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Fairest Creatures	By : Lomonaaeren Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 22177 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 4
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I am making no money from this story.

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Chapter Twenty—Separate But Equal

            “Mr. Potter, stay after class.”

            Harry rolled his eyes a little, ignoring the concerned glance Draco gave him. He had wondered how long it would take for Testig to start picking at him again. He wrapped up his face in a smile to reassure Draco, nodded to him, and walked over to stand in front of Testig.

            She only considered him for long moments, her wings flaring out as if to balance her. Harry kept looking back. He didn’t want her to think she could intimidate him. That would be even worse than her deciding he was a problem and confrontational.

            Testig finally waved a hand like someone scrubbing a window and said, “I think it’s true. You’re not trying to contact Healers to get them to invade the school and rescue you.”

            Harry blinked. “What are you talking about?”

            “I received this letter yesterday, along with several of the other professors. Miranda was quite upset over it.”

            Testig held out a letter. Even though Harry had never seen the particular handwriting on it, he could guess who it was from. The ink used glittered a pale blue instead of a normal black, and Harry grimaced as he took it.

            “They’re no allies of yours, then,” said Testig, still watching him with her head tilted to the side like a bird trying to bring something into focus.

            “No,” said Harry. “They’re convinced that the color of the stripes on my wings means something—I don’t know, mystical.” He’d dealt with people like that before, including the ones who thought he’d saved them from Voldemort based on eye color or the night he was born or some combination of rare magical rituals his parents had performed. None of them ever wanted to hear the truth, that Harry was an ordinary person whose mother had taken an extraordinary risk.

            He supposed being Veela wasn’t exactly like that, but the Healers were still as fucking annoying as the people who kept writing to him about the Arithmantical roots of his name or some such nonsense.

            “And they’re arguing with each other about it,” Harry added, turning the parchment over and reading the name written on the back. This one happened to be from Healer Veraz, but he was just as bad as Kilhoun. He would have contacted Harry through the Floo if he could have. And now he’d made professors Harry was just barely beginning to get along with think bad things about him.

            “Why are they arguing?”

            Harry looked up, blinking. “Because each of them thinks the blue is some special variation of blue. Cerulean, or azure, or…I forget the others. And they want to hold me captive and study me because I changed into a Veela by accident, and that seems to be rare.”

            “There are no others in the school. Is that not enough to tell you how rare you are?”

            “But I don’t know anything! That doesn’t make me special. It makes me feel stupid and like I have to scramble to catch up!”

            Testig was still for long moments, her wings moving slightly in time to what Harry thought was her breath. Then she inclined her head and murmured, “Permit me to say I misjudged you. I had thought—that you considered yourself special because you were the only one of your kind. I understand the way you think now.”

            “I don’t think I’m special, because I’m not,” Harry muttered, and looked away. He was wishing now that he’d gone with Draco. Staying here would only embarrass both him and Testig, probably.

            “Very well,” said Testig. “But you must beware of going in the other direction. Everyone who sees you can tell it’s not true.”

            “What other direction? I’m not going to walk around telling everyone I’m not special, if that’s what you mean.”

            “True. But excessive humility can be acted out, not announced. After the way everyone saw you defeat me in the duel, they know you’re special.” Testig didn’t sound like she was bragging as she stretched her wings out and let him look at the spread of colors along them. “Most of my students would not have won that duel. Most of them would not have been innovative enough to think of the tactics you did.”

            Harry had to snort. “So now I can be called innovative?”

            “Now you can,” said Testig serenely. “Just make sure that you demonstrate it in other ways than duels.” She gave Harry a small smile and waved him towards the door of the classroom. “I’ll tell the other professors that you didn’t contact the Healers to have them besiege us with letters and you’re as annoyed as we are.”

            “Thank you,” Harry said quietly. But he couldn’t turn away yet. “What would you have done if you’d found out that I did want the Healers to write to you?”

            “Been irritated.”

            Given how effective Testig’s irritation had been so far at provoking him, Harry didn’t think he needed another answer. He gave one of those tips of his wings that Draco was always on about him having to do, and then left the classroom and nearly smacked into Draco where the door should have been.

            “Were you listening?” Harry scolded him, a little appalled, as he reached out and dragged Draco along with him. Draco stumbled but used his wings to keep his feet, and went on looking at Harry with exasperatingly guiltless eyes.

            “I wanted to know what she was talking to you about. No one should have the right to scold my mate except me. And she did already challenge you to a duel once.”

            “That doesn’t matter. She just wanted to know if I’d encouraged the Healers to write to the professors or not.”

            “They did that?” Little feathers were rising on Draco’s neck and all along the edges of his wings.

            Harry nodded, absurdly pleased that someone felt like that. Technically Testig had, too, but, well, she wasn’t on his side in the same way Draco was. And I don’t even know if that’s a Veela thought or not. “Yes. They seem to think they can come into the school and rescue me—that is, take me back to be studied some more. The professors thought I was writing to complain to them about how horribly I’m treated here.”

