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Returning to Sanity	By : AchillesTheGeek Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 31212 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter books or films, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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21 Returning to my Father's House in Peace
Saturday, 23 May 1998

Last time:
"Right," he said, smiling. "I'm coming!"
"Brilliant!" Ron said.
Draco stared at him. Ron held his gaze, then, answering the unspoken question, said, "yes, I really think so. You and Harry are obviously happy together, and seeing my friends happy is a great joy. And mum will be pleased too."
"She will!" Hermione agreed. "And thinking of Molly, we'd better be getting back to the Burrow to help. We've already been gone longer than we said; we only came over to tell you two the news and make sure you came tonight."
With that, she shepherded the three men into the Floo.

"Mum!" Draco echoed Ron's word, having a sudden shocking thought. "I haven't told mother and father about us!"
"Do you really want to?" Harry asked, a little surprised that Draco would want to tell his parents about his love life.
"Of course!" the blond replied, in a tone that made it clear that he thought the question ridiculous. "After all, word will get around; do you want them learning we're together by reading about it in the Daily Prophet?"
"Good point." Harry agreed; then, deciding that some things needed to be done in person, asked, "How about we see if we can visit for lunch?" Draco smiled in reply; it made him happy to learn he had such a thoughtful lover. He reached over and kissed him.
"Kreacher!" Harry called; when the house-elf appeared he asked, "would you go to Malfoy Manor and ask Mrs Malfoy if it would be convenient for Draco and me to come for lunch, please?"
"Of course, Master Harry! Right away!"

Narcissa and Lucius found it very convenient to have Harry and Draco to lunch; Narcissa, at least, was delighted; Lucius was a little cooler and harder to read, but he was at least polite and friendly. It was a beautiful day, and so they decided to eat in the garden, which Harry found much less intimidating than the formal rooms of the Manor.
"How have you been getting on, Dragon?" Narcissa asked Draco.
"Very well!" Draco replied, his eyes darting between his mother and his lover. He explained that they had been working together at Hogwarts on the Eighth Year Tower, but had been sworn to secrecy about the details.
Lucius looked at him strangely. "How have you been doing that without a wand?" he asked.
In answer, Draco produced his hawthorn wand. "I've been using this," he said, simply. "Harry gave it back to me. Again."
Lucius looked at Harry, horrified. "But … he's not supposed to have it before term begins!" he said vehemently. "You're risking imprisonment!"
"No," Harry replied, "I wrote to Doge about it. Now that Draco is staying with me, the Wizengamot has agreed that the second part of his probation can begin straight away, without waiting for term to begin; so Draco has permission to have his wand if I allow it. Which, of course, I do."
"You are a wonderful friend to our Dragon, Harry," Narcissa said.
"Actually, mother, he isn't," Draco said, an evil smirk on his face. Both his parents looked a little dumbfounded at this. "No; we've decided we aren't friends any more, haven't we Harry?"
Oh great, Harry thought. I get to tell them. "Um, well, still friends, just more as well."
"You're boyfriends?" Narcissa asked.
"Lovers," Draco corrected her. "'Boyfriends' sounds so … twee."
Lucius took in a sharp breath. He hardly knew what to think. All of his old misgivings about the Debt had immediately surfaced again; and he really didn't want to think about what his son did in bed. But on the other hand, Draco looked happy; happier than he had in years. If they found peace and happiness together, was the Debt really a bad thing? It was obvious that Draco was being treated well by Harry; better than well, if Potter had given him his wand back. Back again, as Draco had said.
Perhaps, he thought, Harry really does love him. Perhaps this can work. And then, because he was, after all, the Slytherin of Slytherins, perhaps we can make it work for us …
He lifted his glass, breaking into his first real smile for the day. "Well then, a toast to the happy couple!"

After that, lunch had been a very pleasant meal. As befitted dining in the garden, it was an informal affair, consisting of platters of bread and cheese and meats, with some olives and dolmades, and a variety of other small treats. Most of them Harry had never seen before, and Narcissa took great delight in introducing him to them, explaining what each one was, and how best to eat it.
The wine Lucius had toasted them with was a different elf-wine to the one Harry had had before; he asked about this.
