tighter, whispering soothing words to him until sleep pulled him under as well.

Hopefully he'd feel more like talking in the morning.

*

Harry was jarred from his sleep by the sound of pained moaning followed by a quiet meow.

"No, stop it," a weak voice whimpered.

His senses were immediately on high alert, and he jolted upright, heart pounding as he scrambled for his wand. He paused, though, when he finally registered what was making that sound.

Draco.

He was still asleep, eyes closed, body slick with sweat, a deep crease between his brows as he tossed and turned fitfully, whimpering pitifully.

He was having a nightmare; a serious one.

"No, stop, stop," he moaned louder, a dry sob tearing from his throat as he began to thrash around, like he was trying to free himself from invisible bonds. Fish meowed again, running up the bed and trying to burrow into Draco's neck, but Harry put her on the floor quickly. Even the cat knew something was wrong.

Fuck. Harry had to be careful with how he woke him up so he didn't freak out more once he was awake. He couldn't startle him. Harry leaned over him, grasping his shoulders and giving him a gentle shake.

"Baby," he whispered, but Draco just whined in response, more gasping sobs escaping him as actual tears squeezed out from under his lashes.

"Draco," Harry tried again bit louder, and Harry hugged him tighter, trying to make him feel safe and secure and control his flailing limbs so he didn't hurt himself, but he didn't wake, just struggled harder, followed by a bloodcurdling scream.

"Stop it! Stop, please, you're killing them! Stop, stop it!"

Harry's blood turned to ice. He had to wake him up, now. He couldn't leave him trapped in whatever hell he was stuck in.

"Baby, wake up," Harry said firmly, shaking him again, but Draco just choked on another scream. "Draco!" he shouted, and Draco finally woke with a start, his eyes snapping open, back arching a bit as a guttural gasp flew out of his mouth. Another sob tore its way out of his throat, dry and painful.

Harry ran his hands over Draco's body, making sure he was alright before he tugged him up into his arms, hugging his boyfriend to him tightly. "Shh, you're alright. It's alright. It was just a dream, darling, it wasn't real. You're safe."

Draco made a pained sound and clung tightly to Harry as Fish tried to squeeze her way back to Draco, meowing madly.

"I'm sorry," Draco eventually rasped out, voice rough.

"Sweetheart, you had a nightmare. You don't have to apologize, you hardly have control over that," Harry soothed him, removing Fish from his body and placing her on the floor yet again. "Are you alright? That- it was bad. You were screaming."

Draco nodded, then paused, and shook his head instead. "I started in Janus Thickey today," Draco said, and Harry's movements stilled.

Janus Thickey.

Of course. How did he not make that connection sooner? Long Term Spell Damage was the Janus Thickey ward. He must have-

"I met Longbottom's parents. I was just really caught off guard, I had no idea..." he whispered shakily.

Harry cursed quietly. "Sweetheart, I am so sorry. I should have warned you. I never even thought to mention-"

"Harry, stop. You shouldn't have told me. That's Longbottom's business to tell. I couldn't mention it earlier because I didn't know if you knew, and I can't give away patient information like that, but fucking hell. It was- it was awful. They were... just. With all the things I've seen, I've never seen anything like that."

He wasn't wrong. What happened to Frank and Alice Longbottom was tragic on a level Harry could barely comprehend. It was worse than dying.

"I know," Harry said softly. "It's horrible what happened to them."

"Why do I feel so responsible?" Draco whispered. "I know it was before, and logically, I know I'm not responsible, but Harry, my aunt did that. I have the Mark. And Merlin, I was absolutely terrible to him in school. How can he stand being around me?"

He sounded so heartbroken, so disturbed, so guilty, but what happened to them wasn't his fault. Harry knew it, and so did Neville.

"Because he knows it wasn't your fault. You were a baby when it happened, and it's not your fault what you were born into, darling," Harry said softly. "You never tortured anyone."

Draco didn't respond to that, but he didn't argue. Harry already knew he hadn't. He couldn't bring himself to do it, not once.

They laid quietly for a while, but Draco clearly wasn't going to fall back asleep. "Come on, baby, let's get you cleaned up. You were sweating, you'll feel better," Harry told him.

He nodded silently and Harry guided him to the bathroom and turned on the shower, following Draco under the water after he'd stripped off both of their pants. Harry had him wet his head, then he carefully massaged his own shampoo into Draco's scalp, hoping that the scent might comfort him the way Harry was comforted by Draco's grapefruit and cedar scent.

Harry heard a sniffle and glanced up, noticing tears running down his face, the tip of his nose red. Harry's heart ached for him, and he took his time washing his hair, just letting him cry for as long as he needed to. By the time he'd finished washing Draco's body, the tears had stopped, but he didn't look any less miserable.

Harry quickly washed himself, then shut off the water before summoning the fluffiest towel Draco owned, heating it up with a Warming Charm, and wrapping it around Draco. He wrapped a second one around himself, then quickly changed the bed sheets so they weren't sleeping on the sweat-soaked ones. They settled back in bed, Draco's head pillowed on Harry's shoulder, his arm thrown over Harry's waist, and Harry closed his eyes.

Soon, however, Draco's hand shifted, rubbing lightly across Harry's skin, tracing slow circles on his chest, accidentally grazing over a nipple. Harry twitched, blowing a harsh breath out through his nose, but the fingers didn't linger there, thankfully, dipping a bit lower to trace along his sternum, his ribs, his stomach, before pausing to stroke the soft trail of hair under his bellybutton.

Harry couldn't help his reaction to having his boyfriend's hand so close to his dick, he felt himself twitch to life under the blankets, and he sucked in a harsh breath, trying to ignore the sensation. Now was not the time for this, Draco was probably just touching him to comfort himself, and he didn't need Harry to make it awkward by getting aroused.

At least that's what he thought until that hand began to move again, sliding down further until the tips of his fingers grazed against his groin. Harry quickly grabbed hold of his wrist, stopping his movements.

"What are you doing?" Harry whispered, and Draco made a small, needy noise in the back of his throat.

"What does it feel like?" he murmured back, pressing a small kiss to Harry's chest.

"Baby, you're upset. You don't have to do that," Harry said, stroking his thumb over Draco's wrist.

"I want to."

"Sweetheart-"

"Please. My mind won't be quiet, and I'm so bloody tired… please, Harry. Help me forget," he begged, big silver eyes looking up at Harry pleadingly, begging Harry for help.

Harry studied him intensely for a long moment, looking for any sign of doubt or hesitation. He didn't find any, though. Draco needed this, needed to let go. Harry could at least do that for him.

He nodded. "Alright, love. Whatever you need, yeah?"

Draco released a shaky breath, and Harry rolled them slightly until he was the one hovering on top. He leaned down to kiss Draco gently, fingers stroking over his cheeks and jaw. He could feel Draco trying to deepen the kiss, trying to speed it up, but Harry shook his head.

"Let me take care of you, baby. Don't think, just feel. I've got you."

Draco nodded slowly and let his eyes fell shut. He relaxed his body, and when Harry brought their lips together again, he let Harry take the lead, keeping the kiss slow and gentle.

Slowly, Harry let his hands wander, running along the column of his throat, tracing his collarbones, stroking down his sides and stomach, just touching, keeping his movements light and slow.

Harry wasn't in any hurry. He took his time, worshipping every inch of Draco's body. The goal was to make Draco forget, and the best way to do that was to make him desperate, unable to think about anything except how badly he wanted to come. Harry had all night to get him there.

When Harry finally let his hand ghost along the length of his cock, Draco moaned, long and low, bucking his hips up, trying to chase more of that feeling.

"Shh, darling," Harry murmured into his mouth. "Stay still. Be good for me."

He listened so well, sinking into the bed and just letting Harry touch, doing his best to keep from squirming. Harry ran feather-light fingers along the length of his cock, stroking the velvety soft skin before circling a hand around him, stroking him firmly just once before lightening again. He traced a single finger up his length, circling the little slit, collecting the wetness that was gathering there. Draco whined, hands clenching into fists, but he still managed to keep himself still.

"Good boy," Harry told him, pulling away to hold his slick finger up to Draco's lips. "Open."

Draco's mouth fell open immediately, and Harry slid his finger inside, rubbing against Draco's tongue, making him taste himself before sealing their mouths together again and reaching back down to continue those same teasing touches to his cock.

Harry's own dick was painfully hard at this point, but he ignored it. This wasn't about him; this was about what Draco needed.

"Harry," he whined after a few minutes, his eyes damp, and wild, and desperate, but Harry just tutted at him, skating his fingers down further to graze over his balls. Draco whimpered, bucking his hips slightly, which caused Harry to pull away entirely.

"Stay still, baby. Take what I give you," Harry said firmly, kissing the corner of Draco's mouth before trailing more kisses along his throat.

He resumed his teasing, hand returning with more feathery touches. He knew Draco was going crazy, wanting more, but that was the point of this, to overwhelm him with desire, to help clear those terrible memories from his mind.

Harry dipped his mouth lower, tongue peeking out to caress milky white skin, tasting, lower and lower, until he was finally hovering over Draco's weeping erection. He gently dragged his tongue up the length, then down over his balls, his perineum, and back up his dick, pressing little, sucking kisses up the side, and Draco let out a strangled sob, head thrashing as he clenched his hands so tightly in an effort to control himself that his hands were shaking.

Good. That was good, but Harry didn't let up. He knew Draco was close; he was so hard, his cock red and angry looking, leaking a steady stream of pre-cum that Harry gently licked up as it slid down the sides of his shaft.

Harry finally sucked the tip of his cock into his mouth, licking over the head firmly once, and Draco came immediately. He cried out loudly, back arching wildly as his hips bucked up off the bed, forcing his cock deeper into Harry's mouth as he spurted out his release.

Harry just swallowed him down the best he could, carefully licking him clean when he was finished, popping off before Draco began to squirm with oversensitivity.

"Good boy," he purred, and Draco just groaned weakly in response, chest heaving. Harry slid up his body, gathering Draco back up in his arms, kissing his temple.

Harry knew Draco could feel his erection digging into his hip, but it couldn't be helped. He felt Draco shift a bit, reaching down, probably to get Harry off, but Harry stopped him again, grasping his wrist gently.

"But-" Draco started to argue, but Harry shook his head.

"No, baby. This was about you. I'm fine." Draco pouted, and Harry chuckled at him, brushing his hair back, but he didn't cave. Draco was exhausted. He needed sleep. "Later, alright?"

Draco finally nodded resignedly. "What even was that?" he asked sleepily.

"You wanted your brain to stop. The best way was to make you let go of control," Harry explained, hoping it worked.

"Well, fuck," Draco whispered, nuzzling into Harry's chest. "I liked it. And hated it."

"But it worked?" Harry asked him, wanting to make sure he wasn't totally off base, and he relaxed when Draco nodded.

Harry was just beginning to drift when he felt Draco let out a little sigh and snuggle closer to Harry, pressing a lingering kiss to his chest.

"I wish there was something I could do," Draco whispered quietly, like he hadn't mean it for Harry.

"You can, baby," Harry told him, not opening his eyes.

Draco was silent for a moment, head shifting where it was still resting on Harry's chest. "What?"

"Just be good to them."

Draco was silent, but Harry didn't need confirmation that he would; he already knew.

Notes:

Ahh, we're almost there!! As always, any feedback is greatly appreciated! Happy Mother's Day to anyone it pertains to <3

Chapter 18: CHAPTER 17

Summary:

Story finale! Just an epilogue to go.

Notes:

We're almost to the end! This may be the end of this series, but it's not goodbye! I have more in store for these two in a few different universes. For now, though, enjoy the main conclusion of my Nanny! Harry 'verse.

The next two months passed by in a blur. Draco's twenty-sixth birthday had come and gone, and Harry was basking in not having the press follow him everywhere he went. It was the freest he'd ever felt, not constantly having to worry about how every little thing he did might be perceived or twisted, and he found himself being more grateful to Draco for handling Cuffe than he ever could have imagined.

Harry knew he would eventually reach out to them to give a statement or set up a photo op or something, he was technically a public figure, after all, whether he liked it or not; but for now, he was enjoying being able to have privacy for the first time in years. He still had attention from fans, but it was much more manageable again, the excitement of the article about his cock having finally waned with the retraction, and the hate mail had slowed to a near stop.

Now, however, Draco's internship was drawing to a close, with only a few weeks remaining until it was over and he'd finally become a full-fledged Healer. Harry knew he was nervous about his final exam and finding out which of the Lead Healers he'd worked under had requested him, but Harry wasn't nervous for him at all. He knew he was going to do wonderful, and he wouldn't be surprised if they all wanted him back. Except maybe Healer Raube, but that situation was still being handled.

Ackford's trial was tomorrow. Luckily, the end of his internship had distracted Draco from most of his worry about it, but it had been steadily building over the last week or so. He'd had to go in an give the lawyer handling the lawsuit his memories of the patient mistreatment that he'd witnessed, and he had surprisingly also needed to be questioned under Veritaserum. The case must be massive for that to have even been considered, the courts rarely approved Veritaserum use.

Draco hadn't yet decided if he was going to go to the trial or not, but Harry was hoping he would. It would be good for him to see a resolution to the situation that had caused him so much anguish. Harry had a feeling he would come around, though, so he'd asked Ron and Hermione to babysit Scorpius for them so they could both go, if Draco wanted him there. If he didn't, Harry could just hang out at theirs while he waited.

They were quite excited to get some extra hands-on experience with children now that Hermione had passed the halfway mark in her pregnancy. They were having a little girl and were planning to name her Rose. Scorpius knew about the baby, mainly because they couldn't hide her growing belly from him when he was constantly wanting to sit on her lap, but Harry was practically bursting at the seams waiting to tell Draco the news.

He was saving it for tomorrow before the trial, though, figuring they would probably want to tell him themselves. He thought it might put him in better spirits, knowing he was going to practically be an uncle and have a new little baby to love on soon.

Sure enough, when Draco returned from work that afternoon, he was completely lost in his own head. Harry let him be, figuring he just needed time to sort himself out, but Scorpius wasn't as forgiving.

"Papa, you're ignoring me," Scorpius pouted, crossing his arms when Draco didn't react to his very dramatic story about their day.

Draco blinked at him. "I'm sorry, love. What did you say?"

Scorpius huffed. "I said, Fish caught a birdie outside today. It was scary, but Harry healed the birdie up and let her go, good as new! He was a hero," Scorpius said, looking at Harry adoringly, causing Harry to flush.

Draco just smiled, though. "Yes, he was," he murmured, laughing quietly when Harry's flush deepened.

"Fish is a bad girl," Scorpius said sternly.

"She's not bad, Scorp, she was just doing what cats do," Harry told him. "But I put up a ward in the garden so we don't have any more accidents."

"Good. I didn't like that."

Of course he didn't, the little Hufflepuff.

Dinner finished up soon after that, and Draco asked Harry if he could do Scorpius' bath while Draco cleaned up instead. Harry agreed, getting Scorpius in the bubble filled tub before going back downstairs to have a talk with Draco, leaving Scorpius to play with his toys for a bit.

"How did you bathe him that fast?" Draco asked, confused, when Harry reappeared.

"He's playing in the tub. He's nearly six, darling, he doesn't need to be supervised in the tub at all times," Harry chuckled.

"Oh," Draco said, brow furrowing, like he hadn't realized his son was old enough to have some privacy in the bath.

"I'll go in and help him wash up in a bit. I just wanted to make sure you were okay," Harry said, stepping up beside him to help with the dishes.

Draco shrugged. "I'm okay, just worried about tomorrow. I still don't know what to do."

"Well, what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that I just want it to be over," he said with a small shrug. "I don't want to have to see him ever again, but I want to be supportive. This all happened because of me. I was the one reported him, and it was only because of that fight on the ward that he was ever even caught. I feel so torn. What do you think?"

Harry glanced at him sideways, weighing his words carefully. "I think... I think that you'd regret it if you didn't go and see this through," he said slowly. "It might be cathartic for you to see him face consequences. Give you closure, you know?"

Draco appeared to digest this, and Harry waited patiently for him to reach the right conclusion.

"You're right," he eventually conceded. "I think I need to go."

"I think that's a smart decision, Harry told him softly. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"Yeah," Draco breathed, looking incredibly relieved.

"Okay. Ron and Hermione already agreed to take Scorp."

At Draco's incredulous look, Harry just shrugged. "I had a feeling. Set it up with them last week."

"I love you," Draco said, pulling Harry into a tight hug.

"I love you, too, darling."

