Harry stumbled upon landing in the foyer of Malfoy Manor, if it weren't for the aid of Mrs. Malfoy, he likely would have fallen face first on the stone floor. He couldn't help but blush at his clumsiness. Harry thought he saw Draco's mother frown for a moment, but it was quickly replaced with a slight smile, making him wonder if she had frowned at all.
"Harry? I was wondering if I could speak with you?" Draco asked, "In private." He added. Harry nodded, still slightly embarrassed from his stumble.
"Supper will be ready soon." Narcissa said before they could leave. "Harry? Perhaps if you feel up to it, you could join us?" She asked. Once again, Harry just nodded in response.
Both young wizards walked through the manor, Harry following Draco (he still didn't know his way around the massive building.) As they walked in silence, Harry grew increasingly tense. Despite the fact that Harry was confident that Draco would never hurt him, he still felt the automatic sense of fear that had been instilled into him from a very young age. Finally, they reached Draco's bedroom, walking in to see several shopping bags at the foot of his bed. Harry assumed that was where the house elves had left them, so didn't question it.
"I'm sorry about Hermione." Harry burst out after several moments of silence. "She can be rather stubborn in her research." He mumbled. Draco just gave him a strange look.
"Harry, you are not to blame for Granger's words and actions. Though, I cannot say that I'm surprised by them. Weasley, however..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "That aside, you shouldn't apologize." He finished resolutely.
"Guess I'll have to get used to it, huh?" Harry said with a slight chuckle, running his hand through his messy hair.
"Pardon?" Draco asked, much to Harry's confusion.
"When we go to Hogwarts. With the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin, I expect there will be more than a few naysayers." Harry responded, tilting his head in confusion, similarly to a dog.
"You- You don't want to keep our mateship hidden?" Draco stuttered, completely shocked. He knew that there would be plenty of rumors after their outing earlier, but that could be explained away. After all, it was the Boy-Who-Lived's and a Malfoy's word against a few wizards. Draco never expected that Harry would actually want to say anything, the Golden Trio aside.
"Of course not!" Harry exclaimed. "Though, if you wanted to, I would understand." He said, a bit quieter. Of course Draco would want to keep it hidden. Why in the name of Merlin would he want to advertise it? The young Malfoy had a reputation to protect, after all. Not to mention the fact that Harry wasn't exactly the ideal mate. And, while he didn't mind the fact that he was the mate of another man, but Harry never considered that Draco could be against the idea. Oh, Merlin! How selfish was he! As if sensing his thoughts, Draco spoke.
"No! I would want nothing more than to be able to flaunt my mate publically, but I assumed you would want to keep it secret." He said. "Considering our rather famous rivalry, not to mention my own gender." He finished, running his hand through his platinum locks.
"I don't think that matters." Harry muttered, looking down. Draco raised an eyebrow in question. And, despite the fact that Harry couldn't see the other boy, he somehow knew what the other boy was asking. "Why would gender matter? After..." He paused, trying to push away the onslaught of painful memories that threatened to overwhelm him. "After living with t-them for so many years, why would gender matter? The only thing that should matter is how much you care about the other person." He finished, a noticeable blush dusting his cheeks.
Draco, without another word, approached Harry, who had sat on his bed. He lifted the other boy's head, giving Harry a look of undeniable caring and... something else Harry couldn't place. And, slowly, Draco brought his lips to the other boy's. Once again, they were both filled with an overwhelming sense of rightness. Of safety. They both felt as if they could stay there, in that moment, for the rest of eternity. Carefully, they moved their lips in synch. Neither one had much experience, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that they were both there; they were both safe and content.
Slowly, they parted. Harry looked up, his breath stolen away by the sight of Draco's eyes. They were, well, breathtaking. His normal silvery irises were now a practically glowing mercury. And, upon a moment of reflection, Harry found that his eyes were glowing.
"Draco." He breathed out, still being affected by the kiss they had shared moments before. "Your eyes, they're glowing."
"What?" Draco blanched. "My eyes are...?" He trailed off. Suddenly, he gasped. "That means that-" He cut himself off, shock clearly shining in his eyes.
"What is it?" Harry asked, a bit afraid, if he was being honest.
"It- It means that we have established a portion of the mental bond." Draco all but whispered. When he glanced at Harry, he saw the confusion on his face. "For the mental bond to be established, there are three parts. Trust, Honesty, and Love. Rather cliché, I know. When one portion is completed, the Seer's eyes will glow silver." He said, shock ringing in his voice. "If I had to guess, I'd say it was honesty." He mumbled.
"R-Really?" Harry asked, to which Draco nodded. "I-" Harry was cut off when the door opened. Both boys gaze shot to the person who had walked in. And they found it to be Narcissa, a knowing look in her eyes. Both Draco and Harry blushed profusely at her raised eyebrow.