"The elves make many different wines, Harry, just like the Muggles do. This one is lighter than the one I gave you; more suited to a party out-of-doors during the day, don't you think?"
Harry agreed, enthusiastically. Draco watched his lover carefully; he knew Harry wasn't used to alcohol, and Lucius was; they were having a very lovely time, all at peace together, and Draco wanted to make sure it stayed that way. So when Harry emptied his glass, Draco spelled it full of water before it could be filled with more wine. Harry looked at him quizzically; Draco mouthed 'trust me' at him.
Harry thought about this, and worked out what his lover must be up to. A delicious feeling of being loved and looked after began to draw over him. As he sipped on the water, he found it had a very refreshing, floral flavour to it.
"This is very pleasant, too," he said, surprised by the new flavour.
"It's elderflower," Draco told him. He eyed the raven-head carefully. Harry had obviously had a sheltered upbringing: no alcohol, no exotic foods, not even elderflower cordial, a drink easily made from flowers that grew wild just about everywhere in the south of England. Just exactly what had happened in Harry's childhood? How badly had those people treated him?
"Still a favourite of yours, Dragon, after all these years?" his mother said, her teasing tone breaking into his reverie.
Draco just smiled in reply, but decided it was time to change the subject. "We should have some more toasts; this evening, we are going to a double engagement party."
"Oh how lovely!" Narcissa exclaimed. "Whose?"
"Ron has finally plucked up courage to ask Hermione," Harry answered.
"And what did she say?" said Lucius. But he was only teasing, too, and grinned to show it. "And the other couple?" he asked.
"George Weasley and Neville Longbottom", Draco answered, in quite a matter-of-fact tone.
Harry held his breath. What would the older Malfoy say about this? He thought about what Vernon Dudley would say, and had a picture of his angry face going redder and redder, his voice yelling about 'filth' and 'disgusting' …
But Lucius maintained an absolute composure. "An interesting match," he said, in a tone to match Draco's. "I should imagine that Longbottom must have matured somewhat, after killing Nagini," he continued, shuddering at the remembrance of the awful snake he had lived in fear of for so long. He had been very impressed when he learnt that the boy, whom Draco had always described as 'a bit wet', had had the courage to do what none of the Death-Eaters had dared. "From what you tell me of them, Dragon, I imagine he'll need to have some maturity to be mated to one of the Weasley twins!"
Harry breathed again. It seemed that the wizarding world really was prepared to accept same-sex matches that much more readily than the Muggle one. And he was amazed at how close to the mark Lucius had been in summing up his friends; but then, he had to be good at sizing people up, it was essential in politics.
The conversation continued happily, but it wasn't long before the two young men had to excuse themselves; they did have a party to get ready for, after all. Narcissa insisted on them taking presents for their engaged friends and some flowers from the garden for Molly. Lucius produced more elf-wine for Harry, including some bottles of the one they had had at lunch. Harry said that it was very kind, but he hadn't finished the last lot yet. "You will, soon enough," Lucius replied, and insisted on him taking it.
And so they Flooed back to Grimmauld Place, laden with gifts. Harry was glad for once that the Ministry insisted on protection; Auror Brown, who had accompanied them, had happily carried the wine for him; there was an entire case of a dozen mixed bottles this time.
"Now we had better go to Diagon Alley," Draco said, as soon as everything had been put somewhere safe and the flowers given water.
"Why?" Harry asked; he had planned on spending the afternoon being rather lazy, preferably cuddling in bed with his lover.
"Because," Draco answered, "we are going to a double engagement party this evening, and we have not got presents!"
"Point," Harry answered, reluctantly giving up his idea of a lazy afternoon, and returning to the Floo.

They emerged from the Floo into Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes to find that Seamus and Dean were minding the shop, the twins and Neville being required to help set up for the party. They were both delighted to see Harry, and while Seamus didn't look pleased that Draco was there, Dean smiled at him.
"I hear you did great work yesterday," Dean said to the blond, while Harry took Seamus aside for a quick word.
"Really? Who said …" Draco started to ask, but was interrupted by the reply.
