Life from the Start（FIN）二楼 by:LunaParvulus

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[DM/HP] Life from the Start
Author:LunaParvulus
Website:http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4152874/1/Life_From_the_Start
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Oh wow! Yes, of course you can put "Life from the Start" in the exhibition. I
feel honored! Thank you thank you! :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Nothing at all. Any of the HP characters used don’t belong to me.
Warning:slash,Mpreg is mention, HD part will not appear.
Translation:http://allhp.fun/viewthread.php?tid=10995&extra=page%3D1      
And i want to try my best to make this follow the trantion one by Geminey,and if i do shomething wrong ,please tell me

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Chapter 1: Partnering Up

Harry ran into the dungeons just as the other students in the class had sat down and settled. Ron, who was also late, skidded to a stop and stared nervously ahead where Snape was standing.

“Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley… how nice of you to finally join us. Ten points from Gryffindors.”

Snape sneered and spun around to face the blackboard. He pointed his wand at the board and started to wave it around; chalk letters slowly appeared as his wand moved.

“Copy down the instructions,” The Potions Master said without turning around, “If you two don’t find a seat I’ll take another five points!” Snape barked, his hand still waving around.

Ron gulped and tugged at Harry’s sleeve, “Hurry up mate, find a seat before we lose any more points.”

“There aren’t any seats…” Harry mumbled; he raked his eyes across the classroom and groaned.

“What?” Ron asked.

“There’s a seat up next to Goyle and there’s one next to… Malfoy.” Harry muttered, “Ron, take the one next to Goyle… I’ll sit next to Malfoy.”

“Are you sure?” Ron questioned, but in reality he was extremely glad he didn’t have to sit next to the ferret.

“Yeah, just go.” Harry pushed Ron ahead and trudged over to where Draco was sitting.

Draco looked up from his notes when he saw a shadow looming over him. He turned his head and looked up and sneered when he found Potter glaring right back at him.

“What do you want Potter?” Draco asked boringly.

“Nothing. Just mind your own damn business.” Harry spat and sat down next to the blond. He took out a piece of parchment and started copying down what Snape wrote on the board.
Severus turned around and faced his Advance Potions class. He smirked and sat down behind his desk.

“Alright you seventh years,” Snape started; all students stopped writing and looked up at their professor when they heard his voice. “If you have correctly written down what I have on the board then you will know, unless you really are incapable of doing anything right,” Snape paused and looked straight at Harry. “We will be making a de-aging potion today. If made correctly, the drinker will become five years younger. No more, no less. If you do this wrong, then you suffer your own consequences. You will work with the person sitting next to you and then one of you will drink the potion when it’s finished. You have forty minutes.” Severus stopped and stared at his students, who were all just sitting… and waiting. “Well? Start!”

Chairs scraped across the hard stone floor as the whole class became animated. Harry scowled and stared at his notes. It wasn’t that complicated, but with one wrong move the whole potion could be botched up. Harry then sighed and glanced at Malfoy, who was putting his notes in his book bag.
‘Just because he’s good at Potions…’ Harry grumbled and left his on the table.

“Hop to it Potter, get the ingredients.” Malfoy sneered, “I’m sure even you can get the right ingredients we need.”
Harry puffed out his chest and took a deep breath.

‘Calm down… You’ve been his partner before Harry, just in one ear and out the other.’

Harry nodded to himself and scowled at the blond, “Aren’t you going to do anything?”

Draco smirked at the brunet. He placed a big, somewhat rusted cauldron over the fire he had started while Harry was thinking to himself and took out his wand. With a small flick, Draco adjusted the fire to the right intensity.

“I’ll be tending the fire Potter,” Draco drawled, “If I left you to do this, you might burn the classroom.”

Harry let out a small growl and stomped his way over to where the ingredients were held. Harry looked up, down, right, and left for the needed things. He took down a bottle of Salamander tails, a jar of dried bat wings, a few pieces of Belladonna leaves, and finally vial of leech extract. Harry shuddered as he looked into the vial.

‘And we actually have to drink this?’

Harry carried the bottles and jars back to where Draco was sitting idly, playing with the ends of his blond hair. Harry placed the four ingredients down in front of Draco’s face none too gently.

“Here,” Harry said bluntly, “Make the potion since you don’t want me to do anything.”

Malfoy stopped playing with his hair and sat up; his lips curled.

“Truthfully, I really don’t need your help Potter… You might just make things worse.” Draco smirked at the smaller teen, “However, I cannot cut up the ingredients and stir at the same time. I hate to admit it, but you would have to cut these up for me.” Draco waved his hand over the four ingredients. “So help me Merlin, please cut them correctly Potter.”

Harry stared at the blond dumbly. Malfoy said please. He never said‘please’ before. After blinking several times, Harry finally moved and took the bottles closer to him. Malfoy scoffed and started on the base, which was this gray-ish, thick, awful smelling liquid. Harry gagged when Draco pulled the stopper out from the bottle that held the base; the smell was even stronger now. Draco hardly batted an eye as he poured the base into the heated cauldron. When the last drop had splashed into the cauldron, Draco took a ladle and began stirring it counterclockwise, just as the notes said. Harry tried to block off the fumes but failed. He bent down and retrieved a cutting board and a cutting knife from one of the drawers. The Gryffindor glanced at his notes.

“Okay… Take out two Belladonna leaves and slice them horizontally,” Harry read, “Then chop them until they become a paste. Okay… I can do that.”

Malfoy snorted, “Hopefully you can Potter, otherwise you might have yourself an explosion and it wouldn’t be my fault.”

“Shut up Malfoy,” Harry snapped and sliced the leaves angrily.


After Harry had gotten eight horizontal strips of the leaves, he began chopping them until they turned into mush. Without saying a word, Draco handed Harry a small plate for the Gryffindor to scrape in the puréed leaves. He handed Malfoy the plate and the blond used his fingers to scrape the mush into the now bubbling cauldron. Harry looked over and into the black cauldron; the base was now brown and was making squelching noises every so often. Next, Harry remembered, was to add in three Salamander tails. He opened the bottle and took out three red pieces. Harry showed the tails to Draco and the blond nodded. Harry was about to throw the tails in when Draco grabbed his wrist.

“Damnit Potter! Read the instructions! You can’t put the tails in until the base turns blue!” Draco yelled; he let go of Potter’s wrist and stirred the contents with fervor.

Harry curled his hand around the tails and peeked at the bubbling potion; it was now a dark purple. Not blue. The green eyed teen sighed and sat down on a stool, waiting until Malfoy gave him further instructions. Five minutes later, Draco made a sound and Harry snapped his eyes opened; he had dozed off. Seeing that Draco had stopped stirring, Harry stood up from the stool and carefully dropped the Salamander tails inside. The potion started bubbling again and Draco started to stir in a figure eight pattern.

“You can start with the bat wings now Potter,” Draco smirked, “Dice them, not chop.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Harry mumbled and reached for the jar with the bat wings. He glanced at his notes again; it said take five bat wings and dice. Shrugging, Harry took out five wings and started dicing them into small blocks.

“Are you done yet?” Malfoy asked impatiently after a few minutes had gone by.

Harry was just finishing with the last wing; he nodded curtly and picked up the whole cutting board. Draco inspected the diced wings and gave Harry a small nod. Harry tilted the board and let the small blocks of wings to roll into the now reddish potion. As Harry flicked a small piece off the board, he caught a whiff of the fumes.

It smelled like something that came from the garbage can.

“Merlin… Are we actually going to test this potion?!” Harry asked; he was sitting on his stool again, “That thing smells horrible!”

Draco rolled his eyes and chose to ignore Potter. He was quite glad that the potion was going well. No explosions, no smoke, no sizzles. Draco looked around the classroom and smirked. There were some with smoking cauldrons, some where making a weird whistling sound, and one was actually bubbling over with this black liquid. Malfoy laughed at those people in his head as he looked at his own cauldron.


It was turning a light pink, just as it should. He had to agree with Potter though. The smell was atrocious. Draco looked up again and found Snape barking at the group with the bubbled over potion.

‘At least Potter didn’t mess up the potion this time.’

Draco scooped up some of the pink liquid with the ladle and then let it dribble back into the cauldron. It was a bit watery. But he knew that after they add in two drops of the leech extract, it should turn into the right consistency. Draco turned to look at Harry—who was pushing the bottles around—and gave the brunet’s shoulder a shove. Harry turned his head and glared at Draco.

“What?” Harry grounded out. Draco arched his eyebrow and stared at Harry coolly.

“It’s time to put in the leech extract, Potter.”

Thinking that Potter knew what to do, Draco sat down on his stool to wait till the forty minutes were up.

Meanwhile, Harry had pulled the stopper from the vial of leech extract and was reading over his “trusty” notes. He had written ‘three drops of leech extract then let potion sit’.

‘Ah, that’s easy enough.’

“Malfoy, I’m going to put in the extract now.”

Draco flapped his hand at Harry without looking up at him, “Yeah, just put it in. Don’t move the ladle.”

“I know that Malfoy! It’s in my notes.” Harry snapped and used a dropper to drop three drops of the extract into the pink potion.

Harry watched as the grey extract settled into the thick, pink goo. Satisfied that the potion didn’t start bubbling or anything, Harry put the stopper back on the vial and waited until Snape would bark out more instructions.

Little did Harry know, the leech extract was a very stable ingredient. It would not react with anything, so of course there wouldn’t be any explosions or bubbles like Harry thought it would.

But with that one extra drop came unexpected results.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 2: Meet Harry Potter… Junior?

“Alright you incompetent brats!” Snape barked out suddenly; the whole class stilled,  

“Time’s up! Go fetch a medium sized vial and bottle up the potion!”

The sound of clinking glass was heard as students took out vials so that they can ladle their potions—or their attempted potion—inside. Harry growled as he pulled open a drawer to fish out the vial; Malfoy continued to sit on his stool, checking his perfect nails.

“Damnit Malfoy! Stop checking your nails!” Harry sniped, “Pull the stopper out for me.”

Draco lowered his hand and turned to face Harry, a smirk etched across his face.

“No, Potter. You pull out the stopper while I ladle the potion in. You would only spill most of it on the table and have like one drop in the vial.”

“I will not!” Harry cried angrily.

Draco blew on his cuticles and stood up from his stool elegantly. He gave Harry a ‘whatever’ look and took the ladle. The blond stirred the pink potion around, noting that it was a bit thicker than it was suppose to be. Not thinking much about it, Draco shrugged and scooped up a huge spoonful of the pink liquid.

“Hurry up, Potter.” Draco drawled, “Give me the vial so I can show it to Snape.”

Gritting his teeth, Harry yanked the stopper out and shoved the glass vial under Malfoy’s nose.

“Here’s the goddamn vial!”

“Potter, how do you expect me to pour the potion in when the vial is under my nose?”

Draco asked, “The potion’s in the cauldron, not in my nose.” He added sarcastically.

Harry growled deep in his throat and held the vial near the steaming cauldron. He watched as Malfoy carefully tipped the ladle near the neck of the glass vial and let the pink goo drip into the container.

Splat. Splat. Splat.

“Isn’t the potion a bit… thick?” Harry asked as the last drops of the potions spilled into the vial. “It looks more like pudding than a potion.”

As much as Draco hate to admit it… but Harry was right. The de-aging potion did look a bit thick. But he knew they had done everything correctly. Draco smirked to himself; there was nothing to worry about.

“Don’t worry about it, Potter.” Draco said, “The potion’s fine; you won’t turn into an old man when you drink it.”

“Hey! Who said I was going to drink it!” Harry said indignantly, “Why don’t you drink this vile concoction you call a potion?”

“I did most of the work Potter,” Draco sneered at the teen next to him, “Besides, Snape is going to make you drink it anyway.”

“You did nothing but stir! I did the chopping and cutting!” Harry fumed; his hands were forming into fists at his sides.

“Whatever, Potter.” Draco waved his hand dismissively at Harry’s face, “Anyway, put the stopper back on. Snape’s coming.”

And that was the end of their argument.

Harry was absolutely livid; there was no way in hell that he was going to drink that potion and turn five years younger. He didn’t even know how long the effects last!

Snape never said a word about it. For all he knew, he could be stuck a twelve year old for the whole week! Harry glanced up and found the greasy old bat of a professor walking towards his and Draco’s table. Harry sighed dejectedly; Malfoy was right, Snape would make him drink the potion. Like always.

“Mr. Malfoy… Mr. Potter,” Snape sent a sneer at Harry’s direction. “It seems like you have managed to make a decent de-aging potion. A first from all I’ve seen so far.” The Potions Master held the vial close to his face, “Everything seems to be in order. I’m impressed, Potter, that you didn’t burn this potion up.”

Before Harry could retort, Snape walked away, his black robes billowing behind him.

“He’s right you know,” Draco drawled, “I’m surprised this potion didn’t blow up. But then again, you are working with me after all.”

“Yeah, and I’m so thankful for that!” Harry grounded out.

By the time Snape was done inspecting each table’s product, the whole class was silent.

It was time for them to get a taste of their own medicine, literally.

“Alright you lot! Now I’m going to come around again and ask one of you to drink the potion. If made correctly, and I have to say not many of you did, the drinker will turn five years younger. The effects would only last for six hours so you will be back to normal by the time dinner comes. If made incorrectly then I truly feel sorry for you.”

Snape sneered at his class.

“Yeah, like you’ll feel sorry for any of us.” Harry mumbled under his breath. He snapped his mouth shut when he saw Snape glaring at him.

The Potions Master began walking around, pausing at each work table and pointed a finger at a random student. Harry watched wearily as Seamus Finnigan was the first person to drink the de-aging potion. Harry prayed silently that Seamus and his partner, Dean Thomas, had made the potion correctly. Green eyes widened as the pink liquid went down the Irish boy’s throat. In three seconds flat, Seamus was engulfed in a pink smoke (go figure) and in his place stood a good seven inches shorter version of himself.

Harry grinned; his Irish friend looked exactly like he did when they were in their second year.

“Very good Mr. Finnigan, Mr. Thomas. You may turn in the vial.” Snape said boringly and then marched on to where Neville was sitting with a Slytherin. “Longbottom, pull out the stopper and drink.”

Harry actually saw Neville’s Adam’s apple bobbed. With shaking hands, the slightly chubby boy pulled out the rubber stopper and tilted the vial. The Slytherin, Angela Kurtwood, watched nervously.

‘At least Neville wasn’t paired up with Crabbe or something.’ Harry thought as he waited for the puff of pink smoke.

The puff never came and instead Neville let out a small ‘eep’ and then shrunk three inches but looked just like his seventeen year old self. Snape smirked at Neville.

“Well, I must say Longbottom, this is progress. At least this time, you didn’t turn into a toad nor did your face erupt with boils.” Snape jerked his head, “Ms. Kurtwood, go put the vial on my desk… And Longbottom, you don’t look much different except a bit shorter so stop worrying.”

As Snape continued with the third group, Harry heard Draco scoff.

“It was pure luck that Longbottom didn’t turn into a frog this time,” Draco smirked,

“Angela, although it might not seem like it, do know some things about potions.”

“Oh shut up, you arrogant prick,” Harry muttered harshly, not too loud for Snape to hear. Draco’s lips curled into a sneer but did not retort. “Just wait when you’re the one drinking this potion. You’re going to become an itty bitty Malfoy.”

“Ha fucking Ha. Very funny, Potter.” Draco said dryly, “We all know how Snape loves you. You’re the one that’s drinking it.”

Harry flushed with anger and it took every ounce of self-control to not bash Malfoy’s face with his fists. So instead, Harry ignored Draco’s comment and watched as more fellow classmates drank their finished products.

By the time that it was only Harry and Draco left, there were two people that turned into dwarves, one person had her hair burst into flames (Snape had to cast Aquamenti to douse the fire), a Slytherin boy turned into a girl (Harry wonder how they actually managed that), and Goyle became naked. The poor boy rushed out of the classroom and Snape banished the remains of Ron and Goyle’s potion. The rest of the class did fairly well. By now, Harry was extremely nervous.

“Mr. Potter, why don’t you take a drink of that potion?” Snape said, pointing at the glass vial in front of him.

Harry gulped and glanced sideways at the blond. Draco smirked and gave Harry a look that said ‘I told you so’. Sighing, Harry pulled the stopper out and threw his head back, grimacing at the foul taste as the potion slid down his throat. He gagged and coughed a few times but felt nothing different. Just as he was about to ask if something was wrong, Harry felt a tingling sensation running up his spine.

‘Okay… so I guess it’s working.’

Draco watched anxiously; Potter had digested that potion for a minute and still looked the same. He was starting to worry that something had gone wrong when Harry let out a small gasp. A look of pain appeared on the brunet’s face.

“Potter? Potter, are you…” Draco asked; Harry was now clutching his stomach and was doubled over. Draco looked up at Snape worriedly, “Sir, what’s happening? I-We did everything… It’s not supposed to be like this!”

Severus scowled and peered into their cauldron. Something was off, he just knew it.

“Malfoy, how many drops of leech extract did you put in here? It looks too thick… and the coloring is more red than pink.”

“I-Potter was the one that put the drops in,” Draco murmured.

Harry snapped opened his eyes and gripped the edge of the table with one hand while the other was clutching his middle.

“I-I put th-three drops…” Harry hissed; the pain was excruciating.

“Three?! Potter, I wrote ‘two drops’ on the board!” Snape barked.

“My god… Potter you put three? I thought you were using your notes!” Malfoy exclaimed, “Professor, is Potter poisoned or something?”

“Fuck… it hurts…” Harry gritted. He sucked in a deep breath when he felt as if something was eating his insides.

The rest of the class was now gathered around Harry and Draco. The Gryffindors were looking worriedly while the Slytherins were smirking, although some seemed like they were concerned. Snape scowled and looked up at Draco and jerked his head in the direction of the vial.

“Draco, pour some potion--”

Severus never finished that sentence for Harry, right at that moment, let out a scream.

Students scurried away and as they dove behind their desks, a white cloud covered Harry, Draco, and Snape. Draco had ducked when the cloud appeared; his arms were over his head in protection. Severus, on the other hand, had backed away when he heard Potter scream. Everyone else slowly peered over their tables and watched as the thick cloud cleared away. Draco slowly opened his eyes and was horrified to see that in Potter’s place, was a pile of robes.

“Oh Merlin… Shit… Shit!” Draco stuttered, eyes glued to the robes.

Snape coughed and waved his hand in front of him to clear away the smoke. He found Draco staring down at black robes… with no body to hold it up.

“What happened to Potter?” Snape barked.

“I-I don’t--” Draco was interrupted when he saw the robes wriggle and then it let out a whimper. Grey eyes widened to the size of golf balls. “No fucking way…” Draco was still stunned when something under those robes let out a loud, screeching wail.

Snape looked down then back up at Draco. Malfoy gulped and slowly crouched down to remove the robes. He gasped as he uncovered a small, crying baby Potter in all his naked glory. His glasses were now way too big for his face, his mop of hair was still messy, and Harry’s skin was now pinkish. Tears were trailing down Harry’s chubby cheeks; green eyes turned round when they saw Draco’s face and he stopped crying.

Whimpering, baby Harry reached out for Draco. Never batting an eye, Draco scooped up the wriggling baby, robes and all, and held him in the crook of his arms. He looked down and found baby Harry blinking his teary eyes at him, while blowing spit bubbles.

Draco didn’t know whether he should coo or be disgusted at the baby. Draco took off the glasses from baby Harry’s face and pocketed it in his own robes.

“Well, fuck.”
======================================================
After the smoke had cleared away, Snape told the whole class to leave at once. Granger and Weasley wanted to stay behind but the Potions Master pushed them out of the room as well. Before they left they sent Draco death glares—as if he was going to do something to Harry—and walked out of the dungeons.

Draco sat on a stool while Snape was rambling about stupid Gryffindors and how they can’t even read the instructions correctly; he bottled the remains of Draco and Harry’s potion so that he can analyze it. All the while, Harry was contently lying in Draco’s arms, his eyes wide. Draco looked down and smirked. Who would’ve thought Harry Potter would become a small baby? Nobody saw this coming.

“Professor, can I transfigure smaller sized clothes for Potter? He’ll catch a cold if he continues to be naked.”

Snape only grunted and then he rushed to his private quarters, leaving Draco with a drooling Harry.

“That shirt has got to go Potter,” Draco mumbled; Harry gurgled and waved his chubby arms at the blonde’s face. Draco couldn’t help but grin at the baby’s antics. “I hate to admit it, but you’re a cute little baby…” Then realizing what he just said, Draco scowled.

“This is between you and me, Potter.”

Harry smiled and blew more bubbles.

Draco sighed and with his free hand, took out his wand. He waved it over Harry’s body and in a flash the oversized robes turned into a light-blue baby romper suit with little bunnies hopping around. Draco nodded and tucked his wand away.

“Now that’s much better,” Draco said. “Not that fond of the rabbits but whatever.”

“Da!” Harry babbled suddenly; Draco arched his eyebrow and smirked.

“I’m not your father, but then I guess you can’t really say much can you?”

“Da…” Harry said and his face scrunched up and started whimpering.

“Oh no, don’t you dare cry Potter…” Draco whispered at the baby; Harry paid no attention to the older teen and started sobbing.

Draco gritted his teeth and stood up; he cradled Harry and began walking back and forth, all the while bouncing the baby lightly. Harry’s sobs became soft whimpers and he shifted in Draco’s arms until his face was pressed into the blonde’s robes. Malfoy looked down; Harry had one small hand wrapped around his robes while the other was in his mouth. The baby’s eyes were slowly drooping and Draco stopped pacing and walked carefully back to his stool and sat down. Draco slowly traced his index finger down Harry’s cheeks—while balancing the baby in one arm—and smiled at how soft the skin was, albeit it was a little wet.

“I’m going soft…” Draco muttered but he was smiling nonetheless. “You’re just a baby after all… Despite what you think of me Potter, I’m not cold-hearted.”

Harry’s reply was the sound of him sucking his thumb.

Draco chuckled softly and held the bundle in his arms closer to his chest. The baby let out a small sigh and snuggled deeper into the robes. Snape rushed back out and stood before Draco, his eyes narrowed at the scene before him. Draco looked up at his professor and shrugged.

“He was crying.” Draco said. Like that was the best explanation in the world.

Snape sneered, “Mr. Malfoy, come with me. I was just talking with the Headmaster about this predicament and he said it’s best if you go to his office right now.”

“Right now?” Draco asked, “But… my classes--”

“You are excused for the remainder of the day,” Snape interrupted, “Now go, I’ll take your things with me and I’ll see you at the Headmaster’s office. You have to walk there, can’t expect you to go by Floo with a baby in your arms.”

Draco scowled but nodded, “What’s the password to Dumbledore’s office?”

“Sherbet Lemon.”
======================================================
Draco held back a gasp as he stepped into Professor Dumbledore’s office. It was huge and highly decorated. There were multiple paintings hanging on the walls; all were of previous Headmasters of Hogwarts. Draco looked to the left and high on a shelf was the tattered old Sorting Hat. It was mumbling something and Draco assumed it was sleeping.

Draco looked down again and was relieved to find Harry still sleeping soundly in his arms.

It wasn’t too bad when the brunet wasn’t crying his eyes out. The Slytherin went up a couple of steps until he was in front of Dumbledore’s desk. The old wizard was sitting, with his hands folded. His blue eyes were twinkling above his half-moon spectacles.

Severus Snape was sitting in one of the wingback chairs in front of the desk.

Dumbledore smiled and gestured for Draco to sit; the blond sat down and waited.

“Well Mr. Malfoy, Severus here told me what happened during your Potions class,”
Dumbledore said softly; he moved a bit closer and peered down at the sleeping baby, “I see that Harry is safe and sound.”

“Why am I called Professor?” Draco asked, unconsciously holding Harry more tightly.

“Ah, I have a proposition to make,” Dumbledore smiled, “Seeing how young Harry can’t go back to stay with his fellow Gryffindors anymore and we don’t know how long it would take Severus to make the antidote, I want you to be Harry’s caretaker, Mr. Malfoy.”

“What!?” Draco cried out; Harry shifted and whimpered in Draco’s arms. Malfoy held his breath and bounced the baby lightly. “You’re asking me to take care of Potter?” Draco hissed, softly.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying.” Dumbledore replied; his blue eyes were twinkling madly now. “I’ve already arranged it. You will have your own rooms; all the baby things are already there. You will stay there until Severus have the antidote ready and I won’t take no for an answer.”

