Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Erotes	By : Bickymonster Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 70634 -:- Recommendations : 4 -:- Currently Reading : 19
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any concepts or characters associated with it. I am not making any money from this this story

Chapter List
- 20
- 21
- 22
AN: Chapter 21; Well I was right, this chapter was a nightmare and my first version was not suitable for public viewing however, after a complete rewrite of quite a lot of it, I am finally done (and it is even a bit longer than usual). I thought that as you have all been so wonderfully patient I would make you wait no longer and get this up straight away. (so I haven’t even started chapter 22 yet). Enjoy.
Warnings: Swearing, slash and Adult themes, sexual content. For full warnings see story description.
Thank you to my beta, AchillesTheGeek.

(Note: This is the updated edited version of the chapter. Updated 30/11/2015)

Hermione opened the door with some trepidation, but as she entered the Room of Requirement she couldn’t keep the proud smirk off her face at what it had created in response to her request for somewhere to meet and discuss strategy.
“It looks like some kind of conference room,” she said, as she took it all in. There was a long boardroom table in the middle of the room, surrounded by very comfortable-looking black leather and chrome chairs. Along one wall was a sideboard on which was arranged a vast array of sandwiches, biscuits and cakes, as well as jugs of pumpkin juice and pots of both coffee and tea.
“What’s a conference room?” Draco asked curiously not having heard the term before and Hermione launched herself into an explanation.
Rolling his eyes, knowing a long, boring monologue would follow , Ron made a beeline for the food. Draco seemed genuinely interested and Harry and Ginny also knew better than to interrupt Hermione now she was on a roll, so instead helped themselves to drinks before taking seats at the table.
“...so, anyway, this should be perfect for what we need,” Hermione finished up as she took a seat next to Ginny. Draco nodded his agreement, as he in turn sat next to Harry, giving his mate a grateful smile for the cup of tea that was already poured and waiting for him.
“Awesome, I’m starving,” Ron declared, as he too found a seat, put his rather full plate down in front of him, and started to tuck in while they waited for the others to join them.
Harry was quite enjoying being back in the Come and Go room, as the elves called it. They had originally planned to just go back to Harry and Draco’s room; however, as soon as they had started discussing who to include, putting together a list of who was already in on their secret, it quickly became clear that there was definitely not going to be enough space.
“Can’t we just use that room on the seventh floor?” Draco had suggested, when Harry had complained that nowhere was going to give them the privacy they needed. The others had quickly concurred.
It had been surprising to see just how many people already knew that they were Erotes but if they were going to go public with everything, then they were going to need each and every one of their friends by their side. Harry had asked Dobby to take notes to each of those invited, with a request for their presence, and so now they just had to wait for Pansy, Blaise, Vince, Greg, Dean, Neville, Luna and Seamus to join them.
“So you want to put together a press release?” Ginny asked sceptically, her eyes narrowed, fixating on Draco. Harry and Draco had mentioned vaguely what they were thinking but had wanted to focus on gathering everyone together before discussing it in any detail.
"That's the general idea," Draco commented pompously. He had sat himself almost regally, at the end of the table furthest from the door, and was sipping elegantly at the tea he had just poured. There was no way that Draco didn’t know that he was already irritating Ginny but that just seemed to encourage his smugness; the only thing keeping her in her seat, with her tongue in check, was the promises she had made to Harry.
“Well it did work well before,” Hermione said thoughtfully, half to herself as she helped herself to a biscuit from the plate in the middle of the table, her hand coming up to cover her mouth when a few crumbs tried to escape as she bit into it.
“Exactly, that’s what I was thinking,” Harry said happily, smiling at Draco in the seat next to him as he rested a hand on the blond’s knee.
The possessiveness of the gesture was not lost on Draco and the submissive he didn’t even try to lie to himself about how attractive he found that; his purple wings twitched joyfully as he felt a undeniable spike of arousal when Harry’s fingers tightened subtly on his leg. Draco would have easily believed that his boyfriend was oblivious to how he affected him, if Harry hadn't been looking at him with a knowing smirk; and damn if that wasn’t one of the most beautiful sights he had ever seen. It was a smirk a Malfoy could be proud of; Hades, it was a smirk that this particular Malfoy was proud of.
“Erm, Harry... I don’t want to rain on your parade,” Ron said slowly, sounding a little worried and the others in the room all turned to look at him in question.
Now that he had been snapped out of his reverie, Draco realised that the direction of his thoughts had not been advisable given their current company and he would deny the blush that was creeping over his pale skin until his dying day. He was just glad that it seemed Harry and his friends were too focused on Ron to notice his new slightly pinker colouring, or were at least smart enough not to comment on it.
“Have you told mum about everything yet?” Ron asked Harry after a moment, giving his best friend a wry smile.
Harry paled, his eyes widening and mouth hanging open a little as he realised that Ron made a very good point, because he had been so focused on Draco and their friends that he had completely forgotten to spare a thought for those outside of Hogwarts. “Crap!" he exclaimed, looking every bit as concerned as Ron. "She will kill me if she hears about this in the papers.”
