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Wooing the Reluctant	By : makochan0217 Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 23188 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 12
Disclaimer: The Harry Potter book series is owned by JKR. I am not her. I make no money and I only plan to use her characters for some fun before returning them, much happier.

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Title: Wooing the Reluctant

Author: Makoto Sagara

Series: Harry Potter

Archive: the usual suspects (ffnet, affnet, Foreverfandom, my site, mediaminer, makochanupdates on LJ, thehexfiles, hpfandom, and the harrydraco community on LJ); anywhere else, ask first.

Pairing: Draco/Harry, past Harry+others, past Draco/others

Rating: NC-17 (eventual; this chapter PG)

Warnings: Slash, ooc, angst, language, humour, EWE

Disclaimers: I don’t own Harry Potter and his friends. They belong to a list of people, including the wonderful JKR, Warner Bros, Scholastic Publishing, Raincoat Books, and others. I’m only borrowing them for entertainment purposes.

Author’s Notes: Thank you to all of my reviewers! Your kind words mean so much to me as I work on this. Special thanks to Twisted Mind, who makes me smile with every review I get. Luvre you, Twist! Extra special thanks go to Jokes for finding the mistakes with Draco’s wand in chapter two and his middle name in chapter four. Oops? And, as always, I am eternally grateful to Jamie, for making this look better than I would by myself and keeping me sane in the process.

Chapter Six - Only Send Interesting Gifts.

Boring gifts will convey a lack of passion, and your lack of true desire.

Draco looked up from the books he was leafing through as his mother entered the library. He gave her a distracted smile, with all the air of going back to his work when she cleared her throat delicately. “Yes, Mother, is there something you require?”

“Well, darling, I would like to enquire as to how your courtship is progressing,” she answered, taking a seat at the table next to him.

“Already planning the bonding ceremony then?” he teased, secretly pleased that she seemed to approve of his choice. Of course, she and Harry had been in contact frequently since the end of the war trials, where he’d spoken so eloquently on their behalf.

“Actually, my love, I’m wondering how well you are doing with this idea of winning over Harry Potter’s hand,” she said, frowning a little. “I am aware that you were not best pleased when he and I began communicating a few years ago.”

“I went with Harry and Teddy to a Muggle zoo two days ago, actually,” Draco said, sitting back in his chair with a brief smile. “I believe that it went rather well.”

“Oh?” He just barely caught the amused smile on his mother’s face and the raised eyebrow that showed her interest in the matter, despite the cool tone of her voice.

“Did he tell you about his plan to incorporate Muggle therapy with conventional Mind Healing to better aid patients suffering from genetic and situational mental disorders? It’s quite fascinating to be honest. He told me a little about the medications that Muggles use, and I have to agree with him that they’re archaic, but helpful. Right now, I’m researching the potions that are widely used in Mind Healing.”

“Yes, Draco, Harry and I have discussed his studies. I’m surprised that you are so interested, however.”

He raised one eyebrow at her. “Why is that?”

“Well, my dear, you’ve never expressed an interest in Healing before. However, the fact that you are so taken with the potions side of it does not surprise me. I blame Severus completely.” They both smiled sadly as they remembered the deceased Potions Master. It was the first time either of them had casually mentioned his godfather in the last three and a half years.

“I will be honest with you, Mother. I really wasn’t interested at all with Healing until I heard Harry speak so passionately about it.” He gave her a rare, bashful smile. “His face lit up, and it was if he was a different person.” He cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Besides, one must always try to understand what one’s future spouse plans to spend their life doing.”

“So, have you decided what you will give him for the second gift?”

“How did you know that I gave him the first?” Draco asked, amused.

“I know that you would not have gone out on a date with your Intended without following proper traditions. You are very like your father that way,” his mother answered primly. “Besides, Andromeda told me about the doll. Rather ingenious, if not annoying.”

“Yes, it was, wasn’t it? He’s not likely to forget it, however.”

“That is true, and it is within the boundaries.” She levelled him with a cool stare. “Now, what are you going to give him for a second gift?”