"Did I interrupt?" She asked, her face smug. Draco shook his head, still clearly embarrassed. "Supper is ready, when you're done~." Draco's mother practically sang the last part, leaving the room.
Several moments passed, in which both boys stared at the door in mortification. Eventually, though, Draco lead Harry to the dining hall. Upon entering it, Harry found it to not be what he expected. Instead of a large room, with an overly large table, and the Lucius Malfoy at the head of the table. Instead, there was an average sized, white table surrounded by tan chairs. Draco's parents sat next to each other, and no one sat at the head.
"Draco, Mr. Potter." Lucius greeted with a nod of his head. Harry awkwardly did the same, quickly sitting down beside Draco.
"Mother, Father." Draco responded, mirroring his father to a tee. It was obvious to Harry that Draco idolized his father, though he was sure the blonde would never admit it. Personally, Harry thought it was relatively cute.
"Harry?" Draco asked, bringing Harry out of his thoughts. He looked up to see all three Malfoys staring at him.
"I asked what you would like to eat." Narcissa said with an almost comforting smile.
"Oh, um, I-" He paused, realizing he had no idea what he wanted. No one had ever actually asked him what he would like to eat. And at Hogwarts, they were fed buffet style. "I- Anything will be alright, I guess..." He trailed off awkwardly.
"Does filet mignon sound alright" She asked, to which Harry nodded, blushing slightly from embarrassment. If Harry had looked up, he would have seen that Draco was giving him a very concerned look. The young Seer had realized why Harry had acted so nervously, and felt the rage he had previously (and continually) felt towards those muggles bubble up to the surface. Draco vowed then and there that not only would Harry never go back, but he would do everything he could to ensure his mate's complete and utter happiness.
When everyone was finished with their meals, and the house elves had cleared away the dirty dishes, three of the four people sitting at the smaller table stood. Lucius, however, made no move to.
"Mr. Potter?" He asked, gaining Harry's attention. "I would like to speak with you for a moment. In private" He added, glancing at Draco. Who, of course began to protest. "Dragon, I can assure you, no harm will befall him. I will make sure of it." Lucius said seriously, giving his son a very meaningful look. Eventually, said son sighed, leaving the room with his mother.
"What do you need, Mr. Malfoy?" Harry asked nervously, confused as to why the elder Malfoy had wanted to speak to him.
"Mr. Potter, I am aware that you do not trust me, due to certain transgressions. I understand that you may not forgive me for them, justifiably so. And, I there is anything I can do to make up for these... rather heinous acts, you simply have to tell me. That said, I ask that you do not hold my actions against my son. He doesn't deserve to carry the burden of my actions. Please." Lucius almost whispered the last word, but Harry heard it anyway. The young wizard was shocked. Was Lucius bloody Malfoy begging him? It took several moments for Harry to realize that the other man was waiting for an answer.
"I don't think I could ever do something like that, sir." Harry said, looking down slightly. "But, there's one thing I want to know." He said, glancing up. Lucius raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "You said that you don't support Voldemort, so why did you do those things?" At this, Lucius sighed.
"I am not proud of the things I have done in his name, Mr. Potter. Since the Dark Lord had been resurrected, I acted the way I did to protect my family. As for previous to that day, I did still support him, and his ideals. But you must understand, Mr. Potter, he had spoken of equality to other magical creatures, of returning the wizarding ideals that had been lost with the integration of muggleborns. He hadn't said a word to most of his Death Eaters of his plans to eradicate the muggleborns entirely." Lucius spoke, regret deep in his pale eyes.
"And Ginny?" Harry asked hesitantly.
"I truly did not know what would happen when I gave the journal to the young Miss Weasley. I was told by Yaxley to get the journal into Hogwarts undetected, and was given no more information than that." Once the elder Malfoy had finished, it was several moments before Harry spoke.
"I-I think I understand." Harry spoke quietly. "But I don't think I can forgive you..." He trailed off, not able to look Draco's father in the eyes. "But, I think I'll be able to forgive you, with time."
Lucius's eyes softened at the boy's words, happy for (what he thought was) an undeserved chance. "That is all I could ask for, Mr. Potter. Now, you should probably go up to my son's room. He is likely pacing, worried for your wellbeing. Good night, Mr. Potter."
Harry got up, wishing Mr. Malfoy a good night, before carefully walking up to Draco's room. He almost laughed when Draco was in just the state his father had described. When the Seer noticed Harry's arrival, he stopped his pacing and walked up to the other boy, guiding him to the bed.
"What did father want to speak to you about?" Draco asked with worry in his voice.
"Nothing you would care about." Harry said, a slight smile on his face. "Just coming to understand each other."
A/n: I am sooooooo sorry for how long it took to update!!!!! I had major writer's block, and I didn't want to publish low quality work. Forgive me?
Please comment what you think!