*

Draco woke up a nervous wreck. He fluttered around the house, fretting, and nothing Harry said or did could soothe him. He was driving Harry spare, and eventually Harry had to shoo him away to go get dressed for court so he could get Scorpius ready to go to Ron and Hermione's in peace.

Draco gave Harry a sour look, but Harry just laughed at him and he went on his way, dressing in his favorite lavender button up and a set of very nice robes while Harry dressed Scorpius.

When they made it to Ron and Hermione's, Scorpius ran straight for Ron, allowing him to pick him up and swing him around before settling him on his hip so Hermione could give him a kiss on the cheek.

Harry gave Hermione a much gentler hug before dropping to the ground to talk to baby Rose.

“Hello, sweet pea. Are you being a good girl for you mummy today?” he said to her stomach, grinning when he felt the baby kick.

"Thank you for agreeing to watch Scorpius," he heard Draco saying to Ron.

Ron laughed cheerfully. "No need to be so formal, mate, we're happy to do it. We need all the practice we can get, anyhow."

"Practice?" Draco questioned, and Harry's heart fluttered.

"Hear that, Rosie? Your daddy is telling your Uncle Draco all about you," Harry cooed.

"'Course. For when ours comes along in a few months. 'Mione's pregnant."

Harry glanced over at him, seeing Draco's jaw drop in surprise. "Oh, Merlin, congratulations, that's wonderful news," Draco told them. "How exciting. When are you due?"

"See, everyone already loves you," Harry murmured to Rose, rubbing Hermione's belly. "We're going to have so much fun with you."

"On the fourth of November, actually," she said, glancing at Scorpius, who's jaw dropped.

"That's my birthday!" he shouted. "Baby Rose is going to be born on my birthday!"

"Well, maybe," Hermione laughed. "She could come a bit early, or run late. We'll have to wait and see."

"Nope. That's what I want for my birthday. She'll come then," Scorpius declared, and Harry burst out laughing.

"Hear that, Rosie? You have to come on your due date; you have no choice," he said amusedly, kissing Hermione's belly one last time before standing back up.

"How long have you known?" Draco asked them.

"A while," Ron admitted, “but we asked Harry not to say anything until we passed the halfway point since we had so much trouble conceiving. Only him and my mum knew. Couldn't hide it from her, she sniffed it out before we even knew," he laughed. "We told everyone else last week."

"Harry didn't mention it," Draco said. "I'd have sent my congratulations."

"I thought you could use a bit of something positive before the trial," Harry explained, taking his hand. "That's why I had you come with me to drop Scorp off."

Draco squeezed his hand, smiling warmly at him. "Thank you, darling."

"We'll watch him any time," Ron said. "We really do need the practice. Ginny was the only one younger than me, and Harry had Victoire all the time, so I never really had much experience watching her."

"Oh. Of course," Draco agreed easily. "He's welcome to come here any time."

"Yay!" Scorpius cheered. "I love it here! Uncle Ron and Auntie 'Mione's house is fun!"

Draco blinked in surprise at the familiarity, but he didn't complain about his son calling Harry's best friends his aunt and uncle.

They stayed and chatted for a little while longer until it was time to go. They bid the three of them goodbye, and Harry Apparated them directly to Kingsley's office.

"Harry, how did we end up here?" Draco hissed, looking around like he thought the Minister was going to pop out of nowhere and hex him for being in his office.

"I brought us here, obviously. Kingsley gave me special clearance to Apparate or Floo to his office so I can avoid the press," Harry explained. That wasn't always necessary anymore, he supposed, but he didn't want to take any chances. Draco didn't need extra stress today. "He's not even in today, he's in France. I warned him we'd be coming through."

"Oh. Alright. You could have warned me, though," he grumbled a bit, and Harry just chuckled.

"Sorry, darling, slipped my mind. We can take the back way down to the courtrooms," Harry told him, grabbing his hand and pulling him out the door and over to the small, private lift that took them right next to the Wizengamot chambers. It was just a short walk to the correct room from there, and the hospital’s lawyer greeted Draco with a warm smile and a handshake when she spotted him in the corridor. She seemed quite pleasant.

"Mr. Malfoy, thank you so much for coming," she said. "You and Mr. Potter are welcome to take a seat anywhere you like. The proceedings haven't yet begun, but this should be fairly quick once they get started. The Wizengamot reviewed all of the evidence we provided in advance."

"Thank you, Ms. Watkins," Draco thanked her with a small smile, and Harry was incredibly relieved that she was treating him like a normal person.

They entered the large room, and Draco gestured up towards an empty area near the top questioningly. Harry nodded, and they ascended the stairs and took a seat in an empty row near the top, ignoring the few people who were whispering and pointing at Harry as they passed.

"Hopefully she was right and this doesn't take too long," Draco said, eyes sweeping the room uncomfortably.

"It shouldn't. The Wizengamot has gotten better about listening to evidence, but they still give out sentences quickly. If they already reviewed the case, they probably already know what they're going to do," Harry explained. He'd gone to enough Death Eater trials in the past, and Hermione kept him pretty up to date on any new policies they implemented.

Draco jiggled his leg and silently chewed his nails down to the quick while they waited for the Wizengamot to enter, and Harry didn't bother stopping him. Time probably felt like it was crawling for him. When they finally took their seats, the courtroom quieted down quickly, and the surprisingly young Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot called for Ackford to be brought in.

Draco's hand found his, giving it a tight squeeze when the man was escorted in, wearing sweeping robes in a deep purple color. He looked entirely unbothered by his predicament, looking curiously around the courtroom, smiling at some people, obnoxiously ignoring others, but when his eyes landed on Draco, his smile grew and he winked at him before turning back to the Wizengamot.

Harry bristled, but he could practically feel Draco's hackles rise, fury radiating off of him in waves, and Harry stroked his thumb over the back of Draco's hand, trying to soothe him.

“Relax, darling. He’s not doing himself any favors by acting like that,” he murmured quietly, and Draco nodded stiffly, trying to relax.

"Why does he look so... not awful?" Draco whispered quietly to Harry, clearly asking why he didn't have the haunted look that most people who entered the courtroom did. The answer was quite simple.

"They only hold violent criminals in Azkaban," Harry explained. "He would have just received a summons with a Compelling Charm attached so he would show up." He didn’t tell Draco that he’d only been kept in Azkaban because he had been a war criminal and considered dangerous. It had been the main thing that had prompted Harry to go speak for him. Draco had been a lot of things, but dangerous wasn’t one of them.

Draco frowned, but didn't comment, turning his attention back to the Chief Warlock when he asked Ackford to state his name and age.

"Jack Oliver Ackford, aged thirty-two," he replied with a disturbingly charming smile.

"Mr. Ackford, you are brought before us today to face the following accusations," the Chief Warlock addressed him sternly. "Gross medical negligence, which resulted in the undue suffering and endangerment of the lives of your patients and in some instances, irreversible physical damage, felonious sexual assault, and bribery and coercion. Do you dispute these claims?"

"Of course I do," Ackford said flippantly. "You can hardly 'assault' someone who enjoys it, now, can you?" he asked, tossing a wink at the nearest female Wizengamot member.

Harry gasped in shock, and he felt Draco's hand tighten even more, squeezing almost to the point of pain. Harry couldn't blame him, though. What was wrong with this man? Who- who said something like that? He basically just admitted to sexual assault, and claimed that his victims had wanted it! Harry was horrified.

The Chief Warlock's lips thinned, but he otherwise ignored the disgusting comment. "Very well, then. We have reviewed all of the evidence and testimony brought before us prior to this hearing, and we will not be opening the floor for any further testimony at this time. Do you have any words for the court or your victims here today?"

"Not really," Ackford said simply, not even batting an eye at any of the victims. "Just that I'd like to get back to my Kneazle quickly, if at all possible. She'll need to be fed."

Draco squeezed even harder, his nails digging into Harry's skin, and okay, now that actually hurt. Harry rubbed over his fingers soothingly, trying to get him to release his death grip. Draco glanced down, noticing that he was practically breaking Harry's hand.

"Sorry, darling," he whispered, loosening his grip a bit.

"It's alright," Harry replied, still rubbing his fingers.

"Your comments will be taken under advisement," the Chief Warlock said. "The Wizengamot will now deliberate and return with a decision when we have reached one."

The Wizengamot filed out, and Harry released a breath, carefully watching Draco watch Ackford. He looked tense, his face growing more distraught the longer he stared, until a tear slid down his cheek. Harry made an aborted noise in the back of his throat, but more tears just slipped out. He didn't even seem to notice.

Harry gently cupped his face, turning Draco to look at him. "Sweetheart, you're crying," Harry told him, using his sleeve to wipe his tears away.

"He's a sociopath, Harry," Draco said shakily. "Something is wrong with him. Who acts like this? What if they don't even send him to Azkaban? The lawyer said he could just be fined and be allowed to go work in another hospital."

"Then we deal with that if it happens, but I have a hard time believing it will," Harry assured soothingly. "This Chief Warlock is new. I haven't seen him work yet, but he didn't seem impressed by Ackford's behavior."

He really didn't. He'd been looking at Ackford like he was a particularly pungent piece of shite on the bottom of his shoe. Harry had a hard time believing he'd let him off with just a fine, let alone allowing him to ever work in another hospital again. The man was clearly a lunatic.

Draco nodded, leaning into Harry's side. They sat quietly after that, just waiting for the Wizengamot to return, and they did around forty minutes later. That was certainly quick.

After all the members had taken their respective seats, the Chief Warlock once again addressed Ackford. "The Wizengamot has made its decision regarding your case."

Ackford flashed them another dazzling smile, but not a single soul seemed moved by it. "Excellent news!" Ackford exclaimed, straightening his robes and standing up, like he was about to be dismissed.

The Chief stared at him for a long minute. "Mr. Ackford," he began sharply, removing his glasses to gaze down at Ackford in mild disgust. "Typically, we here at the Wizengamot are sympathetic towards Healers in this position, as the medical field is a difficult and often unpredictable line of work, and we are all but human. Mistakes are often made, and the harm that comes as a result is, by and far, unintentional."

Ackford looked delighted to hear this, and Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"However," the Chief continued, "such blatant and calculated disregard for human suffering is not something I can or will overlook. Your actions were indisputably intentional, and as much as we have tried, we have failed to find any motivation for your actions aside from a selfish and juvenile need for validation."

Ackford's smile was slowly slipping away, replaced with a look of mild confusion as the Chief Warlock continued speaking without pause.

"Your complete lack of remorse here today is, quite frankly, disturbing, and I will not insult this court or your victims by allowing someone who cares so little about causing undue harm to others the courtesy of leniency. Based on the testimony and evidence presented to this court, and your jarring lack of defense, you are hereby permanently stripped of your Healer's License."

Harry's heart leapt. Oh, thank fuck. That was absolutely what needed to happen.

"What?!" Ackford gasped, head jerking back, his eyes wide with disbelief. "You can't be serious!"

The Chief Warlock didn't even flinch, ignoring the outburst completely. "In addition, you will pay restitutions to each of your twenty-three victims, the amount of which will be calculated in the upcoming week based on the severity of damages accrued, and sent to you by owl. Lastly, you are to serve a minimum of three years and eleven months in Azkaban prison, at which time you will be evaluated for release, effective immediately. Dismissed."

Ackford stared at the Chief Warlock, frozen in complete shock, jaw practically on the floor as a loud cacophony of voices erupted in the hall. Prison time. He’d have to go to Azkaban for nearly four years, if not longer. That was where he belonged.

When the Wizengamot began to file out, Draco finally released a shaky breath, and Harry pulled him closer, embracing him in a tight hug. Draco buried his nose in Harry's neck, and Harry just held him until Draco's racing heart slowed, watching as two Aurors bound Ackford's hands and led him out of the courtroom.

It was over. Finally. Harry was so proud of him for sticking it out and seeing this through, for going out of his way to help his patients who had been victims of that monster, even though the situation had been quite traumatic for him as well. He'd truly grown up to be such a good person, and Harry was so, so proud. He loved him so much, and he couldn't wait to get him home.

"How are you feeling?" Harry asked him when he pulled back, studying his face.

"Relieved, mostly," Draco said. "I'm just glad he won't ever get a job in another hospital."

"I thought that was the best part, too. Do you want to go home before the masses leave?"

Draco bit his lip, eyeing the victims, then nodded. "Yes, we should probably just go," he agreed, moving to stand up.

Harry followed suit, and Draco tugged Harry into his side, draping a protective arm around his shoulders, his much larger body acting as a barrier to keep the strangers who were already trying to sneak over to Harry away from him.

When they reached the floor, the lawyer, Ms. Watkins, caught Draco's eye, mouthing thank you to him. Draco gave her a small smile and a nod, then led them out of the courtroom.

"Mind if I stop in the loo before we go?" Harry asked.

"Go ahead. I'll be back in a minute, darling," Draco told Harry a bit distractedly. Harry looked over to see what he was focused on, seeing his old boss, Healer Raube, slumped in a chair, his head in his hands. Ah. Harry smiled, kissing Draco on the cheek before wandering off to find the bathrooms.

After relieving himself, Harry waited back, not wanting to interrupt Draco's conversation, but he was distracted when he heard a familiar voice saying his name.

"Harry?"

Harry glanced up, and saw Oliver Wood and his wife approaching him. Harry grinned, waving at them.

"Oliver," he greeted, kissing his wife, Amelia, on the cheek. He hadn't seen them in what felt like ages, but Harry still wrote to him occasionally, and he attended their wedding a few years ago. "What are you two doing here? I thought you were traveling with your team?"

"I took leave for the trial," Oliver explained, and Harry's eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Were you part of the lawsuit?"

"I was," Amelia told him. "I had been in with some pretty bad burns. Ackford was my Healer," she grimaced.

"Oh, no," Harry said sympathetically. "That's terrible. I'm glad to see that you're doing better now, though."

"Oh, yes, all better! Healer Malfoy helped me a lot. I saw you sitting with him earlier. Are you two...?" she asked, trailing off, implication clear.

Harry laughed. "Yeah, we are."

Oliver snorted. "Never thought I'd see the day that you two could even get along," he joked. "We saw you both in the papers, but you never know what's actually true with them, you know how it is." And yeah, that was definitely fair.

"Well, I think it's lovely," Amelia said, elbowing her husband. "He was wonderful when I was in, really looked out for me. We unfortunately have to get back, but it was so good to see you, Harry, and oh, do tell him I said hello, and thank him for me again."

"Of course I will," Harry told her, bidding them goodbye and leaning up against the wall while he waited for Draco to finish up.

Amelia had to have been the severe burn patient Draco had told him about; he knew she worked in a dragon reserve. He had helped her so much, making sure she was being treated properly. Fuck, why did that turn him on so much? Harry squirmed a bit, now really wanting to get Draco home.

He stared at Draco unabashedly, ignoring the people who were now pouring out of the courtroom, but he straightened up when Healer Raube caught his eye and waved at him before turning and going towards the lift. Harry frowned minutely. Wow, he looked terrible. The trial must have been weighing on him.

Draco hurried over to where Harry was waiting, and Harry took his hand immediately, leading him to the lifts.

"You didn't have to wait back here," Draco said.

"Just wanted you to have some privacy. I talked to Oliver Wood and his wife for a minute. They said to tell you hello and to thank you, by the way. I didn't realize she was your burn patient."

"Did she tell you?" Draco asked, sounding surprised.

Harry half shrugged. "Just that she was in with burns and you helped her a lot. I know she works with dragons, so I just kind of assumed."

Draco nodded. "I planned on writing to her. I figured you were still in touch with Oliver and would have their contact information. You talk to everyone."

"I am," Harry confirmed, fidgeting impatiently as he stepped into the lift. Fuck this; he couldn't wait any longer.

Draco followed him inside, chuckling, oblivious to Harry's blatant arousal. "I knew it. Did you want to pick up-"

Harry cut him off, lunging at him and attaching his mouth to Draco's the second the doors slid shut, practically climbing up his body to get closer to him. Draco stumbled a few steps back until his back hit the wall, grunting in surprise at the unexpected assault.

"Yes," Harry panted into his mouth, pressing his hand directly onto Draco's cock and giving it a light squeeze, "but not now. Now, I'm going to take you home and reward you for getting through this."

Draco groaned. "Fuck, okay," he breathed before letting Harry kiss him again, not stopping even when the doors to the lift slid open. It wasn't like they had to rush; they had privacy here.

A throat clearing behind them rid him of that idea very quickly. Draco startled, his head snapping back and hitting off the wall behind him.