“She is probably going to kill you already, for not having told her sooner, to be honest,” Ron told him with a shrug, picking up and biting into one of the last of his sandwiches.
Harry turned to glare wryly at his friend. “Well I am glad to see you are taking my impending doom so casually,” he told Ron drily, leaning back in his chair and looking to the ceiling, trying to work out how he was going to explain having kept this hidden from her for months; it really hadn't been something that he had meant to do.
Draco rolled his eyes at his mate's dramatics. “Surely it won’t be that bad,” the blond insisted dismissively. He knew that parents could get a little crazy sometimes but she was still just one woman.
The Gryffindors turned to stare at the him as though he had just declared himself the reincarnation of Helga Hufflepuff. Harry let out a groan, leaning forward and rested his head on the table, and Draco thought he heard a quiet whimper.
“That bad...? Really...?” Draco asked sceptically, a single eyebrow raised in disbelief. However, none of them laughed like he was half expecting, none of them seemed to be amused, and he started rubbing Harry’s back in an attempt at comfort.
“Molly Weasley can be kind of scary sometimes,” Hermione admitted softly, as though worried that the woman would hear her and come barging though the door any moment.
Ginny scoffed at that. “A bit more than kind of,” she corrected, grimacing at the memories of times when she had been on the wrong end of her mother’s wrath; she had a great deal of sympathy for Harry and only hoped that she might go easy on him, given he wasn't technically her child.
“She doesn’t like it when her kids keep things from her,” Ron added, with a nervous glance at Harry, who was now gently banging his head against the table.
“And she considers you one of her children, I take it?” Draco asked, trying his very best to not be amused by these brave Gryffindors being so obviously scared of the woman; either he had greatly overestimated their courage or else Molly Weasley was far more of a force to be reckoned with than he had believed could be possible.
“I am sure she will understand," Ginny assured Harry, trying to be supportive. "Though you better write and ask her to come and visit,” she instructed, “and soon. I am sure Dumbledore will allow it given the circumstances."
“Ginny’s right,” Ron said, putting on his most brave and supportive face, and Harry looked up at him with a scowl. “Your best bet is writing to mum as soon as possible and ask to speak to her in person; unless you have a particular desire to be on the receiving end of a howler when she reads this on the front page or hears it somewhere else,” he added with an unrepentant grin.
“Yeah...” Harry mumbled, knowing that Ron was right. He turned to look at Hermione, who was holding out a piece of parchment. "Yeah, okay," he agreed, taking it from his friend with a look of apprehension.
Draco, retrieving a quill and ink from his bag, placed them front of his dominant with a wry smile.
"No time like the present, right?” Harry said as he picked up the quill and dipped it into the ink well, taking a calming breath as he mulled over what exactly to write.
“That’s the spirit, Harry,” Hermione encouraged, her show of optimism somewhat tempered by the look of sympathy in her eyes.
Harry did feel a little guilty for not having spoken to Mrs Weasley about it, given how much she had always cared for him; that he had come into an inheritance, bonded and now had a child on a way was about as big of a deal as it could get after all. He hadn't meant to not tell her it was just that he had honestly forgotten, with how busy and complicated his life had become.
He stopped himself at that thought. ‘Okay so maybe that isn’t the argument to go with,’ he told himself; it was unlikely that 'I forgot about you' wasn’t going to win him any bonus points with anyone. However, he was at least going to make sure to tell her himself, and in person too like Ginny had suggested; hopefully that would count for something.
Harry paused with the quill just above the parchment and looked up at Ron. “Does she even know about Draco?” he asked, wondering just what reason his best friend had presented to explain his absence at Christmas.
Ron looked thoughtful, trying to remember what had been said to his parents. “I don’t think we mentioned anything specific,” he said with a shrug after a few moments, glancing at Hermione and Ginny for confirmation, both of whom nodded.
“I think she knows something is going on with you,” Ginny added quietly and Harry felt another pang of guilt for shutting his adoptive family out as much as had.
“I told her you just needed some time,” Ron told him with another shrug; his mother had simply seemed concerned, “so yeah, she probably knows something is going on and is waiting for you to be ready to tell her.”
Harry smiled at that, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad after all. It wasn’t like Mrs. Weasley would be really angry at him, she would probably just rant a bit about letting them help him and then pull him into a hug and forgive him; at least he hoped so.
Maybe he would take Draco; perhaps then she would get so distracted with asking the handsome blond questions and welcoming him to the family, that she would forget to be mad. Harry did have to admit to himself that really was wishful thinking. It would probably be better if he could get Dumbledore to agree to them being allowed to go to a family dinner, where everyone could meet Draco properly; his adoptive family deserved at least that.
Shaking off those thoughts though, he focused his attentions on his letter to Mrs Weasley. The others left him to it, snacking on the food and beverages that the Hogwarts elves had provided. He was just putting the finishing touches to his letter when the others started showing up.
