Title: To the Moon Part 4
Author: Constant Vigilance
Status: FIN
Email: tirel@pcnuthut.com

Website: https://www.angelfire.com/tv2/firebird_ascending/
Rating: R for disturbing topics and language
Pairing: Harry/Draco (not while under the curse, however)
Spoilers: Some book 5 events. AU. Characters aged up to age of consent.
Warnings: Slash, implied rape/incest, violence, shmoopy WAFF in places
Disclaimer: I own nothing. JKR is God.
Summary: Draco is turned into a child. Harry takes care of him.
Notes: Written for Wave 1 of The Ebony and Ivory Fu-Q-fest found at http://mortal-moon.org/hdfqf/index.html

Challenges: 59.  Harry finds Draco crying.  (Minnie)

79.  Harry finds out what Draco sees when he's near a dementor. (Aeowen)

12.    Draco overhears a secret of Harry Potter...he likes a Slytherin.  (Minnie)

July 28:

Draco sighed and buried his face in Poppet’s warm fur. He’d watched sadly all morning as Harry drew further and further away from him. Oh, Harry didn’t mean to. He couldn’t help it. He was having visitors today. Harry had waited anxiously for this day since he’d gotten their owl nearly a week ago.

Vince and Greg had told Draco that the people coming were Harry’s very best friends, Ron and Hermione, and that Draco had better be prepared for a bit of time away from his guardian as Harry’s best friends couldn’t stand Vince, Greg, or the teenaged Draco. Draco was a bit confused as Vince and Greg refused to go any further into why these two people who meant so much to Harry hated him so much. He eventually asked Uncle Sev’rus one afternoon as he was watching him. Severus just looked sadly at him.

“Draco, you have to understand, child. You are very different as a teenager,” the older man attempted an explanation. “You and the Gryffindors just aren’t cut from the same cloth. You both had trouble seeing eye to eye.”

Draco had nodded because his uncle’s eyes were beginning to dart about the room and his hands to fidget. Most people would have thought Draco wouldn’t notice. He’d spent too much time eyeing his parents for just those reactions not to notice, however. When noticing an eye twitch could save you from being backhanded across the room, one learned quickly.

And so, Draco still had no idea why these two people hated him, nor why he was going to lose his Harry for as long as they were there. He sighed again and let Poppet’s soothing purr distract him from his impending loss.

At precisely 11:45, Harry ushered everyone out into the Great Hall for lunch where he was to meet Ron and Hermione. He was so excited he could hardly hold it in. Too excited to notice the long faces that not only Draco, but also Greg and Vince wore as well. Snape watched his house students sadly. Now was as good a time as any, he supposed, to have them learn that a friendship made in the heat of the moment rarely lasted.

As the Great Hall clock chimed noon, the Great Hall doors burst open and Harry jumped up from his seat to greet his grinning compatriots. The three-way hug was bone crunching in its intensity and Draco slouched just a bit more as he saw how happy Harry looked to be holding on to his friends. Harry herded Ron and Hermione up to the table and gestured them to sit across from Vince and Greg.

They hesitated as they approached, glancing at Harry in confusion. Harry, oblivious in his delight, just plopped down next to Draco, dropping a kiss on his head as he did so. When he looked up he was surprised to still see the two Gryffindors still standing. He frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“Um…”

“What the bloo—oomph! Mione!”

“Nothing, Harry. Nothing at all,” Hermione smiled winningly and sat, glaring at Ron until he took his place at her side. “How has your summer been?” she attempted. Ron just glared sullenly across the table. Harry stared in confusion from Hermione’s overly bright smile to Ron’s dull anger.

“What is wrong?” he demanded again.

Hermione shot a telling glance at the Slytherins before shrugging. “It…its nothing. Really.”

Harry followed her gaze and his eyes narrowed. “I see,” he said coldly. Then he sighed. “Mione, Ron…I love you both to distraction. You know that.” He waited for nods from both of them. Hermione folded her hands and tried to focus on Harry’s words. Ron just continued glaring at Vince and Greg who were, for once, not even looking at the Gryffindor.