"Ow," he muttered, wincing, then he gasped when he saw the Minster standing outside the lift, arms crossed, eyebrow raised at them, lips twitching in amusement.

"Hullo, Kingsley," Harry greeted him cheerfully. "You're back early."

"It appears that I am," Kingsley mused in his deep voice. Harry would love to stay and chat, but... actually, he wouldn't love that right now. He needed to get Draco naked five minutes ago.

"Well, thanks again for letting us use the back way. We really need to be getting home, though. I believe I left the water running," Harry said, giving the first excuse that popped into his head, and grabbed Draco's hand, tugging him out of the lift and past Kingsley. "Bye!"

Kingsley's loud laugh followed them down the corridor until Harry Apparated them back home.

*

Harry was waiting for Draco to come home anxiously. He'd only had to work the morning shift, but he was taking his final Healer's exam today, and he'd already been at the examination office for nine hours. Scorpius had lost the fight with sleep, and Harry was growing increasingly impatient. How long could this exam possibly be? Draco needed to pass to get his Healer's License, and Harry was dying to know how he'd done.

Just after he checked the clock for what had to be the twentieth time, he heard the Floo roar to life. Harry whipped his head around and saw Draco stumble through the fireplace, looking completely dead on his feet. He looked exhausted.

"Oh, baby, you look so tired," Harry said softly, kissing Draco's neck when he slumped into Harry's arms.

"So tired," he slurred out. "But I finished."

"Do you think you passed?"

"Hope so. Want bed."

"Come on, sweetheart. Do you want me to carry you?"

Draco shook his head. "I can walk."

Harry helped him anyway, wrapping Draco's arm around his shoulders so he could help support his weight, and Draco collapsed face down into bed, fully dressed, the moment they got in the room. Harry chuckled quietly, and just began removing Draco's clothing for him, stripping him down to his pants.

Draco was sound asleep by the time he finished, and Harry just maneuvered him gently until he was under the covers, then crawled into bed after him, scooting as close as he could and nuzzling his face into Draco's throat, pressing sleepy kisses there.

"I'm so proud of you," Harry whispered, closing his eyes, but he jumped slightly when he felt arms wrap around him. He thought Draco was dead to the world by now.

"I'm proud of me, too," Draco whispered back, and Harry felt contentment settle over him like a blanket.

It was about time he saw what Harry saw.

*

"Daddy! Mail!" Scorpius chirped out from his seat at the kitchen island where he was waiting patiently to go visit Ron, pointing to the window.

Sure enough, a gigantic, stern looking Eagle owl was waiting patiently to be let in, a fairly thick envelope tied to its leg.

"Thanks, buddy," Harry said, opening the window to relieve the owl of its burden. He grinned when he saw the official St. Mungo's seal on the back, and gave the bird a piece of bread before closing the window again.

"I'll be back, just going to go give this to your papa," Harry told him, ruffling his hair before hurrying to the living room, but he stopped short when he caught sight of Draco.

It was Draco's last day off; after today, he had only two days of his internship left. Two. It was so exciting, but he refused to let Harry throw him a party until he was completely finished. He appeared to be celebrating a bit early right now, however.

He was sat on the couch, still studying for some reason, but Fish was draped over his lap, rubbing her head against his hand while he chuckled quietly, scratching under her chin. Petting the cat in secret, the cat he claimed he didn't even like. Harry smirked, smugness washing over him.

"You love her," he stated, smiling wider when Draco jumped slightly, looking like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"I certainly do not," Draco argued. "She was just... cold."

"It's thirty-two degrees outside," Harry deadpanned. "Admit it. You love her," he cooed.

"Nope."

"Alright. I'll just take her, then, since you don’t care about her," Harry shrugged, coming closer and reaching down to scoop her up. Draco curled his arm around her protectively, though, preventing her from being moved, and Harry grinned in delight. That was as good as a confession.

"Ugh, fine. I suppose I can... tolerate her. She's soft!" he said defensively when Harry's grin didn't slip.

"You totally love her."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Potter. What do you want? I thought you were going to visit Weasley?"

"Mail came," Harry said, sitting down and holding a letter out to him. "This looked important."

Draco quickly set his book aside, frowning at the seal, but he opened it, pulling out the contents and scanning the first page.

"What is it?" Harry asked after a moment, struggling not to sound too nosy, but he was so excited. "Is it your exam results?"

Draco shook his head. "Not yet. It's the form to choose the ward I want to work on. More than one must have requested me," he said excitedly. "It says that my permanent placement is still contingent on my Healer's exam results, and completion of my mandatory internship work hours, but this is to confirm my choice so they can get the ball rolling, so to speak."

That was almost better than his exam results. He'd get to see where he got to work! Or choose his ward, which would be even better.

"That's so exciting, darling!" Harry said enthusiastically, leaning over to kiss him. "You're as good as hired! Who offered you a spot?"

Draco shuffled the top page to the back of the stack. Underneath was what looked like a list of Healers who were offering him a position, and what ward they oversaw. Four names were listed.

"Is that all of them?" Harry asked incredulously, but Draco shook his head again.

"No, but it's close. All but Raube."

"That can't be right, his name is right there," Harry said, pointing to where Iain Raube was clearly printed on the parchment, right next to it marking him as the head of Creature Induced Injuries. It's not like Draco would choose him, but he seemed to want Draco.

"What?" Draco asked in confusion, frowning when he saw the name. "I have no idea why he asked for me," he muttered.

"I don't know, but he did," Harry shrugged. "Maybe he likes you."

Draco set the list aside, rifling through the remaining pages, smiling slightly as he read the review notes about him from each of the Healers, one by one.

"So, you're picking Plant and Potion Poisoning, right? You loved it there," Harry reminded him, practically bouncing with excitement, but Draco's smile slowly slipped when he reached the final page, a look of deep contemplation taking over his face as he bit his lip. "I don't know," he murmured, not taking his eyes off of the parchment in his hands.

What? Harry thought for sure that Draco had wanted to go back to Poisoning. He'd gotten on so well with Jarsdel, to the point that they were now friends, even outside of work. They'd even met up with him and Healer Swynford, his wife, at the pub a few times.

"You don’t? I thought you'd already decided. Did you want to go back to Artefact Accidents instead? The Lead Healer there specifically asked for you back when you left, didn't he?"

"He did," Draco confirmed. "But, um. I was actually thinking Creature Induced Injuries," he said hesitantly.

Harry reared back in shock, frowning. What?!

"What? You hated it there, though. The staff was terrible to you! You were miserable, and you said the work was hard. Remember how long it took you to peg that Quintaped attack?"

"I know."

"Baby, don't you want to pick something you actually enjoyed? Something... I don't know, easier?" Harry pushed. He didn't want Draco to pick somewhere where he would just be miserable again. He shouldn't hate his job, and it had been so bad there before. Aside from the staff just being awful to him, it had been hard work; the hours were long and the cases were intense.

Draco took a deep breath. "I know other wards would be easier, but..." he met Harry's confused gaze steadily, "I don't necessarily want easy. I want a challenge. I liked the challenge. I liked the work there, a lot, actually; that was never the issue. I never thought it would be an option to choose it because of how my rotation there had gone. I don't really care if no one else likes me; most of them are gone now, anyway, and I want my work to mean something, to make a difference. I can make a real difference there. Did you see Raube at the trial?"

"Well, yes," Harry admitted, "but what does that have to do with anything?"

"He looked terrible; exhausted, stressed... he's lost visible weight because he's so overworked. He's been pulling doubles for months to make up for losing half of his staff. I asked around after seeing how tired he looked. He hasn't hired anyone new yet, and I'm the only Intern even close to finishing the programme. The one who started right after me got held back in Artefact Accidents twice and was dismissed. He’s a good Healer, and a good boss. He’s a good person. He went so far to make things right… I want to work with him. He needs help."

Harry looked at him helplessly for a moment, before letting his eyes fall to the piece of parchment in Draco's hands, reading Raube's words carefully.

Mr. Malfoy has exhibited an incredible amount of both skill and natural talent during his time in Creature Induced Injuries. He has proven himself to be both professional and competent, proficient in problem solving, quick, critical thinking, and communication, and his interest in medicine and desire to learn is highly admirable. These are qualities I traditionally look for when bringing on new members to my staff.

Mr. Malfoy has additionally demonstrated excellent bedside manner and leadership qualities, always placing patient care above all else. However, his ability to maintain empathy and humility in the face of adversity is something I have rarely come across and value tremendously.

I'd like to extend an offer for permanent placement, but must note that any department that obtains him will be improved by his presence, and the hospital as a whole will be enriched by having a Healer like Mr. Malfoy employed here.

Iain Raube

Lead Healer, Creature Induced Injuries

And Harry understood then. He wanted to work somewhere he could make a tangible difference because he wanted to help make the hospital better, and he wanted to take some of the burden from Raube's shoulders, but that wasn't all. Draco wanted to work with Raube, not only because he needed the help, but because Raube saw him. He had taken notice of the small things Draco did that made him a great Healer, and appreciated those things. Harry knew how much that meant to Draco.

Harry looked back up at him, pride practically radiating from him. "Your mind is made up, isn't it?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," Draco breathed, nodding slightly. "I didn't realize how much I wanted to go back until I saw him at the trial. But I think this is going to be the right choice."

Harry's smile grew at that. "You're going to do so great, darling," he said, pulling Draco into him for a tight hug before whispering, "I'm so proud of you," into his ear.

He couldn't be more proud if he tried.

*

Draco had finally caved and agreed to let Harry give him a party after his placement letter had come. He'd wanted to wait, but Harry had worn him down, practically begging until he agreed to let Harry start planning one, even without having his exam results. There was no sense in waiting, Harry knew he had passed. There was no way in hell he hadn't.

Harry hadn't wasted any time, reaching out to practically everyone they knew and inviting them over for a party to surprise Draco when he returned home from work today. It was his last day, so this really was the perfect time to celebrate. If he wasn't in a celebrating mood today, he probably wouldn't ever be.

Harry had stopped by Fortescue's to get some celebratory ice cream, and he'd just reused the decorations from Scorpius' last birthday, charming them lime green instead of blue to match the Healer robes, and he'd spent all day cooking up a veritable feast of finger foods for everyone to snack on, and hung a huge banner above the doorway that said Congratulations!

He'd done pretty well, considering he'd planned the whole thing in under two days. Their house was currently bursting with people, waiting for Draco to get home. All of the Weasley's were there, even Bill and Charlie, as well as Hermione, Draco's parents, Andy and Teddy, Pansy and Blaise, Theo, Neville, Sam, her husband, Tommy and Luca from playgroup, Jordan Jarsdel and his wife, and Audrey. Everyone was chattering excitedly, and Scorpius was zooming around, trying to talk to everyone at once and playing tag with Tommy and Luca.

It was beginning to get late, and Harry had set a ward on the Floo and the front porch that would alert him when someone was trying to come inside so they'd all have time to quiet down and shout surprise when he got home. Draco should be home any time now.

When the ward from the front door went off, Harry quickly shushed everyone and killed the lights. The front door slammed, and he heard Draco call out to him.

"Darling? Scorpius! I'm home!"

Scorpius was bouncing on his heels next to Harry, and Harry placed a hand on his shoulder to still him. Footsteps came closer, and Draco called out again.

"Harry? Are you home?"

Draco had apparently pulled his wand out to turn on the lights, and the moment they were back on, everyone screamed, "SURPRISE!"

Harry had expected a shocked reaction, but what he hadn't expected was for Draco to shout in fear and trip over his own feet as he stumbled back in shock, dropping the package he was holding and falling hard on his arse in front of everyone.

"Oh no, are you alright?" Harry said, hurrying over to help him up, shooting him an apologetic look while Theo nearly pissed himself laughing behind them.

"What the hell is going on?" Draco demanded in confusion.

"Papa! That's a bad word!" Scorpius scolded, running forward to jump at Draco. "This is your surprise party, silly."

"Surprise party for what?" he asked, looking around the room.

"For finishing your internship, you brainless sod," Pansy said with a slight eyeroll, pointing at the banner Harry had hung up above the doorway.

"My- oh! Harry! I'm a Healer!" Draco said excitedly, seemingly forgetting all about the party and his fall.

"Of course you are. Well, soon to be, anyway," Harry chuckled. "You said we could celebrate early, remember?"

"No, no," Draco said, shaking his head. He picked up his dropped package and handed Harry a few pieces of parchment that were on top of the box. "I passed," he whispered thickly, silver eyes practically glowing.

Harry took in the papers he was holding. One of them was his Healer's License, the name Healer Draco Malfoy emblazoned on the bottom, and the second was his exam results. Marked with an O. An O. He'd gotten an O. A damn near perfect score, at that. Holy fuck!

"You passed," he repeated Draco's words before laughing brightly. "Baby, you passed! You got an O! What the fuck! Outstanding, Draco! You're a Healer!"

He launched himself at Draco, wrapping him up in the tightest hug he could muster. Draco clenched his fists into Harry's shirt, chest heaving slightly. This was the best news he could have gotten today. Absolutely perfect timing. Harry was so bloody proud of him.

"Papa's a Healer! Papa's a Healer!" Scorpius was cheering, skipping around them.

"Oh, my dragon, that's incredible!" Narcissa said, rushing up to kiss Draco on the cheek, while his father hovered nearby, looking slightly constipated for some reason.

Harry released Draco so everyone else could congratulate him, and Hermione snatched the exam results out of his hand, eyes scanning them hungrily.

"I can't believe you got an Outstanding. Do you know how rare that is?" she said excitedly. "You'll have to go over it with me sometime, I'd love to know what kind of questions you had on it."

"Oh, give him a break from thinking about learning, Hermione, the poor man literally just finished less than an hour ago," Ginny said, elbowing past her brother and pulling Draco into a hug.

Draco didn't even balk at it, just returned the hug, smiling when Ginny winked at him. Harry wondered briefly if she'd ever told Draco what she'd done to Owen, if they'd bonded over it or something, but he certainly wasn't going to bring it up here.

The party passed in a blur, with food and drinks and cake circling around, and far too soon, it was beyond late and most of the guests had trickled out, until only Draco's parents remained. Scorpius was passed out on the couch, and Harry bid Lucius and Narcissa goodnight before scooping the little boy up to carry him to bed.

Harry changed him into a pair of pajamas as carefully as he could and tucked him into bed, chuckling quietly when he remained fast asleep the entire time. Harry kissed him on the forehead before going back downstairs, finding the Malfoy's gone and Draco already tidying up the mess left behind. Harry joined him, vanishing most of the mess from the living room and kitchen, sending dishes flying towards the sink and setting them to wash themselves.

"Magical dishwashing tonight?" Draco asked, eyebrows raised, knowing Harry usually preferred doing them by hand. “What’s the occasion?”

Harry shrugged. "It's late. And I have one last little celebration," he said, producing the two cups of ice cream Fortescue's and waggling his eyebrows excitedly.

Draco barked out a laugh. "You and ice cream, I swear. I think you have an addiction, love."

Harry set both cups on the island and summoned spoons for them before taking his usual seat. "I like ice cream. It's fun. And tasty."

Draco chuckled. "That it is."

He joined Harry at the island and accepted his own spoon, humming contentedly as he took a bite of his own earl grey and lavender ice cream.

"Thank you so much for the party, darling. It ended up being perfect timing after all."

"Wasn't that lucky," Harry chuckled, grinning at Draco. "I still can't believe you got an O on your exam. So bloody smart."

"I didn't expect that, to be fair, I was just hoping for at least an E. I can't believe I'm finally a Healer."

"You're a Healer," Harry agreed, softening. "You worked so hard for this, sweetheart. I'm so proud of you. We all are."

"I couldn't have done this without you, you know."

"Oh, yes, you could have, you stubborn git," Harry said fondly. He absolutely could have. Draco was meant to be a Healer, and he would have become one with or without Harry.

"Well, I maybe could have, but not this well," Draco compromised. "You- Harry, you have done more for me and Scorpius than you understand. You're so supportive. You're just..." he swallowed, looking more emotional than Harry had possibly ever seen him look. "You're everything. Thank you so much, my darling."

Harry flushed hotly at the compliment, but he held Draco's gaze. "You're welcome, love, but I don't need thanks."

"What do you need, then? I'll give you anything, whatever you want," Draco said earnestly.

Harry shrugged. "Just love me."

That's truly all he needed. All he wanted. He just wanted Draco to love him.

"That, I will always do."

Draco leaned in to kiss Harry, keeping it gentle, before pulling back. Harry smiled down at his ice cream shyly, and Draco hummed, satisfied.

