A month has easily gone by . In this time, Draco has been actively improving his skills and knowledge by practice and experimentation.
That day, after Harry and Draco had aparated back to the Potter mansion, they sat down and had a deep discussion about what to do now. Ultimately coming to the conclusion that it was better for Harry to go back to the Dursleys and for Draco to stay at the Potter mansion. Before Harry had left , he had forcefully placed a strong barrier around the Potter mansion, dividing it from the entire world. It not only blocked the people from entering and leaving but also magic. It was like there were two worlds , one inside the barrier and another outside. No one knew what was on the other side. In short, Harry had placed Draco in absolute isolation.
Whilst Draco had made sufficient amounts of ruckus and arguments against it , it didn't stop Potter but instead made him further strengthen the barrier.
Harry had trapped him there. Albeit for his own protection . But still, he had locked Draco in a place where only Harry could be able to see him.
' Where only I can see him …. ' were the words in Harry's mind . It was such a wonderful picture . Draco , in his house , waiting for him to come back home, Beautiful and soft only for him . This fantasy was immensely pleasurable even in just imagination.
For a second , Harry's hand wavered and his magic crackled as if rethinking their actions, as if correcting their actions. Maybe to stop this horrifying and twisted heat rising in his chest , maybe to make his fantasy into reality.
Harry can do it easily. Just change a single word in the spell he was uttering and Draco will be his forever.
But no….
A caged canary will always fly away when given the chance. He wants the canary to jump in the cage itself, he wants Draco to willingly become his captive , his possession.
That day Harry had a peculiar aura around him. An aura that gave Draco chills down his back but at the same time made his entire body so sensitive, so aware of him that being in the same room as him seemed impossible. To Draco, Harry seemed enchantingly suicidal.
In the following days, Draco had tried his best to treat and help the comastat headmaster to no effect. Days were going busy and lonely for Draco . Everyday he used to practice his potion making skills , then read books and then practice dueling.He was striving to achieve his goal . To fulfill the promise he made to himself . He was going to become stronger , stronger than Harry . So that when he will be standing beside Harry, he won't feel that he was unworthy.
Unknown to him, on the other side of the world, a pair of emerald green eyes were weaving a painting of his pale skin and making plans to return to his side once again.
During this period, Harry was in constant contact with all the six people in their circle and things were going according to his plan.
The intel he got from Ron about what was happening in the Weasley household was far more useful than Harry initially thought. As written in the letter , Mr. Weasley and the order of pheonix were actively planning something. While Ron had no idea about what it might be, Harry did. As a result, Urgent letters were immediately sent to six awaiting recipients.
The order of Pheonix….. Huh ! What a fraud !!!
These people thought of themselves as experienced and learned in fighting the dark side , but have any of them ever had any encounter with Voldemort, with active death eaters ? Do they know the complexity and intensity of the situation ? While some of them might , most of them do not. Their plans not only disregard perfection and foolproof steps but also human life.
Harry couldn't let these 'i-know-everything you-know-nothing' fools ruin his plans. Even if his team was made of few and young , but they were smart and skilled with thorough vigilance and quick solutions. Most importantly, they are trustworthy. And right now, what Harry needs the most are trustworthy subordinates who will never betray and nor fool him. They will do his bidding perfectly and skillfully, without a glitch and without a mistake.
Afterall, talent and usefulness does not see age. A young student can be much more useful than a trained auror while an experienced minister can have a son with a brain worth thousands of his father's.
Couple of days passed and the Dursleys , who were frightened beyond recognition when they found out who was out to get the freak , quickly packed up and got ready to flee . In a single night , the house which was yesterday full and alive , now became empty and inhabited.
From the first storey window , Harry watched a jerky and scared man haphazardly putting suitcases in his car . He looked left and right , checking for any dangerous presence . As he confirmed that there was no one watching him , he gave one last look to the house behind before driving away .
As soon as the car disappeared, Harry, not waiting for the arrival of order of Pheonix, slowly turned around to silently pick up a packed trunk . He needed to leave as well or who knows when the uninvited guests will arrive ? He took a last look around to see if he forgot something, as he did so, there was no emotion in his eyes. They were cold and hard. They were the eyes of a victor.
A second passed and the one person still inside the desolated house disappeared as well, making it seem dark and haunted
A thud sound echoed as Harry appeared in front of a wide entrance . As he was getting up, a house elf popped beside him, professionally saying, " Master Harry , Welcome Back."
" Hmm" replied Harry , sparing the hardworking elf an approving glance . He had initially told the elf to not call him master but he insisted that it was a very important custom. Overthat, this elf was a very diligent one , even learning to correct the grammatical mistake in his speech. Harry didn't want to make him upset and so after that Harry never corrected him when he called him master.
Handing him the trunk, Harry faintly asked, " Where is Malfoy ?"