“Things have happened this summer,” he said softly. “Things that have changed me. That have changed the way I feel, the way I think. I don’t have the right to tell you most of it. It isn’t my story to tell. But what I can tell you is that I’ve found good friends somewhere I hadn’t previously thought to look.”

Hermione's eyes shot to the Slytherins, immediately searching for whatever Harry saw in them. Ron’s eyes just widened. “What?” he blustered. “Friends? With Slytherins?”

Harry sat back in his chair, his gaze chilly as he took in his best friend. “No,” he returned. “But I have made friends with Vince and Greg. I’d like to introduce you, if I may?” Ron opened his mouth to retort and all that came out was a hiss of air as Hermione elbowed him under the table. The Slytherins barely managed to keep from smirking.

“We’d like that, Harry,” Hermione said softly.

Harry smiled at the girl. He knew she’d understand. “Mione, this is Greg. Greg, my dear friend Hermione.”

He didn’t know who was more shocked, Mione or himself when Greg reached a hand across the table and held it steady in front of the Gryffindor girl. “Nice to meet you, Hermione,” he said gruffly.

She gingerly took his hand and allowed him to shake it briefly. As he pulled away, she smiled. “It’s nice to finally meet you as well, Greg,” she said gently.

Harry’s face was near to bursting. “And this is Vince. Vince, Hermione.”

Vince offered his own hand with a shy smile. “Hi,” was all he managed.

“Hello, Vince,” Hermione returned the smile.

Harry turned hesitantly towards Ron. The redheaded boy had his face planted in his hands. “Ron?” he asked carefully.

Ron pulled his hands away and looked at Harry with a resigned expression. “You’re not budging on this one are you?” he asked wryly. Harry shook his head. Ron sighed. “Fine. I’m Ron.” He stuck his hand out at Greg as though he were waiting to get it ripped off.

Greg took it with a smirk. “Ron,” he nodded. Ron shook and then moved the hand in front of Vince.

Vince glanced at Greg momentarily and then took the Gryffindor’s hand as well. Another brief shake and everyone was in their seats again. Harry beamed at his friends, both new and old, and then glanced down meeting Draco’s big eyes.

“And this,” Harry lifted Draco into his lap, Poppet and all, “This is Draco,” he said proudly. “Draco, love…this is Hermione and Ron.” Draco looked at them carefully, trying to see if he could tell anything by just the way they looked at him.

Ron grinned. “That’s Malfoy?” he laughed. Draco could feel something in the way Ron said his last name. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but it made him cringe into Harry’s arms none-the-less. That made Harry frown.

”What’s wrong, poppet?” he whispered. Draco just shook his head and bit his lip, trying not to cry at the table like a big baby. Harry cuddled Draco into his embrace and shot a pissed off look across the table. “I don’t know what the hell you did, Ron,” he snapped. “But you’d better apologize or get the hell out.”

Ron stared in astonishment at Harry’s ultimatum. “But I…” he stumbled to a stop, reading in Harry’s eyes that if Harry refused to budge on the Vince and Greg issue, that he was cast in iron on the Draco issue. “I don’t know what I did,” he shrugged helplessly. “But I’m sorry, Draco, if I made you upset.”

Draco peered up at him from the shielding of Harry’s arms, his eyes sad and confused. “You don’t like me,” he said softly.

Harry’s gaze became murderous and Ron rushed to placate the little boy. “That’s silly, Draco,” he chuckled nervously. “I just met you.”

Draco shook his head. “No. The grown up me. They all said you hated me.”

Harry frowned. “Who said, love?”

“Vince and Greg and Uncle Sev’rus,” Draco whispered. “They said that you couldn’t stand me. That we were too different to like each other.”

Ron deflated slightly as Harry turned the death glare on the Slytherins. He was rather pleased to find that they weren’t immune to the effects of Harry’s anger either. Greg’s eyes darted away and Vince turned pale. “Did they now?” Harry bit out.

“We…we were just trying to explain to him why you might not be around as much when Granger and Weasley came back,” Greg defended them.

If Harry were angry before, he was furious at that. “You expected me to just drop you? To just drop Draco as soon as my old friends walked through the door?” he demanded incredulously. Meekly, they nodded. However, when Draco nodded as well, Harry melted. “Oh, baby,” he stroked Draco’s hair. “No. Nonononono. Never. I’d never leave you. Not for anyone.” He placed a gentle kiss on Draco’s forehead and tilted his face up to meet Harry’s eyes.