Draco took another bite of his ice cream. "This is so good," he moaned. "I should order this one more often." He glanced over at Harry's usual mint chocolate chip and chuckled. "You're just like Scorpius, you know. Always getting the same flavor."

"I don't get the same one every time," Harry laughed. "Just almost every time. I like it!" he defended. "And what about you with your lavender shirt?" he said, poking Draco's chest, where said lavender button up was once again stretched over his chest. "You wear it all the time."

"Because I happen to look amazing in this color, Potter, and you know it," he sniffed.

"Oh, I know. In fact, your ice cream is the exact same color," Harry said, smirking mischievously, dipping his spoon into Draco's bowl. "It would look just as pretty against your skin."

Draco's eyes narrowed. "Don't do it," he warned, pointing his spoon at Harry.

Harry popped the spoon into his own mouth instead and held his hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright," he lied, smiling sheepishly, and Draco relaxed.

Harry leaned in closer like he was going to kiss him, but when Draco leaned in to meet him, Harry dipped his finger into Draco's cup and reached up, swiping a dollop of ice cream right on the tip of his nose

Draco stared at him in shock, and Harry burst out laughing. "Oh, my God, your face," he laughed brightly, and Draco just stared at him, unimpressed.

"Hilarious," he deadpanned.

"Oh, lighten up," Harry chuckled, nudging him with his shoulder and shooting him a soppy grin. "I was right, by the way; it looks lovely on you."

Draco softened. "Alright, you win this time," he chuckled.

Harry watched Draco's eyes cross slightly as he looked down at the mess on his nose, and instead of reaching for a napkin like a normal person, he instead darted his tongue out to try and lick the ice cream off of his nose before it dripped on his shirt.

Harry's heart did a violent flip. He had no idea why; it was entirely ridiculous. Draco was just sitting in their kitchen, his hair falling out of his bun, trying to lick his own nose, and Harry had never loved him more than he did in that moment.

Harry needed him. He needed him like he needed air. He needed this gorgeous, brilliant, amazing, ridiculous man for the rest of his life. He was going to die if he couldn't have him forever. Harry wanted to eat ice cream with him until they were too old to even taste it. He wanted to argue over Scrabble and wash his Healer robes and remind him to eat for the rest of his life. He wanted to listen to his snarky jokes and feel his possessive embrace when he got jealous until everyone else in the world moved on forgot who Harry was. He wanted to help Draco hide chocolate frog cards for his father to find, and take him on muggle outings, and cry when they dropped Scorpius off on Platform 9 and 3/4 together. Harry wanted everything with him. He had to have him, had to make sure he'd have him forever.

"Harry? Are you alright?" Draco asked when he'd been silent for too long, reaching up to swipe distractedly at his nose.

"Marry me," Harry blurted out.

Draco froze, eyes widening in shock, jaw falling open, but Harry didn't take it back. It wasn't planned, it wasn't even remotely romantic, but he didn’t care, He wanted it. He'd wanted it for so long, probably forever.

"Please," Harry begged desperately as he turned to fully face Draco, grasping the hand that wasn't holding his spoon tightly. "I love you so much, and I need you to marry me, preferably right fucking now. Please. You are everything I've ever wanted, and if you don't marry me, I might actually die. You're so smart and funny and gorgeous, Merlin, are you bloody gorgeous, all the time, but you're also so unexpectedly sweet and romantic and caring, and absolutely nothing I ever expected when we were in school, and you're just sitting over there trying to lick ice cream off your nose, and it looked so ridiculous, but I just..." he sucked in a sharp, shuddering breath. He was rambling, but he didn't care. He needed Draco to know how much he meant it. "Marry me. I never want to live without you. I need you. Sweetheart. I'm literally begging you. Please marry me."

Draco just stared at him, stunned, and Harry could practically see the thoughts racing through his mind. He- he wasn't answering, though, and Harry was starting to worry, thinking he'd just made a terrible, terrible mistake by just blurting it out like that, but just when he was about to panic, thinking of how to beg Draco if they could just pretend he'd never said any of that, Draco gasped, blinking rapidly.

"Harry," he choked out, eyes filling with tears as he reached out to brush his fingers along Harry's jaw. "Darling, I've wanted to marry you since I was thirteen. I wanted to marry you when I realized why I was so obsessed with you, and when you beat the dragon in the Triwizard Tournament, and when I saw you at that stupid Yule Ball, and when you pulled me out of the Fiendfyre, and when you testified at my trial, and when you showed up on my doorstep last May, and every single moment since then. I love you. Of course I'll marry you."

Harry choked out a sob, eyes and fists squeezing shut tightly as a single tear slid down his cheek. Christ, how was he so good with words? He spoke like poetry, wrapping Harry up in flowery words that always seemed to burrow inside, healing pieces of his heart that he didn't realize were still cracked and broken.

"You will?" he asked shakily. "You really want to?"

Draco laughed wetly at that, and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small, black leather box on the island in front of Harry. That- that was a ring box. Why did Draco have a ring box? And more importantly, why didn't Harry have a ring box?

Harry stared at it for a moment before looking back at Draco guiltily. "Shit. I forgot a ring."

Draco guffawed at that, shaking his head fondly. "I literally do not care at all."

Harry relaxed a little at that, and Draco reached over and popped the lid open. Harry gasped when he saw the ring inside, eyes filling with more tears as he stared at it. It was stunning.

"Oh," he whispered, reaching out towards the ring, but hesitating, almost afraid to touch it.

"You can touch it, darling, it's yours," Draco assured him.

Harry did, then, picking the ring up carefully to examine it. It was somewhat of a thinner band, thinner than Ron's, anyway. The outer edges of the ring were solid gold, but the inside was hollowed out so skin could peek through, and it was held together with delicate, golden vines, weaving and twining around each other beautifully, complete with tiny, intricate leaves. Scattered sparsely around the vines, nestled neatly between the them, were the tiniest, clearest rubies he had ever seen. He'd never seen anything like it. It was gorgeous, and he loved it more than he thought possible. It was just a piece of jewelry, but it wasn't. This... it signified everything. Draco had chosen this ring for him. He’d planned this.

"Darling, this is beautiful. It’s perfect. I love it so much," Harry whispered, but why did Draco have this in his pocket? "When did you even buy this? Have you been carrying this around?"

"I have," Draco admitted. "I bought it in January. I bought two, actually, they were a set. I thought you would prefer if I also wore one." He summoned a second box from somewhere upstairs and it zoomed down to them. He showed Harry the one he'd picked for himself.

"You've had these for nearly seven months?" Harry said incredulously. "Why?"

Draco shrugged. "I was waiting for the perfect time. You beat me to it."

Harry melted, standing up to slot himself between Draco’s knees and kiss him sweetly. "Any time would have been the perfect time, you know. You couldn't have done it wrong."

"I know," he whispered, pulling Harry back in for another kiss. Harry let himself get lost in it. They were engaged. He was engaged to the love of his life, the best person he knew. He could hardly believe it. He was getting married.

Finally.

"Don't you want to wear it?" Draco asked when he finally broke the kiss, his lips red and swollen, but Harry shook his head slowly.

"These are wedding bands, not engagement rings," he said decisively. He wasn't going to waste such a gorgeous ring on what would hopefully be a very short engagement. He wanted to wear it forever. "We're saving them. We'll never find any more perfect than these. But we should probably get married fast, though, so they don't have to sit in their boxes longer than they already have," he hinted.

Draco laughed loudly, hugging Harry to him tightly. "I'll see what I can do," he agreed.

"We're engaged," Harry said, looking up at him with shining eyes, grin plastered on his face, dimple digging into his cheek deeply.

Draco thumbed over it, kissing Harry briefly again. "We're engaged."

"I have to tell Ron and Hermione," he said suddenly, jerking backwards and fumbling to put the ring back in the box so he wouldn't lose it.

He had to tell them right now. They'd been so bloody supportive throughout this entire rollercoaster; throughout his entire life, helping him heal from Owen, looking out for him when fans made him uncomfortable, helping him with Cuffe and helping him sort out everything with Draco, never once complaining that it was Draco that he wanted, even after the war; not even back in Eighth Year when everything was still fresh and raw... they deserved to be the first ones to know. He couldn't wait another minute.

"Darling, it's the middle of the night," Draco reminded him.

"Trust me, they won't care. I'll just send a Patronus, I won't go over there," he reassured at Draco's slightly doubtful look. They probably weren't asleep yet anyway, but even if they were, this was news they wouldn't mind being woken up for.

"Alright, then," he chuckled. "Far be it from me try and stop you."

"You couldn't anyway," Harry said with a smirk, pulling out his wand and summoning his Patronus with practiced ease. However, what burst out of the tip of his wand was decidedly not his silvery stag.

What appeared instead, was a swan.

A swan.

 Harry gasped loudly, stunned. It was right there, plain as day, gliding around the two of them closely. This one wasn't the same as Draco's black swan, though; it was brighter, calmer, more serene. This was a white swan.

"What the fuck?" Draco said, sounding absolutely bewildered. "I thought your Patronus was a stag? It's always been a stag. Hasn't it?"

Harry barely even heard him, though, still frozen in complete shock, eyes glued to the beautiful swan in front of them. His swan. His swan that was a perfect match to Draco's swan. A pair.

Harry," Draco said in concern, touching his cheek.

Harry turned to look at him, eyes slightly unfocused, and swallowed thickly. He needed to see Draco's swan, right now. He had to, he had to be sure. "Sweetheart. Can you..." he trailed off, but Draco understood.

He pulled out his wand, muttering the incantation, and soon enough, the now familiar black swan appeared, immediately finding Harry's swan and gliding in a circle around it before it settled in close, their two heads pressed together, necks forming somewhat of a heart. They were beautiful; similar, but still different. A perfect pair, made for each other. Harry's breath hitched, and he felt tears pricking the corners of his eyes.

"Soulmates," he croaked out, voice cracking with emotion. "You said- but I didn't-" he paused, eyes falling shut as he took a shuddering breath, trying to explain himself. "When yours didn't mimic mine, I was a little disappointed."

He'd been hoping so badly that Draco's Patronus would match his, and he'd been upset when it hadn't, thinking Draco was wrong when he'd called them soulmates. He hadn't even considered that his own might change. It made sense, though. This was a new chapter of his life, a fresh start. He didn't need to rely on the love his parents had left him with anymore to be happy, not when he finally had someone else who loved him just as much as they had, someone he loved just as much in return, his other half, just like they'd been to each other. It wasn't replacing them, of course, he'd never not love them deeply; it was simply... growing up.

Draco frowned slightly. "They still aren't the same, though," he pointed out. "Yours isn't a black swan like mine."

Harry laughed thickly. "I know," he said, eyes shining. "This is so much better. Don't you see?"

"Er. Not exactly?"

He looked adorably confused, and Harry moved closer to him, nuzzling his face into Draco's chest before looking up at him with eyes full of adoration. "Did you know that Snape's Patronus was the same as my mum's? A doe?"

Draco shook his head slowly.

"He loved her, even after she died. That's why he saved me. She loved my dad, though. Snape had the same Patronus as her because he loved her but couldn't have her, but that's not how it was with my dad. Her doe was a perfect match to his stag. They belonged to each other. Soulmates."

"We're a perfect match," Draco said in understanding, eyes drifting back to their Patronus forms. "We’re soulmates."

They were. Part of him had known all along that they were made for each other, but having the confirmation... God, he was so happy. He never thought he'd ever find happiness like this. Being with Draco... it felt like a fairytale. He even looked like a prince. He'd given Harry purpose again; he'd given him a family. They may never have more children, but he had Scorpius, and that was more than enough, more than he thought he'd have after Owen had ruined him.

He didn't feel ruined anymore. There was so much love between them that he sometimes wondered how he'd ever survived without this feeling. It felt like he'd been floating by before, simply existing without really living, and meeting Draco again had breathed life into him. He felt fresh, like the first time he’d ridden a broom, and when he’d found out that he was a wizard. 

It hadn't been easy getting here; there had been pain and uncertainty and plenty of things that were out of their control to wade through, but they'd made it through. Draco may not be perfect, but he was perfect for Harry, and that was what mattered.

"I've always been yours, darling. And now you're mine," Draco murmured, running his thumb over Harry’s bare ring finger, bringing him out of his thoughts.

Harry surged up to kiss him then, connecting their mouths in a heated kiss. He devoured Draco's mouth, pulling Draco closer to him desperately. "I love you," he grunted. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too, darling. Maybe you should send your message along now, though, because I am going to absolutely ravish you," Draco murmured, fingers drifting along the waistline of Harry's jeans.

"Message?" Harry asked in bewilderment. Draco raised an eyebrow, flicking his eyes over to their swans. Oh. Ron and Hermione. "Oh. Oh! Right."

He called his Patronus over, admiring it for a long moment. "Pretty," he muttered under his breath, then, "Ron, Hermione! We're engaged! We’re getting married! Finally," he tacked on at the end with a giddy grin, flicking his wand to send the Patronus on to deliver his message before turning back to tug Draco into another kiss, pushing him towards the sofa.

"Not the bed?" Draco gasped out between kisses, and Harry shook his head.

"Nope. The couch. Love this couch. Love you on this couch. This couch got us together. It's my favorite thing."

Draco huffed out a laugh, but didn't argue, letting Harry maneuver him how he wanted on the couch before Harry climbed on top of him, thighs straddling Draco's hips. Harry reached for his flies, reattaching their mouths, but a few moments later they were startled apart by Ron's silvery Jack Russel Terrier bounding up to them excitedly, causing Draco to shriek in surprise.

Draco pressed a hand to his chest, trying to calm his racing heart, and Harry smiled apologetically at him as Ron's voice floated through the air.

"HARRY! WHEN DID YOUR PATRONUS CHANGE?! WHAT THE HELL, MATE? ANYWAY, CONGRATULATIONS! WAS GETTING WORRIED FOR A BIT THERE THAT WE'D HAVE TO START GIFTING YOU CATS. PROUD OF YOU BOTH FOR CHOOSING TO GET MARRIED FOR LOVE, AND NOT AN UNEXPECTED PREGNANCY. CAN'T WAIT FOR THE STAG PARTY!"

The dog vanished, and Draco shot Harry a weird look. "Er," he said uncertainly, and Harry's face turned bright red as he tried to hold in his laughter. His best friend was a complete nutter. He loved it. "That was... nice?"

Harry broke, his bright laughter filling the room, and before Draco could respond, another Patronus appeared near them, this time in the shape of an otter.

"FOR THE LOVE OF- DON'T LISTEN TO RONALD, HARRY. HE THINKS HE'S FUNNY, BUT HE'S JUST AN IDIOT. WE'RE BOTH SO THRILLED FOR YOU! WE'LL SEE YOU IN THE MORNING FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY."

He'd entirely forgotten that his birthday was tomorrow, more caught up in the excitement of Draco's internship ending and the party, but sure enough, it was already well past midnight. It was officially his twenty-sixth birthday.

"It's the thirty-first," Draco said, nudging Harry. "Happy birthday, darling."

Harry grinned. "Best birthday ever," he sighed, leaning back into Draco. The heat between them had somewhat cooled with the interruption, but the desire to be close to each other hadn't faded at all. He ran his hands along Harry's back, through his hair, up his thighs, just touching him for the sake of touching.

"I love you so much," Harry whispered, leaning down to kiss along Draco's neck. "I still can't believe you're mine. We're going to get married. We're soulmates."

"We're soulmates," Draco agreed, swallowing thickly. "I can't wait to love you for the rest of my life."

Harry couldn't wait to let him.

Notes:

I'm so sad to say goodbye to this universe, but I'm definitely ready to say hello to my next one! I have two new stories in the works, which should hopefully both be up shortly. One shorter, one longer like this one. Hopefully you'll give them a try, and I'll see you in the epilogue!

As always, happy reading, and any comments are greatly appreciated. Thank you so much to everyone who stuck it out this long!

Chapter 19: EPILOGUE

Summary:

AND WE HAVE AN EPILOGUE!

November, 2006

"Hermione Granger!" Harry practically shouted at the Mediwitch running the front desk as he ran into the hospital, startling the poor girl. "Sorry, sorry," he said breathlessly, offering her an apologetic smile. "I'm just excited."

She softened, turning to her paperwork to hopefully look up what room Hermione was in. She told him the room number and he ran to the lifts, tapping his foot impatiently while he waited for it to take him where he needed to go.

Once he arrived on the correct floor, he hurried down the corridor in a half run, counting the rooms until he came to the right one. He didn't bother knocking.

