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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
- 14
- 15
- 16
A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews I've been getting the past few chapters. I'd have responded earlier, but things have been so bleh here that it is seriously just easier to post and forget about the site for the week :/ I'll try to be bettter :)

Draco hated lying to Harry. There was, unfortunately, no two ways about it: Harry was the one person in the world capable of making him feel guilty about lying to him. Not that Harry had to even really try to make him feel guilty over his actions, as he had no idea he had been lied to that morning when Draco had turned him down in the shower.

Scowling as he deftly sidestepped a woman and her crying child blocking his way through Diagon, Draco tried to force the unpleasantly warm pooling of guilt in his stomach away. It wasn’t like this was a permanent lie, he told his conscious: Harry was going to find out about it that afternoon. And surely when he discovered the reason why Draco had lied to him, he wouldn’t be angry. Harry was a relatively reasonable person, so surely… Huffing out a frustrated sigh, Draco took a detour into the small alcove just before the entrance to the lawyer’s offices.

Calm down, he forcefully told himself the second he was out of the sight of any curious eyes. You’re not doing anything illegal, just visiting your lawyers.

Taking a few deep breaths, he closed his eyes and applied his Occlumency shields tighter. Pushing the thoughts of Harry being pissed off at him for lying to him to the back of his mind proved a little more difficult, but he was a patient man. Once he managed to get his racing heart and squirming stomach a little more under control, he stepped out into Diagon again and rounded the corner to enter the offices of Richardson, Hunter and Macgregor.

“Mr. Malfoy! It’s always a pleasure to see you.”

Draco resisted the urge to inform the secretary that she was full of shit and smiled instead. “Thank you. Does Mr. Richardson have a few free minutes to spare? I wish to speak to him about something rather... delicate.”

There was no jolt of guilt over lying to the secretary, Draco noticed with a smile that he had to immediately repress. Of course it would just be Harry, he told himself before refocussing on the secretary.

There was nothing truly delicate about what he was there to discuss with Richardson, but he figured that telling the secretary it was would get him seen much faster than if he had just brushed his reason off. There was absolutely no point in staying there for longer than he wanted to.

“Of course, Mr. Malfoy. If you would just follow me.”

Automatically slipping into his public persona, Draco kept his eyes fixed ahead of him as he followed in the secretary’s wake through the maze of offices. He knew exactly where she was taking him, of course, so he had no real need to watch where he was going; he had been there often enough, after all. The vestibule she led him to hadn’t changed since the last time he had waited for Richardson there the day Harry had signed his divorce papers. The memory brought with it very uncomfortable feelings associated with both his joy over Harry finally being free from Ginevra as well as a combination of remorse and anger he related to remembering the look on James’ face when he had heard his Mother speaking of him and his siblings the way she had. Unfortunately for Draco, the latter won out over the former, sending revulsion through him as the secretary gestured to one of the comfy-looking chairs.

“Please, have a seat. I’ll let Mr. Richardson know you are here.”

Sending a disdainful glance towards the chairs, Draco shook his head. “I’m comfortable standing, thank you.”

He knew the secretary would take the look as a sign that he was displeased with something, but he was completely unwilling to disabuse her of the notion. Standing just off to the side so he wouldn’t be visible from inside the office when the door opened, Draco crossed his arms over his chest and offered her a polite smile, one that had her offering him a sightly panicked-looking smile in response. Draco had to repress a smile once again; playing with people’s expectations of him was one of his favourite ways to pass the time when in public. All up, the secretary took less than a minute to enter the office, speak to Richardson and return to inform Draco he could go in immediately. He offered her yet another smile and was almost unable to hold his amusement in when she jumped a little before nodding and returning to her desk.

“Young Mr. Malfoy. It’s been a while, how are you?”

“Quite well, thank you.” Draco stepped into the room and shook Richardson’s offered hand. “However, I do believe that your secretary is a little…” He cocked his head to the side, considering his words carefully. “Nervous around me these days, shall we say.”

The knowing look Richardson shot him told Draco that he was not going to get away with pretending to not know the reason behind the girl’s nerves. Garrett Richardson was well aware of the Malfoy tendency to play into people’s expectations after dealing with not only him, but his Father before him as well.

“I’m sure she shall get used to your presence, just as Monica did.”

Draco blinked. He hadn’t even registered that the woman he had been speaking to was a different one to the last he had dealt with. It was a testimony to Richardson’s ability to find himself discrete secretaries, Draco figured, if even he was unable to tell the difference between them. He inclined his head when it became obvious that Richardson was waiting for a response from him.

“I’m sure she shall.” He took the chair before the fire that Richardson directed him to and accepted a glass of water with murmured thanks. “How are your family?”