A curt answer was immediately heard, "Mr. Malfoy is in his room. Should I show Master Harry the way ?"
" Very well " Harry said before nonchalantly adding , "and from now on, call him Master Draco . Understood?"
Harry said this thinking that Draco is from a pureblood family and must be used to it . It is custom after all.
As the house elf heard this, his eyes comically grew wide . Calling Mr. Malfoy master ? But they only call their Lord as master. Other than the Lord only his Lady is called Mistress and no other ….
*GASP* A shocked sound was heard from the astonished elf.
Surely…. Master Harry does not mean that …… or does he ? So if master Harry is master and Mr. Malfoy is also master then Master Harry and Master Draco are….
As the elf dwelled in his chaotic thoughts , he didn't notice that Harry was still waiting for his answer .
" Understood ?" Emphasized Harry as he frowned .
" Y-yes, Master Harry !!" The house elf's voice was jubilant and cheerful. He was clearly very happy and walked with a slight skip and bounce in his steps.
Afterall, they now had another Master !! It was a very happy occasion ! Their Lord has found himself a sweetheart ! And Master Draco is such a cultured gentleman! And beautiful as well !!! He will surely make Master Harry very happy !!
As the elf again lost himself in his optimistic thoughts, Harry frowned thinking,' This elf surely is very skittish and unfocused '
Leading Harry towards the right corridor of the first floor of the mansion , The elf stopped before the wide mahogany doors carved with a medicore designs of flowers and plants . With a push, they slowly opened with a negligent creak.
The sight that greeted Harry was of a pale figure laying in the wide bed in the middle of the room. The beauty was deep asleep, his chest rising and falling gently , making the image as if inviting the spectator to cuddle and sleep beside him .
The soft morning light shone through the fluttering white curtains, casting an enchanting hue of soft white on the bed.
Harry slowly walked to the bed and seated himself beside the celestial beauty. His eyes were impossibly soft and filled with love. His fingertips brushed against silken platinum strands splayed on the pillow before following their trail to touch the forehead and eventually sliding down to palm the ruddy pale cheeks.
Harry's eyes were stuck on Draco, not wanting to miss even the tiniest trembling of his lashes and the quietest huff of his breath.
With his eyes not moving even an inch, Harry , not wanting to disturb Draco's sleep, asked softly, " How has he been ?"
The house elf answered honestly , accounting everything he knew , " Master Draco has been fine but very busy. Everyday , Master Draco will wake up exactly an hour after the break of dawn. After cleaning up and breakfast , he visits Mr. Dumbledore to check his condition before practicing new potions and spells with lunch and dinner in the middle .Master Draco has been working very hard, often skipping dinner and sleeping late. This servant wants to ask master Draco to retire early but does not dare to disturb him lest his spells and potions go wrong. Forgive this elf for not taking good care of Master Draco, Master Harry. This elf will take any punishment for his disability "
The elf's head dropped in illogical shame, but this is how house elves were. They put the care of their master first before everything else and will feel responsible even if the fault is not theirs.
Harry did not make much of this . He knew how stubborn Draco was. The house elf had no chance of making Draco listen to him. So Harry easily threw a reassurance that it wasn't the elf's fault before dismissing him. Afterall , he is here now, it's obvious that Harry will personally look after his precious darling.
As Harry sat beside Draco , gazing at his sleeping form, He himself felt his exhaustion creeping up on him. The past months have been hectic for him. Not to mention that the magic he used that day at the astronomy tower was immense and still hasn't recovered. Over that, aparating a distance as large as he did tonight is quite tiring as well. A good sleep with a warm and soft Draco in his arms can never feel better , it will only feel the absolute best.
Swiftly changing his clothes into his nightwear , Harry unhesitatingly slipped inside the covers . Willing his magic to draw the curtains tight , Harry scooped the lithe body in his arms as darkness fell on both of them.
A content sigh escaped Harry as the warmth of slumber shrouded them. Soon, two even and deep breaths entangled with each other. A larger body protectively curled around the smaller and slimmer body in his arms.
Anyone seeing this scene will inevitably want to tattoo it into their memories so as to remember that the strong and powerful Lords that they will become in the future were once these young men, scared but brave, suffering but together, weak but becoming stronger with every breath.
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Draco, who was leisurely swimming in clouds , suddenly felt a stick poking him.
' A stick ?? There are no sticks in the sky . And I am in the sky …..' Draco thought sitting in a cloud in the expanse of blue skies, happily floating. Looking down he saw that there was nothing here. So he again lay down to look at the sky above.
*Pock*
Draco silently ignores . There were no sticks here . It must be his illusion.
After some time, * pock pock*
Draco restrained himself from looking down as he ignored whatever it was again.
• • •
*PocK PoCk pOcK *
' Ignore . ignore . IGNORE , Draco ! You are a Malfoy and Malfoy's don't get bothered because of stupid pocking sticks!'