"Where is she?" he asked, head whipping around, until he noticed a glowing Hermione sitting up in bed, looking at him in amusement.

"Relax, Ronald just took her for a little walk around the floor and to let his family know they can come visit. They'll be back soon," Hermione laughed, shaking her head fondly at his excitement.

He broke into a grin, rushing over to scoop her gently into his arms. "Sorry, love, I'm just dying to meet her. How are you feeling, 'Mione? You look incredible, are you sure you just gave birth? Are you in any pain? Do you need anything? What can I do?" Harry babbled.

"I'm fine, almost no pain at all. It all happened so quick, and Ron was a bit of a mess and forgot to call you. I'm sorry we weren't able to send word sooner."

Hermione had wanted Harry to be there when she went into labor, but by the time he'd gotten Ron's panicked Patronus saying that Hermione was having the baby, she was already in the process of being born. He'd had to excuse himself from Scorpius' birthday party with about a thousand apologies, and rush right over, but he, unfortunately, missed the birth. Scorp had declared that she'd come on his birthday, and Harry couldn't believe she actually had. He would swear that kid had willed it into existence if he didn't know that wasn't exactly possible.

He was slightly disappointed he hadn't been able to be there to welcome his new niece or help his best friend during labor, especially since there was no way Ron had kept a level head and probably had stressed Hermione out more than he'd helped her, but he was just happy that they were all alright and little Rosie was here.

"Don't even worry about that," he chastised her. "Hopefully Ron didn't panic too much," he joked, and she laughed brightly.

"He fainted, Harry! One of the Mediwitches had to levitate him out of the room until he came to. It was so ridiculous I couldn't even be upset. He did make it back in time to see her birth, at least."

Harry groaned, looking at the ceiling, facepalming. "I can't believe he actually fainted," he chuckled.

"Oi! I didn't faint!" Ron's voice called from the doorway. "I passed out, and it was very manly."

Harry whipped around, taking in Ron's slightly indignant face before his eyes settled on the tiny pink bundle in his arms.

"Oh, my God," he whispered, heart pounding as he stood, slowly making his way over to Ron, eyes glued on the baby.

Ron shifted her in his arms, pressing a kiss to her little head before holding her out for Harry to take her. "I'd tell you to be careful, but you have way more experience than I do holding babies," Ron chuckled.

Harry blinked back tears as he took Rose in his arms, cuddling her close as he studied her face.

She was beautiful. Barely a fuzz of bright red hair on her head, and perfect, pink little lips. Her features were so tiny but she was staring at him intensely, like she was already trying to figure him out. Already like her mother.

He laughed wetly, giving her a kiss on her teeny, tiny nose, causing her to scrunch up her little face and sneeze.

"Oh, God, she's perfect," he breathed. "Absolutely perfect."

"She is. You will be her Godfather, won't you, Harry?" Hermione asked. "I can't imagine asking anyone else."

"Of course I will," he choked out, grinning, his eyes wet. They were tears of joy, though; he was so, so happy for his best friends, and so happy that Rosie was finally here.

"You hear that, sweetheart? I'm going to be your Godfather. Your mummy and daddy are going to get so sick of seeing me," he chuckled quietly, but when he looked at their faces, looking at him holding their new baby with nothing but love and patience, he knew they wouldn't, not really.

They were best friends; a trio, always.

*

December, 2006

"Hello, darling. How was little Rose?" Draco asked, kissing him on the cheek.

Harry had just returned from a long afternoon of visiting Rosie. Scorpius had gone with him, but Harry had dropped him off at the Manor for a sleepover with his grandparents before coming back home, and Draco had told him he had some things around the house to catch up on, so he'd begged off coming. Harry suspected that was code for needing some time alone, so he'd just kissed Draco goodbye and told him to enjoy his afternoon.

"Still absolutely beautiful," Harry replied, taking off his jacket. "She's going to be a handful, that one. Only five weeks old and already very demanding, just like her mother. I still can't believe she actually came on Scorp's birthday," Harry laughed. "I told Ron that we'd be happy to take her any time so they could get some rest, though. Apparently, she's a bit of a night..."

Harry trailed off as he finally caught sight of their living room. What the hell had happened in here? It looked like a flower shop exploded. The last time Draco had gone so overboard had been Valentine's Day, and Harry wracked his brain, trying to figure out what special occasion he'd forgotten, but he came up empty.

"...owl. Er. What's the occasion?" he asked, bewildered.

"Wedding planning!" Draco exclaimed with a wide grin, and Harry felt his stomach lurch.

Oh, fuck.

Draco had been on Harry for months about planning their wedding, asking him a million questions about flowers, food, stationary, suits versus robes, venues... and Harry kept shrugging him off, giving him non-committal, half-answers every time he brought it up.

It wasn't that Harry didn't want to get married; he did. So badly. But he hadn't exactly considered the fact that Draco was incredibly dramatic and showy, and would definitely want some grand, expensive, elaborate event when he'd proposed.

The thought of having a huge wedding that they couldn't hide, of being the center of attention like that, made his palms sweat and his stomach churn in protest. God. He wanted to make Draco happy, he truly did, and he would, but he just... he needed time to adjust to the idea. Harry resisted the urge to scratch his neck where it was prickling.

"I have everything set up for you. I hoped this might be easier for you? I know you don't really enjoy shopping and planning, so I thought we could just spend the evening going over some ideas and pin down what you want here at home, and I could handle it from there. And!" Draco added excitedly, holding a bottle out with a flourish, "I got your favorite wine!"

Harry softened, giving him a small smile. He couldn't ruin this for Draco when he'd gone to so much trouble for him, trying to be as considerate as possible.

Draco must have noticed Harry's hesitation, his sharp eyes zeroing in on Harry's cheek, where he knew his dimple wasn't visible. Shit.

"Um. Is that okay?" Draco asked, sounding a bit insecure.

"Sure, darling, just let me go change. I’ll be right back," Harry told him, trying to inject some excitement into his voice.

He hurried upstairs, feeling guilty as he changed into an old pair of gray joggers and a black t-shirt. What was wrong with him? He should be thrilled that his fiancé went to so much trouble, that he wanted to be involved and was so excited to be married that he'd brought the wedding planning to Harry. It was so sweet, really. He was being ungrateful, and he knew it.

Harry sighed, running a hand through his messy hair until it flopped into his eyes. Not bothering to fix it, he made his way back downstairs so Draco wouldn't be kept waiting.

When he stepped back into the living room he looked around, feeling slightly overwhelmed. This was... it was a lot. There were dozens of bouquets and centerpiece examples lining the room, all painstakingly arranged by color.

"You've certainly been busy today," Harry tried to joke, giving Draco a slightly forced smile.

Draco smiled at him and ran a nervous hand through his hair before he scooped Harry into a tight hug. "Come on, darling," he murmured, lacing their fingers together and gently leading Harry to the kitchen, where he was surprised to see multiple plates of food and cake scattered all over the island and countertops.

"Now, I have everything set out in a specific order so it's more like an experience for you, and less like a chore, alright? Start with food, end with cake."

Oh, God. There was more? It wasn't just flowers in the living room? How much was there to look at?

Harry nodded slowly, chewing his bottom lip. He scratched at his neck absent-mindedly and eyed the multiple plates of food. Draco had Harry sit at the island, and pointed at each meal, explaining what he was eating, and they both tasted them together. After they'd both tried them all, Draco lined the plates back up neatly.

"So, what did you like? Or not like? These options just sounded the best to me, but we can always try something else, if you weren't crazy about any of them, or even a different caterer," Draco said earnestly.

"Um. The roast beef was good. So was the salmon. But I know you like lamb best, we can just go with that?" Harry answered hesitantly, eyebrows furrowing the tiniest bit in consternation.

He should just pick the options he knew Draco would like best. Harry didn’t care about any of this, but Draco clearly did. If he was going to do this, he wanted Draco to be happy.

"You don't have to pick something just because I like it," Draco told him gently. "This is about you, too."

"No, no, the lamb was really good. I liked it," Harry assured him, shaking his head, and pushing his chair back to move on, hoping they could get through this quickly. "What's next?"

Draco blinked at the abrupt change in topic. "Erm. Flowers!" he said brightly, grabbing their wine glasses and going back to the living room where he had about ten different arrangements and quite a few different centerpiece ideas that didn't involve flowers laid out. Jesus.

Harry took his wine back, downing the rest of it in one large gulp before handing his glass back to Draco. Getting drunk might help, actually, he thought, scratching at his neck again before he caught himself and made himself stop.

"Did you want more?" Draco asked carefully.

"Yes," Harry replied without hesitation, shooting Draco a crooked smile to soften his answer.

Draco refilled his glass, and Harry threw back half of it in one go while Draco stared at him with wide eyes. Harry raised his eyebrows at him, asking him to continue, and Draco blinked.

"Oh. Right. Flowers. I didn't really know what colors you preferred, so I just had a few arrangements made up in different color schemes. I thought it might help you to see how they flow, instead of just looking at fabric swatches. I know it's a bit difficult to visualize like that."

Harry stared at the multitude of flowers, eyes darting around the different ones, chewing on his bottom lip. Normally, he adored flowers. He loved yellow flowers, but Draco would decidedly not want yellow flowers at their fancy wedding. "I..." he started, then trailed off, scratching his neck again, not wanting to get the answer wrong.

Draco gestured to four arrangements that were closest to them; one all white and greenery, one in various shades of pink, one in yellows, and one that had warm, jewel tones, like a sunset. "Um. These ones here all have lilies and narcissus in them, in case you wanted to include our mothers..." he trailed off nervously, and Harry softened considerably.

Oh.

That was- fuck, that was so, so sweet of him. That was...

"I think that's a lovely idea, darling," he murmured, eyes roving again until they landed on a pretty, clean, white arrangement. "Maybe just the white one? It's simple..."

"Is that the one you like best, or the one you think I like best?" Draco asked, clearly catching onto Harry's game, and Harry looked at him a little sheepishly at being called out.

"I like the white. It's clean. Elegant. It's..."

"Me," Draco filled in, a bit flatly, eyebrow arched.

"Yes," Harry said defiantly, lifting his chin, and Draco smirked.

"Fine, then. White it is."

They worked their way through centerpieces and place cards, fabric swatches and chair sashes, dress robes and tuxedos. There was more here than Harry ever imagined, and by the time they made it to the invitation samples, Harry was fidgeting even more, unable to hide his discomfort any longer. He'd gone through two more glasses of wine, chewed his bottom lip raw, and his hands were twitching slightly with the effort it was taking not to dig his fingernails into his neck, where he was ninety-five percent sure he'd developed a stress rash.

"Alright, darling, we're almost done," Draco said softly, stroking Harry's cheek. "Just cake and stationary left."

Oh, thank God. Harry was so ready for this to be over. Then hopefully all he'd have to do is show up. He wanted to just... be married.

Draco tapped on a random invitation set. "This is the one I thought you'd like, but we can change anything you want; color, font, wording, whatever."

"It's lovely," Harry replied quickly, barely glancing at it. He didn't care at all what it looked like. "Very nice. That will do."

"Okay... Um. I just used our current names because we haven't decided on if we'll change our names or not. But this set would be pretty for a spring wedding, if you like that more?" he suggested, pointing now to a set with greens and white.

Harry clenched his hands, biting back the urge to either scream or cry, he didn't know which right now. He wanted to go to bed and cuddle his fiancé and never look at another piece of stationary again. He knew he was being selfish, and he felt horribly guilty, but this... it was too much. This was all too much. He hated this.

"Darling? What are you thinking?"

"I hate this," Harry blurted out accidentally, the words just slipping out. His eyes grew wide in shock as Draco stilled. Harry sucked his sore bottom lip between his teeth, worrying it as he waited for a response.

"What?" Draco frowned in confusion.

"I- I hate this. I don't want to do this," Harry repeated. It was out now; he couldn't take it back. He might as well just be honest now.

"I-" Draco croaked, clearing his throat as his voice cracked slightly. "Y- you don't want to do this?"

"I really don't," Harry said pleadingly. "Please. Can we please just... not?"

He felt awful, but God, he did not want a huge wedding like this, where they'd get swarmed with reporters and he'd have to put on a show for people he barely even knew. There had to be some kind of middle ground here, something that didn't make him want to gouge his eyeballs out.

He watched as a myriad of emotions flickered across Draco's face before it settled on utter devastation. "I don't understand. You don't want to marry me anymore?" Draco whispered, sounding absolutely anguished. "Why?"

Harry was horrified. He hadn't meant that!

"Oh my God," Harry gasped, quickly stepping up to Draco and wrapping his arms around him tightly and reassure him that that was not at all what he had meant. "Baby, no. No, no, no, that's not what I meant, at all. I want to marry you, more than anything. I just don't want all of- all of this," he gestured wildly to the pile of fabrics and invitations that covered the table.

A sob tore out of Draco's throat as he sagged against Harry in relief, trying to get himself under control. Christ, Harry was an arsehole.

"Darling, I'm so sorry," Harry said guiltily, fingers still stroking Draco's cheeks and jaw tenderly. "I didn't realize how that sounded. I'm sorry."

"It's alright," Draco said shakily. "I knew something was wrong and I just assumed... it doesn't matter. Um. So, you just don't want the stationary? Or you don't want to make the decisions? Or did you-"

Harry cut him off with a firm shake of his head. "No. Yes. I don't-" he made a frustrated sound, running a frazzled hand through his messy hair. "Just- can we please just talk about this? I know this is important to you, and that you want this grand, opulent wedding, darling, and I want to make you happy, but this... it's too much. It's giving me, like, actual hives?" Harry said, pulling the neck of his shirt down a bit, showing Draco the obvious stress rash he had developed over the last hour and a half.

Draco's jaw fell open in alarm. "Harry, I- I'm so sorry. I had no idea you were so stressed out over this. I was just trying to make things easier for you, not overwhelm you. I only wanted to do this for you," he said quietly. "I just want to give you the wedding you deserve."

"And I love you for that, really I do," Harry said earnestly. "This whole thing was so thoughtful and so sweet, but darling, I don't need all of this. I don't want a big wedding. I don't even really want a wedding at all, if I'm being honest. I hate crowds, I hate being the center of attention. It would just be stressful, and probably a media circus because there's no way we could keep them all away, and it would feel like a- a performance. I just want to marry you. That's all I care about. Can we maybe pare this down? Or something? Come up with some kind of compromise?" Harry begged.

Draco stared at him, then took his hands. "Darling, I only want you to be happy. That's all I ever want. We definitely don't have to do this," he said, waving his wand towards everything on the table and vanishing it all immediately. "Not any of it, if you don't want to. I wouldn't care if we just went to the Ministry and eloped, if that was what you wanted. I just want to marry you."

"We could do that?" Harry asked in a small voice, hope rising, and Draco nodded. "Wouldn't you be disappointed?"

"The only thing that would disappoint me, Harry, would be seeing you unhappy in any capacity on our wedding day. It's still going to be the best day of my life, no matter where, when, or how it happens," Draco told him, pushing his fringe back. He ran a gentle finger over the worried furrow between Harry's brows, smoothing it out. "I told you, darling, I've wanted to marry you since I was thirteen; I'm certainly not going to be picky about how it happens now that I finally get to."

Relief flooded through Harry. Draco meant that; Harry could see it all over his pretty, pretty face, those silver eyes showing nothing but sincerity. Draco leaned down, kissing him gently, keeping it sweet and just this side of too heated.

"When can we do it?" Harry asked in a slightly trembling voice.

"Whenever you want. I’ll take the day off work if I have to. We don't even have to tell anyone if you don't want to," Draco told him.

Harry bit his lip, heart thumping. "Well, I'd say right now, but I want Scorp there. We need him with us. I don't want to ruin his sleepover, though. Tomorrow?"

Draco grinned widely. "Tomorrow," he nodded. "I'm going to marry you so hard in fourteen hours."

Harry laughed brightly. Tomorrow. They were getting married tomorrow. Fuck, he couldn't wait.

*

"Harry! Are you ready yet? We still have to go pick up Scorpius!" Draco shouted up the stairs.

Harry was cursing the buttons on his dress robes, suddenly remembering why he hated wearing robes. There were a thousand buttons and they were tiny.

Harry had donned a fancy pair of robes that Draco had rented for his little wedding tour yesterday, but he'd charmed them yellow. Golden yellow, that got darker the closer they got to the floor, ending in a deep marigold. He figured Draco would prefer traditional wizarding wedding attire, so he was going to suck it up and wear robes. He'd slicked his hair back like he had on Valentine's Day, and left his glasses in the bathroom, putting his contacts in instead. If he could just get these damn things buttoned.