"Winky! She was so excited! 'Mr Harry Potter is being doing wonderful magics! And Mr Draco Malfoy is too! And so kind to poor Winky!'" Dean said, in a fair imitation of the house-elf's high-pitched voice that had Draco grinning; and Harry, too, as he and Seamus finished their chat and rejoined the other two.
Seamus came up to Draco. "Harry's told me you two are together," he said. He didn't look too pleased at the idea; but seemed to have accepted it anyway. He offered Malfoy his hand. "So I guess we'll all have to get along, yes?"
Draco looked at him for a moment, just to not seem too hasty; then accepted the hand, saying, "I guess we will."
And if it wasn't quite the happy friendship Harry wanted Draco to have with all his friends, it was, at least, a good start, he thought, as they left Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes to go and do the shopping they had actually come for.

Draco Malfoy, Harry decided, was an incredibly efficient shopper. They had left the Manor a little before two; by three thirty, they had returned to Grimmauld Place with gifts for the two couples, two of which had been made specially, and also half-a-dozen things for Teddy Lupin as well. When Draco suggested it, Harry had felt guilty for not thinking of it himself (of course) but Draco had scolded him (of course), smacking him over the head with the set of magic self-stacking blocks they had bought, and told him that he knew perfectly well Andy would skin him alive for saying it. Harry accepted that yes, Andy would have hollered if she wanted him; Draco told him that she certainly did so enough to Narcissa, who visited her sister most days.
To assuage Harry's guilt, though, Draco did suggest they went and visited for afternoon tea. Harry was a little shocked; he rather gathered that Draco had never visited Andy precisely to avoid being shouted at, so he felt a little shy about forcing him into the situation. But Draco insisted; and Andromeda was delighted when Harry Floo-called to ask if they could come over.
"Of course, Harry. But you say 'we'; who else is coming? Do you still have to have an auror?"
"Um, yes, but actually, I meant Draco."
"Draco Malfoy is coming? To my house? Willingly?" Andromeda replied, a little taken aback. She'd rather gathered that her nephew was more than a little afraid of her.
"Yes, he suggested it," Harry answered, not quite sure why she'd asked.
Andy's face broke into a smile. "Then you're both very welcome. Come at once."

"Draco Malfoy, let me look at you," his aunt demanded.
Draco did, standing quite still while she inspected him. He was still not quite sure about her; but if Harry and he were together then he was going to have to get used to Andromeda and Teddy. It seemed, though, that he passed the inspection.
"Well, young man, I am very glad that you have come over," she said. "You are, of course, welcome to come to my house whenever you like. As is Harry, but I should hope he's worked that out by now."
"Thank you," said Draco, a touch mechanically; but Andromeda could see that he was coming to terms with the idea of an aunt who wasn't terrifying, as Bellatrix had been, or to be snubbed, as she had been. So she smiled at him, gently, and offered them tea.
It seemed that Narcissa had already told her about the engagements, and the party; Andromeda was careful to make it clear she did not expect a long visit. They sat happily together, the two boys passing
Teddy from one to the other for cuddles. The baby was delighted; he started up a lovely game of changing to match whichever of the two was holding him. Draco was very proud when his cousin's hair went silver; he tickled the little boy, getting a pretty giggle for his efforts.
"He's very advanced for his age," Harry remarked.
"Of course, he's a Black," Andromeda said. Seeing Harry look blank, she continued, "Black family babies have always matured very quickly, Harry; and Metamorphmagi too. He might be barely two months old, but he's probably developed as much as any normal six-month-old baby. I remember Dora was a nightmare around his age! She was already starting to crawl, could do it properly by three months. Ted was amazed at her development, wanted to write it up, but of course I forbad it. You can't use your own family as experimental subjects!"
They gathered that she hadn't been told about their relationship; Narcissa had obviously felt that was for them to do. They'd been there for half an hour when she put her head on one side, thoughtfully; the sickle had obviously dropped.
"You're together now, aren't you?" she asked.
"Is it really that obvious?" Harry asked.
"When you know what to look for, yes," the witch replied, with a smile. "I'm very happy for you; though I shall have to have a word with my sister for keeping such things from me."