“I was thinking about the animals that he likes. At the zoo, he seemed rather taken with the aviary, and Blaise did suggest sending him a raptor, as he doesn’t have his snowy owl any more. It’s disgraceful for him to use the Weasel’s annoying flying puffball.”

Narcissa frowned. “Yes, Pigwigdeon is rather a frightful thing, isn’t he?”

“Is that the little beast’s name? It’s too much for it.”

“Harry tells me that they refer to him as Pig as a nickname.” Draco snorted as his mother shook her head. “The raptor is a fine idea, and within the boundaries, again, but I do not think that it is enough. What other birds does he like?”

“He was crazy about that wretched hippogriff during third year. Perhaps I could adopt one at a rookery in his name?”

“Hm, tasteful, within his preferences, but a little impersonal, I think; though, you are on the right track.”

“I could send him a whole sack full of hippogriff feathers, ones that had been gathered, not plucked.”

“And what would Harry do with all of those feathers, Draco? It seems needlessly extravagant.”

“Well, they are actually one of the main ingredients in this Mind Soothing potion, the Equilimente, he’d be using with his patients. However, I suppose that you are correct. He’s always been pants at potions.” He tapped a long finger against his lips as he thought.

“I have an idea along that line, and it would coincide with the previous gift you gave him. And you could still adopt a hippogriff in his name. He would appreciate that as well.”

“I’m all ears, Mother, as the Muggles say.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

EXCLUSIVE: Boy Who Lived Accepts Lord Malfoy’s Proposal, Seen Out in Muggle London

by Robin Erstwhile

We here at the Prophet were the first to announce Lord Draco L. Malfoy’s plans to woo our beloved Boy Who Lived a week ago. According to a reliable source, it appears that Mr. Potter has accepted the offer. They were spotted yesterday at the Royal Zoo in Muggle London with Mr. Potter’s godson, Teddy R. Lupin, who is also Lord Malfoy’s cousin on his mother’s side. The three appeared quite close and were enjoying the day together.

We can only hope that the courting between the handsome, powerful wizards continues as auspicious as it has begun, and we offer our warmest wishes for their happiness.

Keep watch with us at the Prophet as we track the tale of these two famous men.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Harry looked over at his friends from the lip of his tea cup and smothered a sigh. When Hermione had asked if they could come over to Grimmauld Place for tea, he hadn’t thought anything about it. Now, he was having serious second thoughts as they sat in his kitchen. They’d only been there for twenty minutes and already Ron was getting on Harry’s last nerve. It also didn’t help that they’d brought the Daily Prophet with them, where a picture of himself, Malfoy and Teddy beamed on the front page.

“I still don’t get what the Ferret wants, Harry,” Ron said for the third time since he and Hermione came to visit. “I mean, he was a git in school, didn’t even thank you properly for saving his life or giving him back his ruddy wand after speaking for him at his trial. Why now?”

“He said he’s serious about wanting to court me,” Harry answered slowly, wondering if he could smother Ron before his new wife noticed.

“Harry, since you came to me about the doll, I’ve been researching the magic used for it,” Hermione said, shooting her husband a glare. “Malfoy had to have used a lot of magic to create, animate and build up its vast repertoire of annoying sayings and songs.”

“Yeah, so?”

“Well, I’ve also been spending more time looking up ancient pureblood courting traditions,” she replied, sipping at her tea. It was a sign that she knew he wasn’t going to like what she had to say and was trying to figure out how to phrase it.

“Just spit it out, ‘Mione.”

“Well, according to most of the sources I found, the suitor is obliged to show his power during the first step, which Malfoy has done. Technically, he’s not even supposed to write to you until he sends the first gift. He pushed the boundaries a little by sending a note with that gift.”

“Alright, so he didn’t break the rules, just pushed them. Sounds like what we know of him,” Harry answered with another sigh. “So, what’s his next step?”