“I love you,” he assured the boy. “I promise you, poppet, I will never desert you. Sometimes I may get a bit distracted. And I can see how I might have been that way in looking forward to Ron and Hermione coming to visit. But I never, ever, stopped thinking about you, worrying about you, loving you. And I never will. You have my word.”

Draco smiled up at him, his lip still wobbly, and turned to face his rivals in Harry’s affection. “Sorry,” he murmured.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for, Draco,” Hermione smiled softly. “I understand. Harry’s a pretty special guy,” she glanced at the man holding the small blonde boy. “When Harry loves you, when he’s focused just on you, everything just seems right in the world, doesn’t it?” Draco was staring at Hermione in awe. He nodded. “And when he looks away, even for a second, everything gets kind of scary…and you get frightened that maybe he won’t look at you like that again, that he won’t keep loving you.”

Draco was enraptured by Hermione's quiet words. Harry just gaped in astonishment, wondering what the hell she was talking about. And just when he thought he couldn’t be further stymied, he saw Ron, Vince and Greg nodding slightly in response to her words.

She smiled gently. “But he will, Draco. He’ll look again. And he won’t stop loving you. Once Harry loves, he loves forever. And eventually, you’ll realize that when Harry looks away from you, he’s not leaving you. Someone else is just getting to take their turn to feel as good as he makes you feel. Don’t be afraid of that, Draco. Don’t be afraid to share him. Because he’ll always come back to you. And when he does, he’ll have brought others into your life. Others who will want to love you just as much as he does.”

Silence fell at the table as everyone tried not to let their expressions indicate just how Hermione's speech affected them. Finally, she just rolled her eyes at the older boys and leaned in closer to Draco. “So, what’s your kneazle’s name?” she grinned.

Draco blinked once. Twice. And then his face bloomed into a smile that caused Hermione to catch her breath. “Her name’s Poppet,” he announced shyly.

Hermione reached across the table and scratched the little kneazle’s ear. “Hello, Poppet,” she cooed. “Aren’t you the prettiest thing?” The kneazle purred happily. As Hermione sat back down, plates of food appeared in front of them. She began dishing herself up. “So, would you be interested in coming to Hogsmeade with me tomorrow, Draco? We could pick Poppet out a pretty collar.”

Draco’s eyes got huge with excitement. “Can I, Harry?” he begged.

Harry grinned down at him and then smiled up at Hermione, blinking back the tears that suddenly sprang to his eyes. “I think that’d be just fine, love.”

______________________________________________________________________

July 29

Watching Hermione with Draco the next day, Harry decided it was much more than ‘just fine’. It was amazing. Harry realized that he had more than likely taken over the father figure role in Draco’s life. What he’d not realized was that Draco was still missing something. Harry had tried to be everything Draco needed, but he came to the conclusion the next day, watching Hermione and the small boy together, that there are just some roles that only a woman can fill.

Harry was feeling the tiny niggling of jealousy by the end of the day. Hermione had taken Draco to Hogsmeade early that morning and according to the starry eyed babble Draco subjected him to later that night, they’d seen and done everything imaginable in the town.

“Mione showed me the candy store and we bought….”

“Mione took me to lunch and we ate…”

“Mione took me to the joke store and got me…”

“Mione let me try on clothes at Gladrags and I got…”

“Mione let me try a sneakoscope at the magic store…”

“Mione bought me stuff to learn to write from the quill store…”

“Mione wouldn’t let me go into the bloody Hog place…”

“Mione said the tea store was silly…”

“Mione showed me the Shrieking Shack…”

Harry just nodded and smiled brightly as Draco continued to extol the virtues of Harry’s dear friend. Finally, Draco waved around the jeweled collar, resplendent with a sapphire like stone that precious Mione bought for Poppet and then he wandered off in search of the bushy haired Draco stealer in order to present the collar to Miss Poppet.

Harry flung himself into a cushy armchair in the Slytherin dorm, where he’d decided to continue sleeping, and stared out into the fire. He felt a weight settle down onto the arm of the chair and he glared up at the offending body. Vince just smiled beatifically down at him.

