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In Your Arms Tonight
After the war Harry didn’t seem to have a day when he wouldn’t see Draco Malfoy.
At the beginning it was Harry visiting everyday to make sure Narcissa and Draco were not being abused by the guards during their stay, waiting for their trial. They didn’t tend to talk much. The attitude from the blond was always grim and brooding.
Draco Malfoy was thin and haggard, frail almost. Worry, pain, shame easily distinguished in his once blank face. Pale turned sallow and grey eyes turned black against the almost bruised undereye bags.
It seemed the light had gone out from him completely. Manners taking over, always polite when addressed and ended all his phrases with a whispered ‘Thank you, Potter.’
Afterwards, Draco’s parole included mandatory service in the reconstruction of Hogwarts, going from thin to almost skeletal with poor eating habits and hard physical and magical labour for most of the day.
Whenever he did eat, the blond was always found as far as humanly possible from the other volunteers that had taken residence in the castle. Harry had attributed this to the worries that might’ve hunted him if his own mother was held in a low repurposed security prison after refusing to set a foot in Malfoy Manor for her 2 year house arrest, or after hearing that his father was never to set a foot outside of Azkaban during the duration of his long magical life.
Harry had taken to force interaction with Draco, mainly to fortify the message that he was not to be taken advantage of. Not because fumes ran low or he could forgive the blond, but because he knew the pains of being stripped from wealth, family, friends and in Draco’s case, beliefs. He realized that compassion was more important than revenge when one understood that not only the winning party had children that were victims of the war.
This mentality made Harry enlist Hermione to work on a request to the board of governors an open extended invitation for the remaining free Slytherins to finish their education, joining other houses to form their own unity house, and instil cooperation after the war.
Draco seemed to be in autopilot all the time, he reacted but didn’t respond to any kind of stimulus, either kind or hateful. He seemed to just take it all in stride. Harry could not accept this from his old foe, Harry had never been good at ignoring the git. And this is how Harry somehow found himself requesting bi-weekly visitations for Draco (with Harry’s supervision) to one Narcissa Malfoy.
Life started to pump in Draco’s veins, and Harry could not understand why it was so rewarding and pleasurable to see Malfoy smile to her mother, shed a tear or two and talk rapidly in French to her. He always left the place more alive than when he had arrived.
By the beginning of September students were coming back to resume their education, the castle mostly reconstructed, only missing one or two towers and many ornamental turrets. But most rewarding Narcissa had been assigned to finish her sentence in Grimmauld Place.
Draco started to smile to Harry, shy sometimes, grateful some others, and there were times when glimpses of shame crossed his face, and this was a good! Because he could see life coming to Malfoy.
His friends didn’t understand Harry, he could understand it, but as much as he tried to explain, even to his ears it all seemed poor excuses and not real reasons.
Draco was surrounded by his old friends, Zabini, Nott and Parkinson seemed to take care of the frail blond, who was now regaining his colour, his built and his spirit.
Even from afar, Harry took great pleasure on seeing a previous lost soul coming back to life.
The real surprise was when Draco ambushed Harry one day after Double Potions and kissed him silly, muttered a breathless ‘Thank you’ swiftly leaving behind a dumbfounded Harry behind.
***
The school year went much in the same way, furtive snogging in forgotten corridors and behind one or two barely impressed statues.
Harry felt lightheaded after their impromptu snogging sessions that evolved to groping sessions, but somehow, nothing ever beyond that.
A fatidic day, they were caught snogging in one of the less used classrooms after a miscalculation on the time, and thus rendering them public as the most unlikely couple ever seen in the history of Hogwarts.
Being out and about and after an unspoken agreement on a relationship they started to spend time alone, talking, not talking, explaining and being a support for each other.
Harry was surprised to discover that Draco had long ago apologized to his friends and that Draco, Dean and Luna were friends who frequented each other on the weekends for a pint or two at the Hogshead.
Being denied joining the school teams, they also took to play seekers games, Harry started to lose weight and he attributed it to the extra activity and in response Draco had taken to adding potatoes, pasta and meat in excess to Harry’s plate, for the first time in years, all was ok.
One day after a call to attend to Gringotts, Harry had been made aware of the full extent of his properties and vaults, he decided to restore the House of Black by giving Narcissa and Andromeda the rightful head of the house, making Draco equal part Black and Malfoy as well as Teddy. Stealthily Harry had secured that Draco still had an inheritance to call his own. As part of procedure, he had to do preparations regarding his will if something was to happen to him. He named Teddy his sole beneficiary without hesitancy. He also chose that after Hogwarts he was to move to one of the Potter London Townhouses to be close to Draco.
Narcissa wrote to Draco about his new status in the wizarding community. Harry had never been kissed more thoroughly.
***
“You know? I’d like to move in with you instead Grimmauld Place” Draco brought up one lazy Sunday afternoon at the end of the term.
“Yeah?” Harry asked with an ear eating grin adorning his handsome face.
“Yes” Draco said smiling softly leaning to kiss Harry.
“I’d love nothing more, ferret” Harry said to Draco’s lips.
“Oh! Shut it, Potter” Draco pushed him playfully.
“Draco?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you” Harry said, his eyes bright and shining intensely behind his round frames.
Draco could not respond; a sob escaped his chest and tears immediately ran down his face.
“Draco, you don’t need to answer to me, I just wanted you to know! Please don’t cry, mon chou” Harry said softly, wiping lovingly Draco’s tears that didn’t seem to stop.