“I think the date was it. Supposedly, after he sends the first gift, he’s allowed to see you, so long as there is a third party along for the duration. Teddy counts as a third party, since he’s close to the both of you and neither of you would have done anything… inappropriate with your godson there. Malfoy was attentive, charming, gracious, and showed that he could be a good father figure to Teddy, right?”

Harry watched as Ron started to choke on the four biscuits he’d shoved in his mouth. “’Mione! In case you haven’t noticed, Harry and the Ferret are both guys. What’s it matter that he has to show Harry that he’s a good father?”

“It’s traditional, Ronald,” she snapped. “Something you should understand, since you didn’t even see me for the two weeks before the wedding because ‘it was tradition’.”

“Mum’s the one who was going on about tradition. I didn’t care,” the redhead tried to defend himself.

“Besides, Teddy is Harry’s godson. Think of him as Harry’s de facto child. It fits.”

“Alright, so, gift, note, date…” Harry mused, ignoring the way his two oldest friends were behaving. He didn’t have the energy to referee their stupid arguments anymore. “What’s next? He’s already proven that he’s relatively magically powerful, that he can listen to what I have to say, and that he’s good with Teddy, at least. He’s got more to prove, yeah?”

“Well, yes,” Hermione answered, fiddling with her empty tea cup on the table. “Now he has to prove his knowledge of you. After he’s done that, he has to show that he can provide well for you.”

Harry pondered things over while he heated up a second kettle of tea. “And what about seeing other people?”

“Oh, well, tradition dictates that when a courtship is initiated and accepted that there would be no others.”

“And if either of us were to be caught with someone else?” Not that Harry had anyone that he was interested in, but he was curious.

“I’m not sure, but I think the punishment is conditional to the situation.” He could feel his best friend’s eyes on him as he moved around the kitchen. “You aren’t planning to back out of this, are you, Harry? You did accept by not refusing in the first place. It was cemented by allowing him to accompany you and Teddy to the zoo. The rituals see that as a date.”

“I know,” he snapped, turning around to face his friends. “I know,” he repeated in a much calmer voice. “At first, I just wanted to know what the hell was up. I should have refused yesterday, but…”

“He got under your skin, mate. Simple as that,” Ron said.

“Yeah, I guess he did. I mean, he’s not after my name, my money, or the constant stream of photographers after me, so what is it that he wants?”

“He could want to marry the Chosen One to help his family’s reputation,” Ron added. “I mean, the Malfoy name doesn’t carry as much weight as it once did, what with Lucius rotting away in Azkaban and all.”

“That’s a distinct possibility,” Hermione said. “If there’s one thing Malfoy cares about it’s his reputation.”

“No, that’s not true,” Harry said as he sat back down. “I talked to him about the rumours going ‘round about his many lovers. He admitted to having a lot of them, even though it wasn’t very flattering. I think he might care about the way his mother’s received in public, but Narcissa has rebuilt her own name quite well.”

“Still can’t believe you’re friends with the Ferret’s mother,” Ron muttered. “Just doesn’t feel natural.”

“She’s a lovely woman, Ronald,” Hermione lectured, “which you would know if you bothered to get to know her.”

“And that worries me more than her being friends with Harry,” Ron snarled, glaring at his wife. “How can you even stand to be around her? She’s a blood purist, for Merlin’s sake.”

“Whether or not Narcissa Malfoy is a blood purist is not the problem here,” Hermione snapped, tugging at the ends of her frizzy hair. “She has been nothing but wonderful to me. That’s all that should matter, but it’s not. Your problem is that they’re Malfoys, and your families have been feuding for years.”

“Well, yeah,” Ron muttered. “If Harry wanted to marry a pureblood bloke, Charlie’s free.”