• • •
*POOOCK*
A furious hand angrily dashed forward to wrap around the stupid offending stick.
" AAHhh !!" a shout sounded beside Draco's ear and he was so startled that his hand subconsciously tightened.
Squeeze...
And the shout behind him abruptly stopped.
' Hmmm. Now it's nice and quiet '
A pair of silver eyes slowly opened as another pair of wide green eyes and gaping mouth entered Draco's vision.
' Huh??? '
Draco slowly blinked . Maybe it was the dirt in his eyes. But the green eyes were still there, but now looking down with an utterly scared gaze as if seeing death. Curious as to what the eyes were so frightened by, Draco looked down as well .
' it's nothing. It's just my hand squeezing a stick inside the pants . What's there to be scared of ? '
Just his hand squeezing a stick inside the pants , that's right. Just….his..hand.. squeezing……..a stick ….. inside ….the ……………….pants
A stick inside the pants….
A stick inside the pants !!!!!
" AHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!"
A shout louder than the whistle of Hogward's express rang around the room. Draco pushed an unguarded Harry right down the bed. His eyes were wide in horror as he shouted , " What are you doing here ?!! How dare you make me touch that ??!! HOW DARE YOU ??! "
' M-my hand ! I-i touched his thing with my hand !!! No ! No! Can I cut it off ? Will it regrow somehow ? '
In his internal crisis , Draco totally forgot Harry but was drawn back to him by the pained whimper heard from the bedside floor.
Peeking down , he vengefully said, " What the fuck were you doing here ?!! "
" Sleeping " came the whimpering answer.
" Sleeping ? SLEEPING !? BUT WHY ARE YOU SLEEPING BESIDE ME ?"
" The other room was not ready to use "
The silver pair of eyes narrowed in suspicion. " Really ?"
How is this possible ? The house elves regularly clean the whole mansion. How can it be possible that in such a huge mansion there is not a single place for him to sleep ?!?!
" Yes "
" What if I call the head elf and ask ?" Draco said, still not believing him.
" Go ahead. I am a respectable man. How can I lie to you ?!" A disbelieving and wronged expression on his handsome face. But Draco didn't even spare him a glance.
" Jarvis !!!" Draco immediately called and the house elf who escorted Harry here popped up.
" Yes, Master "
In his anger Draco didn't realise the change of address and continued.
Eyes still trained on Harry for any sign of falsehood , he asked , " Was there no other place in the mansion for him to sleep yesterday ?"
Silence prevailed . No answer came back and Draco doubtfully turned his head to the elf , asking forcefully, "were there or not?! "
Jarvis was in an eternal paradox. Actually every room in the mansion was clean and tidy, ready to use. But Master Harry clearly wanted to sleep with Master Draco, so Jarvis never bothered to ask. He had a cliff on one side and a valley on the other. He cannot lie to Master Draco but if he told the truth that Master Harry will be furious .
From behind Draco , a pair of menacing green eyes shone as if saying , " Answer carefully if you want your head on your shoulders"
Jarvis took a deep gulp as cold chills swept his tiny body.
Fat drops of sweat dropped down his forehead. What to do? What to do ? Listen to Master Harry or Master Draco ? If obeyed Master Draco then Master Harry will surely know . But if obeyed Master Harry then Master Draco might not find out…..
" Yes , all the other rooms in the mansion are dirty and untidy. This elf didn't know that Master Harry would be coming back so this elf didn't clean. Please punish this elf !!" The shrill voice hurriedly said and a good natured smile graced Harry's face, totally antonymous from the glare a minute ago .
" See .. there were really no rooms . And what is such a big deal if I slept with you ? We are both men, aren't we?" Harry said with a very convincing tone, turning and twisting the entire ordeal.
"But......." Draco frowned , Harry was right but somehow it didn't feel…. appropriate. It felt as if a smelly pervert peeking at a pretty young maiden bathing.
Not letting Draco speak , Harry added again, " And it wasn't even my fault…. It was you … who was squeezing here and there "
A bashful look rose on Harry's face , albeit fake but Draco didn't know that, and he remembered the weird feeling in his chest.
' squeezing here and there….'
A dread rose in Draco's heart as he looked at Harry's face and lowered eyes. Eyes wide in horror , Draco ran out of the room tripping and falling . Like this Draco entirely forgot what he was going to say and ran in a flustered manner.
Such a clever technique to save oneself, isn't it ? Our golden boy sure is worth of being a snake, an especially venomous one .
As Draco ran out, the bashful look in Harry's face faded and a mischievous and scheming smile rose. Blissfully and with a heart filled with sugar , he generously told Jarvis, " Expect a rise in your paycheck this month. "
A grateful smile rose on Jarvis's face as he popped away.