He huffed and hurried out of the bedroom, still fumbling with his buttons. Draco would help him with them.

He was getting married today; to the love of his life, his soulmate. He'd insisted that they sleep in separate rooms last night so he could stay up late perfecting his wedding vows. He'd written them months ago, as soon as they had gotten engaged, but he'd tweaked them probably a hundred times. They were important, and he wanted to properly convey his feelings without stuttering over his words, fairly certain he was going to cry at least once today.

He'd Firecalled Kingsley last night, begging him to squeeze them in today. He'd pouted and everything, but it hadn't been necessary; Kingsley was more than happy to clear time to marry them, especially since it was pretty much the first favor Harry had asked for since defeating Voldemort. That was true, but he didn't like using his name to get special treatment. This was different, though. This wasn't just about him.

"Coming, I'm coming," Harry called as he made his way down the stairs, still fussing with his robes. He'd managed to get the last few buttons done up, at least. "Sorry, darling, I couldn't figure out these bloody..."

Harry's voice died as he paused at the foot of the stairs, finally looking up from where he was fiddling with his buttons, sucking in a sharp breath as his eyes darted wildly over Draco's body.

He was not wearing robes. He was in a perfectly fitted muggle three-piece suit in a dark charcoal color paired with a plain white button up. The trousers clung to his thighs deliciously and made his legs look even longer. The jacket and vest dipped in at his waist, accentuating his trim figure, and a deep, bottle green tie and pocket square paired perfectly.

His hair, though... he had weaved one side of his long, thick hair into an intricate French braid that led into the fluffy bun at the back of his head. Harry had never seen him do anything like that before, and it was breathtaking. He was breathtaking. Oh, God, Harry was marrying the most beautiful bloke on the planet.

"Holy fuck, are you gorgeous," he blurted out, eyes widening.

"So are you," Draco croaked, voice cracking as his eyes roved over Harry's robes.

Harry grinned widely, his dimple digging into his cheek, pleased that Draco approved.

"Muggle suit," Harry murmured, approaching Draco and fingering along his lapel. Fuck, did he look incredible.

"Wizard robes," Draco replied, swallowing thickly and touching Harry's cheek reverently. "You look sensational, darling."

Harry laughed brightly at that. "Sensational. That's a new one," he chuckled.

"It's true."

Harry melted, his whole face going soft with affection. "Thank you, sweetheart. Should we go pick Scorp up now? I told Kingsley that we'd be in around eleven."

"No, I'll go get him. I didn't expect you to wear robes. If you come with me looking like that, they'll know for sure that something is up. I can hide most of mine under my coat, at least. I'll just Apparate."

"Won't they ask why you're wearing a coat?" Harry asked.

"I planned to tell them I'm taking him to Diagon for the afternoon if they ask."

"Very clever," Harry said, nodding.

"Here, take this, and I'll be right back with him," Draco said, holding the miniature garment bag that held Scorpius' outfit out for Harry.

After he took it, though, it seemed that Draco couldn't hold back anymore. He yanked Harry close and brought their lips together, his tongue flicking out to taste Harry's mouth as he brought his hands up to cradle his face tenderly. Harry moaned into the kiss, letting Draco take control, and when he pulled back, Draco's eyes were even brighter, his cheeks flushed with happiness.

"I get to marry you today," Draco murmured, brushing his thumb along Harry's cheekbone.

"Yeah," Harry breathed, excitement swirling in his stomach.

He's waited so long for this; so long to find someone who loved him for him, who didn't expect him to change or put on a show or be something he wasn't. Draco was that person. He loved Harry for exactly who he was, he reveled in all of Harry's ridiculous quirks and ideas, and childlike qualities, and his too-muchness. Draco loved all of him. He couldn't wait to love this man for the rest of his life.

"One last thing," Draco said, pulling out his wand and quickly changing the green of his tie and handkerchief to match Harry's robes, and Harry beamed at him.

"I'll be right back," Draco told him, and he quickly disappeared through the Floo.

Harry paced while he waited, but he returned just a few minutes later with Scorpius in tow. Harry grinned when Scorpius' jaw dropped open at the sight of him.

"You look like a real wizard!" He exclaimed in shock.

Harry burst out laughing. "How about that, huh?"

"I like it," Scorpius decided, touching the buttons on Harry's robes one at a time. "You look like the sun." He looked at Draco curiously when he removed his coat. "Why are you both all dressed up?"

"How would you like to go to a wedding, love?" Draco asked, holding out the little navy blue dress robes.

His face lit up. "Yes, yes! Yay, wedding! Like Auntie Pansy and Uncle Blaise's?"

"Not quite. This one will be much smaller," Draco explained.

Scorpius nodded seriously. "Whose wedding is it?"

He glanced over at Harry, who was chewing on his lip nervously.

"Ours," Draco told him calmly.

Scorpius frowned, a little furrow appearing between his eyebrows. "Yours? You and daddy?"

Draco nodded, smiling at him. Scorpius' eyes grew enormous. "You're getting married?" he whispered, hands coming up to his mouth.

"We are. If you're alright with that."

"Yes, yes, yes, I love it!" Scorpius jumped at Draco, hugging him tightly, then flew over to Harry to wrap his little arms around his legs. "Can we go now? Please?"

"As soon as you get dressed, we can go," Draco told him. He took the small robes out of the bag and handed them to his son. "Do you need help?"

Scorpius shook his head vigorously, then took off in a run towards the stairs.

Draco and Harry both laughed, and Draco followed him upstairs, returning just a few minutes later with Scorp's robes now yellow to match Harry's. It clashed horribly with his white blonde hair, but he looked so pleased with himself.

"Do you love it?" Scorpius asked them both hopefully, holding his arms out to his sides.

"Oh, I love it," Harry gushed, and Draco quickly agreed.

"Yay! We can go now. I'm ready."

Draco laughed, picking Scorpius up and holding Harry's arm with his free hand, letting him Apparate them to the Minister's office. Draco raised a questioning eyebrow at him, and Harry grinned. "He said he'd do it for us here. Complete privacy, no leaks that way, at least until we decide to tell people."

"It's a secret?" Scorpius asked, looking confused.

"Just for a little while, darling. We'll tell a few people, but you mustn't tell anyone at school, or Grammy and Grampy for a little bit, alright?"

"Why not Grammy and Grampy?"

"I just think it would be nice to surprise them," Draco said simply, and Scorpius seemed to accept that.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Kingsley's deep voice rang out behind them. Harry spun around to greet him, seeing that Kingsley was already smiling widely at them.

"Kingsley," Harry greeted. "Thanks so much again for doing this for us, we really appreciate it."

"It's no trouble at all. Shall we begin?"

"Yes, please!" Scorpius chirped, and Harry grinned.

"Yes, please," he parroted.

Shacklebolt motioned them over to an alter that hadn't been there before. He took his spot behind it, while Harry and Draco stood in front of it, facing each other, and Scorpius stood next to Draco.

"Do we have a witness here today?"

They glanced down at Scorpius. "Me, me!" he said excitedly, and even Kingsley smiled at the small boy's enthusiasm.

"Perfect. Let's begin."

Harry glued his eyes to Kingsley, absorbing every word he said, wanting to commit every second to memory. He'd probably watch his own memory back in Draco's Pensieve a thousand times.

"Do you wish to say your own vows?" Kingsley asked, and Harry nodded eagerly. When he turned to Draco, though, he was staring at Harry intensely, his eyes bright with tears. Harry's heart skipped.

"Darling?" Harry prompted him, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"What?" Draco asked, blinking.

Harry gave him a slight smile. "Do you want to say vows?"

Harry watched as panic flashed across Draco's face. Either he was nervous, or he'd forgotten to write his own. Harry didn't mind, though, he just wanted Draco to be happy today, and if he needed to repeat the pre-written vows that Kingsley would give him, that was fine. They'd still be married at the end of this either way.

"It's okay. I can go first?"

Draco nodded in relief, taking a deep breath. "Okay," he whispered, and Harry grinned at him.

"I'm going to be honest; I wrote these months ago, but everything I'm going to say is still every bit as true." Draco gave him a shaky smile, squeezing his hands slightly, then released one so Harry could pull the small piece of parchment his vows were written on out of his robes. He winked at Draco, hoping to help him relax, then focused on his paper.

"I never thought I'd have this. When I came to work for you, I had no idea how much my life would change. I'd given up on ever finding love; real love, the kind where I could really be myself and it would be enough for the person I ended up with, the kind where we just wanted to be together all the time and couldn't get enough of each other. I'd given up on having a family. But you opened your door that first day, and just the sight of you, it felt like you breathed life back into me, and then spending time with your son... I never wanted to be away from either of you. You came as a package, a built-in family. I never imagined that I'd find everything I ever wanted with you, my former nemesis," Harry chuckled wetly, marvelling slightly at how bizarre their situation really was.

"I promise to be the best husband to you that I can possibly be. I promise to love you, even when you're stubborn and prickly and cranky. Especially then, actually, because I know that's when you need me the most. I promise to protect and to love you and Scorpius for the rest of my life, and to always put you both first. I promise to never go to bed angry, and to always hear you out if we argue, and to keep feeding you way too much ice cream. I love you so much, sweetheart, and I can't wait to start the rest of our lives together."

Harry finally looked up to see Draco blinking rapidly, releasing a shaky breath. He wanted to kiss him so badly, but he couldn't. Not yet.

"Thank you, Harry," Kingsley said quietly. "Mr. Malfoy, do you wish to say your own vows?"

Harry watched emotions flicker across Draco's face, but then he straightened his back, taking Harry's hands and locking their eyes together.

"I- I always thought it would be difficult to find someone who would love me when I'm always scattered in a thousand pieces. I didn't think I deserved love, and I had impossibly high standards, anyway. My childhood crush had saved the world, after all; who could have possibly lived up to that? It was easier to be alone and focus on things I could control.

Harry smiled slightly at that, and Draco seemed to pick up confidence as he went.

"But you... you showed up on my doorstep, all eager and dimpled, practically glowing with effervescence. You barged into my life when I wasn't prepared and showed me that every piece doesn’t have to be in place to create something beautiful. You barged in and accepted not only me, but also my son, with open arms and an open heart and gave us stability and fulfillment in ways I didn't even know we needed."

Oh, God, Harry was going to lose it. Tears slid down his cheeks and he swallowed thickly, trying to retain his composure, glancing over at Scorpius, who was watching his father with wide eyes.

"I can't promise that dark clouds will never hover over our lives, or that the future will bring us everything we've ever wanted. I can't promise that tomorrow will be perfect, or that life will ever be easy,” Draco took another deep breath, "but I can promise you that you will never have to face another day alone, no matter what is going on or how much we disagree. I can promise to give you honesty and unconditional support, and to love you just the way you are. I can promise to agree to disagree on things like whether lavender or mint ice cream is best, and whether or not it's acceptable for me to talk during muggle films. I can promise to help you love life and fill it with laughter, to show you my devotion with actions, and not just words.

"You captured my heart by being exactly who you are, and everything I've ever wanted. I'm not sure a lifetime is long enough to return all you have given me, but I promise that I will spend the rest of my life trying to deserve you."

When Draco finished, Harry let out a wet, incredulous laugh. Fucking hell, those were the most gorgeous vows he'd ever heard. They were burned into his memory forever.

"There's no way you just made that up," Harry said, voice rough.

Draco blinked, frowning slightly. "Um. I d-"

"Can I kiss him now?" Harry interrupted, not taking his eyes off of Draco.

"Not yet," Kingsley replied, sounding amused. "Do we have the rings?"

"Scorpius has them," Draco murmured, looking over at the little boy.

"I do?" he asked, perking up.

"In your pocket, love."

Scorpius patted his pockets until he felt the little leather box. "I do! I have them, papa!" he proudly held the box out for Draco to take. "I helped," he whispered.

"Thank you, my little star," Draco said, taking Harry's ring out of the box. He took Harry's hand gently and slid the golden band into his finger. It fit perfectly. Harry's heart tightened as he stared at it, admiring how lovely it looked, gleaming against his tanned skin, before he slid the matching platinum band onto Draco's left hand, running his thumb over it reverently.

"If you would please lock hands," Kingsley said once the ring box was back inside Scorpius' pocket.

Draco reached out for Harry, hands tightly grasping Harry's wrists with his fingers, palms pressed together, as Harry mimicked Draco's action, wrapping his own fingers around Draco's wrists the best he could. Kingsley pulled out his wand and touched the tip to their clasped hands, murmuring a quiet incantation. A brilliant blue ribbon made of light weaved itself intricately around their wrists, glowing brightly for a moment before it melted into their skin, disappearing. It was so pretty, and Harry could feel the magic thrumming under his skin.

"Congratulations, gentlemen. You are officially married," Kingsley announced.

Harry grinned, excitement bubbling up as he looked at his husband.

"Now?" he practically begged, fidgeting.

"Yes, now," Kingsley said with a laugh.

"Finally," Harry groaned, grabbing Draco by the lapels of his jacket and pulling him down into a fierce kiss. Their first kiss as husbands.

He was married!

When they broke apart, Draco wrapped his arms around Harry, holding him close. They belonged to each other now, officially.

"Did we plan on changing any names today?" Kingsley interrupted them quietly. He looked slightly guilty for having to ask and interrupt them. "We can do that when you sign the license."

Oh. They hadn't even discussed if they were going to change their names or not. He just assumed they'd keep their own names, mainly so Draco could keep his family name and match Scorpius. He'd love to share a name, but it wasn't that important.

"Er, we didn't really-" Harry started.

"I want to," Draco blurted out, taking Harry by surprise.

"You do?" Harry asked quietly. "I thought you'd want to keep your family name, especially because of Scorp."

They both looked at the small boy, who was happily playing with a floating paper crane on the Minister's desk, poking it away from him and laughing when it flew back.

"I do, and really, if I had to choose, I think I'd rather take yours than have you become a Malfoy. It doesn't feel right, making you give up your name, especially because of who you are," Draco explained.

Harry bit his lip, mind racing. Draco wanted them to have the same name. He was willing to give up his family legacy for Harry.

"Well, why don't we combine them?"

Draco frowned. "Like make up a new name?"

Harry laughed. "No, like hyphenate them. That's what Hermione did. We'd just both take it instead of only one of us."

Draco blinked, then smiled. "Malfoy-Potter?"

A slow grin took over Harry's face. "Yeah. Yeah, that's perfect."

Kingsley had them sign their marriage license with their new names, then vanished it. "All finished," he said, smiling at them both, and Draco kissed Harry again sweetly.

"Finished, finished! My dads are married!" Scorpius cheered, wrapping his arms around them both tightly. Harry scooped him up, nuzzling his face against Scorpius'. His step-son. His son.

"Here, darling," Draco said.

Harry looked over and saw him holding a thick envelope out towards him.

"What's this?"

"Your wedding present," Draco told him with a shrug.

They were supposed to get each other wedding gifts? He didn't know that. Hopefully Harry was enough of a gift today, because he didn't have one to give back. He'd get one later, though. Harry gave him a crooked, slightly confused smile, and opened the envelope.

Harry froze, his entire world coming to a halt. He could scarcely breathe as he stared at the words stamped across the top of the parchment.

Certificate of Adoption.

These were adoption papers.

Harry's jaw hung open, and he snapped his eyes up to meet Draco's. His silver eyes were so bright, practically glowing, shining with so much love it took Harry's breath away.

"Is this really..." Harry began, trailing off when his voice became too thick with emotion to finish.

Draco nodded slowly. "Yes. If you want it."

Harry's eyes filled with tears. "Are you sure?"

This... this wasn't a small gesture. Draco wanted him to adopt his son, his most precious thing in this world. He wanted Harry to legally be his other parent. He didn't even have words for the emotions running through him right now.

"I've never been more sure of anything, darling," Draco told him quietly.

"Wait! What is it?" Scorpius asked, trying to read the parchment in Harry's trembling hand.

"Adoption papers," Draco replied softly.

"Adoption? Who are you adopting?" Scorpius asked, looking offended.

Harry chuckled wetly, hugging the boy even tighter. "You, silly."

"Those papers will make Harry your daddy," Draco told him

"But you're already my daddy," he said to Harry, frowning.

"Yes, but now everyone will know it. This will make it legal," Draco explained.

Scorpius' eyes grew wide. "No one could ever tell me you're not my real daddy, ever again?" he asked, and both men nodded. His eyes lit up with excitement. "Please adopt me, daddy. Please, please, please?"