            “But you aren’t treated horribly.” Draco turned and faced him, wings almost vibrating with his distress as he rested their tips on Harry’s shoulders and stared desperately into his eyes. “Tell me that you aren’t being treated harshly.”

            “Not now,” Harry said gently, and stroked the edge of Draco’s wing until his expression eased almost in spite of himself. “But at first, when I didn’t think I would enjoy having you as my mate and I didn’t know why I had to learn to control my powers, I did think it was horrible to be here.”

            “You can’t leave. I’m your mate.”

            “Well, in a few weeks you and I will both finish all the classes we need,” Harry did have to point out. “What’s going to happen then?”

            “You would only have a month here if you wanted to learn the bare minimum about controlling your powers,” Draco said at once. “But you’ll need longer if you want more than that, and to become the expert on controlling your powers that you really should be. What if you have more powers like the Shriek just waiting to be discovered? And what about your allure?”

            “What about that?” Harry asked. “I mean, it hasn’t seemed overwhelming lately—”

            “Because you’ve accepted me as your mate, and that calms it down.” Even in the midst of worry Draco could sound smug. Harry noted that for the future. “But if you’re away from me, or if something stresses our bond, then it could get out of control again.”

            Harry frowned. “I want to learn how to tamp it down, not only control it because I’m standing next to you.”

            Draco nodded. “I know. But since we’re going to be together all the time anyway…”

            Harry drew back and studied him. “Would you be content with that? Being with me all the time, and never doing anything on your own?”

            “You make it sound like it’s a sacrifice.” Draco sighed a little. “It’s not, Harry. I’m a Veela, not a traveler. This is what we do.”

            “But if I go back to being an Auror—”

            “If the Healers are treating you like this, as a cross between a monster and an experiment, how do you think the rest of the Aurors are going to treat you? I don’t think you can just walk back into your normal life, Harry.”

            Harry ran his hand through his hair. This echoed other arguments they’d had before, he knew, when he had thought his world would be the same as before with the addition of a mate and wings, and Draco thought it would change completely. Harry didn’t know how to resolve it completely, what to say to make Draco understand.

            Of course, he also hadn’t tried going back to the Aurors and asking them, which would be the only way to settle it completely.

            “Today,” he said abruptly, and saw Draco’s head tilt curiously. “I want to meet some Aurors who aren’t Ron—he’s going to accept me no matter what happens—and ask them what they think. If I can be just a normal Auror again.”

            “How can we? We have classes—”

            “You didn’t mind sneaking away when you were going home to prepare that jungle room for me.”

            Draco stood silent, conflicted. The light they’d conjured for a courtship gift shone around his hair a few minutes later and danced on his shoulders like sunlight reflecting off water. Harry watched him in silence. The light was around them most of the time, but not when they were upset or having an argument.

            “That was part of being a Veela,” Draco said at last. “Courting you, hoping a courting gift would show up.” He pinned Harry with an unwavering gaze. “This wouldn’t be.”

            “You can think of it as my courtship gift to you,” Harry countered. “The way that I’m trying to make you part of my life.”

            “It shouldn’t be like that,” Draco said, softly but intensely, his wings hunching forwards as if he was going to fly straight at an enemy. “It should be the Aurors that you have to integrate into your life as a Veela.”

            Harry felt his wings flutter in agitation, and the light around Draco’s shoulders dimmed again. “I don’t know if I’ll have to. I don’t know what the Aurors will think. I don’t even know what the regulations are about Aurors with wings. And I mean, there have to have been some. People who grew wings as a result of Transfigurations that went wrong, or magical accidents.”

            “Most people like that would have gone and got the wings removed, though. And I think it’s safe to say that you’ve chosen against that.”

            Draco looked so challenging now that Harry crooned without thinking about it, his wings stretching out. Draco let himself be drawn near and soothed, but his frown didn’t ease, and his eyes didn’t leave Harry’s face. Harry sighed and brushed his cheek back and forth along Draco’s.

            “Yes,” he said. “I chose you. I’m not going to go off and suddenly abandon you.”

            Draco relaxed muscle by muscle, and hissed under his breath as he did it. “The light still hasn’t come back.”

            Harry nodded. “I know. I really think I need to talk to the Aurors before I’ll know their answer one way or the other.”

            “They won’t accept it. I’m sure of it.”

            “I’m not.”

            Draco waited one more moment, as if he thought that would convert Harry to his side, and then he sighed in discontent and drooped his head. “I agree. I just hate to think of you facing dislike from people you worked with.”

            “You hate to think of me facing dislike from anybody,” Harry corrected gently, and soothed Draco with another touch to his wings. “Including the teachers here and people who were born Veela and don’t understand why I wouldn’t want to be transformed into one.”