Draco looked at her, mystified. "I'd been so frightened of you," he confessed, "I thought you'd hate me. But I think I missed out on a friend."
Andromeda smiled, her heart warming to this boy who'd never really had loving family beyond his parents. "Not entirely," she promised, "we'll just have to be good friends from now on to make up for it."
Draco couldn't help himself; he hugged her. And he found himself crying as she hugged him back.
"Not a word to anyone," he admonished them both, ashamed to have been a cry-baby in front of his aunt.
"I understand," Andromeda replied, her eyes twinkling. "Malfoy men don't cry, do they Harry?"
"What? Oh, no, never," Harry agreed, cottoning on just in time.

They returned to Grimmauld Place at twenty to five. Harry privately thought they were cutting it a bit fine, given how long Draco could take to get ready; but the blond astonished him this time. A little before half-past five, he was all done and groomed, and Harry thought they were ready to go.
No such luck.
"No, Harry, you can't go to a proper Wizarding party in t-shirt and jeans, even if you do put robes over them," he said, spelling Harry's clothes off him. He found the clothes he had lent Harry for Lucius's trial, beautifully cleaned and wrapped, hanging at the back of Harry's wardrobe; Kreacher had of course put them there, and Harry had of course forgotten all about them. He started to apologise for doing so, but was promptly cut off.
"If I'd wanted my clothes back, Harry," he scolded, "I would have asked for them. I knew perfectly well where they were, and you weren't going to lose them or damage them."
"You sound just like your aunt," Harry complained, pouting. But Draco only laughed. He'd come a long way, he realized, going from being afraid of Andromeda, through befriending her, to accepting being compared to her.
Twenty minutes later, Harry was dressed to Draco's satisfaction, so that by ten to six they were quite ready to leave. Harry looked at himself in the mirror, and gasped.
"OK, I admit it," he said, "you have incredible taste and style, Mr. Malfoy"
"Thank you!" Draco said; but Harry wasn't finished.
"Of course, everyone can tell that; you picked me …"
"Twat!" Draco said, slapping his arm; but there was no heat in it. Harry remembered the slap at the Lupins' funeral; while he had needed that, he was grateful they'd moved on from there.
"Shall we go?" he asked. And they did.

"Harry! How lovely to see you! And Draco, welcome!" said Molly, rushing to pull them away from the Floo and wrapping them both in a huge hug. Harry could feel his lover stiffen; he wasn't used to such exuberance. Harry rubbed his back and whispered, "relax" as he kissed Draco's ear; the blond put his arm across Harry's back, evidently taking strength from him, and smiled at his hostess.
"Thank you for inviting me, Mrs. Weasley."
"Oh fiddlesticks!" Molly said to him. "Don't you go 'Mrs. Weasley'ing me, young man. You may call me Molly, since I'm sure you won't want to call me 'mum', which you're welcome to do if you're going to be with my seventh son here. Now, go out into the garden and have some champagne and enjoy yourselves. I'll be along presently, I just have to finish the canapés. No, Harry, I don't want any help, and you don't have to carry them, there's nothing wrong with my levitation charms as you very well know. Off you go and have fun!"
By the time Molly had finished speaking, which she seemed to manage to do without needing to draw breath, they found themselves propelled into the garden, where they found people chatting in groups on the lawn, with tables and chairs set up in a large marquee for those who preferred to sit. There was that lovely buzz made by a group of people, very fond of one another, getting together on a happy occasion.
Draco turned to Harry, still stunned by the greeting he had received from Molly Weasley.
"Is she always like that?"
Harry looked at him blankly. "Is she always like what?" he asked. "Oh, um, no, she's a bit preoccupied I think. But isn't she wonderful?"
Draco thought about that for a moment. He realized that a large part of his shock was that he simply hadn't expected such a warm, gushing welcome; his own family and friends would never behave in such a direct way. But why not? If it was sincere, and he was quite sure that Molly was, there was nothing wrong with it. He looked at Harry, whose face was glowing after the welcome. He needs it, he realized. If Harry needed that level of comfort and physical interaction, it was no wonder he wanted Draco in his bed so badly.
He was shaken from his reverie by George and Neville bouncing up to them.