Harry leisurely got up from the floor to get himself clean. Draco will be coming back soon , his clothes were still in this room and definitely won't spend the whole day in his sleeping robes. He could have waited for Draco to come back but why further aggrievate an already puffed up kitty ? Instead, Harry will lure the kitty out with treats and sweets.
Getting ready, he made his way to the dining hall and seated himself in one of the chairs.
In front of him, the simple and ample dishes of warm freshly baked bread , boiled eggs, cheese , fruits etc. were kept. It was a medicore and filling breakfast, giving good amounts of energy to go through the day and a healthy dose of nutrients and vitamins as well.
Harry didn't immediately start but patiently waited for the kitty to come out of his cave.
His wait didn't go to waste as soon Draco, who saw no hope of Harry leaving before he came, walked in the dining room and sat in the chair opposite of Harry.
His behaviour was confident and relaxed as if nothing happened but Harry didn't miss the jittery and unsettled gleam in his eyes.
' So adorable ' Harry thought.
As soon as he sat, Draco didn't say a word and started to fill his plate. Breakfast with friends was never an uncomfortable occasion for Draco, he had gotten used to it at Hogwards. But breakfast with Harry Potter staring right at him , whether at Hogwards or anywhere else, was very uncomfortable. While he wanted to ask him to stop staring , he couldn't. This was the Potter mansion and Harry was his host. Disrespecting his host did not sit well with his manners , neither with his principles. So Draco beneath the heavy gaze, continued his breakfast. He had been under worse eyes, Harry Potter was comparatively easy.
…….
His thoughts took a 180° change after some time. It was positively unnerving and even swallowing the bite in his mouth was difficult. The pressure the stare gave was incredible .
Harry was silently observing Draco as he squirmed and sweated beneath his eyes. It wasn't that he was intentionally doing this, but a chance to freely stare at Draco without disturbances and questions was rare . Harry wasn't just going to let it slip.
Something about Draco just drew his whole body in. He was just so attractive. Even in a crowd of millions, Harry was sure that his eyes would automatically find Draco . It won't even take him a second. It was as if Draco was glowing.
'Just like how an animal can smell it's prey from miles' Harry thought. The analogy suited them rather well , doesn't it ?
Time passed and as Draco was about to finish the last of his breakfast, when Harry said, "How have you been?"
The question somewhat shocked Draco but he still answered, " I have been well. What about you and everyone else ? Has there been any progress? any important information ?"
" Yes. That is precisely the topic I was going to talk about "
" What is it?" Draco asked, now vigilant and focused so as not to miss anything.
" The letter from Ron." Harry said while taking out the letter he bought along , keeping it in the middle of the table." They are planning something. Apparently, the order of Pheonix had their meetings in the Weasley household in the past week, which went on for quite some time. And after ending , the faces of all the members were gloomy and serious. Must be something of importance "
As Harry continued, Draco leaned forward to take the letter . Reading it, a frown marked his forehead .
" Any clue to what it is ?" Draco asked.
" I have an inkling "
" What ?"
" Right now, there is only one target the dark side has left after Dumbledore's death "
Draco's face immediately became glum. He understood Harry's implication. Now that they have assassinated Dumbledore , the only threat to the dark lord is Harry.
" I think we should start our journey as soon as possible " Draco said .
" Great minds think alike ,don't they ?" Harry said , a slight laugh in his voice. " We will be leaving today at sundown. So make necessary preparations"
Harry slowly rose , ready to make his half of preparations as well but suddenly remembered something and said, " And we will be using muggle means. So be ready "
Draco was shocked , " what ? Muggle transport ? Why?"
As Harry walked out , he left a faint sentence , "Patience , Malfoy. Patience.."
Draco slumped back in his chair. When can he finally make sense of that idiot's word ? That man has been putting his brain in tangles since he was eleven and now, even more so .
Draco was ultimately worried about his IQ, fearing that any more of Potter's company can harm it drastically. He was already feeling some of the symptoms. Ahhhh….he really needs to get out of here.
And so as the sun disappeared behind the top of the buildings , two normal and inconspicuous teenagers with each a huge bag on their shoulders suddenly appeared in a dark alley beside a busy and bustling street.
As they walked out , and seamlessly blended in the crowd, Harry looked at his side towards Draco and moved forward to tightly hold his hands.
The two soon disappeared in the hustle of the street, leaving no traces that they were there.
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Author's Notes:
Hello readers,
How you like that ?! ( Blackpink your area !)
Sorry !! So how do you like the chapter ? Did you like the scheming Harry ? the fluff? The comedy?
What did you think about Harry's view on the order of Pheonix ?
Answer in the comments, pals.
Have a nice day !!!! See u next time !!!
-Miss Extraordinaire
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Today's fanart , people ↓
I found this fanart of Draco . Isn't it beautiful ?