“Hey Harry,” he nodded.

“Mmmm,” was Harry’s only reply.

“Feeling a bit out of sorts today, are you?” Harry huffed a breath out and crossed his arms. “If you would like to talk about something, you know I’m always here.” Harry just shrugged. “Something like, how you’re about to explode with jealousy if Hermione's name comes out of Draco’s mouth one more time?”

Harry’s head shot back around and he stared into Vince’s knowing eyes. “You didn’t…”

Vince shook his head. “Why would I say something to either one of them? They aren’t the ones with the problem. That would be you.” Harry went back to glaring; only he had a slightly martyred look to him now. Vince just rolled his eyes. “Look, Potter. Contrary to what you might have believed, Draco is our best friend. We spent 24/7 with him. We did everything together. We were inseparable.”

Harry began to flush, already knowing where Vince was heading with this. “And over the last month, we’ve become like second cousins…or maybe the annoying uncles that come over with a handful of galleons at family reunions. He’s transferred his affections over to you. And we’re okay with that, I didn’t mention it to make you upset or anything,” he was quick to reassure Harry.

“I just mean that, of all the people who might know how you’re feeling right now, Greg and I are really it.”

Harry sighed. “I know. I’m sorry. I have been hording his attention, his affection. I know and I feel like a bastard for it. But…” he turned a pleading look onto Vince who just smiled gently at him.

“I said it was okay, Harry. He has different needs now than he did when he was 17. And you’re best suited to take care of them. If we didn’t think so, we never would have agreed to have him put with you. But maybe you aren’t equipped to take care of all of those needs.”

Harry nodded, letting his head drop onto the chair back. “I was just thinking that,” he breathed out heavily. “He’s not had a mum figure since he’s been here. McGonagall just isn’t the kind to bestow kisses and chocolate frogs, is she?” Vince grinned and shook his head. “I know that,” Harry reiterated. “I know it. I feel that it’s right. And then I see him holding her hand or hugging her and…dear Merlin, Vin, I hate my best friend for a moment,” he added in shame.

Vince patted him on the shoulder. “You know all that crap Hermione spouted about you being special and stuff during dinner?”

Harry smirked but nodded. Vince continued with a slight tint of pink in his cheeks. “It’s true, you know. But especially the bringing back other people who could love you part. You do that.” He frowned, obviously searching for the right words. “You looked at Draco. And then you brought us back to him. When you did, you looked at us. I hate to admit it, cause you’re bloody Gryffindor about this whole friend thing, but it hurt a bit when you looked away from us to Ron and Hermione.”

He couldn’t, or wouldn’t meet Harry’s eyes. “Then I figured that you weren’t looking away from us so much as you were going back looking at them for a bit. And I understood that. They were your first friends. They needed to have you look at them again. But the thing is, when you looked back at them, you brought us with you. And having them looking at us too…well, it didn’t take away the…crap, the pain if you will…of you not looking at us for the moment, but it did lesson it a bit because you gave us someone we could share you with. Someone we could share…bloody hell, share loving you with.”

He looked so disgusted at having to relate fluffy, Gryffindor emotions that Harry couldn’t keep the giggle from escaping. He glared down at Harry, and then gave a returning smile. “Yeah, piss off Potter. What I’m trying to say is that you haven’t lost Draco. You just gave him and Hermione the opportunity to share their love of you with each other.”

“I get it,” Harry said with a soft smile. “And thank you.”

“Yeah. No problem,” Vince shrugged, trying to make light of the whole conversation.

“Hey, Vin?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you, too,” he whispered with a snicker just before being pegged in the head with a decorative pillow. “All right!” he wheezed, pulling the pillow away from his head. “All right, I give!”

Vince ‘hmphed’ triumphantly and grinned at Harry. Harry looked thoughtfully at him. Vince’s grin turned into a wary look. “What?” he demanded.

“I was just thinking…” Harry cocked his head. “Vince, would you let me tell you something without tearing my head off? I mean, really listen to what I have to say before you go off on me?” he asked.

Vince frowned. “I suppose.”

Harry nodded. “I think I know why you can’t read.”