Draco only half-listened to Richardson prattle on about his grandchildren for a while, completely uninterested in what the man was saying, but still needing to pay close enough attention to be able to ask about them again later on down the track. This was one of the more boring parts of discreet conversation, one that Draco would gladly forego if he thought he could get away with it. Luck was definitely not on his side that day, it seemed, as when he had finished speaking of his own family, Richardson asked about Draco's. They continued on and on, skirting around sensitive issues and discussing others in depth until a house-elf popped in and requested that they place their lunch orders.

“Lunch?” Draco waved his wand and stared mutely at the numbers telling him that it was already half twelve.

“Yes, time flies when you’re engrossed in conversation, doesn’t it? Would you join me for lunch?”

Draco had honestly intended to be back at the Manor and working right at that moment in time. However, seeing as he had apparently wasted half the day already, he figured there was no harm in staying a little longer. He settled into the chair properly, accepted a glass of wine and placed his lunch order with the house-elf.

*~*

“Iris, where are the leave forms kept?”

Harry slammed the drawer of the filing cabinet closed with a frustrated huff and sank down into his chair. His annoyance stemmed not only from his halted search for the forms, but from a combination of annoyances he had had to deal with during the day. Missing payslips, tantrums by the children, an accident in the medical section that had needed half the wards to be closed for nearly all the day, and a bit of a mess involving the parents of one of the children the Aurors had handed over to the orphanage about three months previously had all added up to increase his irritation. It had all helped him to come to the decision that he needed to take some time off during the school holidays to spend some real time with the boys.

“Why do you need the leave forms?” Iris’ voice sounded muffled through the wood of the door.

“To fill one out, obviously.”

“But…” Iris sighed. “Hang on a minute, I’ll be in soon.”

There was a touch of confusion to her voice that sent a responding rush of confusion through Harry. What could possibly be so unclear about him wanting to take a little time off? Or maybe it was because he had already taken those two days off for Draco's birthday at the start of the month? The Auror Corps had never really had an issue with him taking leave for the children, as long as it wasn’t too often or for too long, so why it would be an issue now was slightly perplexing. He was frowning down at his hands in his lap when Iris opened the door with a soft knock.

“Harry?” He jumped a little, causing her to smile. “Why do you need the leave forms?”

Harry watched as she made her way into the room to stand before his desk, a small frown creasing her brow. He took a deep breath to try to push some of the lingering irritation at himself for not knowing where something was in his own office and smiled.

“I’m going to take a little more time off during the school holidays. The Foundation runs itself pretty smoothly with the Heads of Department in control, so I figured it wouldn’t make much of a difference whether I was here full-time or not.” The smile that spread slowly over Iris’ face told Harry that he had said something that amused her, but what it was, he had no chance of working out. “What?”

Stepping forward so she could claim one of the chairs in front of his desk, Iris smoothed her hair back behind her ear and cleared her throat. “Harry, you own the Foundation.”

She looked at him expectantly, obviously thinking she had said something significant. Harry searched his brain for what she could find significant about telling him he owned his own Foundation. He obviously already knew that and he wanted to do the right thing by letting everyone know that he was going to not be around as often as he usually was, so he needed to fill in the leave form, right?

“I’m aware of that, Iris. Why are you telling me?”

“The boss gets to do what he wants, Harry.” There was no hint of condescension to her voice, which Harry was thankful for, just amusement. “If you want to take some time off, just do it. I’ll send out a memo to the staff who need to know and that will be it. You didn’t fill one out at the start of the month, either.”

Harry sat and stared at her, trying to remember whether he had filled one out at the start of the month or not. “So,” he began slowly. “If I told you I wanted to take all of next week off to help the boys get settled at home, you’d send out a note telling everyone who needed to know and that would be that.” He could have sworn that he had seen the exact same amused look directed at him from Draco when he had done something particularly dense. Shaking his head, he ran a hand through his hair, scrubbing it down and over his face. “Sorry, it’s been a long day.”

“I know. Look, go home.” Harry’s head snapped up and he had to blink her into focus. “There’s only half an hour before you usually leave and it has been a long day. Go home, have some caffeine, annoy Draco and come back refreshed tomorrow. I swear I‘ll hold the fort until then.”

Glancing around his office, Harry ran quickly through anything that he had left to do that day. When it became obvious that there was nothing really important left, he shot Iris a thankful look.

“Thanks, I… I’m sorry I’ve been in such a shit mood today.” He rubbed his eyes beneath his glasses, causing them to ride up his nose. “You really don’t deserve it.” A soft laugh gained his attention and he let his glasses drop again.

“Believe me, your supposedly shit moods are much better than those of my last employer, Harry.” She smiled wide at him as she stood from the chair. “Take the floo. That way no one will be able to distract you.”

