Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

The Optimal Balance	By : TheMightyFlynn Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 17124 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: The Harry Potter universe and characters belong to JK Rowling and associates. This was written for fun. I make no money from it.

Chapter List
- 1-The Optimal Balance
- 2-Ch. 2
- 3-Ch. 3
- 4-Ch. 4
- 5-Ch. 5
- 6-Ch. 6
- 7-Ch. 7
- 8-Ch. 8
- 9-Ch. 9
- 10-Ch. 10
- 11-Ch. 11
- 12-Ch. 12
- 13-Ch. 13
- 14-Ch. 14
- 15-Ch. 15
- 16-Ch. 16
- 17-Ch. 17
- 18-Ch. 18
- 19-Ch. 19
- 20-Ch. 20
- 21-Ch. 21
- 22-Ch. 22
- 23-Ch. 23
- 24-Ch. 24
- 25-Ch. 25
- 26-Ch. 26
- 27-Ch. 27
- 28-Ch. 28
- 29-Ch. 29
- 30-Ch. 30
- 31-Ch. 31
- 32-Ch. 32
- 33-Ch. 33
- 34-Ch. 34
- 35-Ch. 35
- 36-Ch. 36
- 37-Ch. 37
- 38-Ch. 38
- 39-Ch. 39
- 40-Ch. 40: Epilogue
- 10
- 11
- 12
“Harry, over here!”

Peering through the gloom of The Leaky Cauldron, Harry grinned when he finally managed to make out Ron’s bright red hair across the room. Of all the things that had changed about Diagon Alley over the years, Harry was actually glad that The Leaky had stayed the same, although he had no idea why. Neville and Hannah had managed to update the pub without losing any of the atmosphere, which always reminded Harry of his first time there with Hagrid. He breathed deeply and smiled at the familiar scent before refocussing.

He wound his way through the battered-looking tables and chairs, nodding to the people there he knew. He almost stopped when he thought he caught a glance of Mungdungus Fletcher in the back, but he knew that this lunch was too important for him to ignore. When he reached Ron’s table, it was to find he wasn’t alone: Hermione and Percy occupied two of the other seats in the booth. All three of them grinned at Harry as he walked up.

“Hey there, mate.”

“Harry.”

“How are you?”

Harry couldn’t help grinning back as all three of them spoke over each other. He nodded to Percy as he slid into the booth beside him.

“I’m good, thanks. It’s good to see you both,” he added, addressing Percy and Hermione. “It’s been a while.”

“Just them?” Ron chuckled and shook his head, a wide smile stretching across his face.

Harry raised an eyebrow and rubbed a hand along his jaw. “I’ve seen you recently.”

Thankfully, Ron took it for the joke it was, shooting Harry a sheepish grin when Hermione turned to him with a questioning look. Harry watched the quick whispered conversation the two of them had with interest. It appeared to him that Ron had forgotten to mention their altercation to Hermione, which answered the question of why he hadn’t heard from her afterwards. Choosing to give them some privacy, he turned to Percy.

“How have you been recently? It’s strange to not be able to just run into you at work anymore.”

“Oh, believe me, it’s not just weird for you.” Percy ran a hand through his hair before taking a gulp from the drink sitting before him. “I never really realised how much I relied on being able to find you at the cafeteria, or in your office when I needed support for some bill or other. Or even to just grouse about people and life in general.”

Harry couldn’t help chuckling. Percy was right: it had been a major adjustment in not just Harry’s life when he had moved on from the Auror Corps. Percy hadn’t dropped into the office all that often over the years, but the times he had had broken the monotony of the day for Harry quite well. Of course, he was still in regular contact with many of the friends he had made in the Ministry over the years, but it just wasn’t the same as working with them all on a regular basis. Realising that Percy would have much more information on certain goings-on in the Ministry than he did, Harry steered their conversation towards Ministry gossip. He had been quite surprised when he had realised after the end of the War that he and Percy got along well under certain circumstances. They chatted and filled each other in on their children and lives until the waitress interrupted both conversations.

“Are you ready to order?”

Harry took the time to covertly examine Ron’s body language while they all placed their lunch orders. One of the perks of having been an Auror for so long was that – no matter that he had to focus to do it rather than it coming naturally to him – he was a fair judge of other people. Thankfully, Ron’s relaxed posture and easy laughter told Harry that, for the time being at least, he was in a rather good mood. Once their orders had been placed, a slightly uneasy silence fell over their table.