Before either Harry or Hermione could tell Ron how incredibly stupid he was being, an owl tapped against the window behind Harry’s chair. With a dirty look at his first friend, Harry got up to let the bird in. It was a magnificent creature, a raptor in shades of white, brown and deep black. Harry stifled a gasp as the bird dug its talons into his arm before turning cool, appraising gold eyes on him. “Hello there, beautiful,” he said calmly. “And who do you belong to?” The bird shoved a scaly leg up to him, showing a scroll that was tied to it. “Oh, this is for me, eh?” He carefully removed the parchment and unrolled it, letting something drift to the floor as familiar handwriting assaulted him. “Merlin’s balls,” he swore.

“Who’s it from, Harry?” Hermione asked, making a move to pick up the object that had fallen from the scroll. Luckily, Harry stopped her in time.

“Don’t touch it, ‘Mione,” he said, picking it up himself. “It’s a hippogriff feather, set up as a quill, so Malfoy says. He says there’s a protection charm so that no one but I can touch it. Doesn’t say what happens to anyone else who does, but let’s not take chances, yeah?”

“Oh, of course,” she said, patting her hair unconsciously. “So, what does the rest of the letter say?”

Harry sighed and looked at the parchment. There wasn’t anything too embarrassing. It couldn’t hurt to read it out loud. Besides, Hermione knew everything about this stupid situation already. “Here, I’ll read it out to you:

“Harry,

“I’d like to thank you for an enjoyable time earlier this week. You were extremely gracious to allow me to intrude into your time with your godson, but I spend so little time with Teddy that it was a special treat for me as well. Our conversation after lunch gave me much food for thought, and I find that I cannot stop thinking about you. Since you haven’t refused the courting, I am required to send you the next gift. However, I have sent three. It is a little much, but Mother agrees that they are all perfect for you.

“First is the raptor that delivered this letter. His name is Horus, after the Egyptian god, who had the head of a hawk. He is a Sharp-Shinned Hawk and eats red meat primarily, but I’m sure that the beast would not turn down a hasher of bacon if you choose to feed it to him. I do so hope that you enjoy owning him. He comes from two birds that I have bred myself, Isis and Osiris, and is the first of their offspring.

“The second gift is the hippogriff feather that you will find included. It has been modified to act as a quill. I have been reassured that it was collected as a fallen feather, rather than plucked. It has been charmed for many things. One I will not tell you. You must find out for yourself. However, there is a protection charm on it that prevents anyone other than you from touching it. I strongly urge you to keep Granger from trying to touch it in her curiosity. I wish her no harm, but it is no mere Stinging Hex that is spelled onto it.

“Third is the certificate included. As you can see, I have adopted a hippogriff in your name with a rookery located in Wales. The director of the place assures me that you may visit Grimtalon at any time you wish, within reason of course.

“Mother wishes to invite you to have dinner with us at the Manor in two days’ time. You are welcome to bring Granger and Weasley, if you are uncomfortable coming by yourself. She was hoping to have a dinner for the next step, a family dinner, but as that may not be strictly possible, Granger and Weasley are welcome, or Weasley’s parents, if you so choose.

“Please respond by tomorrow evening so that Mother knows what to have set out for dinner.

“Yours,

“Draco”

Hermione cleared her throat as he finished. “Well, it’s a good thing you stopped me from trying to pick that up,” she said in a high-pitched, nervous voice. “And he seems to be following the rules to a near tee. He’s shown that he’s remembered how soon you bonded with Buckbeak back in third year.”

“No, ‘Mione, it’s more than that,” Harry whispered. “Hippogriff feathers that have fallen, not plucked, are the primary ingredient in the Equilimente potion that I would assign to patients… He’s been studying up what we talked about at the zoo.” The tightness in Harry’s chest, near his heart, that he hadn’t known was there eased. Malfoy, no, Draco, was actually serious about this whole thing. “He – he told me that he was serious, but I – I didn’t believe him.”

“Until now?” Hermione asked breathlessly.

“Yeah, until now,” Harry answered.

TBC

Aff.net replies can be found at http://makochanupdates.livejournal.com/31692.html

Picture of Horus’s breed http://www.tsuru-bird.net/raptors/hawk_sharp-shinned_juv_1a.jpg
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Wooing the Reluctant