It was Crabbe and Goyle who arrived first; it was quickly apparent, from the way the pair of them stood awkwardly close to the door, that they still weren’t yet used to spending time with so many Gryffindors. Draco found it rather amusing how his friends' large and intimidating size made them look a lot like nervous guards.
Rolling his eyes, the blond drained the last of his tea and placed his cup on the table, giving a quick gesture to Harry to refill it before getting to his feet. His mate gave him a smile and a nod, and Draco headed over to his two friends, letting his wing ‘accidentally’ catch Ginny’s shoulder as he passed her.
Ginny looked up with a puzzled expression on her face. “Is Blaise going to be joining us?” she asked quietly to no one in particular. Hermione and Ron turned in sync to look at her curiously; Harry, however, narrowed his eyes at his boyfriend, his suspicions confirmed when Draco looked back at him and gave him a wink.
Harry fairly was sure he was the only one in the room who was able read Draco well enough to see how pleased the blond was with himself in that moment, or at least the others seemed too distracted to notice. Harry had to admit that his mate had played that well, given they didn't want Ginny to figure out what they had planned for her; at least, not yet.
“He was waiting for Pansy,” Greg said quietly, looking a little puzzled about why it seemed that no-one else was going to answer. “He said they would be here soon,” he explained, Vince nodding in agreement next to him.
“Oh, right. Okay...” Ginny responded, though she seemed a bit confused about why she had cared enough to ask in the first place, much to both Harry and Draco’s increasing amusement.
“Come on, sit down already the pair of you,” Draco ordered, herding the two burly Slytherins further into the room and they both took seats and stiffly nodded their appreciation when Hermione levitated cups of tea in front of each of them. Draco returned to his own seat next to his mate and accepted his own, now refilled, cup back from Harry, along with a chaste kiss.
It was Luna who turned up next, practically skipping into the room just a few minutes later, her radish earrings bouncing, as she took the empty seat next to Hermione. “Hello,” she said happily as she smiled around at the others, swinging her feet under her chair.
The whole effect made her look rather like a restless child and Harry thought he actually felt younger for her presence; it was too easy with everything going on to forget that they were still all teenagers but there was something about Luna that made the world feel more simple and he was glad to have her there.
“How did you manage to get rid of all those nargles, Draco?” Luna asked curiously, when no other conversation was forth coming.
Harry choked slightly on the tea he was drinking and most of the other’s turned to look between Draco and Luna with confusion. Draco, however, was smiling; an amused smile for sure, but he still looked pleased with the question.
“I took your advice,” he told her happily, finding himself quite entertained by Harry’s most peculiar friend. "I went flying."
“Flying?” Hermione gasped out, looking shocked and a little horrified as she leaned forward against the table. “What about the baby?”
“Like I would let him get on a broom,” Harry scoffed, tutting at his friend's panic; his protective instincts would never have allowed Draco to do take such a risk.
“Or as if I would endanger my unborn child like that,” Draco said sounding quite annoyed, his hand instinctively resting on his belly, as though the action would protect the tiny being growing there. “I used my wings,” he told her proudly.
“Really?” Ron asked, suddenly interested in the conversation now. "What was that like? I bet that was awesome!"
“I didn’t think that your wings would be large enough to actually fly with,” Hermione said sounding a little awed and looking curious. "I mean, I know Harry sort of flew across in the Great Hall, and has sort of glided with them but your wings are significantly smaller and..."
“You're thinking like a muggle, Hermione,” Harry told her with a chuckle, rather amused by how much she was over thinking it, even after all the years that they had spent in the wizarding world. “We fly with magical currents not just muggle science."
Ron, Ginny, Vince, Greg and Draco all looked rather confused but Hermione nodded her understanding, with a silent ‘oh’ forming on her lips; Harry could see that she was already itching to go and do research on the subject and gave her a fond smile.
“So you and Luna know each other?” Ginny asked, looking at Malfoy with suspicion. She was having trouble hiding her disgust at the lengths Malfoy seemed to be going to in order to make Harry trust him, even hanging out with Loony Lovegood. It seemed a bit too far-fetched that he would willingly associate with the girl but she hid her mistrust as best she could, knowing how badly Harry would take it.
“I think ‘know each other’ would be a bit of an exaggeration,” Draco admitted with a shrug, looking entirely unfazed, and Luna nodded her agreement. “We just happen to have spoken a couple of times recently and she helped me work out where to look for Harry the other day,” he added, giving the blonde girl a grateful smile.
“But you told her about being a... you know...?” Ron asked, glancing nervously at Luna as he leaned over the table a bit and speaking in a whisper.
Harry leaned over the table too, smirking in amusement. “Everyone here knows, Ron,” he said in a very loud mocking whisper, winking at his best friend. “But no, actually Luna was just being Luna and figured it out all by herself,” Harry told them as he leaned back in his chair, sending a huge grin towards where Luna was sitting.