"Here, little brother, you can't stand there gaping like a fish," George told him, handing him a glass of champagne. Simultaneously, Neville handed Draco one, and gave him a smile.
Just a smile. A simple, plain, ordinary old smile, Draco told himself. But it wasn't. It was warm, and welcoming. A smile without guile. The smile of a man who knew his own mind, knew what he wanted, and was well on the way to getting it. The smile of a generous man who wanted those around him to be happy, and with a shock Draco realized that that included him. Neville Longbottom actually cares about me! He thought to himself.
"Um, Neville," he said, in a casual voice that didn't fool anyone present, "there's something I've been meaning to ask you about …"
"Of course, Draco," the tall, dark, handsome man replied, easily. He pointed out an empty table in a quiet corner of the marquee. "Let's go and sit over there and chat."
Harry was surprised to see Draco drawn into the party so easily; he had been concerned that he would feel like a salamander out of fire, and want to stay with Harry the whole time. Not that there was anything wrong with having Draco by his side; but Draco feeling relaxed around Harry's friends was better still.
Harry wandered around the garden, greeting many old friends. He was glad to find out that the Creeveys had been invited – "very kind of Arthur and Molly to think of us," Mrs Creevey had said – and of course all of their friends from Hogwarts. Augusta Longbottom greeted him warmly, and asked him if he thought George and Neville would really work.
"Yes, I do," he answered, sincerely. "They seem very much in love, do you not think?"
"Yes," the old witch admitted, "yes, I suppose I can see that. I did worry that he was marrying a shop-keeper; but these old-fashioned ideas don't count for much these days. Frank and Alice would be proud of him, I'm sure, and that and his happiness are all that really matters, I suppose."
"Harry! Harry Potter!" he heard a voice call out.
Turning towards the direction of the voice, he spotted Ron and Hermione chatting to various people, including the elderly lady who had called. With a start, he recognised Great-Aunt Muriel. He'd seen her at Bill and Fleur's wedding, of course, but she hadn't seen him – he'd been pretending to be the mythical cousin Barny Weasley. But now the kneazle was out of the bag: she'd spotted him, and was bellowing his name at him. He groaned, and made his way over to the group.
"Well, aren't you going to introduce me?" she demanded of Ron as Harry walked up.
"Oh, yeah, right," Ron said, as he remembered that Harry had been in disguise when they had met before. "Um, Great-Aunt Muriel, this is my friend Harry Potter: Harry, this is mum's aunt Muriel."
"Delighted to meet you, ma'am," Harry said, very politely, giving a small bow.
"Hmm," said Muriel, somewhat mollified by Harry's manners. "Well, Ronald, I'm glad to see that some of your friends know how to behave. I hope it rubs off on you."
Harry just managed to hold in the snort of laughter that rose as she said this.
"That's very kind," he said, gravely. He heard Hermione snorting, and dared not look at her; he was sure they would both fall about with laughter if he did.
"Well, of course I should be kind to you," Muriel said, somewhat grumpily. "After all, Rita Skeeter seems to think the world of you, so there must be some good in you. Even if you can't seem to groom yourself properly. Who did your hair like that?"
Harry was stunned into silence. Rita Skeeter thinks the world of me, he thought; since when? But the answer came easily enough – since he'd defeated Voldemort; she'd gushed about him. Muriel, he remembered, loved Rita's writing; she probably simply didn't remember that there was a time when the Prophet accused him of being insane, or evil.
Into the silence, a familiar voice broke. "I did," Draco said, coming forward and extending his hand. "Good evening. I'm Draco Malfoy and I'm delighted to meet you."
Muriel flinched slightly, looking as though he had challenged her with his wand, not an open hand.
"Draco Malfoy?" she all but shrieked. "I don't know how you dare to show your face in public, you, you …" Words failed her for a moment; not longer than that, unfortunately. "I read all about you in the Daily Prophet! And saw that photograph –very suspicious, very suspicious indeed. Molly!" she did shriek now, looking around for her niece, "Molly! Oh there you are."
"Yes, Aunt Muriel?" said Molly Weasley, coming up to them quickly and looking very concerned. "Is there a problem?"