Severus coughed, “Yes, hopefully I’ll have the antidote ready soon. But I don’t know the exact time period.” Draco groaned and leaned back against his chair.

“Well, double fuck.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 3: What’s a Rubber Duck?

“So you’re basically saying that I have to baby-sit Potter for Merlin knows how long?” Draco asked; he was holding down Harry’s hands for the baby was trying to rip out Draco’s ears.


“That’s what I’ve said,” Dumbledore replied. Draco growled but when he noticed two round, green eyes staring at him, his face softened.


“… But wouldn’t the potion leave Potter’s system? I mean, the original potion only works for six hours… maybe Potter will be normal by tomorrow or something.” Draco suggested hopefully.


Snape shook his head. “It doesn’t work that way Draco. The instructions, the amount of ingredient used were only intended to make someone younger by five years.”


Snape paused and stared at the de-aged teen; Harry waved his arms at the professor and gurgled. Severus rolled his eyes. “Potter here is now perhaps a fifteen month old child. Take or give a few months. Either way, that’s a deficit of sixteen years. From one to seventeen… that’s a huge gap. His body won’t be able to tolerate the changes.”

Draco was taken aback; he looked at the small child who was now reaching—and failing—for the bowl of lemon drops on the Headmaster’s table. Draco absently pulled Harry back to his chest before the toddler fell out of his lap.


“His… Potter’s memories… Are they affected?” Draco murmured; he had one arm wrapped across Harry’s tummy while the other hand was playing with his tiny feet. It was all to keep Potter occupied, and it’s working quite nicely.


“I can’t say for sure,” Snape answered slowly, hesitantly, “There’s a good chance they’re not affected; he may or may not remember the things that happened during his baby state. If he doesn’t remember when he’s back to normal… then there is simply a blank space between the time he drank the potion and the time he turns back to his seventeen year old self. I will analyze the potion tonight and hopefully I can start making the antidote, or I guess the ‘aging potion’, in one or two days.”


Draco nodded dazedly; it was a lot to take in. He moved the baby around until Harry was sitting securely on his lap. Harry began smacking Draco’s thighs with his small palms while looking down at his romper suit. Harry poked at one of the hopping bunnies and giggled; a glob of drool dripped onto the suit.


Draco winced and was glad he wasn’t holding Potter to his chest.


“You’re drooling enough to take a bath with,” Draco muttered.


The blond reached into his robe and took out a white handkerchief and wiped the drool off Harry’s chin diligently. Harry protested and tried to push Draco’s hand and the offending white cloth away but Malfoy was determined. Using force wasn’t going to get anything done so Draco used the other thing: gentleness.


“No, Harry… Be a nice little boy…” Draco murmured as he wiped the drool of Harry’s face. Harry pouted but he had also stopped twisting his head away. Draco beamed at the baby boy, “See? That wasn’t so bad was it?”


Harry answered by sticking his thumb in his mouth. Draco shook his head and stuffed his now wet handkerchief inside his pocket. He then looked up at Snape, then Dumbledore.


“Professors… Can I leave now?” Draco asked wearily; it was a trying day.


“You may leave…” Dumbledore started; Draco sat up straighter, “… After Madam Pomfrey comes and gives Harry a checkup.” Draco groaned.


Madam Pomfrey came by Floo a few minutes later. She had heard what had happened to Harry from the Headmaster himself so when she saw the baby in Draco’s arms, she wasn’t too surprised. Pomfrey smiled warmly at the toddler and Harry answered by blowing raspberries; Professor Snape stood up from his chair and without having the medi-witch asking him to do so, he transfigured his chair into a small examining table.


“Mr. Malfoy, can you bring Harry here please?” Pomfrey asked; Draco rose from his seat and gently laid Potter onto the small table.


Harry mewled once he was away from Draco’s body but the blond stood nearby, offering his forefinger when Harry reached for it. The green eyed baby held it tightly and shook Draco’s finger like a rattle.


“Thank you Mr. Malfoy for keeping Harry calm… Now I’ll just have to undress him.”


Madam Pomfrey then waved her wand over the small body. The tip of her wand turned light blue; Harry released Draco’s finger and instead, tried reaching for the glowing wand. Madam Pomfrey cooed at the baby and tickled Harry’s tummy as she continued her checkup. Harry flashed a small, toothy smile and brought his short, chubby legs up and kicked the air. She smiled and tucked her wand back in after she finished checking.


“Mr. Potter is in perfect health… It seems the potion turned him into a thirteen month old baby. He should be able to say simple, one syllable words… although he hadn’t said much.” The medi-witch chuckled and tickled Harry under the chin; the baby giggled merrily. “I see nothing wrong with him. Mr. Malfoy, you have yourself a very healthy baby boy!”




“Yeah…” Draco rolled his eyes, “Aren’t I the lucky one?”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


“Well, here we are,” Snape stopped in front of a very large portrait; it was of a lady sitting on a bench, holding a white, lacy umbrella. “The password is ‘Rubber Duck’.” Snape shuddered; the lady in the portrait giggled.


Draco scoffed and shifted his shoulder to prevent his book bag from slipping off.
“What the hell is a rubber duck?!” Draco asked, moving his face away from baby Harry’s head.


“It’s a Muggle play thing.” Snape answered.


Harry had fallen asleep once more after Madam Pomfrey’s checkup. But as Draco and Severus began walking to Draco’s private rooms, it jostled Harry and he woke up.


Harry had his arms wrapped loosely around the blonde’s neck and was looking at his surroundings as they passed by statues and paintings. Everything looked so big.


When they stopped, Harry fussed. The big boy holding him had stopped moving. And so, to get Draco’s attention, Harry started crying.


“Hush, Potter.” Draco whispered and gave the small child in his arms comforting pats. “Stop crying… Don’t you get tired from crying?”


Harry rubbed his eyes with his chubby hand and pouted. “Da…”


Snape arched an eyebrow, “Is Potter calling you his father?”


“I don’t think so… Guess he can only say so much.” Draco shrugged and pressed the baby closer to his chest.


Harry sniffed and buried his face into the crook of Draco’s neck. He fisted Draco’s blond hair and tugged. Seeing that they didn’t come off like he wanted them to, Harry tugged again and this time he moved his mouth closer to the gold strands.


Draco had felt the first pull of his hair but didn’t mind it so much. But when Harry pulled on his hair the second time and felt chewing, he moved his head away from the baby—which removed his hair from Harry’s hand—and frowned.


‘Damnit! My hair is covered with baby spit!’


Draco breathed through his nostrils and let it out slowly. He was not going to yell at a teen-turned-infant Potter. So instead he tapped the tip of Harry’s tiny nose with his finger. Harry made a grab for the digit but Draco pulled away just in time.


“Hair is not food Po-Harry,” Draco chided the young child, “Are you hungry?”

Harry blinked a few times and tilted his head as if he understood what Draco just asked. Maybe he did understand, but nobody knew. Harry opened his mouth and for a second Draco was worried Potter was going to cry again, but instead, Harry let out a giggle and pulled himself closer to the blond. The green eyed baby leaned in and gave Draco a wet baby kiss on the cheek.


“’wry!” Harry chirped happily and clapped Draco’s face with both of his hands.


Draco was still shocked from the kiss Harry gave him. He thought he would flip when Potter pressed his wet mouth on his face. But… it wasn’t that bad. Draco shook his head and glared half-heartedly at the wriggling baby in his arms.


‘He’s a baby Draco, he’s just being… cute.’


“Well, it seems Mr. Potter can speak, although not clearly.” Snape said uncaringly, “Draco, you should head inside. If you need anything, you can always call a house-elf. Ask them to bring you and Potter lunch; I think it’s unwise to go out publicly right now.”


“Yeah… sure.” Draco mumbled; he smiled when Harry was burrowing into his robes again, “I should let Potter rest. He’s been… uh… overly excited.”


“Of course,” Snape’s lips curled into a sneer; he turned and faced the lady in the painting, “Rubber Duck.”


The portrait swung inward and revealed an elegantly decorated living quarter. Both Draco and Severus stepped inside; once again, Harry was immediately alert to his new surroundings. He stuck his small thumb in his mouth and sucked, his green eyes taking in the picture of his new living space. Draco walked by the living room, decorated with two medium sized couches, a solid cherry wood coffee table, a couple of small bookcases, and what seemed to be a playpen for baby Harry.


“I’ll let you get acquainted with your living quarters,” Snape said suddenly, “I have another class in ten minutes and must go back to tidy up the classroom.”


“We’ll be fine… After I get Har—Potter to eat and sleep, I’ll have lunch.” Draco nodded at Snape to tell his professor that he can leave.


“Very well. If you need anything, you know you can contact me or the Headmaster.”


And then, Snape turned and left, the portrait closing behind him.


Draco sighed tiredly and held Harry higher so that their eyes were leveled.


“It’s just you and me now, Potter.” Draco said in a soft tone.


Harry cooed and tried to reach for Draco’s nose. The blond chuckled and moved his head back, away from the searching fingers.


“Alright, let’s see what they gave you to play with…” Draco murmured and walked over to where the playpen sat.


He was by the side and peered in; Harry twisted his head and looked down at the small pen. There were some plushy blocks, a couple of stuffed animals, and a soft, fluffy baby blanket. Harry squealed and clapped his small hands together then pointed down at one of the stuffed animals.


“Dacky?”


Draco frowned and followed the path of the pointing finger; it wasn’t a duck—if that’s what Harry said—at all, not even a bird. The Slytherin snorted; it was a stuffed dragon.


“Only you would call it a duck,” Draco told the squirming child; Harry paid no heed to what Draco said and continued to point at the dragon.


“Dacky…” Harry murmured and lips began to tremble slightly.


At the first moment Draco heard the tremble in Harry’s voice, he was alert. He slowly bent down and picked up the stuffed green dragon. The toy opened its jaws and a small puff of smoke came out. Draco held the dragon in front of Harry and waited for the baby to take hold of it. Once the dragon was in Harry’s line of sight, the brunet smiled widely and smacked a wet one on the dragon’s head. Draco shook his head in bemusement; it seemed like Potter liked to kiss everything and anything. Draco shook the stuffed dragon a few times and finally, Harry grabbed it and squeezed; the dragon let out an angry snort.


“Don’t squeeze the dra—Dacky too hard,” Draco warned; he rolled his eyes when all Harry did was wave the dragon above his small head. “I knew you wouldn’t understand… Great… I’m calling a bloody dragon Dacky.”


Draco sighed in defeat when baby Harry started chewing on the dragon’s tail; the poor toy was snorting angrily.


“Right… You’re hungry. I should get you a bottle…” Draco muttered and padded away from the playpen—with Harry happily chewing on the dragon’s tail—and sat down in one of the couches.


‘Where the hell am I going to find a fuckin’ bottle?’ Draco thought frustratingly, ‘Ah, yes. House-elves.’


Draco snapped his fingers and almost immediately a house-elf appeared in front of Draco. Its tennis ball sized eyes peered up at the towering blond.


“What can I helps you with?” the elf squeaked; Draco leaned slightly forward, with Harry still biting the dragon’s tail, and smiled thinly at the elf.


“Can you bring a warm bottle for the baby and a plate of sandwiches for me please?”


Draco asked while trying to avoid being whacked by the stuffed toy. “Oh, and I would also like a glass of pumpkin juice.”


“Right away sirs! Me will bring what you need!” the elf bowed and disappeared with a ‘pop’. The elf appeared two minutes later with the bottle and food. It set the tray on the coffee table and was gone after Draco thanked it.


Draco sighed and lifted baby Harry and placed the giggling child next to him on the couch. Harry ‘ohhed’ and started to hit the couch with the dragon. Draco chuckled and laid one hand on Harry’s leg, just in case the baby got too excited and rolled off the couch. Sensing Draco’s hand on him, Harry stopped pounding the couch with the stuff dragon and just let his small body slid sideways until his head hit Draco’s hips.


Not wanting to bother in trying to figure out what baby Harry was doing, Draco just sat there, very still, and watched.


Harry rolled, with some difficulty, onto his stomach. He tilted his head up and found the big blond boy looking down at him. Harry scrunched up his face in determination and dragged himself over Draco’s lap.


“Up! Up, Da…” Harry babbled; he giggled shrilly when two big hands were under each of his armpits to lift him up.


Draco smiled lightly when Harry told him to pick him up. He obliged and lifted the toddler up and plopped him down on his lap again, with Harry facing him. Harry clapped his hand on Draco’s chest and let himself fall forward, his cheeks pressed onto the front of Draco’s robes.


Draco sighed and carded his hand lightly through Harry’s soft locks. He reached forward and took the warm baby bottle; Draco shifted Harry until the baby was half lying in his arms. He pressed the rubber nipple to Harry’s lips and the brunet promptly started suckling. Draco watched in half amazement.


‘I’m actually feeding a baby! A baby Potter no less…’

Harry continued to suckle the baby formula through the rubber nipple with fervor; he was hungry. Tiny fingers wrapped around Draco’s wrist and Harry pulled away, the nipple came off with a small ‘pop’. Potter yawned and licked his lips. Draco left the bottle on the couch—it was empty—and rocked Harry slowly.


“Da…” Harry sighed and nuzzled Draco’s arm.


“You really should stop calling me your father…” Draco murmured, watching as
Harry’s eyes began to close, “I wonder if you’ll remember any of this when you’re normal again…”


Harry screwed up his face and let out another long, tired yawn.


Draco snickered, “Let’s get you to bed shall we?”


The blond stood up slowly and walked to the back. He opened one of the doors and revealed the bedroom. In the middle was a four poster bed, covered with a dark green bed sheet; along the headboard were four pillows. A small cot was placed close to the bed and Draco walked up to it. He pulled back the soft blanket and gently laid Harry down. The baby didn’t make a sound and continued sleeping soundly. Draco then pulled the blanket back up and covered Harry, tucking in the sides so the toddler wouldn’t throw the blanket off. Draco smirked as he watched the rise and fall of Harry’s chest; his breathing was a slow, even rhythm.


“I hope you'll remember… I really hope so.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 4: Day One: A Night with Harry

After making sure that Harry was sound asleep, Draco quietly walked out of the bedroom and went on to explore the rest of his new, personal room. He turned left from the bedroom and came across another door; this one was painted white with animated baby barn animals painted on. Draco didn’t even bother to open the door to know it was the nursery. However, curiosity got the best of him and he went inside anyway.


“Holy shit… this room is filled with fluffy animals!” Draco exclaimed.


The walls were painted baby blue with tufts of white clouds. Every once in awhile, a small, black bird flew across the so-called sky; Draco walked to one of the shelves—it was stocked with dozens of stuffed farm animals—and picked up a mooing cow.


“Potter will have a field day when I show him this room…”


Draco chuckled when he thought how happy Harry was going to be… then his mind wandered to how Potter will chew and kiss every one of them. Shaking his head, Draco placed the cow back with the pig and duck.


“Dumbledore totally went overboard on this…” Draco muttered; he walked away from the shelf and was now admiring a miniature slide in the middle of the room. “Even the slide is baby-safe.”


The slide was in the shape of a small elephant… a pink elephant. Its trunk was the part where baby Harry can slide down of. Surrounding the slide were multiple cushions, held in place by a permanent sticking charm. Draco knew this because he had kicked one just to see if it would move or not. So if Harry landed on his small little bum once he slid down, he would not hurt himself. The Slytherin gave the small slide a pat before walking on, inspecting the other objects in the room. Not too far away from the pink elephant was a miniature swing, made for only one person.


Draco shook his head in amusement as he pushed the seat and watched it move back and forth like a pendulum.


“This isn’t some nursery… it’s a freakin’ playroom for Harry!” Draco rolled his eyes and stilled the swinging seat. “I wouldn’t be too surprised if I find a small plastic ball pool.”

Draco explored a bit more before he walked out, with the thought of bringing Harry here to play later on in the day. The blond padded towards the living room and dropped unceremoniously onto the couch. Draco’s book bag was left on the ground by the coffee table when Harry needed to eat. Draco flipped over the flap and took out his Charms textbook along with a few pieces of parchment, a bottle of black ink, and a quill; he set them all on the small table in front of him.


“Thankfully tomorrow is Saturday and there are no classes…” Draco murmured; he unrolled the parchment and picked up the black feathered quill, biting the tip. “Not much homework today… Lucky me. I should finish up before Potter wakes up and starts screaming his lungs out.”


The blond started scribbling on the parchment; there was a foot long essay due for Charms on Monday. As he was flipping through the Charms textbook, Draco’s eyes widened when he realized he might have to take the baby with him to class. Neither Dumbledore nor Snape told him anything about that.


“Oh no… No, no, no! I’m going to look like a mother with a child! …Fuck.”

By the time Draco finished with the foot long essay, an hour had passed. He rolled his shoulder to relieve the kinks and glanced around the living room and found what he was looking for. A grandfather clock sat by an archway that led to what Draco assumed was the dining area. It was almost four in the afternoon, just an hour and a half before dinner. Draco dropped the quill into the ink bottle and stretched his tired muscles; he twisted his back a couple of times until he heard his joints popped.


“Mm… I should check on Potter…” Draco said and yawned. He pushed himself up from the couch and made his way to the bedroom.


The door quietly opened and Draco slipped in and closed it again, careful not to make any sounds. He tiptoed across the carpeted floor and finally peered down at the sleeping baby. Draco smiled; Harry was now sleeping on his stomach, one hand curled around the corner of the soft blanket, the other hand tucked beneath his small pillow. Draco saw wet splotches on the pillow and chuckled; Harry’s mouth was parted and drool was just dribbling out freely. Malfoy reached down and carded his fingers through Potter’s baby-fine hair; Harry sighed in his sleep and leaned in slightly to the soft touches.


“I think a bath is in order after we eat…” Draco murmured; he was just watching the baby sleep now. “I have a feeling you’re going to be a messy eater, Potter.”


In reply, Harry snuggled deeper into the pillow. Draco shook his head and walked over to his bed. He fell on top of it and rolled until he was in the middle.


“I’ll just take a nap and…” Draco yawned loudly, “… wake up in two hours.”
The blond closed his eyes and drifted off into an easy slumber, his last thought on how soft Harry’s hair was.

Draco rolled over and stayed that way; he was only half awake and was lying on the bed like a starfish. He threw his left arm across his abdomen and scratched an itch through his shirt.


‘Ugh… don’t feel like waking up… I had too much excitement in one day.’ Draco sighed and rolled over to his side, about to fall asleep again, when he heard whimpering coming from the side of his bed.


“What’s that noise…?” Draco mumbled; his brain was still hazy from sleep to remember that he was taking care of a toddler.


The whimpering turned into sobs; Harry was sitting upright in his cot, his small fists knuckling his eyes. The big boy wasn’t coming for him; Harry wanted the blond boy to hold him. Harry sniffed and reached out through the bars surrounding the cot. He hiccupped and scooted closer to the edge of the small bed.


“Daco…” Harry burbled; he was red in the cheeks, dried tear trails marked the skin.
Draco groaned, ‘Daco? Da… CRAP!’


His eyes snapped open and found a bawling baby Harry reaching out, even though they were feet apart. Draco scrambled off the bed and was by Harry’s side in four steps. Teary green eyes gazed up at him. Once Harry saw the big boy towering over him, he pulled his arm back and reached up, asking in silence for Draco to pick him up.


“So you’ve been saying my name all along… I thought you were calling me your Dad or something…” Draco murmured as he picked up the tiny being, along with the stuffed dragon that was nearby.


Harry immediately stopped sobbing once he was in Draco’s arms; the blond offered the dragon and Harry grasped it in his small hand. Harry swiped the side of the stuffed doll on Draco’s cheek and laid his head on the blonde’s shoulder. Draco winced when he felt his shirt became wet where Harry’s nose touched. He sighed and padded over to a bureau where all the baby things were held. Draco pulled out the topmost drawer and found different colors and designs of baby romper suits, small shirts and pairs of trousers, and tiny little white socks. Harry sniffed again and Draco remembered what he was supposed to be looking for. He closed the drawer and scavenged; he then found the drawer filled with baby cleaning products. Taking out a small hanky, Draco cleaned Harry’s snot covered face. As Draco held the dirty hanky—wondering where he can put it—it disappeared from his hand. He looked down into the drawer and found a clean one taking the previous handkerchief’s place.

‘Nice… I don’t have to worry about cleaning things then.’ Draco turned his head a bit and found Harry whacking the dragon on his shoulder blade.


“Are you hungry?” Draco asked softly; Harry let out something that sounded like ‘Bah!’ and kept on hitting Draco’s back. “O…k. I’ll take that as a no. And stop hitting me with the doll Harry, the drag—Dacky is getting annoyed.”


And it was; the dragon was now growling and puffs of smoke were coming from its snout.


“No.” Harry frowned and waved the green dragon around. Draco arched his eyebrows and smirked.


“I believe you are starting to say words I actually understand,” Draco praised, “You want to see your playroom?”


“Pwaywoom?” Harry repeated and tilted his head to the side; his waving arm was now limp on the side.


Draco chuckled and walked out of their bedroom, “Yes, Potter, playroom. Oh you’re going to love it.” Harry squealed and wrapped his short, chubby arms around Draco’s neck. Draco was glad the baby’s face wasn’t covered with tears and snot anymore.


“Wuv!”


“Now you’re just repeating everything I said, Harry.”


“No.”


Draco sighed.



Once Draco stepped foot inside the playroom, he placed Harry down on the green carpeted floor. Baby Harry giggled happily and toddled over to the pink slide. Draco smirked when he saw the miniature Potter tried to hug the plaything and threw Dacky the dragon down the slide, watching it tumble.


Draco snorted, ‘The slide’s as tall as him.’ He broke away from his thoughts when he saw Harry trying to climb to the top of the slide. Draco gasped and rushed over when Potter was on the second rail.


“You don’t start climbing until I’m nearby!” Draco chided the young child; Harry held on tightly to the sides and turned his head to look at Draco.
“Up!”
“Don’t you ‘up!’ me, young man! I--” Draco stopped in mid-sentence. ‘Oh shit… I sound like a mother.’


Draco groaned at the realization but helped the toddler up nonetheless. He stood at the side of the pink elephant and watched Harry slide down and landing on the pile of cushions. Harry clapped his hands together and giggled; he pushed himself off his bum and wobbled to the ladder to climb up again. This time, Draco helped Harry up with the toddler asking him to do so. He pressed one hand on the small of Harry’s back and supported the baby until Harry was at the top of the slide. The green eyed baby dropped onto his bum and slid down with Harry laughing all the way. Draco chuckled when Potter reached the bottom and just sat there, in the middle of the cushion pile. Harry turned his head and smiled widely at Draco.


“Daco!” Harry beamed and pointed to the swing set. Draco rolled his eyes and went over to the sitting baby and picked him up. He tapped the tip of Harry’s nose.


“It’s ‘Draco’ not ‘Daco’. Can you say Draco?” The blond asked patiently. Harry scrunched up his face in concentration; Draco laughed softly, “I’m surprised you remember my name, Potter.”


Harry pouted and patted Draco’s cheek. “Dway?”


Draco sighed, “So now we’re down to ‘Dray’. It’s better than Daco I guess…” He smoothed Harry’s soft hair back, away from the baby’s face. “What would you do if you remembered everything? Are you going to hate me more because I’m the one that has to take care of you?” Draco asked the baby.


Harry cooed and gave Draco a toothy grin. “Dway!” and Harry started squirming; Draco took the cue to walk to the swing set.


He plopped the squirming baby onto the seat of the swing; it was very secure so there was no way Harry can tumble off. Draco guided Harry’s small hands to the ropes connected to the seat and wrapped the short fingers around it. More than once, Harry wanted to let go but when Draco started pushing, he instinctively held tighter. When the seat swung higher, Harry giggled and started kicking his legs; Draco stopped pushing and just let momentum do its work.


“Fy!” Harry squealed; Draco cocked his head and smiled.


“Flying? Even as a baby you always think of flying.” Draco murmured; he watched as the swing slowed down and Harry reached out for him.


“Dway… ‘o up!” Harry demanded in his baby voice, trying to sound fierce. Draco laughed and pushed the swing again.


“If you were in your rightful age, I would’ve hexed you for asking me to do things for you.”


“No!” Harry giggled, legs kicking.


Draco just smirked, his mercury colored eyes following the swing baby, whose hair was flying around, making it messier.


‘You know that deep down, you wouldn’t do it.’ His inner voice said, ‘And you know I’m right. I’m always right.’


