Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Learning Life Over	By : Meander Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 69712 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 35
- 36
- 37
Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter! I�m very glad
that people enjoyed it. Writing smut scenes is still a (fairly) new thing for
me, so I do get nervous about getting it right.

Chapter 36- Draco�s Plans Go Ahead

�� Draco was
prepared for panic when he woke up, but he found Harry just lying beside him on
the bed, one arm slung down so that his hand trailed across the carpet. His
fingers scraped it now and then; Draco thought it was that faint sound which
had awakened him.

�� He propped
himself up on his elbow, and only then realized that the cleaning charms had
been less than fully effective. He grimaced as sweat and stickiness pulled
across his skin. Harry looked sorry, and hastily waved his wand, cleansing
Draco quickly and thoroughly enough to satisfy his needs. He nodded, and
focused his attention on Harry�s face.

�� No
regrets?� he asked quietly.

�� Harry
blinked. �After sex like that?�

�� Draco was
surprised into laughter, but he had to watch Harry through it. Harry�s
expression looked genuinely puzzled, but Draco had experienced his lies by
omission before. �I just wanted to know,� he said. �Have you come to terms with
being gay? It wasn�t something you were entirely comfortable with a few days
ago.�

�� Harry
shrugged. �It does have its minor discomforts.� He shifted and reached down,
gingerly, to touch his obviously sore arse.

�� There are
healing spells for that, you twit,� said Draco, barely able to contain his
exasperation. It seemed Harry would still rather lie there and suffer than
complain and let someone help him. He spoke one of the simpler spells, which
he�d used after the rare lovers who insisted that they fuck him, never the
other way around, and Harry gave a soft gasp, his eyes widening.

�� Much
better,� he said, giving Draco a faint smile. �Thanks.�

�� And the
other discomforts?� Draco pushed, because he wanted to know. He wasn�t content
with a secret relationship- though God knew how it could be secret, really, now
that he�d kidnapped Harry from the middle of the Ministry and insured that everyone
thought they�d been sleeping together for months. �Can you call yourself my
lover? Admit to it outside the bedroom?�

�� Harry
snorted. �Sod off, Malfoy. You sound like Theresa.�

�� I want to
know,� said Draco, feeling consumed by urgency. �I deserve to know.
Because, Harry- well, I could change my mind in a few months, maybe, but right
now, it feels like this is it. What I want to have for the rest of my
life.�

�� Harry
stared at him, then laughed weakly. �You can�t- Draco, we�ve fucked once, or
twice if you count the first time as fucking, and I haven�t even lasted as long
as some of the others you mentioned- �

�� You�ve
lasted two years longer than anyone else, already,� Draco reminded him.

�� Harry
flushed. It figures, Draco thought. Now that fucking doesn�t
embarrass him as much, he finds something else to be embarrassed about.

�� That was
different,� Harry said stoutly. �I was different, then. As I become more
myself again- as I heal- well, Draco, you might find that you don�t like me
very much.� He lifted his eyes and locked them with Draco�s, with a courage
that had seemed beyond him just at that moment. �You didn�t like me very much
in school, as I recall.�

�� And there
you were different yet again,� Draco muttered. �And so was I. Different,
I mean.�

�� Will you
tell me more about that?� Harry asked, with an eagerness that showed Draco how
badly he wanted to deflect the conversation away from their current topic.
�More about what you were like, I mean. I can�t imagine that you just did
homework and what the Prefects and Snape told you to and were always happy
except when you were torturing me.�

�� Draco let
the conversation go for now. Right after they�d fucked properly for the first
time wasn�t the best minute to approach it, he had to admit. It would wait
until Harry had fucked him, too. The thought distracted him with a bolt of
pleasure to the groin, and he had to think for a long moment before he could
shift the ground of his thoughts to what Harry wanted to hear about.

�� No, I
hardly spent all my time in the common room working on my essays like a good
little boy,� he said, thinking of a story Harry would probably like to hear.
How he�d found out just how completely stupid Pansy was was always good
for a laugh. �There was exploring the school, too, and getting Hufflepuffs in
trouble.�

�� Harry
frowned. �I don�t remember Hufflepuffs as being in trouble especially often.�

�� Draco waved
a hand loftily. �It wasn�t the same kind of trouble Gryffindors got into. You
probably didn�t even notice it. But it was fun to make them lose points for
screaming at nothing.� His smile widened. He couldn�t help it. This memory was
still amusing, one he had pressed between the leaves of his mind so that he
could take it out and peer at it whenever he liked. �Especially when we made
them scream right outside Professor Sprout�s office.�

�� Harry
laughed aloud. �I can�t even remember where Professor Sprout�s office was.�

�� Oh, near
the Hufflepuff common room. Which wasn�t far from the dungeons, of course. It
was easy to slip across the entrance hall, scare a Hufflepuff, and make her
scream. We learned the Notice-Me-Not Charm fairly young, you know.�

�� Pity that
it never helped you against me,� Harry muttered.