Harry sat forward, his elbows resting on the table, but found that that position had him staring straight at Ron. He immediately leant back, unsure – or maybe he was unwilling – how to break the silence. He knew he had to speak to Ron about what had happened and his general treatment of Draco, but how did he do that without coming across as more assertive than he wanted to? Pissing Ron off by sounding like he was accusing him of something was definitely not something Harry wanted to do at that point, especially in front of Hermione and Percy. His attention snapped back to the table when he heard a sharp sigh.

“Oh for… This is ridiculous!” Hermione leant forward over her mug of Butterbeer. “I take it the two of you have had some kind of argument again?”

Harry opened his mouth to protest her use of the word ‘again’, but immediately shut it when he realised that it was actually appropriate these days. His gaze fell to the table as the realisation washed over him that he and Ron tended to fight much more these days than they ever had before. While he knew most of their arguments were actually logical things to argue over, it was annoying to constantly be at loggerheads with his best friend. They had to resolve this or one of them would eventually say something or do something that the other considered unforgivable and then Harry would lose the first friend he had ever had. He took a deep breath and raised his head, ready to apologise, but Ron beat him to it.

“Look, Harry, I’m sorry, alright?” Surprise flittered through Harry’s chest, but Ron barrelled on, not giving him a chance to respond. “But please just listen to me for a minute. I know you want me to be able to be civil to Malfoy. I know that, considering it was all over twenty years ago, I should be over a lot of the stuff that he did to us. But, the thing is, he’s the reason Bill is scarred and he also nearly killed me. You can see where I’m coming from with this one, right?”

Harry sighed. These were arguments that he had gone over and over himself since he and Draco had first gotten together. Hell, he had gone over them with most of the Weasleys before as well. His problem, it seemed, was that he simply couldn’t reconcile the Draco he knew now with the Malfoy he had been back then. He knew it sounded strange, but it was like they were two different people. Running a hand through his hair, he prepared to go over it once again.

“I can, but–”

“He’s changed. Yeah, I know: you keep telling me that every chance you get.”

“And yet you still refuse to give him the chance to prove it to you,” Harry answered hotly, firing up immediately at the dismissive tone to Ron’s voice. “You wanted me to listen to you, so now you can listen to me. Do you really think I would fall in love with the person Draco was twenty years ago? Not just lust, but real, proper love? He has grown and matured past all that childish bullying he used to do and has become a man I am proud to say has fallen as much in love with me as I am with him.” Taking another deep breath, Harry let it out slowly. “I am aware of everything he has done in the past. I was, in fact, actually there personally for the worst of it. I’m not going to make excuses for him or try to explain away what he did, but you need to know that he isn’t that scared boy anymore. He is kind and generous and all that stupid stuff people say they want in a partner and you know what? Ginny nearly killed him because of our relationship, but he still stuck with me. Even half-dead and doped up on so many painkillers that he nearly couldn’t stand on his own, he still made sure that night that I knew that he didn’t blame me; that he still wanted to be with me.”

Harry fell silent, watching Ron closely. He knew Ron would most likely not believe him; he never had before, so why would he now? He didn’t get the chance to find out what Ron thought, though, as a quiet voice piped up next to him.

“Draco was conscious after being hit with those curses?” Percy’s full attention was on Harry, his blue eyes sharp as he leant in. “The media always say he passed out the second he was hit.”

Dragging his attention away from Ron, Harry leant back against the seat. “He was conscious for about the first half minute before the blood loss got to him. He awoke the second the Blood-Replenishing Potions had given him back enough to keep him conscious, according to one of the Healers I spoke to.”

All conversation stopped as the waitress arrived at their table with all four plates of food floating behind her. Harry smiled his thanks, then stabbed his fork through his steak, frustration at his own inability to express what he wanted to coursing through him. Percy allowed him to begin to mash his peas and potato together before speaking again.

“What about the pain?”

Harry’s lips pressed together as he remembered the fear he had felt seeing Draco in so much pain that he couldn’t move without grimacing. “They gave him the strongest painkilling potion they could, but it only lasted six or so hours. It had an opiate effect, causing him to fall asleep at random intervals and to lose track of the conversation around him.” Harry’s jaw clenched when the memory of Draco's frustration with himself in the hospital flashed across his eyes. “His sinuses still ache in the cold. The Healer said that will never go away.”

“You’ve never spoken of that night to us – or, well, me – before, you know.”

Staring down at the mangled mess he had made of his food, Harry nodded. “I know. And it’s not just you I haven’t told. It’s not something I like being able to remember.”

“Do you think you could tell us now? Is there anything that didn’t come out during the trial?”

“Percy, what are you doing?”