Draco sighed in resignation for the second time in one hour.

“Hush, Harry…” Draco said warily; he was rummaging through the drawers for a clean nappy. A crying, squirming, and dirty Harry lay on a huge towel on the floor, the bottom half of his body—bare.


Ten minutes ago, Harry was happily rolling around on the soft carpeted floor, with various stuffed animals around. Draco was sitting nearby watching Harry roll, when all of a sudden, Harry stopped moving and scrunched up his face until it turned red.


Draco had noticed the lack of movement and was about to pick up the baby when a nasty smell permeated the playroom. The blond was shocked beyond words until
Harry’s cry broke his stupor. Half of Draco’s mind didn’t want to pick up Harry who just soiled his nappy, while the other half wanted to comfort Harry and change him into a clean diaper. So holding his breath, Draco picked up the toddler and rushed out of the playroom, with Harry still screaming.


Now, Draco had taken off the trousers—that wasn’t too hard—and he had closed his eyes when he took off the soiled nappy. Draco had hoped and prayed that the dirty diaper would vanish just like the hanky he used to clean Harry’s snot covered face.


He sighed in relief when the smelly object disappeared in a flash. No way in hell was he going to wrap the dirty diaper into a ball and throw it away. So with a bare-bottom Harry crying and wriggling on a clean towel, Draco went to the bureau in search of a clean nappy and some baby wipes.


“I am NOT made for this…” Draco groaned, “It stinks, it’s disgusting… and did I say it stinks?”


Draco slammed a drawer closed and went to the next one; he cried out in joy when the contents were of boxes of baby wipes and nicely folded clean diapers. There was also a bottle of baby powder but Draco left that alone. Taking a box of wipes and a diaper, Draco moved—on his knees—back to the crying Harry. He looked down into the puffy eyes and frowned; Harry looked right back at him but continued sobbing.


“I had hoped you wouldn’t just… release the contents from your bowels…” Draco muttered and dropped the things in his hand near the baby. “But I guess you can’t help it.”


The blond opened the box of wipes and took one sheet out. He lifted Harry’s chubby legs until he could see his little bum. Turning his head to the side, Draco blindly wiped the dirty places.


“Buggering hell! Nasty, disgusting, awful smelling… crap!” Draco cursed, not even thinking that he had just cussed in front of a baby Harry. He released his hold on Harry’s legs and tossed the dirty wipe away from him; it disappeared once it touched the floor. “Thank Merlin I don’t have to… throw it away myself.” Draco took out another baby wipe and cleaned again, just to make sure Harry’s bum was free of stains.


Harry had stopped crying once he felt the coolness of the soft wipes. He was now gurgling softly and Draco looked up to glare at the child.


“Yeah, you’re happy because you’re clean now! I’m the one that has to do all the dirty work.”


Harry cooed at him, “Cwap.”


Draco growled, “Don’t you start cursing now…” Harry giggled in reply.


Muttering under his breath, Draco snatched the clean nappy and unfolded it. He spread it out on top of the towel and lifted Harry’s legs again, moving the baby until his bum was over the diaper.


“Alright… I-Oh hell, I don’t know how a diaper goes!” Draco fumed. Just as he was about to wrap Harry’s bottom with the diaper—in whatever way he pleased—the diaper automatically wound around Harry’s hips, fitting perfectly. “Ah, the wonders of magic.” Draco smirked.


Because the baby trousers were not dirtied, Draco donned it on Harry. He pulled them over Harry’s legs and fastened it up.


“Alright Potter, you’re all clean now.” Draco looked down and tickled Harry’s tummy; the brunet wiggled and laughed under Draco’s touches. “You should thank me. I did pretty well for my first time.” Draco went on and tickled Harry’s tiny feet. “So thank me.”


Harry squealed loudly and then smiled at the big boy above him. Draco returned the smile and picked Harry up. Potter snuggled in Draco’s arms, his cheeks pressed against Draco’s shoulder.


“Wuv Dway…” Harry sighed.


“Yeah, yeah Potter, of course you love me.”

“Potter! Stop moving!” Draco said, one hand holding a small spoon filled with mashed up peas. “I have more of your food on myself than in your stomach!”


Which was true; there were splats of mashed potatoes, bits of filet, and globs of gravy on Draco’s face, shirt, and hair. It was a miracle he didn’t blow up on Harry and just left. Draco had wondered if he would need to wear a face mask next time he fed Harry. The kid just loved to throw whatever food was on hand.


Harry pursed his lips and blew bubbles at the blond. Draco growled and moved closer to the fretting baby, the spoon pressed on Harry’s lips.


“Harry, please, eat…” Draco begged, “Just finish your peas and you’re done.”
‘Thank Merlin I ate before him… Or else I wouldn’t get to eat at all.’


Harry turned away from the spoon and ignored Draco. The blond sighed, then smiled. He tapped Harry’s shoulder, making the baby face him again with wide eyes.
‘I’m going to kill myself later for doing this… And I seriously hope he doesn’t remember this part.’


“Look Harry, it’s a flying broom!” Draco held the spoon between his thumb and forefinger and began making ‘whooshing’ sounds. “Open wide and let the broom land…”


Harry’s green orbs followed the ‘flying’ spoon; he giggled and clapped and when Draco moved the spoon closer, Harry opened his mouth. Draco took this opportunity to ‘land’ the spoon.


“See? Peas aren’t that bad right?” Draco asked; Harry’s cheeks were puffed out since he was still chewing and didn’t answer. “Just one more and we’re done!”
Draco did the flying broom again and Harry opened his mouth immediately; Draco was glad feeding was finally over. He untied Harry’s bib and left it on the highchair. Plucking Harry out, they walked back to their bedroom where the bathroom was joined.


Draco walked into the bathroom and closed the door; he had placed some fresh clothes for himself and Harry before dinner came. Setting Harry onto his hip, Draco turned on the faucets and let both hot and cold water run. He turned them off once the tub was filled a bit under halfway. Carefully going on his knees, Draco tested the water and was satisfied to find the water warm.


“Time to strip, Potter.”



It had taken Draco exactly forty-five minutes to finish giving Harry his bath. The first ten minutes was of him wrestling Harry out of his clothes; the brunet simply didn’t want to get naked. Fifteen minutes were used to stop Harry from splashing around in the water; that had only gotten Draco wet from the waist up. The remainder twenty minutes consisted of Draco washing Harry’s nest of hair, scrubbing the small body clean with a flannel, and finally, drying the baby with a fluffy white towel. If it wasn’t for his dripping hair and clothes, Draco thought it went pretty well.


After dressing Harry in a sleeping suit, Draco walked out from the bathroom, the only sound was of Harry’s even breathing. The little brat—Draco had called him that when Harry splashed him in the face—was sound asleep once Draco dried him. The Slytherin carefully placed Harry down in the cot, tucked the blanket around Harry, and pulled up the bars around the small bed.


“Goodnight, Harry.” Draco smiled; Harry sighed and rolled over to sleep on his stomach.


Stretching, Draco slowly walked back to the bathroom to take his bath. Even though it was only eight o’ clock, he was tired. It had been a trying day after all. With one last look at the cot, Draco went in and shut the bathroom door.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 5: Day Two: Bad Baby!

‘It’s Saturday… I survived a day with the baby…’


That was the first thought that came to Draco’s mind as he slowly rolled onto his stomach. It was morning; eight o’ clock in the morning to be exact. Draco knew it was the weekend; usually he wouldn’t wake up until the sun was high above Hogwarts. But today was a different story. It was as if his mind was telling him that he should not stay asleep… there was something important for him to take care of. Groaning, Draco pried open his eyes, the hazy outline of Harry’s cot caught his attention. There was no movement from within the small bed so Draco assumed Harry was still asleep.


‘Great… even my subconscious is telling me that I should be awake for the babe.’


Pushing himself up, Draco crawled—on his knees and hands—to the edge of his bed. He swung one leg over the edge and got off. His mouth opened and let out a gigantic yawn before Draco smacked his lips. Draco knuckled his eyes before meandering over to Harry’s bed. The tiny toddler was sleeping on his side, thumb in his mouth. Draco smiled; Harry’s thumb was simply wedged between his small mouth—drool covering the whole digit. Draco reached over the bars and patted Harry softly on the nest of dark tresses. Thinking that Potter wouldn’t wake up any time soon, Draco padded over to the conjoined bathroom and went inside for his morning shower.


The blond Slytherin sighed—thoroughly relaxed—as the warm water pounded his tired muscles. Draco rolled his head a couple of times before he pressed his forehead against the cool, wet tiles in front of him. He let the warm water trail down his body, washing the soap suds away. The silver colored eyes followed the paths the bubbles made; going down his abdomen, his thighs, between his toes, and finally swirling down the drain. Draco scrubbed himself a few more times with the soft flannel he was using; he hated the slimy feeling the body wash left behind everytime he showered. After scrubbing three times over, Draco placed his head under the shower head, where he started to massage his scalp—to rid of the shampoo in his hair.


Just as Draco was rinsing, a loud, racking cry made its way to his ears—over the pounding of the water. His eyes snapped opened and Draco hurriedly scrubbed his hair. Cursing softly under his breath, Draco stepped out from the shower and wrapped a bath towel around his lower regions. He then took another towel and dried his hair, not really caring that his blond locks looked like something slept in it.
“You just have to cry right now, Potter.” Draco muttered, rubbing the soft towel over his head, “I swear, you were made to make me suffer.”


Sighing, Draco threw the towel into the hamper. With one hand holding onto the towel wrapped around his hips, Draco went out without bothering to dress. Malfoy walked over to where Harry was now sitting up and crying; the blond was shivering since he did not bother to put a shirt on. Draco peered over and found one blubbering, red in the face, and puffy eyed Harry Potter sniffling in the middle of the cot.


“Pot—Harry stop crying now, I’m right here,” Draco said soothingly, ‘Ugh… talking to a baby sucks. I have to sound all… mushy.’


Harry gave one huge sniff and turned red-rimmed eyes onto Draco. The toddler reached up for the blond boy towering over him. Draco smiled, thinking that Harry was utterly adorable—

‘No, scratch that. Potter is NOT adorable.’


Nodding to himself, Draco leaned over the bars and picked up the baby. Harry immediately wrapped his short arms around the blonde’s neck and pressed his wet cheeks on Draco’s bare shoulders. He curled one hand around the blond locks near Draco’s neck and began playing with it.


“Harry… Don’t get your snot onto my hair. I just washed it.” Draco muttered and walked over to the bureau. He pulled open the drawer with the small towels and took one out. “Let me clean your face first, and then you can continue playing with my hair.” Draco rubbed Harry’s face gently and the toddler automatically closed his eyes while Draco cleaned.


“No Dway…”


Draco stopped wiping and pulled the cloth away from Harry’s face. He peered at the baby and found Harry looking right back at him—with his cheek still pressed on his shoulder.


“What are you talking about Harry?” Draco asked; Harry pouted and turned away and pointed at Draco’s bed.


“No Dway… No dwere.” Harry mumbled and pointed at Draco’s bed again.


“What are you…” Draco scrunched his eyebrows together, then he realized what Harry had said. “You mean when you woke up… you didn’t see me?”


Harry nodded against Draco’s shoulder and turned his head back to look at Draco. He reached up and placed his tiny palm on Draco’s cheek.


“Scurd…”


“I was just taking a shower Harry,” Draco told the toddler in his arms, taking the tiny hand between his thumb and forefinger. “No need to be scared. I promise…” Draco trailed off, “… I’ll be there the next time you wake up.”


Harry smiled at Draco and snuggled into Draco’s neck; his small fingers wrapped tight around the blonde’s thumb. The Slytherin smiled at the baby’s actions and absently kissed the top of Potter’s head.


“Lub Dway!” Harry burbled when Draco’s lips descended on top of his head.


Draco chuckled and lifted the baby until they were eye to eye. Harry blinked at the bigger boy and cooed, swiping Draco’s nose. Malfoy tried moving away from the swiping hand but Harry squiggled and squirmed in his arms; he looked at the wriggling baby sternly, only to have Harry tittering at him. In one swift movement, Harry leaned in and gave a peck on the tip of Draco’s nose—a wet peck.

“Harry! Oh, I swear you kiss everything.” Draco said, wiping the tip of his nose with Harry’s romper suit, which in turn made Harry giggle.


“Tis!” Harry shrilled, clapping his chubby hands together. “Tis Dway!”


“If you remember kissing me and telling me you love me, you will probably kill yourself, Potter.” Draco muttered. As if to make fun of him, Harry gave Draco another baby kiss, this time right on the cheek. Draco huffed and wiped his cheek with the small towel he used on Harry. “At least give me nice kisses, not wet ones.”


Harry sent Draco a toothy grin and nuzzled the crook of Draco’s neck once more.

“I told you Harry, I’ll do this if you didn’t stop playing with your breakfast.”


“No!”


“Yes! You threw pieces of pancakes at me! With syrup on them!” Draco scowled at
the young child sulking in the playpen.


After Harry had finished showering Draco’s face with kisses—they were nice little kisses just as Draco ordered—both went to the dining room and found their breakfast already there. Draco’s plate was filled with two pieces of toast, slices of bacon, two eggs, and four links of sausage; he also had a cup of pumpkin juice.


Harry’s plate was covered with cut up pieces of pancakes, coated with a thick maple syrup and there was a sippy cup filled with apple juice. Draco had tucked the toddler into the highchair, placed the plate of pancake pieces in front of Harry, along with the sippy cup, and then he was seated to eat his own breakfast. They were quietly and happily eating—Harry was just stuffing his face, smearing syrup all over his chin.


Draco had looked up to check on Harry twice and saw the baby’s puffed out cheeks and brown syrup stains all over the small face. He chuckled and was drinking his pumpkin juice when suddenly a sticky piece of warm pancake went sailing over to him. Draco jerked when the pancake landed on his cheek; the pumpkin juice in his hand splashed onto his jeans.


“Icky Dway!” Harry laughed and threw another piece at Draco. The blond growled and placed his cup on the table before turning to glare at the baby.


“Harry, stop throwing food and eat!” Draco said sternly, “If you don’t… I’ll put you into the playpen… Without any toys inside!”


Harry’s mouth formed an ‘o’, and then frowning, he threw another piece at Draco. This time it missed and landed on the floor.


“Bad! No pwayben!”

“You’re talking back! Oh why you little…” Draco glared and stood up, taking Harry out of the highchair, “You’re going to stay in the playpen right now! You’re not coming out until you know what you did wrong mister.”


‘Haha! I win Potter!’


Harry had screamed and kicked Draco in the stomach when Draco carried him to the playpen in the living room. Holding Harry securely in one arm, Draco had taken out his wand and banished the toys inside the playpen, leaving only the blanket inside.


Draco then put Harry inside and stared down at the baby.


That was how Harry ended up in the playpen.


Harry looked up at him now with tears swimming around those green eyes.


“Puppy eyes won’t work this time, you were bad Harry.” Draco said, “Now, you’re going to stay in here until I think it’s time for you to come out.”


“No… Dway…” Harry sobbed, his hands wrapped around the bars of the playpen so
he could stand. “Sowwy…”


“You need to learn not to throw food at people. This was the second time.” Draco told the now crying baby. “I’m going to sit right there on the couch and watch you. Five minutes Harry, after five minutes I’ll take you out.” Draco pivoted and went to the couches where he sat down and watched Harry cry inside the playpen.


Harry cried and let go of the bars and fell on his bum. Sniffling, he took the yellow blanket next to him and held it tight. Harry looked out through the bars and saw that Dway was really sitting there, watching him with a frown on his face. He didn’t want the bigger boy to be mad at him… he liked Dway. Whimpering, Harry buried his face into the soft blanket and wiped his face with it. Scrunching the blanket into a ball, Harry placed it in front of him; he looked out again and found Dway still looking at him, this time the frown was gone. With much effort, Harry pulled himself upright and reached one arm out.


“Dway… ay sowwy. No bad…” Harry hiccupped, his lips trembling.


When Draco saw the trembling lips, he couldn’t take it anymore; Draco had thought he was a bit too harsh on the baby. Sighing and accepting that Harry’s puppy eyes did work, he walked over to the playpen and kneeled down in front of it. Once they were leveled, Draco tapped the tip of Harry’s nose through the bars; Harry giggled softly through his hiccups.


“Brat… It’s not even five minutes yet… But I’m going to take you out.” Draco smiled and stood up; Harry gave him a watery smile and Draco’s heart melted…


‘He’s turning you into butter!’ Draco’s inner voice cried, ‘You’re going soft Malfoy!’


Draco, at that moment, very much wanted to smack his head on the edge of the playpen.

“Butter indeed…”

“… Wow there’s actually a charm to make ice cream out of water.” Draco mused as he read his Charms textbook.


He lowered his book and snorted when he saw Harry sitting five feet away from him, knocking down a tower of plushy blocks. The baby laughed and clapped his hands as the blocks fell down.


“Bwocks bye bye!” Harry giggled and started to drag himself closer to the fallen blocks while still sitting on his bum.


“Harry, your pants are going to have holes if you continue to move yourself around on the carpet while sitting.” Draco drawled and went back to his book; he started rocking back and forth in his chair—it was a rocking chair.


Harry pouted and turned his head halfway to peek at the blond teen. He should listen to Dway… Harry didn’t want to make Dway mad and then he would have to sit in the playpen again. Harry shuddered slightly and went on his hands and knees to crawl over to the blocks. Once he was within reaching distance, Harry sat down and began stacking them up again.


Draco sighed and placed his book down on the carpet; it was getting boring anyway. He pushed himself up and padded over to where Harry was happily pounding the plushy blocks together. Harry didn’t notice the looming shadow and so, he continued to smack pink, blue, and green blocks together, under the watchful eyes of Draco. The Slytherin was amazed how the young child can be so occupied with only a couple of blocks… Draco scoffed; when he was a toddler his parents were hardly ever there. He had plenty of toys, a whole room filled with them actually. But Draco had always felt so…


Alone.


Shaking his head, Draco sat down next to the baby. Harry stopped smacking the blocks together and looked to the side, smiled when he saw Draco right there next to him.


“Pway?” Harry asked, his head tilted to one side. The brunet leaned forward and grabbed a pink block and then placed it on Draco’s lap. “Pway bocks.”


Draco smirked and squeezed the pink block; it glowed when he squeezed it.


Harry ‘ohhed’ and went to squish every block in his sight.


‘So this is how I’m going to spend my Saturday… playing with blocks.’


“Potter, I could’ve gone to Hogsmeade today…” Draco told the baby, “But I’m stuck here with you.”

Harry stopped squeezing the blocks and turned worried eyes on Draco. He crawled over to the teen and climbed, albeit clumsily, onto Draco’s lap. The blond promptly steadied the toddler before Harry could fall off. Harry sniffed and glanced up into
Draco’s grey eyes.


“No lub ‘Ry?” Harry mumbled; his hands were clutching the front of Draco’s shirt.


Draco’s eyes widened at the question; he was shocked that the thirteen month old baby understood what he said. Harry had thought he didn’t like him…


“’Arry bad?”


Draco smiled and shook his head; he moved Harry until the child was sitting on top of his folded legs. The blond brushed away the single tear that had fallen from Harry’s eye. Draco gave Harry a soft, little pinch on one of those chubby cheeks. Harry stuck out his bottom lip and pouted.


“No, Harry, you’re not bad… And I-I do like you…” Draco murmured.


‘Like? Ooo… you’re starting to like him Malfoy!’ The little voice taunted.


Draco rolled his eyes and held Harry closer. “It’s just… I missed my friends. Granger and Weasley probably miss you, too.”


“Wanger? Weasy?” Harry looked totally confused.


Draco sighed, “You don’t remember them?” Harry only frowned in answer; Draco brushed Harry’s nose with his finger, “Come on, Harry, think. They’re your best friends… How about Hermione and… Ron? That’s their given names… Surely you remember that.”


Harry shook his head; Draco huffed and gave up. It just didn’t make sense that out of all people, Harry only remembered Draco. Harry pouted at Draco’s faraway look; he placed one hand on top where Draco’s heart was. Malfoy looked down in puzzlement.


“Dway fwend.” Harry smiled and smacked Draco’s chest. “Lub yoo.”


Draco stared down at the baby and let out a short laugh; he carded his fingers through Harry's messy nest of dark hair.


“Six years ago I wanted you to be my friend…" Draco whispered, "Too bad… I doubt you’ll remember any of this.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 6: Day Three: The Change

Sunday morning found Draco and Harry both in the playroom. They had just finished breakfast and today, Harry did not throw any food at the blond. Draco saw that as progress; the baby actually remembered what happened yesterday. Currently, Harry was sitting in the middle of the room, stuffed farm animals were scattered around him. There was a mooing cow, a pink pig, a sheep, a chicken with a small chick following it, a horse, and last but not least, Dacky. Draco thought the stuffed dragon looked out of place along with the farm animals, but Harry insisted to have Dacky with him.

Harry took hold of the cow and started moving it around. Well, zooming it around was more like it since Harry was making ‘whooshing’ noises. Draco chuckled when the baby tried to aim the cow at Draco’s folded legs; Harry threw it at the blond and the cow bounced off of Draco’s knee and toppled to the ground. Draco picked it up and set the cow on his lap; he watched with fascination as Harry toddled over to him.

“Mine.” Harry pointed at the cow and pouted at Draco.

Draco smiled and brushed the head of the stuffed animal on Harry’s chubby cheeks. The toddler giggled and tried to grab the cow from Draco. The blond let Harry and the brunet immediately planted a wet kiss on the cow’s nose. As Draco let go, Harry cradled the mooing cow to his chest and sighed. His round green eyes looked up at Draco and the older teen patted his folded legs. Harry squealed and set the cow aside and climbed clumsily onto Draco’s lap.

“You’re a good baby today,” Draco cooed, his arms wrapped around Harry’s small body; he then realized he just cooed at the baby but

shrugged. Draco hated to admit it, but during the past two days, he turned soft. Not a lot, but enough.

Harry gurgled and placed his hands on Draco’s face; the Slytherin leaned forward and rubbed the tip of his nose on Harry’s. The toddler squeezed his eyes shut due to the blond hair brushing his eyes; Harry giggled and let Draco have his way.

“You know, I like you much better this way,” Draco whispered and smiled when Harry tried to pull him closer. “Before, all we ever do was fight.”

“Dway tis!” Harry burbled and puckered his small lips.

Draco shook his head in amusement and planted a small kiss on Harry’s cheek. The baby squealed happily and attempted to return the favor. Draco laughed and brushed the raven locks away from Harry’s eyes.

“No wet kisses remember?”

Harry stopped pulling and just like what his guardian told him, he placed a small, soft kiss on Draco’s cheeks.

“No wets!” Harry said proudly; Draco nodded and tickled Harry’s tummy. Harry laughed and tried to squirm away from Draco’s hold but the teen held on tight.

“No escaping the tickle monster, Harry!” Draco said, making faces at the toddler. He laid the wriggling and laughing child on the carpet ground to continue his assault, all the while careful not to hurt the baby.

Draco propped himself up by planting his left elbow on the carpet, his hand cradling his head. His body was curved slightly and his right hand was skimming across Harry’s rounded tummy. The baby was red in the face but was still laughing merrily and rolling away from Draco’s fingers.

The blond chuckled and used his hand to pull the baby back towards him. Harry’s green eyes popped open—they were closed while Draco was tickling him—and tears of mirth swam in them. Draco looked down and brushed the tears away. Harry cooed and reached up to grasp Draco’s hand. While the older let the toddler play with his hand, a knock sounded at the front door—or portrait if you will. Draco looked away and strained his ears; another knock sounded, this time it was louder. Malfoy sighed and made a sad face at Harry; the brunet giggled and tried to pull Draco’s hand down to cover his small face. Draco laughed audibly when he discovered that his hand was almost wide enough to cover Harry’s face.

“No more playing for now Harry, somebody’s here to see us.” Draco said gently and pried his hand away from Harry’s grip. He sat up and picked up the toddler. “Let’s go see who it is shall we?”

Harry smiled and nodded before he threw himself into Draco’s chest. Draco rolled his eyes and stood up—baby and all—with some difficulty. He walked to the portrait just as another knock sounded. Draco pushed the painting outward and peeked out. His grey eyes met the ones of his Potions Professor.

“Draco, what took you so long to open a goddamn door?” Snape snarled; in his hand was a small vial of green liquid. Draco eyed it and looked back at his professor.