“Did we miss the party?” Seamus asked as he, Neville and Dean finally arrived, the three of them looking rather surprised at the odd collection of people gathered in the room.
“Not a party, Seamus,” Harry told him in an amused monotone.
“Aww, Harry,” he said, putting on his best puppy dog eyes and pouting, “always spoiling all my fun.”
“Do I even need to tell you to ignore him?” Dean asked Harry in his ‘why do we put up with him’ voice, Neville chuckling and shaking his head next to him.
Harry chuckled and just indicated the empty seats down the table; Hermione seemed to be taking her self-appointed role of hostess seriously, perhaps because the room was her creation, as she started pouring tea into three more cups, levitating them to their three friends.
“So... what is going on?” Neville asked, as he accepted the tea from Hermione and helped himself to a biscuit as he, Seamus and Dean all took seats at the table.
“We are just waiting on Pansy and Blaise," Harry told his friends, "and then we will explain it all,” he promised, not wanting to have to repeat stuff when the two Slytherins did get there.
“Pansy and Blaise?” Seamus asked curiously, his voice mocking as he leaned forward against the table to wink at Harry, “I knew you were getting real cosy with one Slytherin, but on a first name basis with Parkinson and Zabini too? Sounds like you are getting cosy with the others as well.”
Draco snarled at the implication, his wings spreading out behind him but Harry reached out and squeezed Draco's knee, to calm his mate and keep him in his seat. Harry knew his friend well enough to know that Seamus was just playing, even if Seamus' surprise at the use of the first names had been genuine.
“I would say we are working on being friends,” Harry told the Irishman casually, shaking his head in fond disbelief of his housemate's filthy mind. “Slytherins aren’t so bad really,” he added with a playful smirk in Draco’s direction. “Ouch!”
Draco had kicked him under the table, not particularly hard but enough that Harry was sure he was going to have a bruise on his shin the next morning.
“I take it back, they’re evil,” Harry corrected, reaching down to rub at the sore patch on his leg “What was that for?” he demanded, glaring at his mate.
Draco made a huffy sound. “For mocking me and my fellow Slytherins,” the blond told him unapologetically, arms crossed over his chest.
“I was teasing, Love,” Harry told him, feeling slightly confused by Draco’s overreaction. “You aren’t really mad at me are you?” he asked in a quiet and genuinely worried voice, but with everyone else in the room remaining silent, it seemed likely they could hear every word.
“No, not really,” Draco admitted in an even quieter voice, “I am just being a grumpy bastard... Sorry.” The final word was so quiet that Harry had to guess at it from the way his boyfriend’s lips had moved, but given the audience they currently had, he didn’t begrudge his mate that and squeezed Draco’s hand in acceptance.
“Erm... so should I go get a knife so we can cut the tension in here?” Pansy asked from the doorway, where she and Blaise had just entered unnoticed, the latter now frowning at Draco with concern.
“Glad you could join us,” Harry said, tearing his eyes away from Draco’s glare to smile at the last two of their friends. “Have a seat,” he said happily, waving a hand at the empty chairs next to Vince and Greg.
“Draco, what’s going on?” Pansy asked worriedly, referring not only to their reason for being there but to the expression on the blond's face; though she didn't really expect her friend to explain the latter in front of all these Gryffindors.
Draco took a deep breath to calm himself; he knew he was probably being irrationally emotional and he had every intention of blaming it on hormones, but that didn’t change that he felt tense and on edge. “Harry and I are considering letting the world know what we are,” Draco told her as he watched her and Blaise move around the room to take seats at the table.
“Really?” Pansy said quietly, lowering herself into her chair slowly. They had not been expecting that, if the surprised expressions that most of the occupants of the room were suddenly wearing were anything to go by.
Draco and Harry both nodded in confirmation, and they were inundated with questions and protests from all directions. “Just hear us out,” Draco requested, holding his hand up to quieten his friends.
After a few seconds they stopped talking all at once, looking to the two Erotes for answers. Vince and Greg were easy to read, as were the Gryffindors, but Blaise’s face was too blank, so there was no telling what kind of emotions he was covering up and Pansy’s lips were pinched shut; Luna was a mystery as always. Draco gave Harry a nod.
“Draco and I think this is for the best," Harry told them firmly. "However, each and every one of you is someone we have trusted with this already and we value your opinions,” he explained; most of their friends were still looking puzzled, though Luna was smiling at him warmly. “And that's why we would like your help in deciding exactly what to say and how.”
Draco nodded his agreement to this, sipping some more tea; he was happy to let Harry take control of the situation. Blaise and Pansy would likely challenge him on this later anyway, so it was more important to get Harry's friends on board right now.
“You can’t honestly think this is a good idea, Draco?” Blaise said with forced calm, waiting a few seconds for reaction that didn't come before turning to glare at Harry. “Are you seriously going to put Draco and your child in harm’s way?" he demanded to know. "For what? To ease your guilt for keeping this from your loving public?”