Harry raised his head when he heard Percy sigh. Ron and Hermione were both watching their interaction with curiosity. Ron’s question hadn’t been asked with scorn, so Harry felt free to sit back and ignore his lunch for the time being, just as curious as to how Percy would explain his line of questioning.

“I’m trying to understand, Ron.”

“You want to understand Malfoy?”

“No. Well, yes, but… It’s difficult to explain.” Percy ran a hand through his hair and sighed again. “Just bear with me here, alright?”

Ron sat still for a long moment. When his eyes flicked from Percy to Harry, Harry had to resist the urge to jump. “Go on then, Harry, tell us exactly why you fell in love with a man who has done nothing but make your life miserable every chance he got.”

Unable to resist, Harry rolled his eyes. “You want an explanation beyond that he makes me happy, right?”

“Right.”

Taking another deep breath and letting it out slowly, Harry dropped his gaze to his food again. He allowed his mind to drift over the differences between his relationships with Draco and Ginny. He thought about how he felt when he was with both of them, he thought about how easy or difficult it was to just be alone with both of them; he also thought about the levels of desire he felt for the both of them. Draco came out the clear winner each time in his mind, but how to explain those feelings to Ron? Munching on a couple of mouthfuls of mushy food before he spoke, Harry used the time to organise what he wanted to say in his mind.

“The Ball wasn’t when I decided I wanted to stay with Draco. Don’t get me wrong; discovering what he was willing to go through in order to stay with me was a significant moment in our relationship, but it wasn’t what decided me on him. I don’t know what Hermione told you about the night I told Ginny about Draco, but he came to Grimmauld when I asked him to, despite the fact that, technically, what we had at that point wasn’t what anyone would consider a real relationship. He looked after me when I was basically too drunk to stand, he spent the night at Grimmauld to make sure I was safe and he stayed half the next day after Astoria and Hermione had left. When things were falling apart with Ginny, Draco was there for me.”

“Is that it?”

“He held the press back so we could get the true story of what happened out, he was there for me when things became overwhelming, he loves Lily and the boys, he’s taken all four of us into his home without question, he sacrificed his privacy and comfortable lifestyle for me, and he doesn’t stop me from touching him when we’re alone. Which Ginny did, by the way. I can be myself around him without facing scorn. And…” He paused to take a sip from his drink when he realised his throat was dry. “He understands me. I swear, if you gave him the chance, you’d see that he really has changed for the better over the years. I think Astoria had a lot to do with that, because he’s not as cruel as he was in school. He’s over-protective of the people he sees as being his, but it’s that protectiveness that he sees as having kept himself and his family safe for as long as it has. I really do love him, Ron, and I want you to be able to see why.”

Harry glanced around the table as he fell quiet again. Ron’s eyes were locked onto his own food, avoiding Harry’s gaze. He pushed his food around the plate with his fork, a scowl on his face. Giving up on watching him, Harry glanced over to both Hermione and Percy. Neither of them seemed to want to say anything, which sent a shot of what was probably inappropriate amusement through Harry’s chest. The idea that he was able to render both Hermione and Percy speechless in one go was something he hadn’t ever thought he would be able to manage.

“Well? No one has anything to say?”

“I’m not sure that there’s all that much to be said, honestly, Harry.” Percy’s voice was low, but Harry heard him clearly. “It’s obvious that you’re not lying about your feelings for him, not that I thought you were. I think we need to get everyone together for just a day together. Not to discuss anything, not to have to sort through anything, just to be together. Maybe it would help if we were all able to actually see how much he cares for both you and Lily. Maybe… Maybe that would make it easier to accept?”

Harry sat and nodded silently. He honestly thought that confronting Draco with a bunch of Weasleys would draw his shields up tighter around him than Harry had seen in a long while, but he was willing to try. If it meant that this part of the stress that had been plaguing him would dissipate, then he thought he may be willing to try damn-near anything. He turned to face Ron before accepting Percy’s proposal, needing to know whether Ron would be willing to try it.

“Well?”

Ron stayed quiet for a little while longer, sending Harry’s nerves singing with tension. When he sighed and threw himself back against the seat cushions, Harry had to smile.

“Alright. Maybe this will work, maybe it won’t. But… I’m willing to at least try.”

Harry’s smile widened enough so that his cheeks began to ache. He turned it on Percy, who shot him a confused look.

“I swear, Perce, I could just kiss you right now.”

Percy chuckled. “I’m pretty sure I could live without that kind of demonstration that you don’t like women, Harry.”

Unable to help it, Harry began to laugh as the tension he was being gripped with slowly began to dissolve. Leaning back against the seat, he shot Ron a wide grin once he had gotten control over himself again.

“Thank you.”