Harry had his things gathered and was back in the living room of the Manor faster than he could remember leaving work before, even on his worst days for the Aurors. The floo alarm chimed and he listened carefully for footsteps, but when none sounded, he made his way out into the lobby.

“Hello? Draco?”

“Shh!”

Harry turned towards the voice to find Astoria softly closing the door to the informal living room across the lobby. “Tori?”

The grin she shot him had Harry grinning back. It had been odd to him at first, but there was simply something about Astoria that set him at ease. He automatically reached for her and pulled her into a tight embrace when she stepped close enough to him. She was still grinning when she pulled back. Holding him at arm’s length, she frowned.

“You look worn out.”

“Thanks, you look great as well.” Unable to help it, Harry let out a laugh when she whacked him on the arm. “Where’s Draco? Not still out is he?”

“Well… He’s out, but not in the way you mean.” Astoria’s grin widened when Harry frowned at her. “Come with me.”

She led him to the informal living room and placed a finger to her lips, motioning for him to stay quiet. Cracking the door open showed the room had been darkened by the closed curtains, causing Harry to narrow his eyes in order to see what was going on. He followed when Astoria slipped past him. His eyes adjusted to the gloom slowly, the stress of the day not helping his ability to focus. Astoria stopped in front of the lounge and smiled at him. Stepping around the end, he glanced down, his eyes widening in surprise. Draco lay along the full length of the lounge, snoring softly. Astoria grinned at him when he met her eyes, then crooked her finger and led him out of the room again.

“Why is he asleep on the lounge?”

Astoria seemed to be unable to wipe the grin from her face. Practically bouncing in front of him, she shifted her weight from foot to foot.

“He went to the lawyer’s office this morning and got trapped there with Richardson. They had a, well let’s call it a ‘working lunch’.”

Harry could practically hear the quotation marks forming around her words. “He’s drunk?”

“No, no, not drunk. Although, you know how wine tends to make him sleepy?”

Harry sighed, a wide smile spreading across his face. “He had wine with lunch, came home and fell asleep on the lounge.”

It was such a common thing that it seemed nearly impossible that it had happened to Draco of all people. Harry had had the idea building in his mind that Malfoys were immune to all things common, but this… He couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up out of him when he met Astoria’s eyes. This was cute. Astoria joined him in his laughter, interspersed with little shushing sounds, obviously because they were still outside the living room where Draco slept. Astoria was the first to regain control over herself.

“He had this with him when he arrived home. He was being kind of secretive about it, so–”

“So you read it when he fell asleep?”

“Of course.” She shot him another amused look. “It’s more to do with you than me.”

Harry’s eyebrows rose into his hairline in surprise, but he took the piece of paper she held out to him anyway. Scanning the page caused even more shock to flood through him. It appeared to be a legal document adding Harry as Draco's next of kin should something happen to him. Harry stared down at the piece of paper, his mind going a little blank as his heart began to race.

“This…”

“I’m still listed as needing to be contacted in the case of an emergency, but it’s just a courtesy. Everything important when it comes to Draco is now yours to worry about.”

When Harry finally managed to drag his eyes up from the paper, it was to see Astoria smiling at him. It wasn’t the grin she wore so often around him, but a real smile that lit up her entire face. Without even thinking, he stepped forward and scooped her into his arms, spinning her around so she began to laugh again.

“Thank you.” The words were whispered in her ear as he slid her back down to the ground.

Astoria merely smiled up at him again before swatting his arm, moving him off towards the living room. “Go on. I’m sure he won’t mind you waking him up.”

Warmth was beginning to spread slowly through Harry’s limbs, replacing the numbness of the shock. He pushed the door of the living room open again and moved to stand before the lounge. Draco's fringe flopped across his forehead and the blanket Astoria had obviously placed over him rose and fell in a rhythmic pattern, causing a smile to spread across Harry’s face again.

Removing his wand from the holster on his trousers, he waved it over the lounge, widening it just enough so he could comfortably lie down with Draco. He yanked his shoes off and dumped them at the end of the lounge, causing Draco to frown.

“Harry?” Draco's voice was thick with sleep. He raised the blanket anyway, seemingly moving on automatic. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing, it’s alright.” Harry slipped in under the blanket so Draco could drop it again. “Go back to sleep.”

Draco hummed in response as he tucked the blanket up under his chin again. He slumped down onto Harry’s chest, his breathing evening out already. Running his hand down Draco's spine, Harry couldn’t help smiling.

“I love you, Draco.”

“Mmm, you too.”

Settling down with Draco on top of him, Harry sighed softly. They could talk later, he knew. There was no point in disturbing Draco now.
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The Optimal Balance