Vince tensed up immediately, his frown turning into a glare. “Greg opened his fucking mouth, did he?” he snarled.

Harry held up a hand. “Please. You promised.”

The Slytherin gritted his teeth and crossed his arms, but stayed on the couch.

“He was telling me some of your difficulties and it sounds an awful lot like a problem I’ve heard of before.” Vince just stared, his gaze icy. Harry sighed. “Have you ever heard of dyslexia?” A brief shake of the head. “Well, it’s generally caught when kids are really young, but Greg tells me you were both taught at home till you attended Hogwarts.”

“Yeah,” Vince nodded, a bit less hostile.

“If neither one of your parents knew to look for it, they might not have caught it,” Harry continued carefully. “But I’m guessing that it’s easily remedied in the wizarding world because I’ve not heard of it being a big problem. Maybe you could ask Madam Pomfrey about it?” he said hopefully. “She might be able to do something to fix it.”

Vince fidgeted. “And I could read then?” he asked, far too nonchalantly.

Harry nodded. “I would think so. Or at least, you could learn to read the right way. It wouldn’t be like some foreign language anymore.”

“I see.”

Silence reigned supreme.

“Yeah, well. Maybe I will,” Vince replied to the wall behind Harry.

Harry smiled briefly. “Lemme know how it works out if you decide to go.”

Vince nodded. “If I decide to go,” he added, voice full of bravado.

More silence. Then Harry was hit upside the head again with another pillow.

____________________________________________________________________

July 30:

“So, mate. Whatcha want for your birthday?” Ron poked Harry with his toe from his seat on the Slytherin couch. Harry glanced up from his perusal of Vince’s art book to shrug.

“Dunno. Haven’t really thought about it.” He grinned wryly. “It’s not like I’ve ever gotten to ask for a birthday present before.”

Ron nodded agreeably. “I know. But one day, Harry, we’re going to convince you to expect someone to give a rat’s arse about you on your birthday.” Harry just rolled his eyes and went back to leafing through the book.

“Hey,” Hermione looked up from her own project…teaching Draco to read. “Didn’t I hear you say something about Vince and Greg’s birthdays being near yours?” Harry nodded and Greg grunted in surprise.

“My birthday is on the 10^th of August,” Vince offered. “Greg’s is on the 4^th.”

Hermione smiled hugely. “Well, then. Harry, what do you say to having a huge birthday party for the three on Greg’s birthday? That way we could be sure to celebrate for all of you since we won’t be here for Vince’s.

Though Vince and Greg shrugged and agreed with grunts, Harry could tell from tiny smiles hidden behind indifferent masks that Hermione had just gained the loyalty and friendship of two of Slytherin’s biggest players.

______________________________________________________________________

August 4:

“Happy birthday Vince, Greg and Harry…happy birthday to you!” When the cacophony of sound died away, all three boys were left grinning like Cheshire cats.

“Thanks, guys,” Harry crowed. “This is the best birthday ever!”

“Yeah,” Vince agreed with a tiny smile. “Thanks for including us.”

“Dobby’s coming up in a bit with the cake,” Ron quickly changed the subject, sensing a non-manly moment on the horizon. “We should open presents before he gets here.”

Hermione rolled her eyes, knowing the prompting behind Ron’s suggestion. “Yes, lets,” she said instead of berating Ron for his insensitivity. She knew she was just going to have to get used to it. Since she planned on having to put up with him for the next hundred years or so. “You three sit. I’ll bring the presents over to you.”

Vince and Greg plopped down on the couch next to each other and Harry took over the remaining spot. Draco perched on the arm of the couch, as close to Harry as he could get without falling into the Gryffindor’s lap. Hermione began sorting through the gifts and handing them over to Ron to deliver. “This is Vince’s. It’s from us.” Vince took the package with a nod of thanks and carefully began to unwrap it.

He ignored Greg’s look of disgust at his meticulous handling of the present and eventually, he’d lain open the new pack of colored pencils, charcoals and sketchbook. “Thank you both,” he said, pleased. “I was running low on my pencils.”

“You’re welcome, Vince,” Hermione beamed.