�� Yes, well,
you had the Invisibility Cloak,� Draco retorted without rancor. �Unfair
competition.�

��

�� Harry�s
face shuttered. Draco blinked, as a connection in his mind fired. �Harry?� he
asked. �What happened to the Invisibility Cloak? I haven�t seen it since I
started watching you.�

�� Yes, well,
you wouldn�t have, would you?� Harry�s fists twisted in the sheets in front of
him. �It�s an Invisibility Cloak.�

�� Harry,�
Draco said softly. He recognized that expression on Harry�s face from the time
he�d spent dealing with Auror partners who actually tried to make friends with
him, and it irritated him to have it turned on him. �What happened to it?�

�� You were
telling me your story,� Harry pointed out. �I think we�ve spent quite enough
time covering my various dysfunctions.�

�� The
hardness behind his tone, however light it was, told Draco that the story of
the Cloak was not a happy one. He hesitated for a moment, staring at Harry,
wondering if he should try to worm it out of him, and then decided to tell his
story first. It might relax Harry, and induce a sense of obligation that would
make him tell the truth when his turn came.

�� Besides, it
was funny.

�� Now,
usually, it was me and Gregory and Vincent scaring the Hufflepuffs,� Draco
began, and saw Harry relax. He probably thought he�d been let off the hook. Not
even close, Harry. �But Pansy begged to go along one evening. This was in
third year. She�d just discovered flirting, and I think she regretted the hours
when I was out of her reach.�

�� Were you
ever engaged to marry her?� Harry asked curiously.

�� Draco gave
him a small smile and didn�t reply to the question. �Well, we didn�t know how
much help she�d be, but we thought she could at least hold the Dungbombs while
we threw them. Our plan was to make it seem as if the Hufflepuffs had been
hoarding Dungbombs and were setting them off near the common room.�

�� And
Professor Sprout would believe that?� Harry asked, lifting his eyebrows.

�� Draco
laughed. �There were two Hufflepuff seventh-years who were always after each
other. One of them would have done it, and we�d already worked out the means to
plant them under his bed, earlier, when we found out the Hufflepuff password.
So, yes, she�d believe it. So would the rest of the House and the rest of the
school, for that matter.�

�� I don�t
remember that at all,� Harry muttered.

�� Yes, well,
you wouldn�t, would you?� Draco asked, trying to quell his resentment at the
memories of Harry running about the school with Ron and Hermione and ignoring
him entirely. �Always self-involved.�

�� Harry
looked away.

�� Oh, no,
you don�t,� Draco breathed softly, grabbing his chin and tilting his face back.
�I�ve worked too hard to let you go back into your shell now. It was a joke,
Harry. I know you had better things on your mind that year. Like having a
murderer after you, for example.�

�� Harry just
nodded, and Draco couldn�t tell if he as grateful for the reinterpretation or
not. �What happened?� he prompted.

�� So we had
the Dungbombs planted,� Draco went on, �and Pansy, Vince, Greg, and I waited
outside the common room door for a group of Hufflepuffs to come out. We were in
a side-corridor. We�d scare them, cover their robes with filth, make them
scream, and then make the seventh-year look bad when Sprout searched the common
room. It was the perfect plan.

�� But Pansy
decided to chatter when a good-sized group was in the corridor. As if
they couldn�t hear her, just because they couldn�t see her!� Draco shook his
head. Pansy had sometimes been a good friend, but never to have along on a
prank. �And of course they heard us, and turned towards us.�

�� He grinned.
�I immediately started saying, �Pansy, I am shocked!� I was loud enough
to wake the dead. Of course Professor Sprout came out of her office, and there
was Pansy red-handed, with all the Dungbombs. And, even better, she shrieked
and flung them at Sprout when she saw her.�

�� Harry
snickered. �Did she hit her?�

�� Oh, yes.�
The sight of the Head of Hufflepuff with brown stains on her robe and a
complicated look of exasperation on her face was perhaps the best part of the
memory. �I took the time to explain that of course the prank had all been
Pansy�s idea, and we came along hoping to talk her out of it. Vince and Greg
backed me up. And Pansy couldn�t say anything until it was too late- she�s
never been good with reacting quickly when she�s surprised- and then she was
one against three. She lost House points and got detention, and more detention
when they searched and found those Dungbombs in the seventh-year boys� room. No
one believed that Pansy hadn�t done it. Professor Snape was just angry at her
for getting caught.�

�� That was- rather
mean of you,� said Harry, looking as if he were nobly attempting to sit on his
laughter.