"Oh, love, nothing would make me happier," Harry told him, rubbing his nose against Scorpius' cheek before turning back to Draco in concern. "But what about Ast-"

"That’s a non-issue," Draco cut him off, shaking his head, leaving no room for argument. "You just need to sign. Er. And the Minister, if he wouldn't mind...?" Draco said, glancing at the man in question.

"I'm already here on a Sunday," Kingsley said. "I'd be happy to do it."

"Can I borrow a quill?" Harry asked, and Kingsley handed him one along with a pot of ink. Harry laid the papers out on the alter, signing the parchment carefully, using his new last name. This was the most important signature of his life.

Draco had already signed them, apparently, but he took the quill and added -Potter after his name. Now all that was left was for the Minister to approve it.

"Are we changing the little one's name as well?" he asked, eyebrows raised in question.

"Yes!" Scorpius shouted excitedly before they could even ask.

"Well, okay then," Draco chuckled, and Harry laughed at his exuberance, eyes tearing up again. “That would be a resounding yes.”

"You certainly sound sure," Kingsley mused, looking at Scorpius.

Scorpius nodded. "Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy-Potter," he said seriously. "Write that down, please."

Kingsley noted the name change, then signed the adoption papers with a flourish, vanishing them with a small pop. "Congratulations, Malfoy-Potter's," he told them kindly. "Everything is official and filed, done. Feel free to stay as long as you like, though, I'll give you all some privacy."

"Thank you so much, Kingsley," Harry said earnestly, hoping the enormous man understood how much this had meant to him.

"You're welcome, Harry. I wish you all the happiness you deserve," he said quietly, then slipped out of the office, spelling the door shut so no one would barge in on them accidentally.

Draco didn't waste one second scooping both of them into his arms, just holding them close to him for a long time.

They were a family. They'd always been a family, really, but now it was official. No one could ever take them away from him.

They were his, and he was theirs. Forever.

*

March, 2007

"Draco! Hurry up, love, we're going to miss the previews!" Harry chastised Draco.

He was taking ages mulling over the concession stand at the movies, and Harry didn't want to miss the previews, he loved them.

They'd just left Scorpius at the Manor after informing Draco's parents that they were married. They hadn't even known they were engaged, but Draco hadn't been ready to tell them before. Harry didn’t understand why, but he didn't push; it was Draco's family and it was his decision. Everyone else knew, at least, and Harry had to admit, the reaction had been incredible.

Lucius almost popped a blood vessel when Draco had shown him their rings, refusing to believe it at first, then he'd almost had a stroke when he’d found the Chocolate Frog card with Harry's new last name that Draco had slipped under his teacup. They'd run out of the Manor in a fit of laughter as the man sputtered behind them.

Draco was such a little shit, honestly. He was lucky his son's personality was nothing like his own, or he'd have gray hair by now.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Honestly, I don't understand the appeal of watching the previews, darling. They're dreadfully dull," he groaned after finally telling the poor teenager behind the counter what he wanted.

"Because then I can see what other films are coming out, and decide if I want to see them," Harry explained for the tenth time.

Harry had let Draco choose the film tonight, and he'd surprisingly chosen a horror film to watch tonight. Harry loved scary movies, and he was particularly excited to see this one. He had no idea if Draco would actually get scared or not, but he couldn't wait to find out.

Once Draco had gotten his mountain of sweets, Harry led them to the theater labeled Dead Silence, and let Draco choose their seats. He surprisingly picked a row relatively close to the front this time, instead of their usual hidden back row.

Harry quirked an eyebrow at him, but Draco just shrugged. "It's nearly empty. I wanted to sit close. I'm used to this now, I won't disturb anyone."

"Alright, darling, whatever you say," Harry chuckled, following him down the aisle and plopping down next to his husband, smiling as he dumped his gummy bears into Harry's popcorn.

This was going to be great.

*

Draco was wrong.

"I am never going to see another film with you for as long as I live," Draco gritted out, clinging to Harry's hand for dear life as they exited the theater.

Draco did not like the film. He had been fine at first, but Harry could see him growing more uncomfortable as the film got creepier, until he reached over to hold Harry's hand. At the first jump scare, Draco had screamed so loudly it had caused a chain reaction of other people screaming in the theater, and even Harry had jumped, before bursting out into shocked laughter.

Draco was mortified, but he was even more frightened, practically breaking Harry's fingers from how tightly he was holding on to him. Harry couldn't help but laugh, but then he had tried to soothe him, letting him know it was just a movie, not real, and ventriloquist dummies could not actually come to life and kill you.

Draco had managed to sit through the rest of the film, hiding his face for some of it, screeching in fright when any loud noises happened, and cursing Harry out under his breath the entire time.

Harry laughed brightly. "Oh, it wasn't that bad!"

"Yes, it was! I'm going to have nightmares! I'll never be able to look at another doll again! I had no idea that film would be scary!"

"It had the word Dead in the title, love, what did you think it would be about?" Harry asked, amused.

Draco turned an unimpressed look on him, and Harry snorted, pulling his husband into a hug. "I'm sorry, darling, I really didn't think it would frighten you so much. I love scary films, I thought you might, too, you're always so stoic."

Draco softened. "You're forgiven, I suppose, but only because you didn't complain about me nearly breaking your hand. And I'm still never coming back here with you," he huffed, but there was no heat behind it.

Harry smiled. "That's alright, baby. I can come back by myself."

Draco pursed his lips in displeasure, and Harry just smirked. "Come on, darling. Let's go eat. I'll even let you get dessert."

"I don't want dessert," Draco pouted.

Harry raised an eyebrow at him. "Is that so? Not even if I let you lick it off of me?"

Draco faltered, pupils widening. He let his head drop backwards and he groaned dramatically. "I hate you."

"You love me," Harry countered, pressing a kiss to his throat.

"I really do. Ugh."

*

May, 2008

"Hey there, buddy," Harry cooed quietly to the tiny infant in his arms. Scorpius was cuddled up next to Harry, stroking a gentle finger along the little baby foot that was poking out of the blanket he was wrapped in.

"I'm your Uncle Harry. We're going to have so much fun together, just you wait, Hugo," he whispered, the same as he did every time he visited Hugo. He wanted him to remember who he was, to be as close to him as he was to his sister, Rose.

Draco had come with him to visit with him today to meet the baby. Hermione had just had Hugo, their second and final baby, unfortunately, a few short weeks ago, and Harry was in love with him. He wanted to absorb as much baby time as he could, because soon there would be no more babies to love on.

Pansy and Blaise didn't want children, Theo having them was never going to happen, Ron and Hermione were finished, and babies were sadly not in Harry's future. Maybe George and Angelina would have one.

"So, how's it going so far? Was it difficult transitioning from one to two?" Harry asked Hermione as he rocked a very content Hugo.

"Not as difficult as I thought it would be. Rose loves him, and she loves fetching things for me when he needs something, and sometimes when he doesn't," she laughed.

Harry glanced over to where his now eighteen-month-old Goddaughter was snoozing in her playpen, her shock of bright red hair visible even through the netted sides. "That's great news, I wondered how she'd take to having to share the attention," he chuckled. "How's he sleeping?"

"Better than Rose at that age," Ron chimed in. "He's been pretty easy so far in comparison."

"We can't compare them, Ronald, they're two different children," Hermione scolded.

"I know, I'm just saying, Rosie never slept when she was supposed to and I'm less tired this time around."

"Hugo does seem much more laid back already," Harry observed. "Rosie is so head-strong, but Hugo hardly ever even cries."

Hermione smiled, stroking Hugo's chubby little cheek. "I know, he's so pleasant; even when he cries, it's-"

"Let’s have a baby," Draco blurted out suddenly, interrupting Hermione's sentence.

All Harry could hear suddenly was the sound of blood pounding in his ears as he turned to stare at Draco in wide-eyed shock. Did he just...?

No. He'd simply misheard. That was all there was to it. Draco had never so much as hinted at wanting to ever have more children after Scorpius. Harry had just heard him wrong, that was all.

Even as he tried to convince himself not to get his hopes up, it blazed to life anyway, a flame of hope and desperation and want burning hotly in his stomach, almost painfully intense.

"What?" Harry whispered, hardly daring to breathe, but he could feel his heartbeat speeding up a the achingly soft look on his husband's face.

"I want us to have a baby," Draco repeated. "I want to have a baby with you."

Oh, God.

Harry stared at him, unable to move as Ron, Hermione, and Scorpius chattered away excitedly, already making plans, like it was decided, but Harry could barely even hear them.

Where was this coming from? Draco had never once brought up babies. Not once, and Harry hadn't dared, not wanting to ask for more than the man was willing to give him. Had Draco wanted this the whole time, or was this a spur of the moment decision? Did he even mean it? Harry couldn't handle having the idea of a baby dangled in front of him, just to have it snatched away. His heart would shatter.

"Harry? You alright there?" Ron asked, shocking him out of his spiraling thoughts. Harry ignored him, still focused on Draco.

"I-" he croaked, voice cracking. "You- you want to have a baby with me? You want more kids?"

Draco nodded, and Harry sucked in a sharp breath.

"Are you- you've never said..." Harry trailed off, eyes welling up with tears.

"Yes, I'm sure. I want us to have a baby."

He sounded sure. He looked sure. Oh, God!

"Yes!" Scorpius cheered, pumping his arm.

"When? How many? How? I didn't even let myself hope..." Harry whispered, letting Hermione scoop a now sleeping Hugo out of his arms.

"I don't know," Draco admitted. "I don't have a plan or a number in mind, I just wanted you to know. Maybe we can start discussing it or even looking into it, if it's something you'd want soon?"

"Yes," Harry blurted. "Yeah, I want that. I definitely want that." He couldn't think of anything he wanted more. "A baby..."

Draco's lips curved up for a moment before he faltered, and Harry frowned, terrified he'd already changed his mind.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked quietly, but he wasn't looking at Harry, his eyes were fixed on Ron and Hermione. Harry whipped his head over to them, surprised to see how solemn they looked. Something was wrong. Hermione looked so serious, she was wearing the face she made when she was about to unload something heavy, and panic crawled up his throat. Would there be an issue with them adopting a baby?

"Ron and I have been talking," Granger started seriously. "We're done having children of our own. We knew we wanted to stop at two, and now we have them. My pregnancies were quite easy on me, you know, and well, we wanted to offer to surrogate for you."

Harry's jaw went slack, and all he could do was stare at them while his mind raced.

That- that was enormous. He would love nothing more, but there was no way he could let her do that, especially without even taking time to think it through. She would be dedicating nine months of her life and her body to a baby she would have to give up. He couldn't ask her to go through that. It wasn't a decision to be made rashly.

"I- Hermione, you don't have to do that," he said gently. "Surely you need to talk about this more. That's a huge deal, and we've only just mentioned it two minutes ago."

"We knew we were going to offer after we had Rose," Hermione told him, taking his hand.

What?! That was- that was nearly two years ago!

"What?" Harry gasped.

Ron and Hermione both just nodded. "You're our best friend, Harry. You do so much for everyone, and you deserve to have some of that selflessness given back to you. We just want you to be happy; you’re the best father… please let me do this for you."

He had no idea what to say, love for his best friends swelling up so intensely he thought he might burst with it.

"I- are you sure?" Harry whispered helplessly, looking between his friends and Draco, feeling slightly lost. Draco didn't look any better off than Harry felt, sitting perfectly still, silver eyes huge.

"Of course we are," Hermione smiled at him, squeezing his hands in reassurance.

She meant it. He could see it in her eyes, but even if he couldn't, Hermione knew how badly he wanted children. She'd never offer if she didn't mean it. She wouldn't do that to him. Neither of them would.

Harry looked at Draco pleadingly, silently begging him to say yes.

He didn't make Harry suffer for long. He grinned widely at Harry and nodded his approval.

Harry closed his eyes, a single tear slipping down his face, heart stuttering. "I don't even know what to say," Harry said shakily. "Thank you. I can't- just thank you."

Hermione's smile grew, and she wiped her own teary eyes. "As soon as I get the all clear from my Healer, we can start the process whenever the two of you are ready."

More tears spilled over, and Harry let out a wet laugh before he picked Scorpius up, spinning him around with a loud whoop of excitement. He practically danced over to Draco and let Scorpius down before he sat sideways on his lap, kissing him firmly.

"We're going to have a baby," he said, beaming with joy like he'd never felt.

"We're going to have a baby," Draco agreed, pulling Harry in for another kiss.

*

April, 2010

Harry held their infant daughter while Draco held him, snoring softly into the back of Harry's neck. Harry stroked her silky, dark hair as he hummed quietly, trying to get her back to sleep, but she just stared up at him with her big, bright green eyes that were identical to his own.

Hermione had been right; her pregnancy had been surprisingly easy on her. She'd given birth last month, on the eighth of March, and she had been back to work after only nine days. Harry had no idea how she'd recovered so quickly, but he was very grateful she hadn't had any complications or lingering pain.

She was beautiful; the spitting image of Harry with her dark, wild hair and wide green eyes, right down to the tiny dimple in her left cheek. They'd named her Thea, after the Greek goddess of light. It was perfectly fitting, as she had brought nothing but joy and light to their lives since she'd come along. Harry could hardly remember a time before she existed.

Scorpius adored her, always wanting to help them care for her, already moaning about how unfair it was that he had to leave her to go to Hogwarts, in two years. It was adorable. But Draco...

Harry glanced down at his sleeping husband, fondness welling up.

He knew Draco had been sneaking in extra time with her in the middle of the night. Harry had been exhausted trying to do all the nighttime feedings and changes and crying fits on his own so that Draco would be rested for work, where he quite literally had other people's lives in his hands, but after a few weeks, he had suddenly begun to feel more rested, and he eventually caught Draco getting up with her so Harry could sleep more.

He never said anything, not wanting to burst Draco's bubble or interfere with that special private time he clearly loved having with her, if the soft look on his face when he held her in the dark was anything to go by. Harry didn't think he could possibly love Draco more than he already did, but watching him with both of their children had proved him wrong.

He could hardly believe this was his life. He felt so complete, so settled, like every ounce of pain from the past was just a ghost of a memory now. It was hard to remember anything besides being deliriously happy. The only thing that would make his life better was having a whole quidditch team full of children, but that was a thought best left for another time.

For now, he was satisfied.

*

February, 2012

"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy-Potter! Why on earth would you do such a thing?" Draco gasped after seeing what their son had done to warrant being called into the school.

Scorpius was sitting next to them, arms crossed, chin jutting out defiantly. "Where are the twins?" he asked begrudgingly, expertly avoiding the topic at hand, hoping to distract them by bringing up the newborn twins they'd had to leave at home.

Draco's mouth thinned, his patience waning. "They're with your Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, and that's not why we're here. Answer the question, Scorpius."

"No. He deserved it," Scorpius said stubbornly, and Harry frowned. "And I'm not sorry."

Scorpius would be heading off to Hogwarts in just a few short months, but he was still attending the same school he'd attended playgroup at until then. They'd been called in to have a meeting with Scorpius' teacher, the Headmistress of the school, another boy from his class and the boy's parents, both of whom were glaring at Scorpius with angry, disapproving looks on their faces while their son sat between them, glaring, even with the black eye he was sporting.

Draco was looking at his son sternly, clearly unimpressed by his behavior, but Harry was more concerned than upset. Scorpius was usually so sweet; he'd never outgrown his sensitive soul, and yelling and throwing a punch at one of his classmates was certainly out of character. This wasn't normal, something serious had to have provoked him.

"What happened, Scorp?" Harry asked gently. "This isn't like you."

Scorpius clenched his jaw, looking away. "He was making fun of Luca again, calling him a baby and telling him that me and Tommy only hang out with him because we feel sorry for him. He made Luca cry."

"That’s certainly no reason to act like a barbarian!" the boy's mother screeched. "He punched my son in the face! He could have blinded him!"

Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He was fine, and her son was no angel, picking on someone just for being shy. He'd been doing it for months. This wasn't the wasn't the first meeting they'd had with the school over Scorpius fighting with this particular boy, but it was the first time it had gotten physical.

"Scorpius, it's good to stand up for your best friend, but you never, ever put your hands on someone else," Draco scolded him. "It's completely unacceptable."

"I didn't at first, and that's not why I did it," Scorpius argued, eyes flashing.

"So why did you, then?" Draco demanded.

Scorpius crossed his arms tighter, seeming to shrink in on himself, not answering.