Ron held a finger up and wagged it in front of Harry’s face. “I’m not guaranteeing anything, mate–”

“Oh, believe me, Ron, the very fact that you’re willing to try is enough for me at the moment,” Harry interrupted, still grinning wide. “But, look, enough of that. How’s Rosie doing?”

They spent the rest of lunch discussing their various children and how they were doing in school or otherwise. Harry filled them in on Lily’s progress in ‘studying’ potions, despite the fact that she had no wand and therefore couldn’t actually make a potion yet. He left The Leaky that afternoon feeling lighter than he had in a while, still floating on the bubble of happiness that had blossomed in his chest when Ron had agreed to give Draco a chance. He knew they still had a ways to go yet, but this seemed like a good start.

*~*

Be dressed in something old and comfortable that you don’t mind getting dirty when I get home with Lily. We’re going out.

Draco stood in the formal living room of the Manor dressed in his work clothes, feeling absolutely foolish. He had no idea why he had followed the instructions on the note Harry had sent him, but he was now seriously reconsidering the action. Surely being told to dress in something he didn’t mind getting dirty was a bad sign, right? He jumped when the Apparition alarm sounded.

“Harry?”

“Draco!” Lily ran into the living room from the lobby, her hair flying behind her. “Dad says we’re going flying!”

“Flying?” He automatically knelt down and spread his arms, allowing Lily to run up to him and throw her arms around his neck. “Are we really?”

“That we are.”

Harry followed behind Lily at a slower pace. Draco stood with Lily in his arms and couldn’t help returning Harry’s wide smile. “You look happy.”

Draco's brows rose towards his hairline when Harry leant in to place a quick kiss on his lips. There was something about his posture that Draco couldn’t quite place; something that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

“There’s no reason for me not to be.” He grabbed Lily from Draco's arms and sent her upstairs to change out of her school clothes before turning to wrap Draco in his arms. “I had lunch with Ron, Hermione and Percy today.”

The twinkle that entered Harry’s eyes when Draco's hands traced around the waistband of his trousers told him that it was possible that something had actually gone right this time. “And?”

“Would you be willing to, I don’t know, go on a picnic with the Weasleys sometime soon?”

“A picnic?”

“Yes.” Harry leant closer so their lips brushed gently when he spoke. “A blanket on some grass somewhere. Food and drink. Screaming children. Sunburn. A picnic.”

“Smartarse.”

Draco closed the tiny gap between them and opened Harry’s lips with his tongue. The taste of chamomile tea flooded his mouth, causing him to smile into the kiss. The warm feeling he got when he was with Harry was more than enough to chase away any worries he felt over what was going to happen in the future and he leant into Harry’s chest, enjoying the feeling of just having him there.

“Is that a yes?”

Draco hummed, but didn’t open his eyes. “If I say yes, will you tell me why I would want to have a picnic with people who don’t like me?”

“Because I asked you to?”

Draco smiled at the question. “Is that your final answer, or do you want to try again?”

Harry’s grip tightened around Draco's shoulders, drawing him close enough that they were now leaning on each other. “I love you.”

Draco re-opened his eyes so he could see the warmth in Harry’s expression. “This is yet another attempt at trying to get us to get along, isn’t it?”

“Please, Draco. Please just try for me. I can accept that you’ll never be best friends with any of them, but Ron has actually agreed to give this a chance and if it means that I get to keep my family…”

He trailed off, his eyes pleading. Running his fingers along the small of Harry’s back, Draco took a breath and let it out slowly.

“What do I get in return?”

Harry grinned before planting a kiss on his lips. “Lily can spend the night with Molly that day. I’m sure there’s at least one room we haven’t defiled in the Manor yet.”

“I’m not sure it would be a good idea to let you anywhere near my parent’s bedroom, Potter.”

“Oh, I don’t know…” There was a thoughtful tone to Harry’s voice that had suspicion trailing down Draco's spine. “It’d probably be the best sex that room’s seen in years, if ever.”

Amusement bubbled up in Draco's chest, but he held it back for the time being. Leaning in closer, he narrowed his eyes. “You’re trying to convince me to sleep with you by mentioning my parents having sex?”

Harry sighed, mischief still sparkling in his eyes. “You’re right. I highly doubt Lucius has it in him anymore.”

With a short bark of a laugh at the shock that Draco was unable to prevent from spreading across his face, Harry released him and practically bounced off towards the stairs in the lobby. Draco shook his head. Whatever it was that had been decided that day at lunch, it had left Harry in a very good mood. He had no idea whether that boded well for him or not, but he discovered that he was strangely willing to find out.
- 10
- 11
- 12
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

The Optimal Balance