"What is this dreadful man doing here, and why isn't he in Azkaban?" she demanded in a loud voice. Everyone seemed to quieten at this; clearly, all ears were on the elderly lady, and the guests were all wondering what would happen next.
Something inside Harry snapped. He wasn't putting up with this from anyone. "He's here because he's my date, Great Aunt Muriel," he said, forcing out the name through gritted teeth as he fought to keep his temper under control. "He isn't in Azkaban because he doesn't deserve to be. He deserves to be honoured for his help during the Wizarding War, not yelled at and called suspicious. I'm sorry to say so, but not everything Rita Skeeter writes is the honest truth."
"WHAT?" Muriel demanded. "Molly, how can you have someone saying such things in your house? Where's Arthur, he should be here to take you down a peg or two, young man," she finished, glaring at Harry.
"There, there, Aunt," Molly said, soothingly, steering her to a chair. "You're getting a little overwrought. You just sit down for a minute and relax, there's a dear."
Muriel complained at being fussed over, but really she seemed happy to be the centre of Molly's attention; which is probably why she didn't suspect a thing as a gentle Sleeping charm was placed on her. Soon she was snoring quietly.
"Most peaceful she's been all night." George observed.
"George!" said his mother, in reprimand, but secretly she agreed. She turned to Harry and Draco.
"Draco, I'm sorry for my aunt's wicked old tongue. Harry, well done for standing up to her. But I'm afraid nothing is likely to change her view of Rita Skeeter."
"That's all right, Mrs – Molly," Draco assured her. "And elderly relatives misbehaving is just part of a family party, isn't it? Thinking of the party, Harry, being an engagement party, do you think we could ..."
"Oh!" said Harry. "Ron, Hermione, George, Neville, we found you these."
He fished a minute parcel out of his pocket and placed it on the table next to him. A quick Engorgio, without wand or words, produced four packages; he handed one to each of the four.
Hermione opened hers first, and gasped. In her hand she held a tiara, in filigree rose gold, set with topazes that matched her engagement ring, and rubies that offset them beautifully.
"That's amazing!" she said. "I'd expected a book, which would have been wonderful, of course; but this is the first piece of jewellery anyone but Ron and my parents has ever given me."
"Told you she'd love it," Draco whispered to Harry.
"We thought this would go with it nicely," Harry said, sheepishly producing another parcel and going rather red after Hermione's comment. The parcel contained (what else?) a book: On Gemstones, their Meanings and Use in Magic. Hermione, intrigued, started reading it straight away.
"'Mione," Ron said, interrupting her reading, "you can read that later. But the headdress is beautiful! Please put it on and show us."
She was not normally one for such girly things; but if ever there was a time for it, it was at her engagement party, so she did, and Ron Summoned a mirror. Hermione looked at her reflection in it; and for once she was speechless. But not for very long; it seemed that at some point the twins had got to that mirror, and tried out their Anti-Vanity Potion on it, so after a few seconds she gave a loud "Harrumph" as her face went green.
"Right, which one of you did it?"
"You wouldn't hit a man on his engagement party, would you?" George asked, cowering.
"Yes," Hermione said, menacingly.
"In that case, it was Fred," George said. The others burst out laughing.
"That's my fearless big brother!" Harry said, mockingly, and pulled the twins into an embrace to shield him, saying, "don't worry, I'll protect you!"
At this, even Hermione laughed.
Ron's present was a silver men's bracelet, with a single ruby made to look like a bludger, and a topaz fashioned into the form of a snitch. In his turn, Ron was speechless to be given such a thoughtful gift.
Neville's gift was easily the largest of the four; a rather rare wizarding plant, Snapping Heliotrope. Neville was beside himself, and pulled out a pen from his pocket, stroking the flowers, which responded by snapping at the pen, showing why the plant has its name.
"Heliotrope for devotion!" he said. "And snapping to remind me to watch out for George's temper! How appropriate!"
"Cheeky sod," George said, punching him gently on the shoulder.
"You love me," Neville said.
"I do," George agreed.
"And also these," Harry said, handing George and Neville two matching boxes, containing cufflinks made from the mineral heliotrope.