“Sorry sir, Harry and I were… uh playing.” Draco muttered; his cheeks turned pink and he opened the portrait wider so Snape could walk in. Severus sneered at the teen before walking ahead. Draco grumbled and closed the portrait.

He led Severus to the living portion of the private quarters and they all sat down—Harry sitting on Draco’s lap. Snape smirked when Harry automatically snuggled deeper into Draco.

“Seems like Potter has grown attached to you,” Severus observed, his lips curved in a thin smile, “Any troubles?”

Malfoy absently held Harry tighter and shook his head. “No sir, everything’s fine… besides the fact Harry is still a baby.”

“Well, that can change.” Snape said, placing the bottle of green liquid onto the coffee table. “I made the first batch of antidote. Took me awhile to figure it out, but I have it.”

“Is that… going to make Harry back into a seventeen year old?” Draco asked. Inside, a feeling of dread was taking place. He had wanted more time with the de-aged Potter. But now…

“No. As I said before, from one to seventeen is too big of a change. What I have now is to turn Mr. Potter to a three year old.”

“Three? So… does that mean… he’ll stay a toddler for awhile?” Draco asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

Snape sneered and leaned back against the sofa. “Until I finish with the next batch that is. Are you starting to like Potter? It seems like you’re growing attach to him as well.”

‘Damn Snape for being so observant.’

“… Yeah. He’s not too bad when he’s a kid.” Draco mumbled; Harry looked up at his guardian and graced him with a wide smile. Draco couldn’t help but return it. “Harry’s totally different… I want to get to know him… it’s not like he’ll remember any of this when he’s back to normal… So why not?”

“There’s a chance he might Draco,” Snape sighed; Draco scowled at his Potions Professor.

“It doesn’t matter. I-I like taking care of him.”

Severus scoffed, “You will say otherwise later on. Three year olds are annoying little brats.”

Draco heaved Harry until the baby was standing on his thighs; Harry grinned and pressed his forehead against Draco’s. The blond took his opportunity to rub noses with Harry. Severus watched as Malfoy poured out his affections. He shook his head and stood up from the sofa. Draco glanced up when he felt the movement and stood up as well, not wanting to be rude. Harry turned his head to the side and peered at the all-black clothed man and sniffed; he turned away and pressed his face into the crook of Draco’s neck. Draco patted Harry’s back comfortingly.

“Give him the potion before he goes to sleep,” Snape instructed, “I tried to make it as tasteless as possible so hopefully Potter wouldn’t spit any of it back out; you can mix it with baby formula if you want. The change will happen overnight and by tomorrow morning he should look like a three year old child.”

“Alright…” Draco said, following Snape to the portrait.

Severus stepped outside and turned around to look down at his student. Draco waited wearily for Snape to talk.

“I know what’s happening,” Snape started, “You’re doing all this because you don’t exactly hate Potter… Am I correct?”

Draco looked away and refused to answer. That alone was enough for Snape.

“Draco… he might be accepting you and it seems like he loves you as well. But you know that Potter doesn’t have any of his previous memories as of now. He doesn’t know you were his enemy. Right now, Potter sees you as a father figure, a friend.” Severus paused and placed a hand on Draco’s shoulder.

The blond turned to look at him but remained silent. When Harry’s head was under his chin, Draco moved his head until his cheek was pressed on top of Harry’s mop of hair. He closed his eyes and breathed in the baby’s scent.

“I know that Professor… But--”

Snape removed his hand and took a step back. “When this is all over, when Potter is back to normal, everything you’ve done for him might disappear. It’s possible nothing that happened now will remain. When that happens, you’re the one that’s going to end up being hurt, not him.”

When Draco failed to say anything, Severus sighed and turned to walk down the hall, leaving Draco alone. The blond silently retreated back inside the private rooms; Harry had noticed the downtrodden look on his guardian’s face and was now trying to make Draco look at him.

“Dway?” Harry said softly; the blond looked down and smiled lightly. “Sad?”

Draco cupped Harry’s face and shook his head, “No Harry, I’m not.” The baby nodded and snuggled back into Draco’s neck.

Malfoy went to the coffee table and picked up the vial. He looked at it then at Harry who was still snuggling into him. Draco held the vial tighter, almost to the point of breaking the glass bottle. He wanted to break it. Draco wanted nothing more than to have Harry stay in his baby state a bit longer. But now, things were about to change. This potion was the first step of Harry aging back. But still, Harry will still be a child, and his old memories were still at bay. Draco sighed and tucked the vial into his pocket. He sat down on the sofa and bounced Harry lightly, making the baby giggle.

Harry then looked up at him, tilted his head to the side and blinked. Malfoy chuckled and pressed Harry back into the crook of his neck; Harry happily let the blond do so.

“I’ll miss you when this is all over.” Draco whispered. “But you don’t need to know that.”

---

The day went by, and before long, it was nighttime. Dinner went smoothly—Harry no longer wanted to throw any food at Draco’s face. Seeing how Harry had been a good baby, Draco even called a house elf to bring dessert—chocolate pudding. After finishing his own bowl, Draco began the task of feeding it to baby Harry. By the time Draco was finished feeding, the entire portion of Harry’s bottom half of his face was covered with chocolate pudding. Draco chuckled and used Harry’s bib to wipe the remnants of the pudding from Harry’s chin.

Bath time had always been a hassle for Draco. First of all, Harry would wrestle around. He simply didn’t like taking his clothes off. Second, once Harry was in the water, it meant Draco getting drenched with soapy water and getting hit by the baby’s splashes. But, that also meant making Harry a clean baby. The drying part wasn’t too bad, dressing the baby wasn’t bad either. After getting Harry settled inside the cot, Draco promised that he would finish his shower quickly and come back. Harry whimpered and tried to hold on to Draco’s shirt, but after much persuasion, Harry let Draco have his shower.

Now, baby and teen were both sitting—Harry was sitting between Draco’s legs—on Draco’s bed. It was almost time for Harry to sleep; ten minutes ago Draco had asked an elf to bring him a baby bottle. Harry had picked up the habit of drinking milk right before he went to sleep. This was a good thing or else Draco didn’t know how to feed Harry the potion. Taking off the rubber nipple, Draco poured the contents of the glass vial into the warm formula. He placed the nipple back on and shook the baby bottle a few times. Without question, Harry took the nipple in his mouth when Draco presented it to him. The blond let go of the bottle when he saw that Harry could hold it himself.

“Hopefully it didn’t make the milk taste bad…” Draco muttered as Harry suckled. By the looks of Harry’s face, the milk was fine.

After Harry drank all the milk, he gave the bottle back to the teen; Draco took it away and set it aside. Just as he was about to pick Harry up, a green light emitted from the toddler’s body and Harry promptly lost consciousness. Draco gasped and picked Harry up, cuddling him close to his chest.

“Oh Merlin… Harry?” Draco asked worriedly and bounced the bundle in his arm. Harry’s head lolled, his lips parted and a soft snore came out.

Draco released a sigh of relief and got off his bed. “Snape must have put some sleeping potion in the antidote.”

The Slytherin walked to Harry’s cot and placed the baby gently inside. Draco smoothed his hand over Harry’s pajamas; it was bigger than the romper suits. Actually, Draco had found all of Harry’s baby clothes gone. In their place were bigger shirts, shoes, pants, hats, gloves, jackets, pajamas, socks, and whatever apparel were left—all that would fit a three year old. Draco guessed that Snape had informed the Headmaster so that he could magically replace all the baby’s clothes. Winter was coming and Draco was glad there were scarves and jackets for the toddler now.

“I have to bring you to class tomorrow… I hope you’re not one of those cranky three year olds.” Draco muttered; he pulled the blanket higher

and tucked it under Harry’s chin. “And the first class is Potions… Your friends would want to see you.”

Harry scrunched up his eyebrows and turned to his side and continued to sleep undisturbed. With one last pat on Harry’s head, Draco pulled the bars that surrounded the cot up and went back to his own bed. He lay down with a groan, anticipating the events that were to happen once classes start tomorrow.

---

“Wakey wakey Dway! It’s mornin’!”

“Huh wha…” Draco said groggily and opened his eyes slowly.

Sunlight poured through the window by his bed; it was painful for a second before his eyes adjusted to the sudden light. Draco sat up, his blanket rolled off his torso and pooled above his groin. Rubbing his eyes with his knuckles, he let out a huge yawn and smacked his lips for good measure. He squint his eyes and scratched his head, making his blond tresses messier.

“Dway… I want out…”

“Hold on Harry… I--” Draco started then paused… Was Harry speaking in sentences?!

His head turned so fast Draco was sure he heard his neck snapped. The blond winced and rubbed the back of his neck. Inside the cot was an older looking Harry. His raven locks were longer, almost touching the small shoulders. They were sticking up in twenty different directions; it almost looked like how Harry’s hair was when he was his normal age. Draco also noticed that Harry wasn’t as chubby anymore, although the toddler’s cheeks were still a bit rounded. Malfoy got off his bed and padded over to the cot; Harry smiled brightly and held up his arms, asking to be picked up.

“You sleeps too long Dway,” Harry giggled, “I yells and yells but you still sleeping. Like a baby.”

Draco growled playfully and picked the toddler up; he held Harry above his head and spun around in circles. Harry laughed and kicked while being spun in the air. After five spins, Draco lowered the young child and smiled. Harry smiled right back at him and leaned in to kiss Draco on the cheek.

“Some things never change,” Draco chuckled and placed the three year old on the ground. He stuck out his hand and Harry took it. “Let’s go brush our teeth and freshen ourselves up. I have classes today, Harry.” Draco started walking to the bathroom, with little Harry in tow.

“Classes? I go with?” Harry asked, skipping behind the teen. Draco chuckled and nodded, opening the door to the bathroom. “Yay!”

Draco rolled his eyes and picked up Harry again; he plopped the child down on the bathroom counter. Harry sat very still, his legs dangling on the edge. Draco opened the medicine cabinet and found a very small toothbrush for Harry and a tube of children’s toothpaste. He popped open the tube and squeezed a small amount of toothpaste on the brush. It was orange flavored. Malfoy put the tube next to the sink and handed the small toothbrush to the waiting Harry.

“Do you know how to brush your teeth? Or do I have to show you?”

“I can do it! I knows how.” Harry said proudly, “But I need to see the mir… mirro…” Harry scowled and turned to his head to the back and pointed at the mirror.

“The mirror?” Draco asked.

Harry nodded and Draco laughed, helping Harry to stand on the counter so that now he was facing the mirror. Harry thanked the blond and stuck the purple toothbrush into his mouth. He curled back his lips, bared his teeth and started brushing. Draco tried not to laugh at the toddler when the white foam of the toothpaste covered the perimeter of Harry’s mouth.

“Harry, spit out the extra foam.” Draco told the toddler; Harry stopped brushing and narrowed his eyes at his reflection. He pointed at the reflection and poked where his mouth was.

“I wooks like Santy Claus!” Harry giggled and bent down over the sink to spit out the excess foam.

Half an hour later, Harry had successfully brushed his teeth, washed his face, changed his clothes (with the help of Draco), and flattened his hair. Draco was also done freshening himself and was ready to leave for his classes. Once again, he took Harry’s hand and they both walked back outside to their room. Malfoy had already packed his school things and was good to go. Not knowing if there would be any ‘emergencies’ happening, Draco also packed some clean clothes for Harry—pants, shirts, underwear, and some cloths. Satisfied, he took his school bag and Harry’s bag and left the bedroom, with Harry skipping behind happily.

Their breakfast was simple. Each had a glass of milk, a plate with scrambled eggs, hams, and sausage, although everything on Harry’s plate was cut into even pieces. Draco ate slowly while Harry jabbed his fork into every piece in sight. More than once Draco had to tell Harry to slow down or else the toddler would choke. Harry listened to his guardian without question, his mind vaguely remembered how he had to stay inside the playpen when he didn’t listen. Draco smirked when Harry gently poked into a sausage piece.

‘He’s not that bad as a three year old… but things might change later on.’

After Draco was done, he dabbed his mouth with a napkin and folded it, placing it next to the empty plate.

“Are you finished Harry?”

Harry dropped his fork with a clatter and grinned at Draco. He picked up his napkin and rubbed his mouth with it.

“I done!” Harry said, throwing down the napkin onto the table. Draco laughed softly and took Harry out of his highchair.

“Ready to go? I want to get to class early.” Draco bent down a bit to speak to the toddler; Harry nodded enthusiastically and grabbed Draco’s hand, pulling the teen to the front portrait.

“Let’s go wight now. I wants to see your classes Dway!” Harry said as he tried to push the painting open. Draco rolled his eyes and helped the toddler with the door. When it was opened, Harry hopped out with Draco following behind.

Harry laughed and squealed as he hopped, skipped, and ran in front of Draco. Of course, he was never too far way since Draco warned him not to. Sometimes he would stop and wait until Draco would catch up before skipping away again. Draco laughed a couple of times when Harry stopped to say hello to the paintings on the wall of Hogwarts. Students passed by and paused to look at the hyper Harry. Draco ignored them and walked right by, pretending he didn’t see their stares. When Harry skipped past the hallway to the dungeons, Draco had to go after the toddler to steer Harry back.

“Okay, no more running, we’re almost there.” Draco told the now tired Harry. The brunet smiled and nodded, unable to say anything because he was out of breath.

“Dway’s… class?” Harry questioned breathlessly. Draco took Harry’s left hand and led the toddler to Snape’s classroom.

“Yes, it’s Potions.”

“Wat’s Poshuns?”

Draco frowned and tried to think up a way to explain to the three year old, but came up blank. It would take way to long to explain in a way Harry would understand.

“I’ll tell you when you’re older, Harry.”

“Kay.” Harry said and walked closer to Draco’s side.

Since he was half an hour early—it was only eight o’ clock—Draco was the only one outside the heavy metal doors. Harry cowered behind Draco’s legs, his hands wrapped tightly around Draco’s trousers.

“It looks scawy…” Harry mumbled; Draco patted the top of Harry’s head.

“It’s okay Harry; come on, let’s go in.” Draco pushed the heavy doors open and took Harry’s hand again, taking him inside.

Severus Snape was sitting behind his desk and he looked up when he heard the doors opening. He smirked when he found one Draco Malfoy with a tiny Harry Potter hiding behind the blonde’s legs.

“Good morning, Draco.” Severus looked at Harry who was peeking behind Draco’s leg. “And you too, Potter.”

“Good morning, sir.” Draco said politely; he pulled Harry away from his trousers and made the brunet stand next to him instead. “Say good

morning to Professor Snape, Harry.”

Harry looked up briefly at the Potions Master and waved; Snape nodded in greeting.

“Good mornin’ Po-Pwo…vesir Sna-Snaps…” Harry frowned and tugged Draco’s hand; Malfoy looked down at Harry questioningly; he was trying so hard not to laugh.

“What is it Harry?” Draco cleared his throat to drown out the oncoming chuckle.

Severus was just looking quite amused and angry at the same time.

“I no say his name… too hard.” Harry whined, “Can I call ‘im Snapey?” Harry grinned adoringly. Draco closed his eyes and groaned.

Snapey?!

Oh dear.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 7: Snapey and Potions Fun

Harry’s angelic… or what Draco was thinking right now, devilish, grin never left his face. The toddler waited for his guardian to answer his question.

Can he call Professor Snape ‘Snapey’?

OF COURSE NOT!

“Dway? You no ansfer me,” Harry pouted, “I want to call him Snapey!” His pout then turned into a light scowl.

Draco wanted so much to shake Harry like a rag doll and scream at him. But, alas, he was a child, and there was nothing Draco could do. After all, Harry did what just like any toddler would do: Make names easier to pronounce but in the process made it sound totally ridiculous. In this case, Snape was the victim and that’s not pretty.

The Potions Master was beyond angry; he was so angry, he was speechless. He was absolutely seething. How dare the child call him by such a name! Why, he ought to whip some sense into the boy! Snapey indeed! Severus inched forward in his seat and had a firm grip on the edge of his desk. He glared down at the de-aged Potter, who was still looking expectantly at Malfoy.

Draco gulped; he actually heard the heavy breathing coming from Snape. The blond slowly kneeled down until he was eye leveled with the scowling Harry. The brunet’s expression softened when Draco carded his fingers though the messy black hair.

“Harry… I think it’s better if you don’t call Professor Snape ‘Snapey’,” Draco murmured; he stole a glance at the professor and found Snape glaring down at them from behind the desk.

Harry frowned and stuck out his bottom lip; Draco thought Harry was adorable, with the pouting face. But this was not the time to think of anything cute; this was a matter of life and death. Almost.

“Why nots? I no say his name…” Harry whined, “I like Snapey!” Harry folded his arms across his chest and turned away from the blond. Draco then heard a small ‘humph’ coming from Harry afterwards.

“Love, calling him Snapey is making Professor Snape… sad.” Draco rolled his eyes. Sad was an understatement, murderous was more like it.

Harry unfolded his arms and turned back to face Draco; his green eyes were wide.

“Weally? I makes him sad?” Harry said softly and then he looked down at his small white tennis shoes. “I dident mean to…” Draco smiled when

Harry started kicking an invisible dust ball.

“Yes, because it’s not his name. What would you do if I called you something you don’t like?” Draco asked the toddler; he was glad that the classroom was still empty. Draco would rather hide in a hole than have students seeing him talking to a three year old Potter this way.

Harry looked up from his shoes and shook his head, “I wouldn’t likes it!” Harry said indignantly in his baby voice, “Dway never calls me a bad name.”

Draco chuckled and pinched Harry’s cheek playfully; Harry giggled then smiled at the blond.

“Of course not, I’ve always called you Harry haven’t I?”

“Yups! Juss likes how I call you Dway!” Harry smiled and turned to look up at Severus, who was still sitting behind the desk. “I is sowwy

Pwovesir Slaps.”

Draco bit his lip to prevent a snicker, ‘Professor Slaps? Oh Harry, you made my day.’

Snape growled and pounded the top of his desk with his fists, making both Harry and Draco jump in their spots. Severus pushed himself away from the desk and got up, walked around until he was right in front of the tiny Potter.

“For heaven’s sake! Slaps? Snapey? Potter, can’t you say anything correctly?!”

Harry whimpered when the tall man towered over him and began yelling. He toddled over to Draco, who had gotten up when Snape got off his chair. Draco, taking pity on the child, bent down and scooped Harry up. The green eyed toddler immediately burrowed his head into Draco’s robes.

“Sir, Harry’s just a child. It’s not his fault for not pronouncing your name correctly.” Draco said while rubbing soothing circles on Harry’s back. “You know he’s not doing it to make fun of you.”

“It’s uncalled for! I’ve never been so insulted! He butchered my name, Draco.” Snape growled; he snarled when Harry started sobbing into Draco’s shoulder. “Oh what—Draco, teach Potter how to say my name! I will NOT be called ‘Snapey’ or Professor Slaps!”

Draco nodded once and walked over to his desk and sat down. Snape sneered at them before he turned away, his black robes billowing behind him; he walked right inside to his office and slammed the door shut. Shaking his head, Draco tried to peel Harry away from his robes. It wouldn’t do him any good if there was snot on it. Shuddering at the thought, Draco smoothed his hand over Harry’s head. Just like what he hoped Harry would do, the brunet looked up at him with teary eyes. Draco placed a small kiss right on Harry’s jagged scar and maneuvered Harry until the toddler was sitting on his lap.

“Hush now Harry, Professor Snape was just being mean,” Draco whispered; Harry knuckled his red puffy eyes and agreed with what Draco said.

“He yell at me… He is a big meanie!” Harry sniffed, “I tried my bestest to say his name… Buh he still yells at me.”

“I know you did Harry, but Professor Snape just didn’t like all the names you called him.” Draco said, “Let’s just forget about it okay? It wasn’t your fault; his name was hard to say anyway.”

“Uh huh… I didn’t means to.” Harry hiccupped. Draco sighed and dropped another kiss on top of Harry’s head. He’s been doing that a lot lately, Draco noticed. But he didn’t care.

Draco pulled the sitting toddler closer to him; he turned his head to the side and used his right foot to hook a stool. When he dragged the stool close enough, Draco lifted Harry off his lap and plopped the sad looking toddler on top of it.

“You’re going have to sit there during class,” Draco told the toddler when Harry looked at him questioningly after putting him on the stool. “You can’t run around alright?”

“Why nots?” Harry whined, “I no wants to sit here all da time!” His lip was stuck out stubbornly and once again his little arms were crossed in front of his chest. “S’not fair!”

“What if you get hurt? There will be lots of big… kids standing around. They might drop something or you could fall. Not to mention we would be working with fire.” Draco said, tickling under Harry’s chin. “If you got hurt, I will be… sad.”

Draco made a sad face at the toddler; Harry giggled and leaned forward, his arms stretched out. Draco took those small hands and pulled Harry into his lap; the toddler then wrapped his arms around Draco’s middle.

“Dway no sad; I pwomise not to runs awound.” Harry said seriously, “Smile Dway!” Harry flashed a huge grin at the blond. Draco couldn’t help but laugh at Harry’s antics; he ruffled Harry’s already messy hair.

“You promise?” Draco asked; Harry nodded and snuggled into Draco’s chest. “I’ll give you some parchment to draw on later; how does that sound?”

“Kay. I’m gunna dwall pwetty picters. I’m gunna dwall me and you!” Harry said happily; he first pointed at himself then at Draco.

“Are you going to draw me nicely?” Draco asked the child. Harry tilted his head back until he was looking at Draco upside down.

“Yups, I dwalls you pwetty cus Dway is always pwetty.”

Draco felt his face heat up when Harry called him ‘pretty’. But then he remembered it’s just a toddler talking; it didn’t mean anything. If it was the normal aged Harry however… the blond shook his head to clear his thoughts. Grown up Harry would never call him ‘pretty’ or any other words along that line.

Draco then placed a hand on his chest and gasped, which made Harry smiled.

“Well, I’m flattered. That was the first time anybody called me pretty.”

Harry’s laughter resonated around the whole classroom.

---

By the time Slytherins and Gryffindors alike started filing into the classroom, Harry was already back on his stool, doodling away. Draco had peeked at Harry’s drawing and chuckled when he saw two black stick figures. One was shorter than the other and Draco assumed the shorter one was Harry.

‘Well I guess it’s better than being drawn as a blob.’

Harry lifted his black crayon off the paper and stared down at his drawing. When he turned his head, he found his Dway watching him with a small smile on his face.

“The picture is beautiful, Harry. Keep it up.” Draco told the child encouragingly.

Harry beamed at his guardian and turned back to the parchment; he started to draw a lumpy cloud near the top of the paper.

Draco shook his head and took out his Potions book, a few pieces of parchment, his quill, and a bottle of black ink. Occasionally, Gryffindors walked by his table; they would stare and Draco would glare right back at them. When the classroom was almost filled, Malfoy scanned the room and found Granger and the Weasel sitting behind him. Weasley was looking absolutely livid while Granger only had a frown on her face. Draco smirked and actually gave them a brief nod before turning back to the front of the classroom. His lips quirked when he heard Granger gasped, and growling from Weasley.

When Snape popped out from his office, the whole class got quiet; Draco could see that the Potions Professor was still in a foul mood, if the heavy scowl was anything to go by. Severus glared at the whole class and his glare lasted longer when his eyes fell on Draco and Harry, who was oblivious to everything around him. Suddenly, Harry let out a giggle and Draco turned to see what happened. On the parchment, it seemed Harry had just finished drawing a sun with a happy face on it. He heard soft whispers and some snickering coming from the Slytherins and Gryffindors alike. Draco gave Harry a pat on the head and turned his attention back at Snape.

“Today, each and every one of you will make a potion from the textbook.” Snape told his class. “Choose one from pages between one hundred seventy-four and three hundred fifty-six. Think of this as an opportunity to make your pathetic grades higher.” Snape paused and sneered before looking pointedly at Longbottom. “You have one hour to finish your task!”

Every student began flipping through their textbooks, trying to look for the easiest potion they can find in those pages. It was never smart to waste time in Snape’s class; the more time they have the better. Draco shrugged and turned to page two hundred forty. Right on that page was a description on how to make a Scar-Vanishing potion. Silver eyes scanned down the page; this potion wasn’t particularly hard and Draco decided he would make this potion. Seeing that Harry was still happily making blobs on his paper, Malfoy got off his seat and went to the

cupboards that held all the needed ingredients.