�� Draco waved
a hand airily. �It had to be done,� he said. �It was for the good of the
species, really.� He smiled and leaned towards Harry. �Did you know, by the
way, that you look very good when you laugh?�

��

�And no time else?� Harry looked
half-offended, or at least sought to, but he really wasn�t convincing.

�� Of course
not,� Draco breathed, and Harry shifted at the sound of his voice. �You look
good to me any time. When you smile, when you collapse after sex, when you�re
flying.� He let one hand rise and cup Harry�s cheek, rubbing it. Harry leaned
towards him, eyes drooping, body conveying interest. Draco kept his voice light
as he spoke. �Telling me about your past.�

�� Harry
closed his eyes a moment, and then sighed. �I should have seen that coming,
shouldn�t I?�

�� Draco
nodded solemnly, and leaned forward, whispering, �I want to know, Harry. You�re
important to me. I told you that. Do you still doubt me?�

�� Harry shook
his head. �It�s not that. Just- � He shrugged. �You heard what I told Theresa,
and you knew me in Hogwarts, and you�ve watched me for the past two years and
found out about what I did as an Auror. What else is there to know?�

�� I want to
know what happened to your Invisibility Cloak.�

�� That�s not
a pleasant story.� Tension had coiled in Harry�s muscles, but he didn�t try to
move away from Draco�s stroking hand.

�� Tell me,�
Draco said, lips an inch away from Harry�s ear.

�� I burned
it.�

�� For a
moment, Draco thought he hadn�t heard correctly. �What?� he asked.

�� It was the
night I killed Voldemort,� said Harry, and his eyes were wide, but Draco could
see that Harry was staring past him, not really seeing anything in the room. �I
wanted him dead so badly. And then he was. And I was- well, I was
satisfied. That was how I knew I wanted to be an Auror, because I didn�t feel
happy about my revenge then, just gladness that I�d been able to do my duty. I
thought that was an acceptable motive for an Auror.

�� But there
was- there was this madness that came over me a few hours later. I don�t know
how to describe it. I just wanted to be free of most of the things I�d
been carrying around with me, the things from my past, even the ones that
helped me destroy Voldemort. So I made a bonfire and burned the Invisibility
Cloak and a few other things.� From the lines of tension along Harry�s body,
Draco knew better than to ask what those things had been. �Not everything, of course.
There was an album with all the pictures of my parents I had in the world. I
kept that. But that was another reason I gave all my money away, I think. I
didn�t want to be who I�d been. I knew people were going to valorize me because
I killed Voldemort, but everything else- I could get rid of things that I
didn�t want, possessions that tied me to the past.�

�� Draco
didn�t say how unutterably sad he found the fact that Harry had wanted to shut
out the memories of his friends and his parents rather than hold on to them.
But, of course, that was part of what had led to the emotional repression of
the years since. And- well. Harry had learned even before then, by the sound of
what he told Theresa, not to value himself much.

�� Was what
you told Theresa true in every respect?� he asked.

�� Harry
jolted, and frowned at him. �I wasn�t lying to her.�

�� No, but I
think you made it sound better than it was.� Draco didn�t move his hand. �They
neglected you, you said. Starved you some. Made you do chores that you shouldn�t
have to do.� He paused. �Made you sleep in a cupboard. Told you lies about your
parents.�

�� Harry bared
his teeth. �Yes. And that is all they did, Draco.� His voice was clipped
and harsh. �They never hit me, they never raped me, they never did the awful
things that you hear about, the things that you see, when you�re called
in on a child abuse case.� He moved his face away from Draco�s touch for the
first time. �Wizards can do a lot worse things to children than Muggles can.�

�� Draco said
nothing, because it was so obvious that Harry didn�t want to talk about this.
He�d left the past behind. If he could have burned his memories of the Dursleys
the way he�d burned the Invisibility Cloak, Draco was certain that he would
have.

�� That meant
he would never take revenge on the Dursleys.

�� So Draco
had to take revenge for him.

�� They did
abuse you, Harry. They twisted your mind. They�re the source of a good many of
your problems, I can tell.

�� And for
that, they�ll pay.

***********

�� Valenti: I
don�t know how long the story will be, sorry, other than to say that it will
definitely be more than 50 chapters.

�� Gloria:
Thank you! I have to admit, if the relationship was more dysfunctional, perhaps
a top/bottom dynamic could work, but even with Draco�s obsession, I don�t think
it works that way. Harry is not in any way submissive, and neither is Draco.

�� Rebel_mistress:
Thanks! I tend not to write fluff that much. I can do it if required, but it
didn�t seem required here.

�� Vex: Thanks
for the compliment!
- 35
- 36
- 37
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Learning Life Over