“P-Potter, you checked in with me almost every single day after we were carted to wait for our trial, proceeded to speak in our favour, keeping Mother and I out of Azkaban. You made sure nobody attacked me during the reconstruction and then proceeded to make sure my friends came back to Hogwarts.” He took another breath. “Don’t think they didn’t tell me about the letter’s you wrote personally extending the invitation to come and finish Hogwarts. Y-you took me to mum, you gave mum a home, a last name, a patrimony, her sister, me.”
“You don’t have to−“ Harry started.
“I have a point, Harry, wait” Draco silenced with a soft kiss. “What I mean, Harry… You gave me back my life, and my Mother has always meant the world to me! You cared for her as much as you took care of me” Draco started to cry silently again “What I mean Potter, is that I was already a goner by the time we first kissed.” Draco said pressing his forehead to Harry’s. “But… everything pales in comparison of the person I discovered underneath those actions, you are strong, resilient, the most annoyingly caring person I know! But also, stubborn, explosive, sometimes downright obtuse, I must admit” Draco opened his eyes, molten silver bathed in starlight shower. “I’ve fallen absolutely and irredeemable in love with Harry, just Harry” he laughed softly. “I love you, Harry. And I thank you. Yes, for all the things I didn’t deserve but you did anyways, but I thank you the most for loving me.” Draco took Harry’s wet face in his hands and kissed him with all the love he had in a soft, close-mouthed, perfect kiss.
Harry stared at Draco intensely, some tears still making their trip down his face; his eyes determined.
“I want you” He whispered to a surprised Draco. “Gods Draco, I need you”
Draco leaned to deposit a soft caress to the corner of his mouth “Yes” he muttered.
The pair rushed through the corridors of Hogwarts, with barely contained excitement. Racing and laughing animatedly to arrive to the Room of Requirements.
The room materialized slowly, but the door was solid. Inside was a beautiful and expensively decorated room. Fire burned in the fireplace, dancing flames lighting their dance. In the far left, the mirror of Erised stood beautifully.
Slowly, the both entered the room.
“The mirror survived” Draco pointed out, almost reverently.
Harry watched Draco, intrigued. “What did you see?” He asked.
Draco shrugged. “It was sixth year; I saw Voldemort dead and I was with Mother and Father” Draco trailed out, maybe lost in memories of that year. “You?”
“I just saw my parents, they stood behind me, smiling proud at me” said Harry.
“I wonder…” both said at the same time. Their gazes crossed and they laughed softly, getting closer to the mirror.
“At three” Draco said, holding Harry’s hands.
“1…2…3”
They didn’t discuss what they’d seen, but a renewed trail of tears left Draco’s eyes. Harry saw himself with Draco by his side, they were very old, looking into each other’s eyes. Reading lips, Draco asked old Harry “After all this time?” and old Harry smiled lovingly. “Always” his smiling lips formed. Harry wiped a stray tear and was quite suddenly being kissed with a passion that was so different from the loving caresses of love expressions early on the day.
Slowly Draco guided them to the bed, wand in hand he locked the door.
“What do you want?” Draco muttered.
“You” Harry answered, almost religiously.
They took their time discovering each other’s body, moving in tandem, breathing I love you and promising each other a lifetime of love. Harry saw the stars, his constellation, his mind amended. Harry had never felt closer to anyone before, so cared for, so adored, loved.
They laid in each other’s arms afterwards, Harry cuddling to Draco’s chest. It was perfect. They slept.
***
“Hello Harry” Dumbledore greeted him; the familiar white station silent around them.
“Professor!” Harry exclaimed. “Why are we you here?”
“Because it is time, my boy” Dumbledore smiled sadly.
“What? No!” Harry took stumbled back. “I chose to go back”
“And you did” Dumbledore’s eyes glinted. “Death decided to give you a choice to choose love, and you took it. I gather you have now loved, are you in love and loved in return, my boy?” Dumbledore inquired.
“I do, I am” Harry barely whispered out.
“Then the Death’s debt has been repaid, you must go on.” Dumbledore explained. As he said the words, a train arrived at the platform.
“No, I can’t! I don’t want to leave.” Harry screamed, scared, and hurt. “I already died once”
“Death is nothing but-”
“Don’t bullshit me now!” Harry interrupted. “Death is final. Death is cruel” Harry said, starting to cry. Distraught he crumbled in the floor. “How can I leave him now?”
“I’m sorry my boy” Dumbledore said sadly. “The train leaves in five minutes” He said knowingly, eyes glinting.
***
“Draco” Harry said, sitting abruptly and startling Draco awake.
“Harry, is all right?” Draco mumbled tired.
“I don’t have time” Harry cried. Draco sat and took his crying lover in his arms, soothingly.
“What do you mean, my love” Draco asked confused.
“I’m dying, Draco” Harry said climbing to Draco’s lap, taking his face in hands. “I’m dying.” A sob breaking his voice.
“Harry, I don’t understand. Did you have a nightmare?” Draco said pushing Harry’s forehead with his.
“Draco, I love you, please never forget I loved you more than life itself” Harry said reverently.
“You are scaring me, Harry”
“I’m sorry Draco. I am so sorry” Harry said. “If I could, I wouldn’t have waited this long to love you. I’d go back to first year and I would’ve loved you everyday until now, but I can’t, I can’t go back!” Harry rushed.
“Harry-“
Harry kissed Draco hard. “Draco, I love you, I’m happy to die in your arms, so loved” Harry rushed, strength leaving him already. “I love-“
“Harry?” Draco shook him softly. “Harry!” He said and shook him more forcefully, but the teen didn’t respond. “HARRY!” Draco screamed.
“I fell in your arms tonight
I fell hard in your arms tonight
It was nice
I died in your arms tonight
I slipped through into the afterlife
It was nice”
(Mother Mother)