Harry drew one last blue line on his drawing before looking up. His green eyes turned round when he saw that Draco wasn’t next to him anymore. The toddler started whimpering, his head turning in search of the blond. When Harry found Draco—in the far right side of the room—he let out a giggle and was about to get off from his stool so that he can run to Draco. But then, the brunet remembered how Draco specifically told him not to. Harry stopped fidgeting on the stool and pouted. He spun around—on his bum—until was facing a bushy haired girl. Said girl smiled at him warmly; Harry waved shyly at her and smiled.

“Hello Harry,” The girl greeted; Harry tilted his head to the side and blinked at her.

“How you knows my name?” Harry asked; the girl frowned for a second before it turned back into a small smile.

“I heard Mal—Draco calling you Harry so I assumed that was your name.”

“It is!” Harry beamed, “Wat’s your name?”

“You can call me Hermione.”

“Her… mini?” Harry tried to say her name but once again it was too hard. “I no say it… Can I call you Mini?”

Hermione laughed and nodded, “Sure, I know my name is very hard to say.”

Harry giggled and looked at the boy next to Mini; he was looking at Harry with bright blue eyes.

“Who you?” Harry asked, pointing right at Ron, “And your hair is weally red.”

Ron chuckled and smoothed his hair back, “I’m Ron, Mini’s friend.” Ron smirked at Hermione and she elbowed him hard on his ribs.

“Won? I likes you! I likes Mini, too. You both nice like Dway.” Harry smiled at the redhead and Hermione before frowning again. “Dway s’not

back.”

“He’s getting his things for making his potion, Harry.” Hermione told the toddler.

“Dway told me about Poshuns. He said he tells me when I’m older.” Harry nodded proudly; he clapped his small hands together when Draco was

walking back to their table. “Ohh, looky! Dway’s coming!” Harry was so happy that his Dway was back he was bouncing on top of his stool.

Hermione and Ron shared a look with each other before looking back to see Draco walking slowly, his arms full of bottles and vials. The stormy eyes were staring right back at them, but there was no malice in them.

“Thank you for keeping Harry occupied Granger, Weasley.”

---

When Draco gathered all his needed ingredients, he turned back towards his table and found Harry chatting animatedly to Granger and Weasley. He smiled softly when he heard Harry shortening Granger’s name. At least this time, it wasn’t as bad as what he did to Snape’s name. Draco almost laughed when he heard Harry commenting on Weasel’s hair. Then Harry’s green eyes landed on him and the toddler started clapping happily.

“Ohh, looky! Dway’s coming!”

For a moment, Draco was worried that Harry was going to bounce right off the chair so he hurried over to the excited toddler. Even though the stool wasn’t all that high for seventeen year olds, it’s a mountain for Harry. Draco passed by the redhead and Granger and gave them a curt nod.

“Thank you for keeping Harry occupied Granger, Weasley.”

Hermione looked taken aback while Ron just scowled. Draco could care less and walked the rest of the way to a jumpy Potter.

“Harry, were you bothering Gra—Hermione and Ron?” Draco asked; he set his ingredients down on the work table and bent down to retrieve a medium sized cauldron. Harry stopped bouncing and tried to peer under the table.

“They nice-nice. I says hi and they talks to me.” Harry replied; he sat up straight when Draco’s head came back up and was holding a cauldron. “Wat’s that blacky pot?”

“It’s where I make the potion,” Draco answered; he placed the metal cauldron on top of the stove-like area and made a fire.

“You make poshuns? Can I helps?” Harry put on another angelic smile; Draco rolled his eyes and set the ingredients in order of use.

“I don’t know… You might make a mess.”

“No I not!” Harry pouted, “I wants to help you.” Harry’s eyes were tearing up and his small lips started trembling.

Draco sighed and rubbed his face tiredly. “Fine… When I ask you for something, you hand it to me okay?”

“Kay!”

“You are not going to put anything into the… pot, understand?”

“Yes Dway.”

“If you’re going to be a bad boy, you’re going to sit on the stool, doing absolutely nothing, until the class is over.”

“Buh--!”

“No buts, Harry.”

The toddler sighed dejectedly and nodded. “Yes Dway, I be good.”

‘Merlin I sounded just like a mother…’

Hermione giggled behind them while Ron snorted; Draco gave them a withering glance. Hermione sent him a sheepish smile and shrugged her

shoulders. Ron, on the other hand, merely looked away. Malfoy turned back to his things and found Harry staring intently at the ingredients.

They were purple and red and some were nasty looking. It’s no wonder that they captured Harry’s attention.

“Well, Harry, potions tend to smell a bit. You might want to cover your small nose.”

Harry looked up at Draco questioningly, “They smells bad?”

“Yes, they do.”

“Welps, you not puts hand on nose then I not do it!” Harry said firmly, “I is big boy!”

Draco shrugged and started on his base. Ten minutes passed and finally, Draco was ready to put in the first ingredient, bat wings. Malfoy had taken the time and set every bottle close to Harry so that the toddler wouldn’t knock anything over. He also made sure that Harry wasn’t anywhere near the fire.

“Harry, can you give me the first jar please?”

Harry grinned when Draco asked him to do his first task. Not wanting to disappoint, Harry grasped the first jar in the line of bottles and held it

close to his body until Draco stretched his hand out to receive it. The blond nodded in thanks and he was quite proud that Harry did exactly he was asked to do. This continued on, until all of the ingredients were correctly added into the potion. By this time, it was starting to smell like overcooked cabbage mixed with wet mud. Draco, who was used to such smells, didn’t make any comments. Harry, however, was immediately green in face.

“Ewwwwwww! Poshuns stinky!” Harry cried and covered his nose with his hands. He glared up at Draco and pointed at the steaming cauldron. “Dway, that shtinks!”

Draco chuckled and kept on stirring his potion, “I did say that it was going to smell bad. But you said you were a big boy and didn’t care.”

Harry uncovered his nose and instead, scrunched it up and stuck out his tongue at the tall blond. Draco laughed softly and tapped Harry’s nose.

The brunet giggled but nonetheless still hated the smell.

“Bleh…” Harry turned away from Draco’s potion and spun around to Hermione’s table. She looked at Harry through the pillar of steam from her cauldron.

“Mini, your poshun stinky too!”

Hermione laughed, “Well, all potions are not pleasing to our noses.”

“They taste mighty bad as well.” Ron added; he was jabbing his ladle at his potion.

Harry made a face and decided right there and then that he did not like ‘Poshuns’ at all.

When it was time for Draco to bottle his potion, he asked Harry to give him the empty vial he had left near the ingredients. Harry gave it to him without question and watched silently as the blue liquid made ‘plop plop’ sounds when Draco ladled it in. After putting a stopper on, Draco walked up to Snape’s desk and put the vial inside a box. Severus merely looked up at his student before going back to grade some first year’s essay. After taking about fifteen minutes to clean up his mess, Draco picked Harry up and placed the small child on the ground. Harry ‘humphed’ and rubbed his bottom; it was sore for sitting on the stool for so long.

“Let’s go love, time to go to my next class.” Draco held out his hand and Harry immediately took it.

“Wat class you have Dway?”

“Charms, it’s not too fun in there and you have to be very quiet or the professor will get mad.”

“Oh…”

As they walked by Hermione and Ron, Harry waved at them. Granger and Weasley returned the gesture; Hermione looked at Draco and smiled.

“Thank you for taking care of him, Malfoy.” Hermione said, “It seems Harry doesn’t remember me or Ron at all… If he was placed in our care, I

think Harry would be so afraid of us. I guess Harry’s really happy to be with you. So… Thanks.”

Draco didn’t know how to answer the bushy haired girl so all he did was nod.

“Well Granger, I have to go now or I’ll be late to class. Maybe someday I’ll let you baby-sit Harry.” Draco looked down at the toddler and smiled at him. “Ready to go?”

“Yea!” Harry giggled and pulled Draco away; he turned back one last time and saw Snape looking at them. “Buh-bye Pwovesir Slaps!”

“MALFOY! Teach that child!” Snape roared.

Draco groaned, again, and swiftly pushed Harry out the door before Snape could aim a hex at them. When the blond and Harry left the class, the rest of the students were nervously glancing at their irritated professor. Without having Snape telling them, they all fled the classroom in record speed. Ron shook his head and bemusement once they were outside of the dungeons.

“Professor Slaps? I think Harry just brightened my day.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 8: No! No! No!

Harry was bored.

Harry was very bored.

Every once in awhile, the old woman in the front of the room would move this stick around and then pointed it at the cup next to her. Harry clapped his hands—Draco had told him to be quiet, but Draco never said he couldn’t clap—when the cup turned into a something that Harry had no clue on what it was. But it wasn’t a cup anymore, Harry knew that much. His Draco was busy pointing a stick at his cup as well. In his three year old wisdom, Harry wondered what was so important about pointing a skinny stick at a pretty cup.

The Slytherin was paying close attention to McGonagall’s demonstration; they were transfiguring a water goblet into something that was totally unrelated to it. For example—a water goblet into a teddy bear. Draco had thought about doing just that; he could always give the teddy to Harry to cuddle with. Malfoy was pretty sure the toddler would like it. All his musings were disrupted, however, when Draco heard Harry clapping. He looked away from his goblet and down at Harry, who was still clapping and giggling at the same time.

“Harry, why are you clapping?”

Harry stopped at the moment Draco’s voice reached his ears. He turned to face his guardian and beamed. The brunet then pointed to the front of the class.

“She makes cuppy nots a cuppy,” Harry chirped; the rest of the class were too busy trying to transfigure their goblet to take notice of the burbling toddler.

Draco chuckled and tapped the tip of his wand on his chin, “You see, I’m trying to make my… cup not a cup as well.”

“Weally? Wat you gonna do?” Harry asked, his eyes wide with anticipation.

“Well… I was thinking of making it into a teddy bear for you.” Draco smiled when Harry started bouncing in his seat; a huge smile was plastered on his cherub face. The blond laid a hand on top of Harry’s lap to stop the bouncing child. “Think of it as a Christmas present.”

“Ooo… I gets Cwissy pwesent?”

It was the start of December; winter had arrived with full force. On this particular morning, Draco had dressed Harry in a dark green wool sweater and black pants; his small head was covered with a knitted beanie. Around Harry’s neck was a dark ruby red scarf; it seemed Dumbledore made sure there were both Slytherin and Gryffindor colored clothing for Harry. When they were in Potions, the dungeon was extremely cold. Draco didn’t even bother to take off the scarf then, but now, in McGonagall’s class, it was warm and almost stuffy. The toddler had complained once they stepped inside the room. So now, Harry was stripped of the scarf and the hat.

Draco caressed Harry’s warm cheeks before replying, “Of course you get presents; why wouldn’t you?”

Harry shrugged, “Is today Cwismas?” Draco chuckled and patted Harry’s cheek softly; the brunet scrunched up his face and giggled.

“No, we still have a few more weeks,” Draco told the toddler; he looked to the left side of the room where the grandfather clock was standing. He only had ten more minutes before class was over. “You want to watch me make the cup into a teddy bear?”

Harry nodded enthusiastically; Draco smiled lightly and glanced around to see where McGonagall was. When he saw the professor in the front of the class, bent over a student’s transfiguration result, Draco picked Harry up and set the child on his lap. He wrapped his arm around

Harry’s tummy to prevent the toddler from sliding off his thighs.

“Are you watching?” Draco asked; Harry nodded and gripped the edge of the table to move closer.

“Yup! Come on Dway, make da cuppy to a teddy bwere!”

“Alright, alright!” Draco laughed at Harry’s impatience. He pulled the squirming toddler closer—Harry was already sliding off his lap—and

pointed his wand at the glass goblet.

Harry tilted his head to the side when he heard Draco mutter something that wasn’t English. Harry didn’t really care about that and instead, watched as Draco tapped the stick on the cup two times, made a swirling motion, and with a flick the cup was gone in a puff of smoke. Harry flinched and turned his head into Draco’s robes. When he felt fingers tickling his tummy, Harry couldn’t stop his giggles and looked out again.

“Look love, do you like the teddy?”

Draco inspected his result at the same time Harry was squealing over and hugging his new toy. The blond thought he had overdone it but seeing Harry’s reaction, it was worth it. The soft, brown, fluffy teddy bear was almost as big as Harry. When Harry started planting kisses on the bear, Draco could tell that Harry wouldn’t be letting go of the teddy any time soon. Now, some of the Ravenclaws that were in class with Slytherins were murmuring about how cute Harry was; Draco heard most of the girls in the class giggling and going ‘Aww’. When Draco tuned out the noises and turned his attention back at Potter, Harry was squishing the daylights out of the soft bear.

“Do you like it?” Draco asked the happy toddler; Harry looked away from his bear for a second and nodded.

“I wuv da bwere! Dank you Dway!” Harry beamed and went back to snuggling.

For the rest of the day, students of Hogwarts caught glimpses of Draco Malfoy walking down hallways, holding a smiling Harry by the hand while the child was trying his hardest to embrace an enormous bear close to his body.

---

“Dway… where will Eddy stay?” Harry pouted; Draco chuckled at the name Harry gave the bear.

It was just after Draco’s last class, Ancient Runes, and they had about three hours before dinner time. Earlier, Draco had decided since Harry was now three and no longer a baby, it was safe for him to go out in public. Students and teachers alike had already seen the de-aged Harry, so why not go out to the Great Hall and eat?

Anyways, back to the matter at hand.

Both Draco and Harry were now in the living room of their private quarters with Malfoy sitting on a couch and Harry standing in front of the teen, still hugging the giant teddy bear in front. The bear, appropriately named ‘Eddy’—Draco had asked why and Harry told him Eddy sounded like teddy—was now a bit dirty on the fur. At one point, Harry had to drag the bear around because his arms were tired from holding it.

Draco looked at the pouting child and sighed; he took out his wand and waved it on top of the bear. The soft fur was rid of dirt and dust immediately. As he tucked his wand back into his robe, Harry shuffled closer to Draco and looked at him with watery eyes. Draco took Harry’s arm and gently pulled the toddler closer to him. Draco plucked the teddy bear from Harry and set it next to him on the couch and then he heaved Harry and settled the toddler onto his lap. Harry instinctively snuggled into Draco’s warm body once he was comfortable. Malfoy smiled warmly and laid his chin on top of Harry’s head; the green eyed toddler began playing with the buttons on Draco’s robe.

“You can put Eddy wherever you want, Harry,” Draco said, “Just don’t leave it in the bathtub… I’m sure Eddy doesn’t appreciate you wetting it.”

Harry giggled and nuzzled Draco’s robe, “Silly Dway… I no wanna put Eddy in da tub. Can I have ‘im wit me in da bed?” Harry peeled away from Draco’s school robe and looked up into Draco’s eyes. “I can thinks it’s you I’m hugging when I sleeps.”

Draco stiffened at Harry’s innocent confession. Sure, he knew that little kids loved to cuddle things when they sleep, but Draco was shocked to the core to hear Harry tell him that he wanted to hold him while sleeping. When he looked down to search those wide green eyes, Draco could only see love shining within. Who was he to deny Harry? After all, all Harry wanted was to feel safe and loved, and the person he wanted it from was Draco.

Malfoy’s lips curved softly upward and he kissed Harry right on his forehead.

“Of course you can put Eddy in the bed,” Draco chuckled, “And what happens when you pretend Eddy is me?”

“Welps…” Harry began; he started plucking at his black pants, “I sleeps betta and den I can kiss-kiss Eddy. Aftew kiss-kiss I says night to Eddy and then I sleeps betta.”

Draco laughed at Harry’s explanation; it didn’t really tell him why Harry would like to pretend Eddy was him but it gave him a vague idea.

“Would you do all that if you were hugging me instead?” Draco asked, his eyes were dancing with amusement.

“Yups! Dway kiss Hawwy night-night,” Harry smiled, “Den you an’ me sleeps betta!”

Adoration filled Draco and for the next hour, the blond listened to Harry babble about everything and anything his three-year-old mind came up with—all the while holding the toddler as if Harry was his teddy bear. If anything, Draco found Harry’s babblings quite enjoyable, even if he didn’t understand half the things Harry said.

“… Dway, wat’s a Hufflepuffle?”

Draco laughed and explained exactly what a ‘Hufflepuffle’ was.

---

“HARRY! You come out from the bathroom right now!” Draco yelled; he was twisting the doorknob and yelling at the same time.

“NO!”

“I don’t care that you don’t like the yellow sweater, Harry. If you don’t come out right now, you are going to the Great Hall naked!” Draco threatened. From inside the bathroom he heard Harry sobbing and stomping feet.

"No no no! I don't wanna!" Harry screamed, "I don't Dway! I don't!"

It was thirty minutes before the start of dinner and Draco had just finished giving Harry a bath. He thought everything would go smoothly until he held up the yellow sweater for the toddler. Once Harry’s eyes landed on the bright colored clothing, he shrieked out his protests and started running around the quarters. Draco groaned and had gone after the toddler, but since Harry was small he easily avoided Draco and hid under tables and ran around corners. The chase ended when Harry ran back into their bedroom, went inside the bathroom, and managed to lock the door.

‘Tantrums. I hate tantrums.’ Draco thought.

He sighed and took a deep breath to calm himself down.

“Harry open the door, you’re going to get sick.” Draco said softly; he heard a faint sniff coming from Harry.

“No… You gonna makes me wear da sweata.” Harry hiccupped, “I no likes da sweata!”

‘He is so going to catch a cold…’

“Harry, I promise I’m not going to make you wear the yellow sweater if you come out.” Draco almost begged. “Be a good boy and unlock the

door.”

A rather loud sniff came from Harry and Draco winced. For sure the toddler was going to end up with a cold. All Draco managed to put on Harry—before the chase—was a pair of underwear. When he heard a soft click, Draco sighed and opened the door; Harry was huddling by the bathtub, shivering. The blond frowned at the toddler and kneeled down in front of him.

“Look at you, you’re shivering.” Draco chastised; Harry whimpered and went to Draco when the blond had his arms open wide. “All that running around without your clothes is going to make you sick; I asked you to stop but you didn’t listen.” Draco lifted the toddler and together, they went back outside.

Harry sniffed again and rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. “I sowwy Dway… buh I no wants to wear da sweata…”

“You could have told me you didn’t want to wear it. I would let you pick out whatever you wanted to wear instead.” Draco said; he set Harry on his bed, right next to the clothes he had picked out for Harry. “Now, you don’t want the yellow sweater right?”

“Uh huh…” Harry nodded and knuckled his red, puffy eyes. “Can I weally pick wat I wants?”

“Of course,” Draco smiled; Harry brightened up and clambered off the bed. He padded over to the bureau and started pulling out drawers.

When Harry finally found the one that held the sweaters, his green eyes scanned them carefully. There were greens, reds, blacks, orange, blues, and purple. Harry made a face when he saw the purple ones and took one of the orange sweaters. Draco was standing beside the toddler, watching Harry scrutinizing the sweaters. When the three year old boy took out the orange sweater, Draco snorted.

Orange wasn’t all that better than the yellow in his opinion.

“Have you decided?” Draco asked; Harry had unfolded the pullover and was looking at it with narrowed eyes.

After looking at the pullover right and left, Harry decided it was alright. The front of the sweater had a picture of a huge black bat; it was flapping its wings every few seconds. Harry nodded to himself and turned to the blond, holding the orange pullover out for Draco to take.

“I picks this one… buh wat’s da bwack ding?”

“Oh, that’s a bat. I guess this was a Halloween sweater,” Draco shrugged, “So you’re sure you want to wear this one?”

“Yups, I wants dat one.”

"You're sure?"

"Yessss Dway." Harry actually rolled his eyes.

Draco took the sweater from Harry’s small hand and kneeled in front of the child. He slipped the collar around Harry’s head and pulled it

down; Harry closed his eyes as the wooly cloth passed over his face.

“Hold your arms up,” Draco told Harry; the toddler held up his arms and let Draco slip his arms through the sleeves.

When Draco successfully donned the sweater on Harry, he led the toddler back to his bed and took the pair of corduroy pants he picked out earlier for the brunet. Harry dutifully lifted one leg, slipped it into the pant leg, and then lifted the other leg. Draco let Harry button and zip up his own pants. He chuckled when Harry stuck out the tip of his tongue, his eyes cast downward, and those tiny fingers fumbling with the button.

“We should go now,” Draco said with a smile once Harry had buttoned his pants, “If not, we’ll be late for dinner.”

Harry gasped and took Draco’s hand, half dragging the taller teen out of the bedroom.

“I’m hungwy! Needs to eat! You too Dway!”

Draco rolled his eyes, a small smile gracing his face, and just let the toddler pull him out of their quarters.

---

It took them ten minutes to get to the Great Hall since Harry was pulling Draco in all the wrong directions. The blond had let Harry drag him around but after minutes of senseless wandering, he picked Harry up and gave the child a piggy back ride to the Hall. Draco set Harry down once they were inside where all the students were already eating.

As he and Harry neared the Slytherin table, eyes were mostly on the toddler. Some of the Slytherins were sneering and some started whispering, while a few others just continued eating. Harry let out a small whimper and hid behind Draco’s legs, one hand gripping Draco’s tightly and the other was wrapped around Draco’s left knee.

Draco patted Harry’s head soothingly, causing the toddler to look up at him.

“It’s okay Harry, don’t pay them any attention. Come on, we’ll sit farther away from them.”

Harry nodded silently and Draco led the toddler to the end of the table. Malfoy picked up the small child and set Harry onto the bench and then he sat down next to Harry. When seeing that the top of Harry’s head barely made it over the table top, Draco chuckled and placed Harry on his lap instead.

The plate in front of Draco was instantly filled with food. Mashed potatoes, two pieces of grilled chicken breast with a side of steamed vegetables covered the plate. Draco was wondering if he was going to have to cut up the chicken for Harry when Harry’s plate was filled with the same foods, but the chicken breasts were diced into small squares. Harry was eyeing his plate and when Draco placed it in front of him,

Harry reached out and stuffed two cubes into his mouth.

“Do you want pumpkin juice, Harry?” Draco asked; he was spearing carrots with his fork.

Harry nodded and took a piece of lettuce; his cheeks were puffed out and some gravy from the mashed potatoes was on his chin.

“Yesh Dway… I wants some.”

Draco held Harry tighter while taking the pitcher of juice and poured some into his goblet. He held the cup by Harry’s lips as Harry bent his head to take a drink. Harry gulped down three mouthfuls before turning his head away and continued shoving chicken into his mouth.

“You better slow down or you’re going to get a stomachache for eating too fast.” Draco warned; Harry swallowed and sighed.

“I not get tummyache,” Harry giggled and went back to eating.

Draco scoffed and ate his own dinner. He twisted his head and found Granger watching him. Smiling softly, she nodded at him; the redhead was sitting next to her, shoveling forkful of potatoes into his mouth. Weasley never saw Hermione interacting with Malfoy. Draco returned her greeting with a curt nod of his own and turned away.

As he was eating his dessert—chocolate cake—Harry let out a content sigh and patted his rounded tummy.

“I full Dway… too much foods.” Harry said dreamily.

“I would say so, look at your stomach.” Draco chided; he tickled Harry and the toddler let out a small squeal. “We are going to walk back, no piggy back ride for you.”

Harry groaned and just sat like a sack of potatoes on Draco’s lap for the rest of dinnertime.

---

“I wuvs the cakey! It’s yummy…” Harry said.

Harry was lying in his cot with Draco looking down upon him. The blond had just finished dressing Harry for bed and tucked the toddler in.

Harry snuggled deeper under the blanket and smiled up at Draco.

“Cans we eat dere more?” Harry asked, “I likes it.”

“Of course, but you have promise me that you’re not going to be a messy eater next time.” Draco reached down and flicked Harry’s nose. “You dropped a whole spoon of mashed potatoes on my pants earlier.”

Harry giggled and batted at Draco’s hand, “I sowwy Dway. I pwomise I no do it ness time.”

Draco chuckled softly, “Go to sleep Harry, it’s getting late.”

Harry let out a yawn and his eyes flitted and closed. “Night-night Dway…” Harry mumbled; he rolled to his side and buried his face into Eddy’s fur.

Draco smoothed Harry’s hair back and leaned down to kiss Harry on his chubby cheek.

“Goodnight Harry.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 9: As He Gets Older

"Give this to Potter at night, Draco." Snape ordered as he handed the blond a vial of green liquid.