“Blaise!” Draco exclaimed angrily, slamming his hand down on the table, his best friend's dark gaze returning to him as he did his very best to cast a wandless wordless hex at Blaise with just a glare. He knew that it was asking a lot for his friends to trust Harry but they knew that his mate would never deliberately harm either him or their child, and he strongly resented the implication otherwise.
“No, Draco, it’s okay,” Harry told him, placing a hand on Draco’s arm, hoping to calm his submissive before either Blaise or Draco said something they regretted, though he couldn't help but flinch a little when the steely grey eyes redirected at him. “He has a valid argument," Harry pointed out, "the whole purpose of keeping this quiet was to keep you from becoming a target.”
“But it is hardly a secret that we are together," Draco argued back in clipped tones, "so that makes me a target already. I don't see how this will put me in any more danger than I am already in."
“And when the Dark Lord finds out that you’re carrying Harry’s child...?” Pansy demanded, pausing to let that sink in for a few seconds. “You think that he isn’t going to do everything in his power to get to you?”
Draco opened his mouth to say something but snapped it back closed again a moment later, glaring down the table at the Slytherin girl. He was reluctant to admit it, but he did feel she might have a point there; Harry was also looking contemplative next to him.
“Isn’t that likely to pretty much become public knowledge fairly soon anyway?” Ron asked casually, looking from Harry, to Hermione, and then to Draco. “You know, with the whole getting fat thing,” he added, miming a large belly.
“Ron!” Hermione and Harry exclaimed in outrage, ignoring the sniggers that Seamus was trying to suppress and Draco gasped at the nerve of red-head, pressed his hand against his heart as if he had been physically hurt and looked away.
“What?” Ron asked innocently, apparently genuinely confused about what he had said wrong.
“As insensitive and oblivious as my brother is, Ron kind of has a point," Ginny said before someone could start ranting at him, and everyone turned to look at her. "I just mean that you will start showing in a few months,” she pointed out, “it isn’t like you can hide this pregnancy indefinitely.”
“Draco won’t be getting fat,” Harry told them through clenched teeth, knowing that with Draco’s already slightly off mood, this was likely to make things worse. “His body will change to accommodate our child, yes, but I won’t have any of you lot turning something as beautiful as this pregnancy and our baby into something negative.”
Ron flushed at the chastising words of his best friend and Ginny at least had the good sense to look apologetic, something that seemed to amuse a few of their friends; Pansy was looking particularly pleased. Draco even managed to stop frowning long enough to give Harry a small grateful smile.
“Beside," Harry went on determinedly, "Draco will not be setting one foot outside of Hogwarts’ wards, unless we are one hundred percent sure of his safety, until after the baby is born.” Draco nodded in agreement, prepared to tolerate his mate's protectiveness while there were such threats out there.
“Okay," Blaise said with what sounded like frustrated indulgence, "so you don’t think You-Know-Who could get people into the castle?” he asked, in a tone that made it very clear how stupid he thought they were being.
“Not without inside help,” Draco said slowly, mulling it over; a kind of darkness glinted in his eyes as he thought about the fact that it was supposed to have been him providing the Dark Lord with that. “Does he have inside help?” he asked a few moments later, looking between the Slytherins at the table.
Pansy sighed, letting out a breath slowly. “We don’t know,” she admitted a little sadly. “It is too well known that we are your friends, and if anyone is helping him, they are actively keeping us out of the loop,” she explained.
Draco nodded, not really surprised to hear that and far too grateful to have them on his side to actually complain about it at all. “Vince, Greg?” he prompted, hoping that they might not have been excluded to the same extent.
“They've never told us much,” Vince said with a shrug. "Still don't."
“I haven’t heard anything,” Greg added. “Would have told you if I had.”
Draco smiled and gave a nod of appreciation at the words of loyalty. He knew that neither of them had ever been greatly trusted by the Dark Lord or his Death Eaters, and so hadn't really expected anything from either of them. He and Harry had taken a chance on every person in this room though, and so far they hadn't been given reason to regret doing so.
“Not sure who it would be if he does have someone here,” Pansy said thoughtfully, glancing at Blaise next to her who gave a very small shrug, “but I can’t believe that he doesn't have anyone in the school.”
“You think there’re Death Eaters in the school?” Dean asked, though his voice sounded shaky, Seamus too was looking shocked by this revelation.
“You mean other than Snape?” Neville said quietly, looking nervous.
The silence that followed that was heavy and no-one quite seemed sure what to say; the only sounds were those of several of them slipping tea or crunching on a biscuit as quietly as possible, the clinks of cups being placed back on saucers sounding loud in the quiet of the large room.
“Professor Snape is no danger to either me or my baby,” Draco assured them after a few minutes but it was obvious that not many people in the room really believed that.
“I trust Snape with Draco’s life,” Harry told them sternly, his friends sharing concerned, sceptical looks with each other. “You are just going to have to trust me on that, even if you can’t trust him.”