“Here, Greg,” Ron plopped a larger package down on the other boy’s lap. Greg showed none of the same care that Vince had in opening it. Ron looked on in fascinated awe as the wrapping practically disintegrated under Greg’s fingers.

“Bloody awesome, mate!” he crowed, holding up the Puddlemere United tee shirt.

“You like it?” Hermione asked worriedly. “I mean, it’s muggle clothes. I didn’t know how you’d feel about it.”

Greg rolled his eyes. “Do you know how annoying it is to never have anything but wizard robes?” he grinned. “This is fantastic.”

“There’s more,” Ron prompted when Greg seemed content to gaze appreciatively at his shirt. Greg tore back into the package and came up with a book on the current season’s Quidditch stats. “It updates every game,” Ron pointed out eagerly.

“Wicked,” Greg breathed.

“I told you he’d like a book,” Hermione sniffed. Ron just snorted at her. “Here, Vince, this is from Harry,” she offered up the next gift.

Vince seemed to take a malicious pleasure this time in opening the package as slowly as he could. Greg was practically fidgeting but he time he was done. When Vince lifted the present up, a sea green bottle, and read the side his eyes widened and he stared at Harry in shock. “This is the base for wizard pictures,” he breathed.

Harry nodded. “Yup. You just paint it on the parchment you’re planning to draw on and your work will be animated when you’re done.” Vince just stared at him. “What?” Harry asked, beginning to get uncomfortable.

“This is bloody well expensive, Harry,” Vince finally managed. “That’s why I haven’t gotten any for myself.

Harry shrugged. “Don’t worry about the cost. I didn’t. I saw something my friend would like and I got it. No big deal.”

“But…” he happened to catch Hermione's frantic head shaking and his words slowed to a halt as he saw how truly upset he was making Harry. “Thank you, Harry,” he said instead and was rewarded with a bright smile.

“You’re welcome. Now Greg’s.” Harry was squirming in excitement.

Ron hefted the next present up and Greg’s eyes widened at the heaviness of the package. He actually took a bit more time to open this one and when he saw the contents, his breath was stolen away.

“It’s kind of a gift for both you and Ron,” Harry grinned. “As I suspect you two are going to be hovering around it for the rest of the summer.”

Ron peered over at the crystal and jade chess set and his mouth formed a silent ‘O’ of delight. “Bloody hell,” he grinned. “So? After dinner?”

Greg nodded vigorously and turned back to Harry. “Thank you,” he nearly whispered. “It’s beautiful.”

Harry preened under the thanks. “You’re both welcome. Now, memememe!” he wiggled his fingers at Hermione. She giggled and began passing Harry’s gifts over to him.

“Here ya go, Harry,” Ron grinned maniacally as he shoved a huge package over to Harry’s feet. “It’s from me and the twins. Hermione didn’t want anything to do with it,” he smirked over at the indignant girl.

Harry pulled out a huge box full of filibuster fireworks and other joke items from the twins’ store. “Wicked!” Harry smiled. “Thanks Ron. I’ll have to send a letter off to Gred and Forge too.”

“Here, Harry,” Hermione bypassed Ron and handed Harry his gift with a flip of her hair. “I got you something far more practical.”

“Boring…” Ron sing-songed under his breath. On Hermione's glare, he blinked innocently at her.

Harry grinned wryly and opened up an assortment of quills and inks. “The quills are spelled for each class,” Hermione explained. “So when you’re taking notes, they won’t let you write down the wrong thing. Obviously you can’t use them for tests,” she added.

”Obviously,” Ron said loftily.

Hermione glared again and ignored him. “But, you can at least make sure that you’re getting the accurate information for your study guides.”

“Thank you, Mione,” Harry smiled up at her. “They’re fantastic.”

“Hmmm,” she stuck her tongue out at Ron before grabbing the next package. “This is from…Greg,” she read the tag.

Harry tore into the packaging nearly as fast as Greg. His eyes widened and he slapped his hand against his forehead when he made it to the present. Greg began giggling insanely. “What is it?” Hermione asked, peering that direction.

“It’s a book on chess strategy,” Harry moaned.

“Oh, yes, my tactically impaired friend,” Greg smirked. “You will learn how to make a game last longer than half a dozen moves.”