Draco eyed the potion warily and nodded, pocketing the vial in his pocket. It was that time again. The time to age Potter. Draco always dreaded the day Severus would come to his quarters and hand him a vial of the aging potion. He didn't want Harry to turn older; he wanted to keep the brunet young, innocent, and most importantly, not remembering any of his real memories. Draco hated that the potion aged Harry by so many years. It would've been fine if it only turned Harry to a four year old, but Snape told him it was to make Harry turn seven.

"Should I mix it with his drinks again?" Draco asked; the Potions Master looked at Draco's subdue expression and nodded.

"Put it with his pumpkin juice or whatever Potter likes to drink for dinner." Snape told the blond, "The potion will activate once Potter falls asleep. By tomorrow morning, he will be seven years of age."

"Just like last time… He'll change at night." Draco murmured; he breathed in deeply and looked at Snape, "I'm assuming the playroom will become Harry's bedroom from now on?"

"Yes, by tonight that room will become his sleeping quarters. All this clothes, toys will change to fit a seven year old."

"I see…" Draco whispered.

Snape sighed and stood up from his seat—they were both sitting in the living room.

"Don't think too much on it, Draco." Snape said, putting a comforting hand on Draco's shoulder. "You know Potter will age back. It's inevitable."

"I know that, Professor… I just wanted more time with a young Harry that's all." Draco muttered; he looked up at the standing man. "I have

to go wake Harry up… get him ready and all that…" Draco stood up and walked slowly back to his bedroom, where Harry was still sleeping.

Snape watched as Malfoy walked back to his room with his head down. Shaking his head, Severus made his way to the front portrait and left, to get ready for the first class of the day.

---

Draco sighed softly, his hand brushing Harry's hair back. The toddler also sighed and nuzzled into Draco's touch.

"You'll be back to your old self soon…" Draco said quietly, "My time with you is running short."

Harry scrunched up his face and slowly opened his eyes. He blinked a couple of times, getting the haziness away. When he saw Draco hovering above him, Harry's face broke into a wide smile.

"Dway… Mornin'?" Harry yawned audibly; he giggled when Draco's fingers tickled his cheeks.

"Yes sleepyhead, it's morning." Draco chuckled when Harry rubbed his eyes with his small fists and rolled onto his stomach.

Harry pushed himself to a sitting position, looking half awake. He let out another yawn before he held his arms up, wordlessly asking to be picked up. Draco obliged and lifted the toddler and into his arms where Harry immediately snuggled into his embrace.

"Dway… Wat's for bwekfast?" Harry asked, his small hands playing with the ends of Draco's hair.

Draco shifted Harry, bouncing the toddler in his arms. Harry laughed and gave a small peck on Draco's cheek. By now, Malfoy was used to the little kisses Harry gave him every morning.

"Are you really that hungry? Everytime I wake you up, you ask for breakfast." Draco chided with a smile on his face. "We're having pancakes today. Your favorite."

Harry's green eyes lit up, "Wif seerup on tops?"

"Yes love, with syrup on top."

"I wuv seerup… sticky seerup." Harry said; he was once again snuggling into Draco. "Wuv seerup like Dway."

Draco rolled his eyes at the toddler's comment; it was one of those sappy moments. Not that he minded.

No, not at all.

"Are you saying I'm sticky like syrup, Harry?" Draco asked, arching one eyebrow at the brunet.

Harry smiled and shook his head, "No. I juss wuv Dway lots. More den seerup."

Draco chuckled and walked out the bedroom, with Harry babbling about syrup and pancakes.

---

"Dway! My bed is not dere!" Harry cried out.

It was just after classes and Harry had whined about being tired and sleepy the whole way they were walking back to their quarters. After

Draco had said the password to the portrait, Harry made a beeline to the bedroom. Now, he was standing exactly where his small bed was. Except… the bed wasn't there.

Draco had calmly followed the toddler to the bedroom; he chuckled when Harry began looking around for his bed.

Harry let out a sob and toddled over to the blond; Draco sighed and picked up the crying Harry.

"Dway… you don't wants me to sleep with you no more?" Harry asked as tears trailed down his chubby cheeks. "My bed not here…"

"Hush Harry, you bed is moved to another room." Draco said, combing his fingers through Harry's dark hair. "You're… a big boy now and big boys sleep by themselves."

It was so hard to explain to a three year old that he was going to turn seven by tomorrow morning.

"Buh I don't wanna!" Harry cried, "I wants Dway!" Harry buried his head in Draco's shoulder and cried loudly. "You don't luv me no more…"

"Hush Harry, you know that's not true." Draco whispered, "It's just that… you're uh… going to be older than you are now."

Draco rolled his eyes; this all sounded confusing, even to himself.

"An' dat why I sleeps in 'nuther room?" Harry sniffed; Draco sighed and kissed Harry on the forehead.

"I'm not going to be that far; my room is next to yours. I promise you, Harry, I'll be there if you need me." Draco vowed, "And you can always

come to my room. The door is always opened."

"Kay…" Harry nodded then rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. "Can I go sees the new room?"

"Of course…" Draco murmured and with Harry in his arms, walked to the room next to his.

When he opened the door to the previously known playroom, Draco gently placed Harry on the ground and let the toddler run around, looking at the decors. Harry poked and prodded his new bed; it was way bigger than his old one and a bit higher. The green eyed baby tried climbing on his bed but failed. After two tries, Harry 'humphed' and gave up, instead running to one of the shelves filled with books and figurines.

"Ohh… Dway wat is dat?" Harry asked, pointed at a floating, miniature Firebolt in one of the shelves.

Right there and then, Draco wondered if Harry remembered any of his experiences on brooms. He wondered if by looking at the miniature Firebolt, would Harry remember playing Quidditch against the Slytherins. Draco shook his head, clearing all thoughts. He walked up to Harry and bent down a little to peer at the floating broom.

"That is a Firebolt, a type of broom." Draco explained to the toddler, "When you are old enough, maybe I'll let you fly."

"Weally? I can fly?" Harry asked, his green eyes wide. "Da broom can fly?"

Draco chuckled and ruffled Harry's hair, "Not that tiny broom, but yes, you can ride them. But there would be no flying in the rooms. You can only do it outside."

"Ohh… Can I fly now?"

Draco took one of Harry's hands and walked to the brunet's bed; he lifted Harry up and plopped the young child on top.

"Only when you're bigger, Harry." Draco told the brunet; Harry pouted but nonetheless nodded. "Well, look at it this way Harry, you're a big boy now aren't you?"

"I sleeps in big room so I is big boy." Harry nodded once and crossed his arms. "Dat means I can ride the broom!"

Draco's smile faltered; Harry was right. He would be a big boy, and soon. Draco had calculated that he would only probably have around two months with a young Harry. After that, Harry would be back to normal and Draco would never have the chance to be near him again. It was painful to think about, but just as Severus said: it was inevitable. Draco sighed and put his smile back on, reached out and caressed Harry's soft cheek.

"Yes, you're a big boy… before you know it you will be doing many things you can't do now."

'One of those things would be hating me again…' Draco thought sadly.

Harry smiled then let out a shaky yawn; the toddler promptly rolled onto his stomach, his head on the pillow. Draco chuckled and tucked the boy in; he planted a soft kiss on Harry's cheek before straightening himself.

"I'll wake you up when it's time to eat dinner okay?"

Harry cracked his eyes opened and nodded sleepily; he then stuck his thumb in his mouth and went to sleep. Draco patted Harry's head and left the toddler to his afternoon nap.

---

"What do you want to drink tonight, Harry?" Draco asked the squirming toddler.

Tonight, Draco chose to eat in their quarters since he had to give Harry the potion. The blond was quite sure that Harry would fall asleep right after taking the aging potion, just like the last time he took it. This was why Draco made Harry choose his drink after all food was eaten. He even gave Harry his shower already; usually he would bathe the young child after dinner because of all the messes Harry made.

"Uhm…" Harry tilted his head to the side and thought for a second. He grinned at Draco and pointed at the pitcher that held cold pumpkin juice. "I want dat! I want da pukmin juice."

"It's pumpkin juice, love." Draco laughed and reached for the pitcher. He took Harry's small cup and poured in the juice.

After putting the pitcher back on the table Draco plucked Harry from his chair and placed the toddler onto his own lap. Under Harry's watchful eyes, Draco took out the small vial and uncorked it.

"Dway wat's dat? It's green! Is dat pumkin juice, too?"

Malfoy shook his head in the negative, "No… it's not. But this will make your juice taste better."

He felt his chest tightened when he told the lie. Draco hated having to lie to Harry; but he had to do it. Draco couldn't explain to the toddler that the green potion would make him age; Harry would never understand that.

"Oh… So dat makes my juicy yummy?" Harry grinned and held his cup in his hands. Draco nodded and tipped the vial over Harry's cup,

watching the green liquid blend with the orange. The pumpkin juice bubbled a bit and then, it looked normal again. "Can I drink it now?" Harry asked, bending his head to take a sip.

"Yeah, sure, you can." Draco said; he watched as Harry took three gulps before putting the cup on the table.

Draco held Harry tighter and waited for the glowing green light; it came a minute later and Harry slumped in his arms. Letting out a shaky breath, Draco stood up—toddler and all—and made his way to Harry's bedroom. Exactly like last time, Harry was dressed in sleeping garments that would normally fit a seven year old; Draco thought the clothes would be way too big, even when Harry would become seven. Draco looked down at the sleeping boy and smiled; Harry's head lolled in his arms.

Padding across the room, Draco finally reached the bed where he put Harry down gently. He pulled the blankets up, under Harry's chin; it was snowing outside and Draco could hear the howling winds. Christmas was a week away and Malfoy smiled at the idea of having to spend it with a seven year old Harry. He looked up and saw Eddy the teddy next to Harry's pillow. When Harry woke up from his afternoon nap earlier, the first thing he did was cry for Draco. The blond had rushed in and was by Harry's bed in a matter of seconds. After seeing his guardian in the flesh, Harry then asked Draco to bring him Eddy, who was still in Draco's room, on top of the bureau of Harry's clothes. When Malfoy brought Eddy, Harry took it from Draco and planted the bear firmly next to his pillow.

Draco sighed and smoothed back Harry's messy locks. "I think I'll get you something else for Christmas… Would you like a broom, Harry? I'm sure you'll like a kid broom." Draco murmured to himself.

It was quite likely that Draco would have to take Harry outside to Hogsmeade, where wizards and witches alike would see the de-aged Potter. He would have to take that risk since it was the only way for him to buy the present for Harry. Draco smiled softly and after checking that there were no complications from Harry, he retired to his own rooms where for the rest of the night, he tossed and turned, thinking how life would be with a seven years old Harry Potter.

---

The very first thing Draco noticed upon waking up was a very heavy weight on his stomach. Because of being half awake, Draco thought there was a pile of bricks on him.

It was nonsense, he knew.

When the weight on his stomach started bouncing up and down, Draco had no choice but to open his eyes, to make sure that there weren't some sort of jumping bricks on his body. So, when he cracked one eye opened, Draco was greeted with the sight of a seven year old Harry sitting on his abdomen.

Harry smiled down at his Draco when he saw that the blond had opened his eyes. He bounced once more for good measure; Draco let out an 'oof' and tried to still Harry.

"Draco! You're up! I called you a couple of times but you never answered so I came to your room! I kinda remember you telling me I can… So I did!" Harry grinned and bounced again, "But then you were still sleeping and I watched you for a few minutes… Then I tried waking you up by poking you… and now I'm here!" Harry laughed when Draco arched an eyebrow at the excited kid.

"You little monster! Is this how you wake people up? By jumping on them?" Draco growled playfully and went on to tickle Harry, who squealed and tried rolling off Draco's stomach but was trapped when the blond held on tight. "That's what you get for bouncing on me early in the

morning."

Harry laughed audibly and rolled; this time Draco let him. But instead of letting Harry slid off the bed, Draco held on to Harry's arm to prevent escape. Malfoy sat up, twisted his upper body and continued with his tickling. Harry cried out in surprised and squirmed; he then head butted Draco and went straight into Malfoy's arms.

"Stop it, Draco… I'm sorry for jumping on your stomach," Harry looked up at the blond and batted his eyes adorably; Draco snorted and thought that Harry should be in the Slytherin house.

"Alright, I forgive you." Draco huffed and messed up Harry's hair. "Where's my morning kiss, Harry?" Draco smirked, but then he gasped when Harry grinned at him and gave him the kiss.

"Sorry I forgot… I was too busy trying to wake you up." Harry said with a smile; he sighed and snuggled into Draco's chest.

Draco was still shocked on the fact Harry gave him the kiss. He had thought that, since Harry was now seven, the boy would feel he was too old to be giving morning kisses. But Draco was wrong. It seemed… Harry didn't really care. Judging from the look of things, a seven-year-old Harry wasn't too bad. At least now, Draco didn't have to deal with all those tantrums.

“Hey, did you even brush your teeth yet?” Draco asked suddenly; Harry laughed and looked up at Draco. He stuck out his tongue and blew a raspberry.

“Nope! I was trying to wake you up… I forgot.” Harry said cheekily and scrambled off Draco’s lap when the blond made a grab at him.

“Go brush your teeth! You just kissed me without brushing your teeth!” Draco laughed and trailed after the laughing Harry.

Twenty minutes later, Harry emerged from his bedroom, dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans, a thick grey sweater, and had actually wrapped a scarf around his neck. Draco chuckled and for the first time since waking up, he had a good look at Harry.

All the baby fat was gone, leaving Harry to become a skinny little boy. In Draco’s opinion, Harry didn’t really grow too much; the top of the brunet's head now reached Draco’s hips. Malfoy guessed Harry was about four feet tall, maybe even less than that. He frowned when he saw how big the sweater and jeans looked on Harry. One thing that didn’t change at all was Harry’s mop of hair; it was still as messy as before. It flopped in ten different directions and no matter how hard Harry combed it, it stayed that way.

“Dracoooo… I’m hungry,” Harry whine as he sat down at the dining table. “Where’s breakfast?”

“You know, you are always asking for food… but you’re still so small and thin.” Draco chided; Harry shrugged.

“I’m a growing boy so I need more food.” Harry replied; he wiggled his chair closer to the blond and folded his hand on top of the table, waiting for his breakfast to appear. “Wonder what we’re having today? I really want some pancakes…”

“We had that yester--” Draco trailed off; he bit his lip and stopped talking altogether.

“Yesterday? Yeah, I know. But I want pancakes today, too.” Harry smiled and started swinging his legs.

Draco was taken aback and stared at the sitting boy next to him. “You remembered? You remember having pancakes yesterday?”

‘How can that be?!’

“Yeah… why wouldn’t I?” Harry frowned, “I even remember having syrup on top as well. Oh, and you said I can fly on a broom… or something

like that.” Draco sucked in a breath and held it; Harry tilted his head and touched Draco’s arm. “Is something wrong, Draco?”

“No-no… Nothing’s wrong…” Draco murmured; Harry shrugged again and muttered ‘yes!’ when plates appeared on the table.

Draco watched silently as Harry began cutting the pancake into tiny pieces before spearing them with his fork. Malfoy’s mind was still whirling; Harry actually remembered the things that happened yesterday when supposedly Harry was still three then…

‘Merlin… Does that mean Harry’s going to remember everything?’

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 10: Stuck Between Past and Present

“Draco… my head hurts,” Harry muttered, the heel of his hand rubbing against his temple. “Is something wrong with me? Everything is sorta blurry…”

It had been two days since Harry turned seven. After finding out that Harry remembered things from his three-year-old stage, Draco panicked and had immediately fire-called Severus, telling the Potions Master everything. Snape had been shocked, to say the least. But then he composure himself and told the blond to be calm; it was possible, after all, that there was a chance for Potter’s real memories to mingle with the ones from his de-aged days. Snape told Draco to be ready for Harry to slip suddenly into a memory relapse mode, and then, be back to normal in a flash.

After hearing that from Snape, Draco sort of went into shock and walked numbly back to the dining room, where Harry was still happily eating his breakfast. For the rest of that day, Draco watched Harry closely, sometimes noticing little blank looks from the green eyed boy. As sudden as those looks came, they were gone in seconds. It was never long; Harry would zone out, whatever he was doing would stop, and when Draco called out to the boy, Harry would blink and the seven-year-old would be back, smiling as if nothing happened. Malfoy noticed that whenever Harry had the relapses, the boy would furrow his eyebrows as if he was deep in thought; his green eyes would dim and were fixed onto one spot in front of him.

Draco was scared and worried that the memories of Harry hating him would slowly trickle back. That worry intensified when the blank stares from Harry were sometimes directed at him. Harry would frown at Draco, blink, and then, Harry was back to his kiddy self.

Draco hoped that day never comes.

Now, two days later, Draco was attending his Ancient Runes class with Harry sitting quietly next to him. Harry had taken the miniature Firebolt with him this morning and had been playing with it through Draco’s classes. When the young boy complained about having a headache, Draco was immediately concerned and stopped writing his notes.

“Can you see what’s written on the board in front?” Draco asked; he had been wondering when to give Harry his glasses back. Now, it seemed his question was answered.

Harry rubbed his forehead before looking up; he squinted at the blackboard and let out a huff.

“I can’t really see… but I can make out some white squiggly lines.” Harry muttered then looked up at Draco worriedly. “Is something wrong with me?! Do I need glasses? I remember some round glasses…” Harry trailed off and frowned.

Draco chewed on his bottom lip when Harry started to zone out again, his green eyes turned lifeless.

“Glasses… I had them before.” Harry murmured and turned to Draco. “You have them… You kept…” Harry winced and then put both of his hands over his eyes; he began wagging his head. “Draco… it hurts… my head, it hurts…”

Draco picked up the shaking body and held Harry close to himself. The whole class had quiet down and the students were now staring at Draco and Harry, muttering things under their breath. The blond paid no attention to them and just rocked the young boy in his arms, whispering soothing words into Harry’s ears.

“What else do you remember, Harry?” Draco asked; he was ready for this… Snape did warn him two days ago.

“I-I just… I don’t know! Everything’s blurry… there are pictures in my head… I see myself but I think I look older… and-and I don’t know…”

Harry whimpered and buried his head into Draco’s shoulder, “Make it stop Draco… My head really hurts. Why is this happening? Am I a freak like my auntie and uncle said?” Harry sniffed and looked up; Draco noticed that Harry’s eyes were not longer out of focus. They looked normal, which meant… Harry’s relapse was over.

“No baby… you’re not a freak. Never believe what your uncle or aunt said. They don’t know anything.” Draco whispered, “When we go back to our quarters, I’ll give you your glasses back alright?” Harry nodded and Draco smiled lightly, “Just try to relax… don’t think too much.”

“Kay…” Harry murmured and buried his head into the crook of Draco’s neck.

Draco looked down at the resting boy and then he picked up his quill again. When Harry had quieted down, the rest of the class also resumed to their own things. Draco’s mind wandered as he wrote. Harry had mentioned his ‘auntie and ‘uncle and the blond assumed Harry was talking about his Muggle relatives. What made him scowl, however, was how Harry said they had called him a freak. Just by that one single word, Draco knew Harry’s childhood wasn’t a happy one.

“… you may go.”

Draco looked up; the Ancient Runes professor had just dismissed the class. Students filed out one by one; Draco shook the sleeping boy in his arms gently, waking Harry.

“Come on, Harry. It’s time to go.” Draco said softly; Harry looked up groggily at Draco and nodded. The brunet scrambled off Draco’s lap and then stood next to the table, leaning against it. “Do you want to go back or go have lunch in the Great Hall today?”

Harry shook his head and looked at the blond miserably. “My head still kinda hurts… I want to go back and sleep.”

Draco nodded, closing the flap of his school bag. He bent down and picked Harry up. As they were walking to their private quarters, Harry remained quiet and Draco didn’t ask why. But when they were near their rooms, Harry lifted his head away from Draco’s shoulder and spoke up.

“How come I remember round glasses, Draco?” Harry asked with a frown on his face. “I never had them before have I?”

Draco stiffened, ‘Questions… How the hell am I going to answer them?!’

“Well… maybe you saw somebody with round glasses,” Draco suggested, “That person could’ve walked by and uh… you saw the glasses.”

Draco hated lying to Harry.

Harry frowned and then he smiled, all traces of sadness were gone. “I guess… Oh well. It doesn’t matter where I saw them.” Harry sighed

and laid his head back onto Draco’s shoulder.

“Yeah… it doesn’t matter.” Draco muttered.

When they finally made it to their living quarters, Harry was half awake; his eyes were drooping. Draco chuckled and carried the brunet to his bedroom where he gently placed Harry onto his bed. Draco grabbed Eddy the teddy and laid it next to the green eyed boy. Harry smiled sleepily at Draco before rolling to his side and held Eddy close to his small body. Shaking his head, Draco pulled the blankets over Harry.

“I’ll wake you up later alright?” Harry nodded once and then went into a light slumber.

Draco looked down at the sleeping child and reached forward to play with Harry’s hair. He chuckled softly when Harry moved closer to the teddy bear and pressed his face into the soft hairs of the stuffed bear.

‘My time is definitely running short…’

---

Draco was sitting on the couch in the living room, redoing his Ancient Runes notes, when Harry came out from his bedroom. It wasn’t until the brunet let out a huge yawn did Draco realized the boy was there. Malfoy looked up from his book and then snickered at Harry’s bed-head. Dark brown hair flopped in twenty different directions; the top looked like Harry had slept while doing a headstand. When Draco waved Harry over, the young boy half skipped to the couch and plopped down next to the blond.

“How do you feel? Does your head still hurt?” Draco asked the boy; Harry shook his head and knuckled his eyes.

“Nah… I feel better now.” Harry looked up and smiled at Draco, his green eyes sparkling. “Do you have the glasses? I want to see them!”

Draco snorted and plunged his hand into his trouser pocket, producing an oval, thin-wire framed glasses. Harry’s smile widened and plucked

the glasses out of Draco’s hand; he examined the frame before putting it on.

Draco chuckled, “I resized them so that they would fit better. So is everything clear to you now?”

Draco looked on as Harry tested out his glasses by looking at things around the room. This pair of glasses was smaller than Harry’s old ones. First of all, the frame was not the hideous round circles anymore. Second, the wire was much thinner than the old pair. Draco never liked Harry’s old glasses anyway.

“Oh wow! I can see, Draco! Everything’s not blurry anymore… Oh look! I can even see that spider above the fireplace!” Harry said excitedly and pointed directly in front of him. “Can I keep the spider as my pet?”

Draco narrowed his eyes and followed the path of Harry’s pointing finger. Right there, above the mantle, was a black spider, crawling slowly upward. Draco’s eyes twitched; he turned to the beaming Harry and smiled lightly.

“No Harry, you can’t have the spider as your pet. Now, can you go fetch me some tissues?”

Harry gasped and looked at Draco, and then at the black spider, then back at Draco.

“Are you going to kill it?!”

“Of course; spiders do not make good pets, Harry.” Draco said calmly; Harry pouted and then nodded slowly.

“Okay… You’re right. Spiders don’t make good pets do they?”

Draco chuckled and ruffled Harry’s hair, making it messier. “No, they’re not really good pets. Now go on, get me some tissues.”

Harry then hopped off the couch and zoomed straight to the bathroom. Draco watched the spider through narrowed eyes. Normally, he would’ve hexed the damn spider right off the wall. Draco would do so without blinking an eye. But since Harry was here, Draco had to kill the spider in a nicer way. A moment later, Harry came back out with a handful of tissues; he waved it in front of Draco’s face, waiting for the blond to take them.

“I don’t know how many you want… So I got a whole bunch!” Harry laughed; Draco shook his head with a smile and took one piece.

Malfoy strode over to the fireplace and with great precision, smashed the damn spider with his tissue-covered hand. Harry laughed when the blond pounded the spider; Draco sniffed and crumpled the tissue before tossing it into the fire. The Slytherin walked back to the couch and sat down again, picked up his textbook, and resumed writing his notes.

When Draco started writing, Harry peered over Malfoy’s arm and glanced at the page the blond was on.

“Draco… what is that? They look weird…” Harry furrowed his eyebrows together, his eyes scanning the page from top to bottom, “They all look like squiggly lines to me.” He then jabbed a pudgy finger at the first line on the page.

Draco laughed pulled Harry closer to him; the brunet gladly fell against Draco’s side and stayed there.

“These are runes. You won’t be able to understand any of them.” Draco said and went back to his notes, leaving Harry alone.

Harry shrugged and turned his attention away from Draco; he stared ahead, into the crackling flame. The usually bright emerald orbs began to dim, and finally, they looked lifeless.