While most of them still didn’t look convinced by this, they said nothing to argue against it, and so Harry took that to mean they would at least place their trust in him. For now that would have to be enough.
“The point is," Harry went on, wanting to change the subject, "Draco and I want to control how and when this is announced to the public," he explained before turning to the only Ravenclaw in the room. "Luna, I was really hoping your father would agree to publish another exclusive.”
“I am sure he would be delighted,” she told him with an excited, enthusiastic smile. "I will write to him and ask, if you would like me to."
“The Quibbler?” Ginny asked incredulously. “I thought you wanted people to take this seriously, Harry.”
“Your father works for the Quibbler?” Pansy asked Luna with a look of disapproval, before Harry even had a chance to say anything.
“Oh, he owns and edits it actually,” Luna said dreamily, as unfazed as ever.
“And you,” Pansy went on, ignoring Luna and turning her fierce gaze on Harry, “you want to put this story in that... that...?”
"Luna is our friend, so watch what you say, Parkinson,” Ron warned, not about to let the Slytherin girl speak badly about her or her family's publication, not when Luna had been so loyal to them.
"Girl Weasley's got a point though," Blaise said, giving Ginny a handsome smile, causing her to narrow her eyes at him, "no one's going to take it seriously."
“The Quibbler published Harry’s story before," Hermione pointed out, cutting Ginny off before she had a chance to start arguing with Blaise, because that really wouldn't help anyone.
“Are you actually serious about this?” Draco asked Harry with an annoyed scowl that likely would have had anyone else running away.
Harry, however, managed to just smile back at his mate. “I am serious," he told Draco calmly. "Who else could be trusted to publish exactly what we want?” he asked; he didn't think they could trust the Daily Prophet, not given the things that they had published about each of them in the past.
“Okay, while you might have a point there, if we give the Quibbler this story then no-one will believe it," Draco insisted, running his fingers through his hair as he leaned back in his chair and sounding quite frustrated with the whole thing already. "Erotes are not going to come across any more believable than any of the other stories in that rag.”
“Okay," Harry said, biting his bottom lip as he mulled it over and realised that Draco might be right; it wouldn't help anything if it just sounded like another of the Quibbler's tall tales. "What do you suggest?” he asked, leaning back in his chair, opening up the floor to Draco if his mate really could come up with something that would work.
Draco’s lips thinned to a line, his brow furrowed as he thought it over. He didn’t really know what to suggest and it seemed that this whole coming out to the world thing was providing a lot more problematic than he had envisioned.
“You could release a general statement to all major publications and then give the Quibbler an exclusive with the pair of you,” Blaise suggested quietly. He was still not completely on board with the reveal but, as they were obviously going to go ahead with it whether he agreed with it or not, he at least wanted to make sure that they controlled the situation as best they could.
“Hmm...” Draco hummed thoughtfully, considering the suggestion and trying not to feel too frustrated with himself for not having thought of it first. “That could work,” he said, glancing to Harry to see what his mate thought of the suggestion.
“Excellent,” Harry said happily, clapping his hands together. The Prophet would just make fools of themselves if they released anything in contradiction to the articles in other publications, which would give them the control that they needed. “Now we just have to work out what to actually say.”
“Great,” Ron groaned sarcastically, slouching back in his chair.
-#-
“Severus, I really wish you would stop this nonsense,” Lucius sighed, brushing his hand over the potion master's hair as he sat down on the edge of Severus' bed, looking down at the man prone there. “He has called you three times in the less than a month.”
Severus Snape had floo-ed back directly into his rooms at Hogwarts, landing on the floor in front of the fireplace, his body twitching wildly; he had only barely managed to summon enough energy to release the bars on Lucius’ room. The blond had rushed forward and swept Severus up into his arms, urging the man to remain conscious.
Stubbornly Severus had refused to be sent to the Medical Wing, despite Lucius' insistence that the potion master needed to see the nurse, and so Lucius had been left with no choice but to carry him carefully through to the bedroom. He hoped that the man would at least allow himself some recovery time.
“That isn’t that unusual,” Severus replied quietly, his voice weak as another uncontrollable shudder rippled through his body; his voice was strained and he could barely open his eyes as he lay on top of his bed covers, Lucius wiping his forehead with a cool damp cloth, trying to ease his headache.
“It is when he has nothing new to tell you," Lucius argued with a frown. "Besides, how long are you going to be able to survive him using the cruciatus curse on you repeatedly? It is obvious he doesn’t trust you anymore. That isn't going to change, not unless you are going to tell him where I am being kept.”
“That will never happen,” the potion master snarled, forcing one eye open to glare pathetically up at the blond man leaning over him.
Lucius chuckled at that. “I hope that you know me better than to think I would actually suggest you turning me over,” he said with a smirk. “Surely you do not consider me some Gryffindor fool?”
Severus visibly relaxed and closed his eye again. “Of course not,” he assured the older man; he wouldn't have considered doing such a thing anyway, even if Lucius would agree with it.