“You’re a bastard, Greg,” Harry grinned. “Thanks.”

“I think you’ll like mine a bit better,” Vince smiled as Ron placed the cylindrical object in his lap.

Harry gently peeled the paper away, guessing that it was a drawing before he’d begun. He was right. Oh, he was so right. Tears came to his eyes as he took in the amazing work. A grinning, obviously scampering little Draco took center stage, playing outside. The background of the scene blended in to form the features of the grown up Draco, staring off into the distance out of the side of the portrait.

“Oh, Vince,” he choked out. “It’s…”

Vince wrapped an arm around Harry’s shoulder and squeezed. “You’re welcome,” he offered. Harry took the offer and fell silent, staring at the picture.

“Can I give mine now, Mione?” Draco looked eagerly at the girl.

“Of course you can, sweetie,” she smiled and handed Draco’s colorfully wrapped presents to him to deliver.

He bounced off of the couch and trotted up to Greg. “Happy birthday!” he cried.

“Thanks, Dray,” Greg took the gift with a smile. It was a drawing of Greg and Vince holding hands with a small Draco. They were only stick figures, but the smiles on their ovally heads were huge. “Did you draw this?” Greg raised an eyebrow. Draco nodded fiercely. “You are quite the artist. Vince better watch out.” Draco beamed at the praise and bounded over to pick up Vince’s present.

He handed it over and Vince took a second to ruffle Draco’s hair. “Thanks, Dray,” he too offered. His picture was similar, but had enough difference that he flushed and pulled it closer to his chest.

“What is it?” Ron demanded nosily.

With a slight flush, Vince revealed the drawing. Two figures that were obviously Greg and Vince stood holding hands with birds and snitches and hearts fluttering around them. Greg flushed as well. Hermione smiled gently and stroked Draco’s hair. Harry grinned behind his hand. Ron just stared in confusion. “Why’d he draw you like that?” he asked.

“Oh, Ron,” Hermione sighed.

“Thank you, Draco,” Vince whispered. “I love it.”

“You’re welcome!”

“I…er, I have a gift for you as well, Greg,” Vince continued, hesitantly. “But…it’s, it’s not here.” He cast a meaningful glance at Greg who just nodded.

“Let’s go get it so we can be back in time for cake, then,” he smiled. Vince nodded and stood. When Greg rose as well, he placed a hand on the small of Vince’s back and gently guided him to the common room door. When the door shut behind them, the remaining occupants of the room turned back to each other.

“Are…are they…?” Ron stuttered.

Hermione sighed again. “Yes, Ron. They’re together.”

“When did they…?”

“Nearly three years now,” Harry filled in quietly. “You should feel privileged,” he continued. “They must really like and trust you to share with you something they’ve gone to such lengths to conceal.”

Ron just nodded and sank into the nearest chair, a gob smacked look on his face.

“Harry!” Draco hopped up and down. “I left your present in the dorm. Lemme go get it.”

Harry stared after the boy who scampered off into the dorm room to retrieve his present for his Harry. “I’m in love with him,” he whispered, mostly to himself, but knowing that Hermione and Ron would still hear him.

“We know,” Hermione replied softly.

Harry tore his eyes away from the door. “Do you? Do you really? I do love this Draco. He’s a precious little boy. But…” he stared hard into her eyes, “I meant that I’m in love with the Draco he was before the curse. The Draco Malfoy who was a total bastard to you, Mione. And to you Ron,” he turned his gaze on his best friend. “I don’t know when. I just know that I woke up one day and there he was…occupying the larger part of my heart.”

Hermione just smiled. Ron shuddered and rolled his eyes. “We know, Harry,” she repeated.

Harry opened his mouth to demand an explanation but was interrupted by a joyous shout and Draco’s small body racing back out of the dorm room. “Here, Harry!” Draco handed the unwrapped parchment to Harry who unrolled it. Once again, tears came to his eyes. Draco had drawn the two of them much as he had Vince and Greg. Only, Draco had drawn himself as an adult.

The grown up Harry and Draco stood holding hands, surrounded by X’s and O’s and hearts. At their feet sat a pleased looking Poppet. Harry didn’t think he’d ever seen stick figures look so happy. “It’s amazing, poppet,” he pulled the small boy into a hug. “And so are you.” Draco didn’t protest as Harry continued to clutch him close. He just smiled and snuggled down in the young man’s embrace.