“… Between magic and power…” Harry murmured; he continued to stare straight ahead, eyebrows knitted together, and not blinking even once.

Draco’s quill stopped moving and he dropped it on his parchment, making a blotch of black ink in the middle. He turned and attentively placed a hand on Harry’s leg.

“What did you say?” Draco whispered; Harry jolted from his stupor and looked up into Draco’s grey eyes. He tilted his head and gave Malfoy a lopsided grin.

“Silly Draco… I didn’t say anything!” Harry laughed; his eyes were bright once more. Harry looked at Draco’s notes and snickered, “You better hurry up, Draco… or else we won’t make it for dinner!”

Draco picked up his sheet of notes and muttered a spell, clearing the ink blot.

“I still need to write a bit more… Why don’t you go ahead and take a shower first, Harry?”

Harry giggled and nodded, “Uhm okay! But don’t come inside like last time Dray; you thought I didn’t know how to wash myself.” Harry smiled cheekily at the blond, “I’m gonna lock the door this time.”

Draco rolled his eyes and playfully shoved Harry off the couch. Harry laughed and ran off, making a beeline to his bedroom.

When Draco heard the slam of Harry’s bedroom door, he slid down on the couch and threw his book to the side. Malfoy rubbed his face tiredly and let out a sigh. Harry’s relapses were occurring more frequently. Just now, he knew he wasn’t hearing things; Draco heard exactly what Harry had said earlier.

The brunet had muttered the first few words of a sentence on the page from Draco’s Ancient Runes book.

It wouldn’t be surprising if it was the seventeen year old Harry that had said those words. After all, Harry was in Draco’s class and the page the blond was on, they had gone over before.

Before Harry’s accident.

Draco tilted his head back and rested on the couch. He could hear the soft sounds of water running in the bathroom. Draco smiled when he

heard Harry singing in the bathroom—in his squeaky, childish voice (mostly, Harry was just going ‘la la la’). Draco sighed and closed his eyes.

He needed to talk to Snape about Harry’s problem.

---

“Professor, I need to talk to you. It’s important.” Draco stared at the sitting Potions Master, who was correcting some essays.

Snape looked up from the papers and smirked; he meticulously put down his quill and stood up from his chair.

“Very well. Follow me, Mr. Malfoy. We’ll be going to my private office.” Snape swept away and Draco was right behind him.

Once the door was tightly closed, Draco began pacing back and forth in front of the Potions Master.

“Sir, you know I told you about Harry’s problem. His real memories are coming back faster than before. He’s been having those relapses more often now.” Draco paused and took a deep breath. “I’m worried about Harry’s mentality… I don’t know if he can cope. Hell, if I was him, I think I would’ve gone mental by now.”

Snape nodded and folded his hands behind his back, “I know, Draco. I understand you are worried about Potter, but there’s not much we can do. All we can do is wait.”

“I don’t want to wait!” Draco grounded out, “Almost everyday Harry gets headaches. He spends most of his time sleeping and moaning about pictures in his head!” Draco stopped his rant and stared at the door, where he knew Harry was outside waiting for him to come back out. “Sometimes… Harry looks at me… I am scared that he would start to remember our relationship before the accident.”

Severus walked over to the blond and placed a careful hand on his shoulder. “I know you don't want any of this to happen, Draco. But really, there is nothing that we can do to help Potter.”

"I know, Professor. I just don't want to admit it I guess."

---

Harry smiled at his finished drawing; Draco had given him some parchments to draw on before going into the room with Snape. When Malfoy asked Harry to sit outside and wait for him, Harry did not question the blond; he only smiled and said he would wait for Draco.

It had been ten minutes or more since Draco disappeared into the room. Sometimes Harry could hear shouts coming from inside. The brunet wanted to go in just to see what his Draco was doing, but then Harry thought it was rude to do so.

Harry sighed and put his crayon down; he looked around the classroom, and had a feeling that something was familiar with it. He let out a short gasp when suddenly, his inner mind was bombarded with flashing images…

“I is sowwy Pwovesir Slaps.” A three-year-old Harry said.

The look on Snape’s face was absolutely horrible…

-flash-

“Damnit Malfoy! Stop checking your nails!”

Draco lowered his hand and turned to face Harry, a smirk etched across his face.

-flash-

“You make poshuns? Can I helps?”

“I don’t know… You might make a mess.”

“No I not!” Harry pouted, “I wants to help you.”

Draco sighed and rubbed his face tiredly. “Fine… When I ask you for something, you hand it to me okay?”

“Kay!”

-flash-

“Come on Dway, make da cuppy to a teddy bwere!”

“Alright, alright!”

Harry opened his eyes and saw the biggest teddy bear he had ever seen…

“Look love, do you like the teddy?”

“I wuv da bwere! Dank you Dway!”

Harry gasped and whimpered; his head was hurting again. Tears swelled in his eyes and Harry folded his arms on top of the table and

pressed his forehead down. Why did he look older in the pictures? But Draco looked like he was now. Also, the look on Draco’s face, it was as

if Draco didn’t like Harry… The brunet shuddered, feeling rather cold all of a sudden.

“Draco… Please come back… Don’t leave me alone…” Harry sobbed; he looked with teary eyes and found the door was still tightly shut. “I want the pictures to go away… Draco, make them go away…” Harry sniffed and laid his head down, “My head… it hurts… it really hurts.”

Harry coughed a few times and swallowed; his throat was really dry and scratchy. All he wanted right now was for Draco to come out and hold him. Harry looked up again, only this time, his eyes were devoid of all brightness; they were dull and dead.

“Draco… Do you hate me…?”

---

When Draco came out from Snape’s private office, the first thing he saw was Harry with his head on the table, crying. The blond rushed over to the young boy and picked him up. Harry immediately wrapped his arms around Draco’s neck and buried his tear-covered face into Draco’s shoulder.

“Harry, what’s wrong? Is your head hurting again? Did you see something?” Draco asked, alarmed.

Harry nodded once and sniffed, “I saw the pictures again… I don’t want to see anymore, Draco! Make them all go away… I hate them. My head hurts… they make my head hurt.”

Draco rubbed his small of Harry’s back and made shushing noises. Harry hiccupped and nuzzled Draco’s neck; it was warm and soft. Draco held back a flinch when Harry’s wet nose touched his skin. All that mattered right now was to get Harry to calm down and rest.

The blond turned to face Severus, who had been watching the whole scene.

“I shall take my leave now, Professor. As you can see, Harry needs to rest. He had enough for today.” Draco bit out, his voice was slightly bitter. “Can you send a note to my DADA professor? Tell him I won’t be able to make it to his class today; I have to take care of Harry.”

“Of course, Mr. Malfoy.” Snape said, “I’ll ask Professor Ramiel to send the homework up to your rooms.”

“Thank you, Sir.” Draco murmured and made his way out of the dungeons.

Once they were outside, Draco looked down at Harry, who was staring up at him with red, puffy eyes. “What do you say we head back? I’ll let you sleep next to me today, how does that sound?” Draco smiled when Harry’s face lit up a bit.

“I can nap with you today? On your big bed?” Harry asked; Draco chuckled and wiped a tear from Harry’s cheek.

“Yes, you can. I remember you telling me that when you hug Eddy, you would pretend Eddy was me.”

“Yeah… I sleep faster that way. You make me feel safe, Draco.” Harry smiled and blushed. “I promise I won’t squish you too hard.” Harry added and grinned at the blond.

Draco laughed and ruffled Harry’s hair.

“Make sure you don’t.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 11: The Holidays

It was the first day of their Christmas vacation and Draco, for the first time in six years, signed up to stay at Hogwarts for two weeks, which was how long the holidays were. The main reason for him to do so was to watch Harry. It was his job, after all, to make sure his charge was safe. It would be extremely stupid if he brought Harry to Malfoy Manor…

“Draco, can we go outside and play with the snow?” Harry asked; they were inside Draco’s bedroom and Harry was kneeling on Draco’s bed, staring out the window. “It’s so white and pretty outside…” He turned to face the blond—who was sitting next to the young boy, reading a book—and put on a beautiful smile. “Please Draco? Pretty please?” Harry then sat down on the bed and placed his head onto Draco’s lap.

Draco sighed and snapped his book closed; he placed it to the side and glanced down at Harry, who was now nuzzling his face in Draco’s belly, a serene smile on his face. Draco’s lips twitched and then they formed into a smile.

Harry was so adorable in the way he acted.

“If you catch a cold it’s not going to be my fault alright?” Draco laughed when Harry nodded absently against his stomach. “You’re going to scratch up your glasses if you keep doing that.”

Harry stopped what he was doing and looked up, a huge smile on his face. “We’re going out aren’t we?!” Harry asked, finally realizing that Draco had agreed to go out.

Malfoy laughed, nodding, and Harry sat right up; he hopped off the bed and ran out, laughing all the way, with Draco following. When the door to Harry’s bedroom closed, Draco stood outside and leaned against the wall next to the doorway.

“Put on one of those thick jackets, Harry!” Draco called out, “You know what? I’m coming in and see what you’ve picked. You better not wear that ugly scarf again!” Draco said loudly; he heard Harry giggling behind the door.

The last time Draco let Harry pick out his own outfit, it was a disaster. The boy had chosen a bright red wool sweater (it reminded Draco of a tomato…), a pair of dark purple corduroy trousers, black trainers, and around Harry’s neck was this yellow scarf (Draco had almost screamed when he saw the scarf). When Harry came out and modeled for Draco, the blond had slapped his hand over his eyes and promptly pushed Potter back inside the room to change.

On that day, Draco vowed to never let Harry pick out his own clothes. Ever.

When Draco walked inside Harry’s room, he found the young boy kneeling in front of the bureau, pulling out drawers in search of warm clothes.

“Draco… should I wear that black sweater or the white one?” Harry asked without looking at his guardian. “I feel like wearing white… Maybe I’ll blend in with the snow.”

Draco scoffed and took out the white sweater. “Why do you want to blend in with the snow?” He held up the sweater, inspected it, and then Draco draped it on his arm. “What if I lost you out there?” The blond asked, tweaking Harry’s nose. “Besides, you still have to wear a jacket and none of them are white.”

Harry laughed and started unbuttoning his pajama top, his head down and the tip of his tongue sticking out.

“Then you would have to look for me,” Harry answered to Draco’s question; he shrugged off his top and let it drop on the ground. “It’s not like you’ll let me get lost anyway.” Harry grinned at the blond, his green eyes bright with delight.

Draco shook his head without saying anything; Harry snatched the white sweater from Draco’s arm and tugged it down, his head popping through the collar. When Harry’s head came to view, Draco snorted at the disheveled look; the brunet’s glasses were askew and his hair was shooting out in different directions. Malfoy reached out and patted Harry’s hair, an effort to make his hair flat and tamed. But no such luck. Harry’s eyes rolled up, puckered his lips and blew on his fringe. Draco went to fix Harry’s glasses, setting them straight again.

“It’s okay Draco, my hair’s always like that,” Harry shrugged and turned to face the bureau again, “People say… people say…” Harry’s words faltered; his hands were on the bottom drawer, knuckles were white from gripping.

Draco sighed and took Harry’s smaller hands in his, prying them away from the drawer.

“What did people say, Harry?” Draco asked; he knew Harry was relapsing again. Harry remained silent, his small body started trembling.

Draco scowled; he had always hated when Harry became unresponsive. Sometimes it only took a few seconds for Harry to return to normal, but as the days went on, it took longer and longer. The last time Harry went into a relapse, it took Draco almost ten minutes to get the young boy to respond. Furrowing his eyebrows, Draco pulled the stilled boy to his chest, wrapping his arms around Harry’s shoulders.

“Harry… it’s alright. I’m right here… Ignore the pictures in your head and come back. I know you can hear me, Harry.” Draco murmured, rocking the boy gently. “Stop looking at the pictures… I’ll take you outside to play. I’ll help you build a nice, big snowman.” Draco said almost desperately.

Harry was gaining more and more of his real memories back, and Draco knew this.

Harry shuddered, but his eyes remained passive. Slowly, as if in a trance, Harry turned his head and looked up at the blond. Draco’s breath hitched; Harry’s eyes were so dull…

“I don’t want to see…” Harry whispered; he blinked once, twice, and the light that was missing came back, slowly. Harry frowned up at Draco, who was staring down at him. “Draco? Why are you holding me like this?”

Draco released Harry and made the boy sitting upright once more. “I just felt like hugging you, that’s all.” Draco lied.

He did it again; he had to lie.

“Oh. Well, that’s okay then. I always give you hugs whenever I want.” Harry beamed at the blond and turned back to the drawers. “What color pants should I wear?” Harry asked and pulled the drawer that held all the trousers and pants.

“Wear the dark blue one,” Draco answered and sat down, with his legs folded under him.

Harry plunged his little hands in and then pulled out the pair of dark blue jeans. He stood up, shimmied out of his pajama pants, and slipped the jeans on. Draco smiled when Harry ran over to his bed and took the jacket that was draped at the foot of the bed.

“See? My jacket is light blue!” Harry exclaimed and shoved his arms into the sleeves. “It’s almost white.”

Draco chuckled and pushed himself up from the floor. “Harry, I’m sure I can see your mop of hair even if you’re buried in snow.”

Harry huffed and walked up to Draco, taking the blonde’s hand. “Whatever. Draco, are you really going to help me make a snowman?” Potter tilted his head up and grinned, “Should I get my mittens?”

Draco rolled his eyes; he walked back to the bureau—with Harry—and took a pair of mittens.

“Put them on and go wait for me by the portrait,” Draco told the boy, “I’ll go get dressed now.”

“Kay!” And Harry rushed out to the living room.

“Kids and snow…” Draco muttered with a smile and walked back to his own bedroom to bundle up.

________________________________________

“Draco!! Hurry up!!” Harry yelled, “The snow’s all melted!”

Draco smirked and closed the door of Harry’s bedroom; he had gone inside to get a beanie for Harry. He was dressed in a white winter coat; underneath that was a black, cashmere jumper, along with a white scarf wrapped around his pale neck. A well-tailored pair of black trousers covered his legs, and instead of wearing his usual black dress shoes, Draco wore a pair of black boots.

When he went to the portrait, Draco found Harry pacing around, zipping and unzipping his jacket as a sign of impatience. Draco stood in Harry’s way, and since the brunet didn’t see Draco coming out, he bumped right into Malfoy’s legs.

“Ow!” Harry rubbed his forehead with mitten-covered hands and halfheartedly glared at Draco. He then smiled when his guardian slipped the beanie over his head. “Can we go now?”

“Yes we can,” Draco said, pushing the painting outward and stepping outside. “What do say if I’m taking you to Hogsmeade afterwards?”

Harry’s whole face lit up, “Hogsmeade? Oh wow! Is that where all the shops are? Like that candy shop you told me about?” Draco nodded, a smile gracing his features; he had told Harry once where he had gotten his secret stash of candies and chocolates.

“I have to buy something and if you behave, I might even consider buying you some of those Chocolate Frogs you liked so much.”

Harry pumped his fists in the air and did a little dance outside their quarters. Draco, shaking his head with amusement, closed the portrait behind them and followed one enthusiastic Harry down the halls, towards the front gate of Hogwarts.

________________________________________

.: By the Lake… :.

Draco stood at the side and watched as Harry ran straight and jumped on top of a mound of freshly fallen snow. Draco flicked at his coat when speckles of wet snow flew at him. Harry laughed and rolled off the mound, stood up, and ran around to collect more snow. Draco didn’t mind standing out here, under the falling snow, cold winds hitting his face. All he cared about was that Harry was having fun.

When Harry bent down to pile up his gathered snow, an evil smile appeared on Draco’s face. Noiselessly, Draco scooped up a handful of snow, rolled it into a ball, and with perfect aim, threw the ball at Harry’s bum. It landed with a sharp sounding ‘splack’.

Ah, he wanted to do that for years.

Harry yelped, his hands went to cover his now wet behind. He spun around and looked right at Draco, his green eyes wide. Draco smirked and crossed his arms in front of him.

“Continue with your snow mounds, Harry.” Draco said over the wind and he looked in the direction where Hogsmeade was, “Then we can ma--”

Draco didn’t finish his sentence; a snowball was sailing in his direction and it hit him on his folded arms. Malfoy stared at the laughing boy. Harry bent down again and scooped more snow into his mitten covered hands.

“I got you, Draco!” Harry said happily; he rolled the snow into a bigger sized ball. He drew his arm back and flung, the white ball sailing through the air and missed Draco’s head by at least two feet.

Malfoy scoffed; he went on his knees and took out his wand. With a muttered spell, balls of snow appeared before him in a pyramid. He heard Harry gasp and looked up. Harry had his hands on his hips, a frown on his face.

“No fair! I have to make snowballs with my hands while you did magic!” Harry huffed; Draco, taking pity on the child, pointed his wand and used the same spell to give Harry a mountain of already made snowballs.

Harry cheered and mimicked Draco’s kneeling position.

“Snowball fight!!” Harry hollered and grabbed a snowball. He threw it at Malfoy, who merely moved his head to the left.

“You have to do better than that, Harry.” Draco smirked and took a snowball.

With perfect precision, Draco’s snowball hit Harry right on the head, making Harry cry out in surprise. With revenge on his mind, Harry grabbed two and threw it blindly, not caring if he aimed or not. Draco laughed and ducked, the snowballs flying over his head.

The fight continued on and on. By the time the snowball pyramids were gone from both sides, Harry was covered from head to toe with snow. Draco, on the other hand, was only hit twice. Once on his shoulder, the other on his right arm. Knowing that he lost, Harry, with a playful yell, charged at Draco. Malfoy was unprepared for the charging child and was knocked down on his back, laughing. Now on Draco’s chest, Harry picked up a handful of snow and smeared it on Draco’s cheek, making the older teen cry out from the sudden cold. Glaring at the brunet, Draco flipped them over and pinned Harry on the snow covered grounds.

“It wasn’t fair! You can aim better than me!” Harry laughed when Draco started putting specks of snowflakes on his flushed cheeks.

“Just admit you were an easy target, love.” Draco drawled; he sighed and fell on his back next to Harry. “I did say I can see your mop of hair even if you were covered with snow.”

Harry giggled and began moving his arms and legs, making a snow angel. He sat up carefully and looked at what he did.

“Look Draco! I made an angel!”

Draco sat up and chuckled at the small but otherwise, perfect snow angel. He stood up, brushed his arse to get rid of the snow, and looked down, inspecting the snow angel and the real one sitting on top.

“That is the smallest angel I have ever seen.” Draco said, smiling. He bent down and picked up Harry, the child giggling as Draco held Harry close.

Draco brushed Harry’s jacket and started walking away from the frozen lake. “Let’s go to Hogsmeade now, shall we?”

________________________________________

“Can you have this delivered on Christmas Eve?” Draco asked the owner of the shop.

“Of course. Shall I deliver it to the manor, Mr. Malfoy?”

Draco shook his head and gave the owner a small smile. “No, deliver it to Hogwarts. I’m staying for Christmas. Something came up and I’m not going home this holiday.”

The owner only nodded and wrote things down on a piece of parchment. “Are you buying this for your…?”

Draco cleared his throat and averted the owner’s eyes. “It’s for my uh… friend.” The owner arched his eyebrows. “He wanted to get one for his little cousin.” Draco added quickly.

The man chuckled and gave Draco a smile. “Alright, everything’s set. You’ll receive it on the night of Christmas Eve.”

“Thank you, sir.” Draco said politely; he paid for what he ordered and the delivery fee. “Have a nice Christmas.”

Draco went to the front of the store and found Harry standing by the door, holding a bag of chocolate and candies. Draco had told Harry to wait for him while he went to buy ‘something’. The young boy pulled out the Sugared Quill he was sucking on and grinned at the blond.

“Are you done?” Harry asked and walked up to Draco, “I ate two Chocolate Frogs, two Quills, and some jelly beans already.” He took Draco’s hand and led the blond out the store. “Can we go back now? I’m tired.”

“Sure. You want me to carry you?” Draco looked down at the boy; Harry nodded and the blond picked him up. “We can have lunch when we get back.”

“Uh huh…” Harry murmured and laid his head on Draco’s shoulder.

Malfoy wrapped part of his scarf around Harry and made this way through the snow covered road, back to Hogwarts. The winds had picked up and snow was falling harder. Draco looked down at his bundle; Harry was already asleep. He pulled the beanie lower and covered Harry’s forehead with it. Shivering slightly, he held Harry closer to his body, to keep the child warm. Tucking Harry’s head under his, Malfoy quickened his pace and hoped that by the time he got back, they wouldn’t be soaked with melted snowflakes.

________________________________________

.: December 24, 1997 :.

Having just taken a nice, warm bath, Draco was sitting on his bed, reading. Harry was tucked in for the night so Draco wasn’t worried about having Harry see the present he got on the day they went to Hogsmeade. Draco looked away from his book when he heard a soft tap on the windowpane; a white snow owl was outside, waiting for Draco to let it in. The blond dropped his book on his bed and hurried over to the window, opening it to let the bird fly in. The owl flew around the room once before settling on Draco’s desk; it held out one of its leg. Draco held out his hand and the owl dropped a shrunken rectangular box into his palm.

“Thank you for bringing this… despite the snow storm brewing outside,” Draco whispered and petted the owl. The snow owl hooted and flapped its wings, flying back outside and left.

Malfoy picked up his wand from the desk and tapped it against the box. The container grew until it was at least four feet long. Saying another spell, Draco magically gift wrapped it. He sighed and walked outside to the living room where he and Harry had set up a small Christmas tree earlier that evening.

Harry had so much fun hanging all the beautiful ornaments Draco conjured. Harry was extremely excited when Draco picked him up to place the star on top of the tree. It was their first, and possibly only, Christmas spent together and Draco was going to make the best of it.

Standing in front of the decorated tree, Draco laid the box at the foot of the tree. He could already imagine the look on Harry’s cherub face when the boy finds the present tomorrow.

With one last look at the star shining brightly on the tree, Draco padded back to his room and turned in for the night.

________________________________________

.: December 25, 1997 :.

“Oh! Oh! Oh! Draco look! I got presents!” Harry said excitedly.

They were both sitting in front of the tree, pulling out all the presents that had appeared during the night. Draco had got some from his Slytherin friends and one from Snape. Harry only received three, but he was happy. One was from Hermione, one from Ron (Harry remembered who they were), and a really long box.

Draco watched as Harry set the other two presents aside and held the long box almost lovingly in his hands. The brunet looked up with a huge smile on his face; Draco nodded at the green eyed boy, indicating that he can open the present.

“What did you get me Draco?” Harry asked as he tore the wrappings away, “It’s so… long.”

Draco laughed and bent his legs so that his knees were to his chest. He gathered all the ripped up pieces of wrapping paper and put them in one pile.

“Just open it and you’ll find out, Harry.”

With the last piece of wrapping paper gone, Harry quickly opened the box. He gasped and picked up the object that was inside.

“Draco… this-this is a Firebolt,” Harry murmured in awe, “It looks just like the one in my shelf!” Harry stood up and held the broom close to his

heart. “You-you really got me one like you promised!”

“So I take you like it then?” Draco asked cheekily; Harry nodded furiously and carefully put the toy broom on the floor before throwing himself at

Draco. Malfoy laughed merrily and caught Harry in an embrace.

“Thank you, Draco… this is the best present I’ve ever gotten.” Harry whispered into Draco’s shoulder.

“I’m glad you like it,” Draco said and kissed the top of Harry’s head.

Harry picked his head up and looked at Draco, love evident in his eyes. Blushing slightly, Harry leaned in and kissed Draco on the lips. It was an innocent peck, but Draco was still shocked. It was the first time Harry kissed him on the lips.

“I-That’s a thank you kiss.” Harry said shyly and looked down at his feet.

Malfoy chuckled and carded his fingers through Harry’s hair. “Well then, thank you Harry, for the kiss.”

Harry smiled sweetly at him and went to pick up his broom. “Can you teach me how to ride?”

“Of course.”

For the rest of the day, Draco spent hours teaching Harry how to sit properly on the broom, how to balance, and finally how to maneuver the broom. Since it was a toy version of a real Firebolt, the broom only hovered around four feet off the ground and moved not all that fast. If one was to walk by their private quarters, they would be able to hear shrill laughters coming from Harry and running footsteps as Draco ran around, chasing after his charge.