“So, was tonight the same?” Lucius asked calmly, despite how much it disturbed him to see his... boyfriend? The term sounded far too childish for his liking. He wasn't sure that lover really fit either, he realised, but that was something they would have to discuss another time.
“More demands for me to obtain your location, or else bring you directly to him,” Severus told him, keeping his eyes closed. “Though thankfully he still does not appear any the wiser about Draco’s relationship with Potter; other than the usual enquiries about Draco and Narcissa, with the intent of locating you, he does not mention him.”
“That is both confusing and a source of great relief, I will admit,” Lucius replied, moving around to the other side of the bed and climbing onto it so that he was sat next to Severus, intending to keep the man company for as long as the potions master would allow.
“Someone must be doing something to hold back news of Draco and Potter’s relationship,” Severus said with a thoughtful frown, “but to what end?”
“Does the Order of the Phoenix have that kind of control?” Lucius asked sceptically, thinking that likely they would be the ones with the most motivation to do so.
“Possibly...” Severus said but even though he didn’t seem entirely convinced; admittedly Albus was a very well respected and connected man, so that was plausible. “Who else would care to keep such things quiet?” he pondered.
“I am not sure,” Lucius replied quietly, “not something I ever relish having to say. Is this not something you have discussed with your precious headmaster?” he questioned, thinking it odd that Severus was discussing this with him rather than Dumbledore.
The potion master scowled darkly; the trust he had in the old man was wavering and he suspected Potter’s was as well. Dumbledore seemed to know a lot more than he was telling either of them and that made him reluctant to talk to the headmaster regarding this matter.
“Interesting,” Lucius simpered, apparently reading a lot into Severus' expression and if Severus had felt up to opening his eyes at that moment he would have seen the smug look on the other man’s face. “Either way, you can’t keep doing this," Lucius insisted, "he is going to kill you.”
“I have to,” Severus told him simply.
It was not the first time Lucius had told him to give up spying but he knew how valuable the information he was gathering was, even when it was so limited. He would just have to find another way to earn the Dark Lord’s trust back; not that he had any ideas on that front so far, though admittedly the after effects of being held under the cruciatus curse didn’t aid logical thought.
“Whose side are you on, Severus?” Lucius asked with eyes narrowed in suspicion; he didn't understand why Severus felt such a commitment to being a spy for Dumbledore and the Order.
“I am on my side, Lucius,” Severus told him, forcing his eyes open to look up him. “Our side, I hope.”
Lucius smiled and leaned down to kiss Severus. “Sometimes I think that you are truly the most Slytherin of us all,” he told him.
Severus snorted in amusement and managed a small and rather feeble smile. “Perhaps," he agreed. "Do you honestly believe that either the Dark Lord or Dumbledore will act in our best interests? Or even Draco’s interests, or your grandchild's, for that matter?”
“No, I do not,” Lucius conceded, “not given the recent turn in events.” He had never really trusted the Dark Lord but he had at least believed that the Dark Lord's plans for their world were for all their benefit; now, however, their needs were too greatly misaligned.
“You don’t get it, do you?” Severus sneered. “The Dark Lord never cared what happened to you, and cared even less what happened to your family; you were his pawns and if Draco hadn’t become bonded with Potter then you still would be.”
Lucius was a master of schooling his face to be emotionless and as soon as that mask slipped into place, Severus knew that he was testing the man’s temper; however, that wasn't going to keep him from speaking his mind on this.
“You think I am wrong?” Severus demanded, shifting to sit up slightly in the bed, cursing when his left leg twitched again, reaching down to dig his fingers into the muscle, trying to massage the pain away. “You believe that the Dark Lord is going to be able to take control of the wizarding world? That this will end in the changes you want?”
Lucius’ expression remained unreadable, even to Severus. “It hardly matters anymore, does it," the blond pointed out, his harsh tone the only indication of the irritation and bitterness he was feeling, "the decision was taken out of my hands."
Severus let out a long, slow breath. “Lucius...” the potion master said, it was the closest he would let himself come to pleading. He didn't mean this to turn into a fight, didn't want to push the other man away, but it seemed that he was managing to mess it all up anyway.
“I am tired," Lucius said curtly, slipping off the far side of the bed with grace. He steeled himself before turning to look back at Severus, who was still lounging on the bed, the body spasms seeming to have mostly stopped. "And you seem to be recovering well,” he added tersely.
“I always knew you would find something to hate me for,” Snape said coldly, turning his head to the other side, unable to look at the man who was making excuses to escape his bed.
“I do not hate you,” Lucius insisted with a brisk voice, his hands pressing down into the mattress as he leaned over to place an almost aggressive kiss on Severus’s pinched lips.
“No?" Severus challenged, as Lucius stood back up and made for the door out of the potion master's bedroom. "Just running away then?” he suggested; he really hoped that his voice hadn't actually sounded as petulant as it had to his own ears.