            “But it hurts more when it’s people whose good opinion you actually want.”

            Harry grinned and shrugged. “Right, although it does make it easier when the professors have good opinions of me.” He leaned forwards until he could look into Draco’s eyes. “Will you let me do this?”

            “I can’t prevent you.”

            “I’d prefer to have your blessing. Because it makes it uncomfortable for me when you feel like this. I hate causing you distress.”

            Draco worked his wings back and forth a little, and then dipped his head reluctantly and muttered, “If you think you need it.”

            “Thank you.” And Harry did feel an easing as he spoke, his wings stretching out and then sweeping back around his body. “I’ll go and speak to them today. You can come with me to the Ministry, or just skip your classes—”

            “No, I’ll go to class in case there’s anyone who doesn’t know the truth about the Healers’ letters. Then I’ll be there to tell them.”

            Harry ran his hand along Draco’s collarbone. “What did I do to deserve such a wonderful mate?”

            “It has to be something in another life.” Draco winked at him. “Because I can’t remember anything in this one, except having the good taste to choose me.”

*

            “Mr. Potter. I didn’t expect to see you back for some time.”

            Harry settled himself in front of Auror Jared Klein, who had helped mentor Harry when he was a trainee and who was now the next candidate for Head Auror. He noticed the lack of title and hoped that Jared wouldn’t recognize the uneasy ruffling of the feathers on the edges of his wings for what it was. “I know. But there was something I wondered about so much that it was disrupting my performance at the school. I wanted to know the answer to it before it got worse.”

            “Ask the question, then.” Jared did eye Harry’s wings, but his eyes were neutral, and told Harry nothing about the answer to the question in advance.

            “Am I going to be a regular Auror, still, with my wings?” Harry asked bluntly. “Is there some regulation that covers Aurors who are part-Veela or have Veela allure or—anything like that?”

            Jared stirred and leaned back in his chair. “I thought you were going to take the potions and have the wings removed.”

            “Maybe if I had found nothing but misery at the school, I would have.” Harry tried out a smile, but Jared didn’t smile back, only watching him alertly, and Harry sighed and gave up on that tactic, trying another one. “But I found a mate. I don’t want to abandon him.”

            “I heard about that. Malfoy.” Now Jared showed some emotion, at least enough to frown. “Are you sure that taking him as your mate is a good idea, Harry? Some of the things I’ve heard about that man…”

            “Rumors that were proved false years ago,” Harry snapped, defensive faster than he’d thought he’d get. He swallowed and sighed, inclining his head. “Listen. I only need to know what the regulations are about Aurors with Veela blood.”

            Jared sighed and looked away. “Technically, there aren’t any. There have been maybe two Aurors with visible Veela blood since the Aurors began. There aren’t any living in England most of the time, and the ones who’re mixed mostly go to Beauxbatons and find a place in France. Not to mention that most Veela don’t want to serve in such a dangerous career and chance leaving their mates behind.”

            Harry nodded slowly. “So it’s handled on a case-by-case basis?”

            “Yes.” Jared looked at him. “But since you’re so prominent and have those wings and that mate, they might want to impose some extra rules on you.”

            “What? Like don’t come into any investigation that has a high secrecy quotient, because what in the world would we do with you?”

            Jared’s eyes remained serious, without even a hint of the smile Harry had hoped to provoke. “More like, what is Harry Potter still doing in Auror work if he’s a real Veela? And if he’s a real Auror, why doesn’t he remove those wings that give him an unfair advantage over other people? He has enough unfair advantages already.”

            Harry stopped. There was a tone in Jared’s voice that made him think that… “Is that something you believe yourself?” he asked quietly. “Or are you repeating what you think the reaction is going to be?”

            Jared winced and glanced away from him. “The reaction. But, Harry, it is true that you get some of the plum cases because of your fame, and if you insist on this, then there’ll be people suspecting it’s your allure, too.”

            “My allure is under control.” And Harry knew it was. No one had drooled at him on the way into the building. There had been some gawking, but that came entirely from people being unused to his wings.

            “They won’t know that.”

            “Then I’ll tell them until they get it,” Harry said tensely, and stood up. He hated to admit that Draco had been more right than he had. They weren’t kicking him out of the Aurors, but they sure weren’t as accepting as Harry had thought they would be.

            “It’s not your fault, Harry. I know that. But everyone thought you were going to get rid of the wings.”

            “Well, I’m not,” Harry snapped, and stalked out of the office, not even caring about the way his wings bristled around him.

*

            SickPuppy: Thank you! And thanks for catching that typo.

            Hestia: I’ve been job-hunting, which involves traveling. Yeah, it sucks, but I’m okay. And the light doesn’t follow them everywhere, only when they’re together, happy, and contented.

            SP777: Thank you!
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