"Harry, these gifts are amazing," Ron said, "you must have thought about them for ages."
Harry could hardly keep a straight face. "Actually," he confessed, "Draco thought of them. I was thinking of some joke gifts, but he talked me out of it. He wanted you to know that we take your engagements very seriously, and," and here Harry turned to his lover, "you were absolutely right."
With which, Harry kissed Draco on the cheek, saying softly, "thank you, love you so much."
Is there no end to the soppiness today? Draco asked himself; but there were tears in his eyes too, as he smiled at them all.

The party was in full swing, and everyone was having a great time, when Ron, harking back to Muriel's earlier comment about Arthur, realised that he couldn't remember seeing him all evening.
"Mum," he asked, "where is dad?"
Molly let out a sigh. "Your father was called into an urgent conference with the Minister at four o'clock. Four o'clock on the day of your engagement party! It's a good thing I love Kingsley like a brother, I could cheerfully strangle him for that!"
"Oh, I hope not," said a deep voice behind them; and there was the Minister himself. He apologised to each of the guests of honour in turn: "I'm very sorry, Ron, Hermione, George, Neville, for stealing Arthur away on your special day; and to you too, of course, Molly. I hope it's in order for me to gatecrash the party to apologise?"
"Well," Neville said, speaking for them all, "not everyone gets the Minister for Magic gatecrashing their engagement party, so I'd say we're honoured, and happy to accept your apology."
At this point, a tray of drinks, levitated by Hermione, nudged itself against the Minister. Kingsley laughed, and took glasses of champagne, handing them around, and the conversations around the marquee started up again.
"Thank you," said Draco, sidling up to Harry and whispering in his ear, "for defending me against that spiteful old –"
"Draco," Harry hissed, "please! She is, but it doesn't do to say so."
Draco smirked, and kissed him gently on the cheek.
"I did hear Harry right, didn't I?" a voice said softly behind him. "You're his date?"
Draco turned and stepped over to Ginny. She smiled at him, seeing for herself that it was true. "I'm so pleased," she said, surprising Draco as she wrapped him in a hug; more soppiness, he thought, but in true he was starting to see that the Weasleys were an affectionate lot. In truth, he didn't really mind; but it was going to take some getting used to. "He needs you, Draco," she told him.
"Thank you," the blond said, hugging back, then letting go. He'd been told that already tonight; he was almost beginning to accept it. "I need him, too. But don't tell him, OK?"
"I think he already knows," she said, squeezing his hand. "Do you remember Fleur, from the Triwizard Tournament? She married Bill. Come and meet her cousins, they've come all the way from Paris and I think they find us a bit too suburban for their tastes," she continued, leading him away.

While Ginny was talking to Draco, Arthur and Kingsley surrounded Harry.
"Harry, we need to talk," Arthur said, with an urgent tone in his voice that told Harry this wasn't going to be a pleasant chat. His heart sank. Couldn't he have one night of pure joy?
"Can you come into the house please?" Arthur continued.
Apparently not, Harry thought to himself, gloomily. He nodded. "Is this about the meeting this afternoon?"
"Yes," Kingsley said, but it was clear that he would not elaborate further in public. With some reluctance, Harry followed them into the house.

Draco Malfoy could not remember a party like it. Despite not having a single one of his own friends there, he had thoroughly enjoyed himself. He thought back over the long conversation he had had with Neville; the boy who had always cowered from him had become a man who was now so easy with him, and they were, Draco felt sure, friends now.
Neville had happily told him all about the Battle of Hogwarts, giving him a new insight into the incredible bravery of Harry Potter and making him wonder all the more that Harry wanted him. But then Neville had said that bravery wasn't just big acts.
"Slapping 'the Saviour' when he needed it, that was brave, too, Draco," he had said. Draco had had no idea what to say, but Neville had sensed his embarrassment, and, placing his hand on his shoulder, said simply, "Draco, you're OK, mate."
"Look after him," Neville had said, "You'll always have us to help, but you're really special to him; he needs you."