“Happy birthday, Harry,” he whispered. “I love you.”

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Greg clasped Vince’s hand as soon as they were out of the common room and they proceeded down the hallway silently. Each boy, following some unknown lead, headed to the garden where they sat down on the stone bench and smiled at each other. “Draco’s pretty observant even as a five year old,” Vince offered into the quiet.

Greg nodded. “He always was,” he agreed.

“Did you have to pick up my present?” Vince asked.

Greg blushed. “No. I have it in my pocket.”

Vince smiled wryly. “I have yours in my pocket too. I just…it’s pretty personal and I thought we should be alone for it.”

Greg nodded. “Yeah. Me too. So…you want to go first?”

With a tiny nod, Vince began. “For years, Greg, I’ve loved you but been unable to do more than whisper it to you in dark corners. Now, things are different. We are finally free of our families. That we have no money, no home, no foreseeable means of surviving after we leave Hogwarts seems to dim compared to the fact that I can tell you…that I can show you how much I love you in the light of day.”

Greg reached out to grasp Vince’s hand.

“We have nothing to fear anymore from discovery. We have no one but ourselves to hold to any standards. Harry seems to have saved more than just Draco this summer,” Vince said wryly. “He saved us. He allowed us to save each other. And, he convinced me of something else. That it’s okay to ask for help. So I did. I asked for help. And to my great surprise, it was there all along. Just waiting for us to ask for it.”

Greg frowned in confusion but sat quietly awaiting explanation. “I know I’m turning into a sappy Hufflepuff,” Vince smiled, “but I can’t help it. I love you. I want to tell you that everyday for the rest of our lives. And we have that now. The rest of our lives. We don’t have to be the Slytherin muscle anymore. We can just be Vince and Greg. I couldn’t imagine wasting that without pushing for all I could get out of it. And so, that brings me to your gift this year. Actually, my gift, but since you’ve spent so much of your time helping me, I rather thought it your gift as well.”

He handed a piece of parchment to his boyfriend and cast his eyes down to his fingers as he sat, knowing what Greg was reading.

Dearest Greg,

I wrote this letter, Greg. Alone. Without someone telling me how to spell or how to arrange the words. I wrote this after I went to Madam Pomfrey and asked her to check me for some learning disability Harry said I might have. He was right. That was what my problem has been all these years. I’m not stupid. I know you’ve told me that over and over, but I’m sure you understand how I just couldn’t believe you. But now, now I know. And I feel freer than I ever have before in my life. I have everything I could wish for. I can read for the first time. I’m free of my family’s insanity. I can love you without fear for the first time.

You ask when first I needed you

A childish aching need

And only when you smiled at me

Did that ache recede

You ask when first I wanted you

A selfish lusting fire

The touch of your lips, the rasp of your tongue

The only quench to that desire

You ask when first I loved you

When need and want took form

When I finally realized that loving you

Was the reason I’d been borne

And now I ask of you

That same and simple thing

And ask that you would bind that love

To this symbol…to this ring.

Yours,

Vince

“Greg?” He looked up, his eyes misty with unshed tears, and saw his beloved’s smiling face. “I love you,” Vince whispered, holding out a hand. Greg glanced down into that hand and his breathe caught. A golden band, simple and understated, lay glistening in Vince’s palm. “Would you marry me?” Instead of answering, Greg shoved his own hand deep into the recesses of his robe pockets.

When he pulled his hand out, a duplicate to the piece of jewelry in Vince’s hand sat upon his own palm. “I would,” Greg whispered, to choked to make normal sound. “Would you marry me?”

Vince gave a tiny whimper and the tears that threatened Greg’s eyes suddenly spilled down Vince’s cheek. He smiled tremulously up at Greg. “Yes, please,” he whispered back. Their lips met in a brief but tender kiss even as, blindly, their hands reached to place the promise rings on each other’s fingers.

“Happy birthday, Vin,” Greg breathed against Vince’s mouth.

Vince smiled against Greg’s lips. “Happy birthday, Greg.”

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