“Acting in my own best interests, just like you are,” Lucius corrected angrily, turning on his heel to meet his lover’s eyes with fierce intensity. “Believe me, or not, you are important to me; what we have is important to me and if I stay here now... I will say something I’ll regret.”
“Lucius...” the younger man said softly.
“I am not denying or agreeing with what you have said,” Lucius interrupted, holding up his hand to cut Severus off before the man could say any more. “I am simply not ready to discuss it either way, and so, in the interests of preserving our relationship, I am going to bed... Goodnight.”
Severus had little choice but to sit and watch the other man walk away from him; it was not like Lucius could go far but it was still painful for Severus to see his lifelong fear acted out in front of his eyes. Was this really something they were going to be able to work through? He couldn’t see how if the other man wouldn’t even talk about it with him.
It wasn’t that the two of them had a great difference of opinion regarding the way they would like the world to run but Severus had always believed they had both acted recklessly and foolishly when they had taken the dark mark. They had never really discussed it, but Severus was sure Lucius wouldn't agree. Of course, by the time Severus had had come to regret it, they were both already in too deep and there had been no point in debating the issue, but that didn’t change how much that day haunted the potion master.
He was so sure that on some level Lucius must have begun to see that no good would come from the Dark Lord and the war he brought with him. Was it just that Lucius really was too proud and arrogant to admit he made a mistake? Severus snorted at that thought; of course Lucius Malfoy would never admit to such a huge error in judgement.
He smiled to himself as he lay back down, wincing as a spasm of pain shot up his spine but doing his best to ignore it, knowing that it would pass soon. When Severus thought about it, it was no surprise that Lucius couldn’t bring himself to agree with the points the potions master was making, but at least the blond had cared enough about their relationship to walk away.
That was what Severus decided he should dwell on, that was the man Severus loved. Severus was undeniably attracted to Lucius' strength and pride and even the man's arrogance, as infuriating as that could be at times, but knowing that the other man cared enough to walk away...
Severus summoned a blanket, pulling it over himself as he rolled onto his side, wincing as yet another spasm caused pain in his back. He smirked sleepily; he still feared for the day Lucius would leave and he dreaded the talk about the Dark Lord and the war they would inevitably have to have again soon, but it didn’t quite seem hopeless as it had many times before.
-#-
Lucius wasn’t sulking; that would be impossible quite simply because Malfoys did not sulk. He would admit that his conversation with Severus had not left him in a particularly good mood but that was hardly his fault. Why couldn’t Severus have left the subject well alone? Did the man not understand how fragile their relationship was? That it was only Lucius’ knowledge that he wanted Severus, everyone else’s thoughts on the matter be damned, that was making this whole thing between them possible.
He was sat in a large arm chair, in what he had come to think of as his room; the bars across the entrance still gaseous from the spell Severus had used to free him earlier when he had needed help. His thoughts were stubbornly stuck on the potions master, who was separated from him by only a couple of walls and doors.
He didn’t understand the other man sometimes, but it was true what he had said before; perhaps Severus was the greatest Slytherin of them all and this was just another mind game, another way to get the power Lucius knew Severus had always wanted.
Lucius sneered in aggravation. He felt a fool for letting himself care so much and yet he was still unable to see what ploy Severus was working; he would figure it out though because Lucius Malfoy was not a man to be played. Now, however, was not a time for haste. He knew there was no escaping his current prison, which Severus had so cleverly disguised as a home, and so he would play the slow game.
First things first, he needed more information; it was somewhat fortunate he had a lover who would so willingly provide. Lucius looked rather smug as he relished the idea of taking control of the situation again, and, allowing such concepts to ease his mind, he climbed into bed and let himself the peaceful rest of sleep. He was going to need his wits about him if he was to come out victorious.

By popular demand I am going to try and create an email group, where I will send an email notifying when I update any of my stories. If you wish to receive these trial email notifications then please let me know in a review, leaving me your email address. (literally put your email in the review and I will sort the rest)
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Review Responses:
LeaniaSTL – As you probably noticed, Hermione had the same doubts as you about the wings, magic is a wonderful thing ;)
Delia Cerrano – Ginny is just being stubborn but I agree, I really loved the Pansy/Hermione moment; and Blaise’s dramatic worrying.
Johnny – Don’t worry has taken a lot of people a while to notice that and I am sure there are some who still haven’t. Some of these chapters have been a nightmare to name.
Meechypoo64 – Ginny has a bit of a one track mind; Harry and Draco just need to find her a new track ;) I loved the flying bit, just felt really intimate. Lupin is kind of hopeless, both with Harry and with Tonks.
JennyPenny – Glad this was what you were looking for and you are enjoying it. :D
Nari-chan – Glad you loved the flying. Lupin and Ginny with work things out eventually, they are just not really getting that Harry and Draco are a family now; well I guess Lupin gets it, but doesn’t really accept the implications yet.
ChaosLady, Diana, Catherine, AyeltsAlannah, Windstorm – Thank you
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