"Scorpius." Draco huffed, and opened his mouth to argue further, but Harry placed a steady hand on his arm, glancing at him sideways. Getting angry at Scorpius wasn't going to get him to open up, and Harry was definitely better at remaining calm.

Draco bit back his remark and nodded stiffly, silently telling Harry to handle it.

"I know something must have happened to make you react like that," Harry said quietly. "You know you can tell us what upset you so much. I'll always hear you out, yeah?"

He heard the mother muttering under her breath about soft parenting and pushovers, but he ignored her. Yelling at his son would only make him clam up even more and not trust them in the future. Harry prided himself on having an incredibly open relationship with all of the kids in his life, and he certainly didn't need direction from someone who never taught her own child not to bully people.

Scorpius looked at Harry in distress, tears springing to his eyes, and Harry's heart ached for him. Something had definitely happened. Harry waited patiently, finally giving the other boy's parents a withering glare when they started complaining loudly, silently telling them to kindly shut the fuck up.

"Ignore them. You're talking to me," Harry encouraged, and a tear slipped down Scorpius' cheek, which he quickly dashed away.

"I tried to talk to him, and ask him why he was so mean to Luca, and told him I wouldn't ditch Luca to be his friend instead. He got mad, and he said, 'Forget it. I don't want to be your friend, anyhow. Your dad is nothing but a filthy Death Eater."

Harry's stomach dropped, and poor Draco looked like he'd been slapped. "I-" Draco croaked out, looking to Harry in a panic.

They'd never told Scorpius about Draco's role in the war, wanting to shield him from that knowledge until he was older and better able to understand the circumstances that had led Draco to do what he’d done, but clearly that had been a mistake. This was not the way they'd wanted him to find out.

They almost never got remarks like that anymore, it had been almost fifteen years since the end of the war. The boy had to have heard it from his parents. What the hell were they doing, talking about things like that in front of their kid?

"I thought he was talking about you," Scorpius whispered, looking at Harry with wet eyes. "Because I call you dad. I told him he was wrong, because your Chocolate Frog card even says that you're a hero, and he was a liar. And he said he meant my real dad, not the fake one who just plays nice with us because papa is pretty. So, I punched him to make him shut up."

Harry's mouth parted in shock. He was furious. He glared at the couple across the room, who both looked entirely unapologetic, and he could feel his magic crackling around him, but now was not the time to lose his temper.

"First of all," Harry said through clenched teeth, eyes still on the other couple, "I do not just play nice with you or your papa. We're a family, and I love you both more than anything. Do you understand me?" he asked, turning softer eyes on Scorpius.

Scorpius swallowed and looked away, then gave a tiny nod. Harry took Draco's shaky hand in his, trying to soothe him. This was not something they needed to get into in front of an audience. It was going to be painful enough for Draco as it was.

"And secondly, what your papa went through during the war was horrible. It wasn't his choice or his fault, and it is not something we'll be discussing here. We're going home," Harry said, standing up and pulling Draco up with him, wrapping an arm around his trembling form.

"Excuse me, you can't just take him home without punishment!" the boy's mother cried. "My son-"

"Your son is a bully, and he said something incredibly hurtful with no context or understanding whatsoever to intentionally provoke my son," Harry snapped at her, anger flaring up. "He’s lucky all he got was a black eye. How dare you discuss our personal matters, and in front of your child, no less? You don't know half of what you think you do. Perhaps you should teach your children that it's not okay to intentionally hurt other people, and I'll teach mine that he's allowed to defend himself when necessary. It might serve you well to remember that."

Harry held his hand out to Scorpius, who was staring at him with enormous eyes before he hastily stood, taking Harry's extended hand. Harry glanced at the Headmistress, daring her to stop them from leaving, but she just pressed her lips together, nodding, before turning her stern gaze on the other family. Good. Maybe she could stop that boy from tormenting poor Luca any longer. It shouldn't be up to Scorpius to stand up for him.

Harry cast one last disgusted look at the woman who now looked like she was sucking on a lemon, and guided his family outside so he could Apparate them home.

When they landed, he asked Scorpius and Draco to sit on the couch, and they complied silently, but he did notice that Scorpius sat as far away from Draco as possible. The anguished look on his husband's face was heartbreaking.

Harry closed his eyes and disappeared into the kitchen, quickly making them both some hot cocoa with extra marshmallows, then he joined them on the couch, settling in between them.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions, don't you?" Harry asked Scorpius gently.

Scorpius stared at him, then nodded, eyes darting over to his father. Scorpius looked so much like Draco had when Harry had first met him, but his hair was soft, falling across his forehead artfully instead of slicked back harshly like Draco had worn his, and Scorpius' eyes were soft, where Draco's had been hard and cold. It hadn't been his fault; he knew that now. He was just raised that way. Scorpius was a perfect example of how upbringing could make a world of difference.

"You can ask me whatever you want, Scorpius. I'll answer the best I can," Draco said softly, his eyes sad.

"Were you really a Death Eater?" Scorpius whispered.

Draco hesitated, then nodded. "I was."

"But... why?" he asked, voice cracking. "Why didn't you tell me? I don't understand. You don't have the Mark."

“We were waiting until you were older, so you could better understand,” Draco explained, rolling up his sleeve and canceling his Glamour to reveal his very faded, but still visible, Dark Mark.

Scorpius gasped and flinched backwards, looking frightened. He'd learned about the war in school, knew vaguely about Death Eaters and what they'd done. Harry could only imagine the horrible things flying through his brain right now.

"How could you do that?" Scorpius whimpered.

"I-" Draco started, his breath catching. This had to be a nightmare for him. He never wanted his son to be afraid of him, didn't want his perception of Draco altered like this.

"Scorp, you have to understand it wasn't that simple," Harry cut in gently. "He didn't want it. He had no choice."

"Everyone has a choice," Scorpius said stubbornly, crossing his arms again.

"You're right," Draco said quietly, meeting his son's gaze. "I did. And I chose self-preservation instead of death."

Scorpius looked angry now. "You were a coward. I can't believe you chose to be so selfish-"

"That's enough," Harry said harshly. Scorpius stared at him with wide eyes. Harry never snapped at him, but he wasn't going to let him call his father cowardly or selfish when he had no clue, no idea, how hard it had been back then.

"Don't ever talk to your father like that. I know you're upset, and I will do my best to help you understand, but there are some things you cannot possibly understand. Your father suffered more than you could ever imagine. You have no idea what it was like, living through that, thank God. He's not selfish now, and he wasn't then, not for making a choice between two impossible fates, and he is certainly no coward. He's a survivor. He was only sixteen, a kid, doing what his father expected of him. Voldemort was living in his house, threatening him, torturing him. If he didn't take the Mark, he would have been killed, and so would your grandparents. You wouldn't exist. It was not an easy way out; it was a burden. It will always be a burden that he has to bear."

Scorpius had tears streaming down his face, and even Draco's eyes were red. He looked so ashamed, and Harry hated it.

"You defeated Voldemort," Scorpius whispered after a long moment of silence. "How could you forgive him for that? How can you love him?"

Draco made a pained noise, but Harry took his hand, gazing at him tenderly. "How could I not?" he said softly, placing his free hand over Draco's Dark Mark. "This- this isn't who he is; it's something that happened to him, and he survived it. He changed. He learned, and he worked so hard to correct his thinking, unlearn habits he'd grown up with. He didn't fold under the pressure, and he didn't give up, even when everyone hated him. He's one of the best people I know, and I would never minimize how hard he's worked to be the person he is today. You should be proud of him, Scorpius; not everyone can live through something like that and come out as strong as he has. He didn't allow himself to remain a victim."

Draco had lost the battle with his tears now, and he clutched Harry's hand for dear life, adoration and grief shining from his pretty, silver eyes.

Scorpius sniffled next to him, looking at his father guiltily before he slowly got up and approached Draco, hovering uncomfortably in front of him.

"I'm sorry, papa," he whispered, voice breaking. "Dad's right. I- I know you, and I know you're a good person. I don't fully understand, but I'm proud of you, and I love you."

A sob tore out of Draco's throat, and he yanked Scorpius to him, crushing him in a hug. They just sat like that for a long time until Draco fell asleep with his head against Harry's shoulder, Scorpius still cuddled up on his lap.

"We can talk about this more later, right?" Scorpius whispered. "I still have questions, but I'm not angry at him anymore. I'm kind of angry at Grandpa, though..."

"Sometimes I still am, too," Harry admitted, stroking Draco's long hair. "We can visit the Manor tomorrow and talk to him about it, if you'd like."

Scorpius nodded, then closed his eyes, settling in even closer to Draco and Harry. "I love you, dad. Thank you for saving papa," he whispered.

Harry smiled slightly. "Trust me, love, he's the one that saved me."

*

September, 2012

"Darling! Scorpius' letter came!" Draco shouted, darting into the kitchen where Harry was currently feeding their children.

Thea was sitting happily in her high chair, throwing pieces of her cheese toastie onto the floor for Fish to eat, squealing with laughter, while Harry was spooning mashed potatoes and applesauce alternately into their seven-month-old twins' mouths. Draco swooped down to kiss Atlas, then Iris on their little blonde heads before tearing open the letter.

"Oh, excellent! I worried he might not write until later in the week. What did he say? How was his first day?" Harry asked excitedly.

Draco scanned the letter quickly, and Harry grew concerned when his eyes practically bulged out of his head, jaw dropping open in shock as a loud shriek left him.

Harry startled, dropping a spoonful of food onto Iris's belly, causing her to giggle madly. "What?! What's wrong?!" Harry asked in alarm, scrambling to stand up.

"I blame you for this, Potter!" Draco cried, brandishing the letter violently towards Harry. "You and your bloody 'do right-ness', and your stupid, happy dimple and your obsession with the color yellow. You've corrupted my child, and now we have a bloody Hufflepuff in the family!"

Harry stared at him in shock for a long moment, then he guffawed, bending over nearly in half, clutching his stomach as hysterical laughter spilled out of him.

Oh God, that reaction was even better than Harry had anticipated. He knew Scorp would end up in Hufflepuff; there was no way he'd be anywhere else, except maybe Ravenclaw, but Draco clearly hadn't even anticipated the possibility.

Draco frowned deeply, crossing his arms, completely unamused. "This is not funny, Harry! This is a crisis!"

"Darling, you did not seriously think Scorp was going to be in Slytherin, did you?" Harry chuckled, wiping tears from under his eyes. "He talks to the plants in the back garden!"

"So? He's intelligent! He knows they grow better when they can recognize your voice," Draco defended, looking agitated.

"He begged you to stop eating veal when he learned what it was and wrote a letter to the muggle Minister about animal cruelty."

"He's motivated and driven! It's a very Slytherin trait!"

"He cried when we got rid of the gnomes under the house because he thought they were just lonely and needed friends," Harry deadpanned, arching a challenging eyebrow at Draco

Draco faltered. "Wait, I..."

"He hugs everyone he meets, and he got in trouble for yelling at two boys from school who were trying to get him to ditch Luca because they think he's 'weird'," Harry said exasperatedly. Not to mention the one boy he'd punched in the face several months ago for picking on Luca and talking shit about his father. That was definitely more of a Gryffindor move, come to think of it.

"He's loyal and a good friend," Draco countered vehemently, refusing to budge an inch, and Harry almost burst out laughing again.

"Ah, yes, the well-known Slytherin trait of 'being a good friend'," Harry smirked.

Draco huffed, folding his arms, lips pursed, and Harry knew he'd won.

"Face it, darling, you raised a Hufflepuff," Harry teased him, leaning closer to him, eyes sparkling mischievously.

"I won't tolerate that kind of slander in my home, Potter. Get out."

he did bark out another laugh at that before hugging him tightly, nuzzling his face into Draco's throat. Draco immediately relaxed, leaning into Harry's touch.

"I'm so proud of him," Harry sniffled.

Proud was an understatement. Scorpius was an incredible kid, who was going to grow into an incredible adult. He was sweet and caring and empathetic, loving and helpful and smart as a whip. Harry was beyond proud of the person he was growing into and the person he'd always been.

"Me too," Draco whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of Harry's head.

"Yeah. Just think of how proud you'll be when Thea gets sorted into Gryffindor," Harry said with a wink, laughing brightly when Draco squawked in indignation.

September, 2023

"I give up," Draco groaned, flinging a letter across the supper table, scowling when it landed in the bowl of gravy.

Harry plucked the letter out, casting a quick Scourgify on it to clean it off, scanning the contents of the letter quickly. He let out a bright laugh, laughing even harder when Draco's face soured further.

"This is great news, darling," Harry tried to soothe.

"Easy for you to say. You've got two Gryffindor's now! Two!" he cried, throwing his hands up.

It was true; Scorpius was in Hufflepuff, but Thea was a Gryffindor, and apparently now Atlas was as well. "But Iris is in Ravenclaw, love. That's amazing."

Draco crossed his arms, pouting, and Harry laughed again, getting up to go sit on his lap, stroking his long hair.

"You know," Harry murmured, "We could always have another one if you really wanted a Slytherin."

Draco stared at him, deadpan. "Hilarious."

"Oh, come on, you know this big house is too quiet with all of the kids gone."

"The twins have been gone for half a day," Draco said, rolling his eyes.

"Ugh, I know, and I hate it," Harry whined.

Draco chuckled. "Sweetheart, we are forty-three years old. I'm too old to chase around a toddler."

Harry pouted, giving Draco that face that he knew his husband couldn't resist. "Oh, no. No, no, no, don't you dare make that face, Harry, that's not fair," he groaned.

"Baby..." Harry cooed, sickly sweet, then began to sing the song he used to sing to their children when they were small quietly. "Isn't she lovely? Isn't she wonderful?"

"Stop that right this second," Draco whined.

Harry grinned. "Isn't she precious, less than one minute old?"

"Potter."

Harry didn't say anything else, just laughed quietly, snuggling closer to Draco, nuzzling his face into Draco's throat, and the taller man sighed, a low rumble coming from his chest.

"I love you," Harry murmured sometime later, blinking his eyes heavily.

"I love you, too, sweetheart. Come on, let's go up to bed. It was a taxing day."

It had been. They'd put their last babies on the Hogwarts Express that morning and come home to a silent, empty house. Thea was in her Third Year now, and Scorpius had moved out the previous year and was working on his own Healer Internship now, just like his father. He wanted to work on Janus Thickey, though. Harry was so proud of him, but fuck, he missed him so much.

It was all a bit devastating for Harry, though, who had done nothing but care for his children for the past twenty years. Draco was now the Lead Healer on the Creature Induced Injuries ward; he still had his work. All Harry had was his kids, and they were all growing up. He missed them terribly.

Maybe he needed a hobby. Perhaps he'd pick up needlepoint. Molly would be thrilled.

Harry followed Draco upstairs and let him lead Harry into the shower and wash his hair for him, that had more gray in it than he liked to admit. When they finished, Harry cuddled up to him in bed, resting his head on Draco's chest, letting his strong, steady heartbeat soothe his sadness.

When he was almost asleep, however, Draco startled him by letting out an enormous sigh.

"Alright," Draco said, sounding half exasperated, half amused.

Harry frowned. "Alright, what?" he rasped out.

"We can have another baby."

Harry froze, his heart racing. "What?" he whispered in shock. "I- what?"

Draco ran his hand down Harry's arm until he was holding his hand. "We can have another baby," he repeated, voice soft.

"But- Draco, I was only half serious..." he said weakly, struggling to find the will to argue when he just... didn't want to. He had mostly been joking earlier when he'd brought it up, but underneath was real, serious want.

"Well, I'm entirely serious," Draco shrugged. "Let's have another baby. Call it a midlife crisis."

Harry fully sat up now, gaping at him until Draco quirked an eyebrow at him, smirking. "It's just a baby. Scared, Potter?"

Harry sucked in a breath before a giddy grin broke out across his face. He scrambled up the bed, throwing himself on top of his husband, and pressing a firm kiss to his mouth, tongue delving in immediately.

When they broke apart, Harry grinned even wider, pressing his forehead against Draco's.

"You wish."

Notes:

This is the end. I'm slightly heartbroken, as this series is yet another monster, but I am so proud of this. I truly hope you enjoyed this universe and the journey I took these two men on. Don't forget to keep an eye out for my next two works if you enjoy my writing style, which should be coming out pretty quickly! We have a slightly shorter alternate reality fic, and then a longer "forced marriage" fic, that isn't exactly forced lol. I'm more of a fluff writer, so don't expect a ton of angst!

As always, thank you SO MUCH for reading and sticking this monster of a fic out!! Any comments are more than welcome and so appreciated!

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of Nanny!Harry 'verse