Ginny had taken him to meet Fleur's relatives, who very much appreciated being introduced to a handsome, well-mannered pure-blood; the Malfoy name was still highly thought of in France, it seemed. He had spent a very pleasant half-hour speaking to them in French, a language he knew well but rarely got to practise. Some of them were a little upset to learn that he was spoken for, to be sure, but they all agreed that he and Harry made a cute couple.
And now he wondered where Harry might be. He hadn't seen him since the episode with Muriel, he realised; he noticed that she was still asleep; either old age was catching up with her, or Molly had used a very strong charm. Probably both.
"Has anyone seen Harry?" he asked the company at large.
"I think he might have gone inside," Fred answered. "Come to think of it, so did Dad and Kingsley. I bet they've gone all serious. Go and find him, Draco, mate, and give him a big squeeze and tell him the cool kids want to see him."
Draco laughed. He could hear the fun in Fred's voice, but also the deep love and concern he had for his 'little brother'. He was learning that all of these people accepted Harry and loved him a very great deal; what surprised Draco was that they also accepted him, and recognised that he had a part to play in Harry's life. They saw that he was close to Harry in a way that they were not; and, incredibly, they seemed to be OK it, with not a shred of jealousy or bad feeling. And suddenly, he worked out what that really meant. As a Slytherin, he was always looking for an ulterior motive; but the Weasleys didn't have one. They loved Harry, they could see Harry loved him, and so, despite the blood battles of generations, despite his own actions and cruelty to them in the past, they forgave him; more, they loved him. And another realization astonished him.
Draco Malfoy was beginning to love the Weasleys.

As Draco went to go into the house to find the serious trio, Harry came out.
"Been missing you, love," Draco said, keeping his voice light. "The cool kids say they want to see you."
Harry snorted, remembering Fred using that term to Neville at the Lupins' funeral.
"That's funny," he said, "I thought I was the cool kid."
"Not," sang out Fred, as he, George and a group of others came out of the marquee, having decided to be close at hand when Draco and Harry emerged, "if you run away and hide with the boring old farts!"
"Fred!" his mother scolded, rather half-heartedly.
"It's all right, Molly," Arthur said, as he and Kingsley came out of the house. "We shouldn't have stolen Harry, and Fred has every right to berate us for it. Harry, don't worry, alright? We'll sort some things out tomorrow or Monday. But now, it's time to celebrate!"
Arthur winked at Fred, who whipped out his wand and waved it in an intricate pattern. From its tip, light came forth, then grew, and then became magical fireworks, shooting into the air, exploding in a riot of colours.
There were plenty of 'ooh's and 'ah's. A good deal more champagne was drunk, toasts given, laughs laughed.
At eleven o'clock, Aunt Muriel woke up with a start, and demanded to know what was going on. Bill went up to her, and told her it was the engagement party, and that she'd been having a wonderful time.
"Yes, yes, wonderful time," she accepted, still not quite with it as Bill offered to Floo her home.
"Thank you," she said. "Nice young man. Not like that silly whassisname, Potty character …"
"Now, now, Aunty, it's been a lovely party, don't spoil it," Bill said, jollying her along and getting her inside to the Floo. By a miracle, no-one else heard her nasty reference to Harry, and Bill managed to get her home and extricate himself back to the party without further incident.
At this point, Harry and Draco sought out Molly and thanked her for a marvelous party. Of course, she invited them to stay; but Draco assured her he could help Harry through the Floo, and suggested she didn't need them underfoot if Hermione and Ron were to get away in good time tomorrow.
Molly looked at him, her face showing she knew it was a polite excuse; but in truth, she accepted that he would be more comfortable without the whole Weasley tribe around him. So, to his great surprise, she kissed them both good-bye.
He was still in shock when they got home. Harry looked at him, concerned.
"All right, love?" he asked.
Draco grinned at him. "Yes, thank you. I've had a wonderful night. Let's go to bed."
And so they did.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I have set up a thread for replies at http://www2.adult-fanfiction.org/forum/index.php/topic/56042-review-replies-for-returning-to-sanity/ . I will generally try to reply to posts before posting a new chapter.
Interested readers are invited to trace the chapter's title to its source for themselves.

Apologies for such a monster of a chapter!
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Returning to Sanity