It was a Merry Christmas indeed.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 12: My Little Hero

Draco felt something bounce in his bed but chose to ignore it. He turned to his side and pulled his blanket higher; all that was visible was his mop of blond hair. Malfoy then rolled onto his belly and groaned when the thing climbed on his back and straddled him. Said thing started bouncing on his backbone.

Damn it.

"-co! Draco! Wake up! Somebody's at the painting!"

"Go 'way…" Draco whined and pressed his face into his puffy pillow, "It's early… it's after Christmas. Let m'sleep…" Draco muttered into his pillow. "And get off m'back Harry…"

Yes, Draco knew what the thing was.

"You can't go back to sleep Draco… somebody's outside and he's screaming now." Harry leaned forward and started wiggling. "He sounds mad…"

"Who cares," Draco muttered and moved his head to the side, pillow to his cheek.

Harry huffed and moved up, "If you don't wake up right now, I'm gonna give you a wet morning kiss!" Harry smiled wickedly, "I know you don't like those."

Draco sighed and cracked one eye open, only to find two green ones looking back at him, upside down.

"Why do you have to be a morning person?" Draco asked the young boy; Harry shrugged and rolled off Draco's back and sat down next to the prone body.

"Dunno. I just wake up very early." Harry smiled as Draco slowly stretched out his tired muscles and sat up. "Well… you better get dressed; the

person at the door doesn't seem nice."

Draco groaned and threw his legs over the side of the bed; he reached for his robes that were draped across the desk by his bed. Harry also hopped off and stood watching as the blond tied his robes securely around his lean body.

"How long has the person been there?" Draco asked as he walked out his room; Harry skipped behind until he was next to Malfoy.

"Uh… I think five minutes? Ten? I don't remember." Harry skipped ahead of Draco and turned towards the living room.

Draco rolled his eyes; he then found Harry crouching by the portrait, as if a monster was going to barge in any moment. The brunet looked back and grinned at Draco, a finger placed in front of his lips, telling Draco to say quiet.

Draco smirked and walked up to the portrait; it shook as whoever was on the other side knocked.

"Harry, stand up and go sit on the couch." Draco told the young boy; Harry giggled and skipped his way to the couches, sitting down in one of them.

Draco smoothed his hair back before placing his palm flat on the portrait and pushed. Standing on the other side was one irritated Severus Snape.

With a snarl, the Potions Master stepped over the threshold and walked briskly to the living room. Draco sighed and closed the portrait; he looked up and found Harry scooting all the way to the end of the couch when Snape sat down.

"Harry, why don't you go to your room and play with your toys for awhile? I have to talk with Professor Snape for a few minutes." Draco smiled lightly at the brunet.

Harry pulled his eyes away from the scowling man sitting next to him and hopped off the couch, running over to Draco. He tugged at Draco's robes, making the blond bent down.

"I told you he's mad," Harry whispered into Malfoy's ear, "He looks like he just ate a lemon or something really sour."

Draco bit his lips to stop himself from laughing. He ruffled Harry's hair and stood up, patting Harry on the back.

"Go to your room Harry," Draco pushed the boy in the direction of his room, "I'll be done in a few and then I'll have breakfast with you, alright?"

Harry frowned and nodded, “Alright…” he muttered grumpily, “Hurry up okay? I’m hungry.”

Draco chuckled and bent down to kiss Harry on the cheek, “I’ll try. Now go to your room.” He stood there until the sound of Harry’s bedroom door opening and closing reached his ears. Silver eyes met black; Draco almost smiled at the irritated scowl on Snape’s face. “Sorry Professor. I was still

sleeping when you knocked. Harry woke me up and told me somebody was at the door.”

Snape sneered, “I know. Even from the outside, I still heard childish giggling and running footsteps.” He rolled his eyes before reaching into his robes, taking out a vial filled with green liquid. “I asked where you were and Potter told me you were ‘snoring really loud in the bedroom’.”

“I do not snore!” Draco exclaimed; he cleared his throat when Snape quirked an eyebrow at him. “So uh… you brought the potion?”

Snape gave the blond a curt nod before handing the small vial to the teen. “It will turn Potter into a twelve year old adolescent.” Draco rolled the vial between his fingers and nodded absently. “You know that there is only one more batch and Potter will be his rightful age again.”

“Yes, I know.” Draco said quietly; Snape sighed and leaned back against the couch, his arms crossed in front of his chest.

“I said it before and I’m saying it now,” Snape glanced sideways at the blond, “It’s bound to happen. He will change back. Potter can either hate

you or love you. He can either remember everything or it can all become…” Snape held out his right hand and put all his fingertips together then

spread them out, as if he was releasing something into the air. “… Nothing. Nothing but a blank space in his mind.”

Draco gripped the vial tighter; his head was down, as to avoid all eye contact with Snape.

“… I don’t really have a choice now do I? I can’t prevent what is happening to him.” Draco asked, “Day by day, I can see that Harry’s gaining more of his real memories.” Draco looked up and finally met Severus’ eyes. “But even so, I’ll be here. I’ll be here until he’s seventeen again and everything will be back to the way it was.” Draco turned his head back and stared at the closed door of Harry’s bedroom.

“And how were things before, Draco?” Snape asked; he shook his head slightly at the downtrodden expression on the blonde’s face.

“He’ll go back to hating me and I’ll go on as if nothing had changed.” Draco murmured.

“Draco…” Snape started but Draco shook his head.

“Even if Harry doesn’t remember any of this, I will. I’ll remember and that is enough.”

________________________________________

When Snape left, the first thing Draco did was going to the kitchen and opening the fridge. Taking out the pitcher filled with ice cold pumpkin juice, the blond set it on the counter. He uncorked the vial and poured the green potion into the juice, watching it fuse together. A few seconds later, there were no traces that indicated a potion was mixed within. Draco put the pitcher back into the fridge and then he slowly walked towards Harry’s room. He had roughly ten hours before dinnertime; only ten hours before he will lose a seven year old Harry and gain a twelve year old. Before he turned the doorknob to Harry’s room, Draco paused.

“… Is he going to be the same as he was when we were in our second year?” Draco muttered, “Well, I’ll find out tomorrow won’t I?” Draco

laughed humorlessly; he twisted the doorknob and step inside.

Harry’s ears perked up when he heard his door opening. Turning around, he smiled when he saw Draco standing by the doorway, with his hands stuck in his robes. Harry had been reading a picture about a little bunny getting lost on its way home. Harry had thought of riding his toy broom in his room, but then realized that his room was much too small to fly around in. Needless to say, the young child was surprised when Draco walked right over to him, kneeled down, and pulled him into a tight hug.

Harry blinked a couple of times before twisting his body and wrapped his arms around Draco’s neck. The blond pulled away just a little and smiled sadly at the small boy. Harry frowned, his eyebrows knitting together.

“Draco? What happened? Did the mean man do something to you?” Harry demanded in his childish voice. Draco laughed at the serious look on Harry’s face.

“Are you going to be my little hero and chase the mean Professor out?” Draco asked, his eyebrows were arched in amusement.

Harry huffed and took his arms away from Draco’s neck; he then placed his small palms flat against Draco’s warm cheeks. Harry’s eyes darted to the closed door, hoping that he could somehow see through it.

“I will if you want me to,” Harry replied, “You’ve been there for me, always protecting me.” Harry turned his eyes back at Draco and grinned, “I can always use my toy broom to chase that mean man away.”

Draco chuckled and reached up to ruffle Harry’s mop of hair. “That’s not why I bought you the broom, Harry.”

Malfoy smiled and shifted until he was sitting instead of kneeling; his knees were starting to hurt. Harry, seeing that his guardian was now seated, moved around in Draco’s arms until he was sitting on the blonde’s lap. Laying his head on the older teen’s chest, Harry sighed and cuddled; he loved being in Draco’s arms. He always felt safe whenever the teen held him.

“So what were you doing while I was talking with the Professor?” Draco asked; neither of them had said anything and he felt it was time to break the silence.

“Oh…” Harry tugged at Draco’s robes before looking up at his guardian. “I was just reading a book. The one about a bunny getting lost.”

“You read that many times already,” Draco chuckled, “Don’t you get tired of it?”

“Nope. I like that book.” Harry shrugged halfheartedly and sighed, putting his head on Draco’s shoulder. “Can we go eat now? I’m really hungry and my tummy’s been making weirdo noises.”

Draco rolled his eyes and stood up—with Harry still in his arms. “All you care about is food.”

Harry giggled and snuggled deeper into Draco. “No, all I care about is you.”

Draco’s eyes widened at the statement. Did Harry really care about him? Sure, he cared about Draco now, but what about when Harry’s back to his right age again? Draco closed his eyes and pressed his cheek to the top of Harry’s head.

He didn’t want to think about it.

________________________________________

“Do you have your broom?”

“Check!” Harry waved his toy broom in front of the blond.

“Mittens?”

“Yup!” Harry held up his left hand and wriggled his fingers.

“Alright… jacket?”

A sigh. “Draco, you put it on me.”

“Pfft. You almost ran out without putting it on. I was just making sure.”

Harry smiled and strode over to Malfoy, tugging at his black beanie. “I’m warm, I have my broom, and I have my beanie. Can we go now?”

Harry spun around on one spot, almost tripping over his own feet. Draco chuckled and caught the young boy before Harry fell.

“Yes, I did say we can go outside and play if you were good.” Draco grinned and picked Harry up. “Let’s go before the sun sets.” Harry nodded and together they went out.

They were halfway to the front gates when a bushy haired girl turned a corner and was walking towards Draco and Harry. Said girl looked up when she heard a giggle; Hermione waved at Harry when the boy started waving his broom at her. Draco moved his head away before it whacked his head.

“Harry, stop waving before the broom takes out my head.” Draco warned; Harry gasped and immediately stopped waving.

Hermione hid her smile behind her hand and she sobered when the blond and Harry came up to her.

“Hey Harry…” Hermione kissed Harry on the cheek and then smiled at Draco. “Draco. Are you guys heading outside?”

“Yup! Draco said I can play with my broom if I was good!” Harry chirped. “Mini, you wanna come with us?”

Hermione let out a tinkering laugh; Harry never got the chance to learn how to say her whole name. So she was still ‘Mini’ to him.

“Well… I’m not busy right now…” She looked up at Draco who was smiling lightly at her. “Draco, do you mind if I…?”

Draco shook his head and smiled a bit wider. “No, not at all. I think Harry would love it if you came with us.”

.: Outside by the Lake :.

“Remember what I said, Harry!” Draco called out; Harry climbed onto his broom and hopped, making the broom levitate off the snow grounds.

“Yeah, don’t go too fast, don’t go too high, and don’t go too far away!” Harry whooped and leaned his body forward, his broom shot straight and

within seconds, Harry was making turns in the air.

Draco sighed and sat down carefully on the fresh snow, minding his coat. He looked up and found Hermione smiling, her eyes following a flying Harry.

“So Gra—Hermione, why are you here at school? I would’ve thought you went home.”

Hermione was startled by the sudden question, but then she smiled lightly and sat down next to the blond.

“My parents are off on a trip. They asked if I wanted to go with them, but I said no.” Hermione drew her knees up and rested her chin on top. “Ron went back to the Burrow and asked me to go with him, but I said no as well.”

“Ah, I see.” Draco murmured, not wanting to pry.

“Harry’s happy isn’t he?” Hermione asked; Draco stiffened before he relaxed and nodded. “Even as his friend, I’ve never seen him so… carefree.

He… didn’t have a happy childhood.”

Silver eyes followed as Harry flew past them, waving at the blond and at Hermione.

“I know… he said something about his uncle and aunt calling him a freak.” Draco looked down at the snow and made a random swirl with his forefinger. “Is it true?”

Hermione let out a long, suffering sigh. “Yes. His Muggle relatives kept him locked up in a cupboard until he was eleven. You know how some

Muggles are… Because Harry knew magic, they immediately labeled him as a freak. Just because it wasn’t ‘normal’ among Muggles.”

“… Is Harry still staying with them?”

Hermione shook her head in the negative. “No, this summer was his last. He turned seventeen in July and bought himself a flat somewhere in London.”

Hermione glanced at the teen sitting beside her and patted Draco’s hand; she smiled when Draco didn’t pull away. “You… really care about Harry don’t you? I can tell, Draco, so don’t even think about lying to me.”

Draco was watching as Harry zoomed to his left, made an abrupt stop before turning and zoomed to his right. The blond smiled softly as Harry laughed merrily; the boy really loved flying.

“You’re right, I do.” Draco answered, “But Harry will never know.”

“What do you mean?” Hermione asked, perplexed. “I’m sure Harry will realize--”

“Snape said he might not remember any of this,” Draco waved his hand at the young boy flying in front, “Harry could simply only remember taking the potion and when he would be seventeen again.”

“You can… tell him. Harry understands; I’m sure he’ll be thankful you took care of him for the past months.”

Draco scoffed and drew his knees up as well. “It’s alright Hermione; he doesn’t have to know. I’m not sure if Harry will accept it even if I told him.”

“Draco-”

“Mini! Look at me!” Harry yelled and giggled, stopping right in front of the sitting teens. He climbed off the broom and plopped down in front of them. “It was a perfect stop. Draco taught me that.”

Hermione glanced over at Draco before reaching out, patting Harry’s head. “Did he now? Well, you did very well.”

“Of course,” Harry said pompously, “I’m a fast learner.”

Draco chuckled, “Of course you are.” Having gathered a snow ball while Harry was talking with Hermione, Draco picked up his snow ball and flung it at Harry, hitting the child on the chest.

Harry squealed and rolled away, only to have Draco tackling him, smearing cold snow on Harry’s face.

Hermione sat watching as Draco and Harry rolled around in the soft snow, trying to hit one another with snow. They were having so much fun that she

didn’t have the heart to interrupt.

“Harry will understand, Draco. He’ll understand.”

________________________________________

“How come you’re not drinking the pumpkin juice tonight?” Harry asked as Draco handed the boy a glass of juice.

“Oh. I got tired of it. I drink it almost every day at breakfast.”

Harry looked down at his glass and shrugged. “Okay then. It’s really good so don’t get mad at me when I drink it all.”

“I won’t…” Draco muttered; Harry tilted his head back and down the whole glass. He licked his lips and set the glass on the table.

The effect was immediate. A few seconds later, Harry’s eyes were starting to droop; Draco pushed his chair back and got up. He caught the boy before Harry’s head met the top of the table. Carrying his light cargo, Draco made his way to the boy’s bedroom. The things inside hadn’t changed yet; all the clothing were still the size for a seven year old boy. Draco didn’t really think too much on that matter; he was sure that by tomorrow morning, everything will change.

Setting Harry on his bed, Draco pulled the blankets up to cover the whole body.

“Goodnight Harry…” Draco whispered and swooped down to plant a kiss on Harry’s forehead.

________________________________________

Draco didn’t really sleep the night before. His mind was busy the whole night. So when a blur of black flew at him, he was somewhat ready for the collision. Landing on his back, grey eyes met mischievous green.

“Wow, I woke up earlier than you did.” Harry said; Draco noticed that his voice was deeper.

“You always wake up before I do,” Draco said; Harry sighed and nuzzled his face in Draco’s neck, his legs straddling Malfoy’s hips.

Draco felt awkward. There he was, lying on his bed with Harry on top. True, it wasn’t the first time Harry hopped onto his bed and smothered him.

But his was a twelve year old Harry; he was a teen! Somehow, that just didn’t feel right for Draco. In the far corner of his mind, however, Draco didn’t really mind the way Harry was rubbing his face on his neck or the way he was straddling him like…

“Harry… Your hair is wet.”

“Oh!” Harry held his head up and beamed at Draco. “I took a shower. I just felt like taking a shower. Weird huh?”

‘Not weird. Guess you had the habit of taking showers in the morning.’

“Draco you should get up. It’s ten.” Harry rolled off of Draco and lay next to him. “I want to see Hermione. She must be lonely staying here at school by herself. Usually she goes with Ron to the Burrow.”

Draco sat straight up and stared down at Harry. “You… You remember?”

Harry looked at Draco skeptically and sat up as well. “What do you mean? She always goes to the Burrow with Ron. Every Christmas. But this year

she didn’t… wonder what happened.”

Draco shook his head slowly and looked at Harry right in the eye. “Do-do you know what you are saying right now?! How do you know Hermione’s staying?”

He was very close to being hysterical. It was as if Harry remembered everything! This can’t be happening…

“Draco, are you alright?” Harry asked and placed a palm on Draco’s forehead. “Of course I know what I’m saying. If I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought you are delusional. We saw her yesterday when we were walking out to the grounds. I was flying on my broom and she was there with you.”

“I know that…” Draco murmured; he wasn’t too surprised that Harry remembered what happened yesterday. What he was shocked about was that Harry remembered Hermione going to the Burrow. “But… how did you know about Hermione going with Ron every year?”

“I-I…” Harry looked blankly at Draco. “I don’t know.” Harry shook his head, his eyes screwed shut.

“Harry?” Draco grasped Harry’s shoulder and shook him lightly. “Harry, are you alright?”

“I-I don’t know why… I just do.” Harry sobbed; his head hurt right now. “It’s like I have another set of memories inside my head! I see images! I saw...”

Draco pulled Harry to him and held the smaller teen; Harry wasn’t holding his sobs and was crying wholeheartedly. Draco closed his eyes and rocked Harry.

I’m losing you…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 13: It’s Not Right

“Draco… Hurry up and get into the bed. I’m cold without you next to me.” Harry smiled seductively as he waved Draco over.

Draco wet his sudden dried lips and padded over to where a fully naked Harry was waiting. The blond sat on the edge of the bed, taking off his shirt, when Harry pounced on him.

“Let me.” Harry purred.

He curled his hand around the hem of Draco’s shirt and slowly pulled it up. Malfoy closed his eyes as the cotton shirt went over his face. With a yank,

Harry took off the shirt and tossed it somewhere behind Draco’s head. The green eyed teen smiled saucily before backing up on the mattress, the feral look never left his face.

Draco growled low in his throat and went on his hands and knees, crawling up to where Harry was half lying on top of some white pillows.

“You look so delicious spread out like that,” Draco whispered; he grabbed Harry’s shoulders and pushed the smaller teen down, legs locking Harry’s own between his.

“Only for you…” Harry breathed, “Only you, Draco.” He reached up and dug his fingers into the soft platinum blond hair. “Kiss me. Now.”

Draco—not wanting to go against his lover’s wishes—swooped down and claimed those red, luscious lips. Harry eagerly parted his mouth to let

Draco’s tongue probe inside the hot cavern. He moaned into the kiss when the blond started sucking on his bottom lip.

“I want-“ Draco bit into Harry’s lip. “to keep you here-” a suckle. “all night.”

Harry gasped when Draco’s mouth traveled to his jaw, lightly nipping at the skin. Tiny red marks decorated Harry’s otherwise blemish free tanned skin. While Draco was still busy marking Harry, the brunet wrapped his legs around the blond and with a grunt, flipped them over. Harry’s green eyes sparkled with mischief; Draco pulled away and smirked at the teen hovering above him.

“Why the sudden change?”

Harry grinned and slinked down, passing Draco’s chest, his abdomen, and finally, his face was above Malfoy’s very interested cock.

“Just to return the favor,” Harry whispered; hot breath caressed the tip of Draco’s hard member. “I can’t just let you have all the fun.”

With that said, Harry opened his mouth wide, to accommodate the girth of Draco’s erection. He covered his teeth with his lips before lowering onto the swollen head. Draco yelped when the warm, wet sensation covered his length.

“Fu—“

“—ck!” Draco cried out; his eyes snapped opened, his breathing came in short pants. Throwing his blanket aside, the blond sat straight up on his bed. Beads of perspiration covered his forehead. “Bloody hell… Please tell me I did not just have that dream.” Draco said to nobody in particular. “Shouldn’t be dreaming about him, Draco.” The blond told himself, shaking his head. “It is so wrong.”

Draco hung his head and his sleep crusted eyes landed on the prominent bulge beneath his sleeping pants. He needed some relieve and he needed it now.

Groaning, Draco moved to the side of the bed and stood up; he was painfully aware of the problem between his legs. Malfoy stood in front of his wardrobe and opened the doors. He took out a crisp, white dress shirt, a grey jumper, a pair of black trousers, and a pair of boxer briefs. It was a Saturday--and it was still the winter holidays--so there was no need to take out his black robes. Mumbling under his breath, Draco slammed the doors shut and pivoted on the balls of his feet.

“I need a goddamn cold shower,” Draco grumbled and walked over to the conjoined bathroom.

The blond stripped down, throwing his shirt in the hamper and carefully stepped out from his pajama bottom, bending down to pick it up before throwing that in the hamper as well. Draco stepped inside the bathtub, pulled the shower curtains around it, and turned on the cold water on full blast.

He hissed as the icy cold water merely touched his chest and splattered down his abs to his legs.

When Draco put his whole head under the shower head, he almost screamed out like a girl…

Malfoys did not scream like a girl.

“Fuck! I hate cold showers!” Draco growled and turned the spigot off. Gritting his teeth, he pulled the curtains apart and stepped out again; water dripped down his torso and made a small puddle on the tiled floor. “It’s bloody winter! I was asking for death… bloody water was cold as ice…”

Draco muttered and took a towel to dry himself.

At least his problem was gone now.

Just as Draco was done drying his hair, he realized his human alarm clock hadn’t run into his room.

“Huh… Maybe Harry’s still sleeping,” Draco shrugged and threw the wet towel into the hamper. The house elves will take care of it later in the day. “Funny… he always wake before--”

“Draco! Wake up!” Harry’s voice sounded from the other side of the bathroom door.

Draco smirked; it seemed his human alarm clock was a bit late today. Not wanting to yell out to Harry, Draco went on to brush his teeth.

“Draco?” Harry looked around the room; Draco’s bed was still unmade, which meant he barely woke up. Frowning, Harry turned away from the

bed and was about to walk out of the bedroom when he heard a soft rustling from behind the bathroom door.

Smiling, Harry gently placed his hand on the doorknob. He turned it, and with a sudden push, Harry rushed inside.

“Draco! I’ve been--”

Harry’s green eyes widened at the scene before him. The blond was brushing teeth… with only a pair of boxers on.

Harry let out a whimper.

Draco turned away from the mirror, toothbrush in hand. His mouth slacked when he saw a wide eyed, mouth hanging opened, red faced, Harry by the door.

“SORRY!”

“Arghhhhh!”

Draco yelled and threw down the toothbrush into the sink; he turned around and reached into the hamper, taking the wet towel out and wrapped it around his hips.

“I’m so sorry!” Harry cried and turned around, his back facing Draco. “I-I heard something… and uh I was looking at—that didn’t sound right…

Oh god, I’m sorry!” With that, Harry ran out of the bathroom without closing the door.

Draco slowly unwrapped himself and let the towel drop to the floor. He looked down, looked at the door, then back down at his legs and sighed.

“Why the hell did I grab the towel? I’m wearing my boxers.” Draco rolled his eyes and picked up the towel, throwing it back into the hamper. He looked into the mirror and scowled; the toothpaste foam was crusting around his lips. “Harry probably screamed because I look hideous.”

Draco turned on the faucet and rinsed his toothbrush, set that aside, and cupped his hands under the running water. He gargled a few times before wiping his mouth clean. The blond donned his trouser, dress shirt, and gray jumper; his heart was still pounding from Harry’s entrance.

“We’re both males… nothing to worry about.” Draco assured himself, “We were just… surprised that’s all.” Nodding, Draco left the bathroom and walked to his bed.

After fixing his bed, Malfoy went outside; Harry was nowhere to be seen. The living room and kitchen were too quiet so Draco was sure the young boy was not there. Harry was probably hiding in his room. Sighing, Draco made his way to Harry’s room; the door was slightly ajar. He peeked in and saw the brunet on the bed, lying on his back. Malfoy pushed the door open all the way and walked in; he padded quietly over to the bed and found that Harry’s eyes were closed.

“Harry?”

The boy in question let out a ‘meep’ and rolled onto his stomach, his face buried into the pillow. Draco frowned. Why was Harry acting this way?

“Harry… Are you alright?” Draco asked and sat down on the edge of Harry’s bed. He heard a small cough muffled by the pillow. “You know, you are going to suffocate yourself if you continue to press your face into the pillow.”

“I’m fine,” Harry mumbled and turned his face to the side. “I’m sorry Draco, I didn’t mean to just barge into the bathroom like that.”

Draco noticed a pink tinge to Harry’s cheeks. “It’s fine… But when you screamed out like that, I thought I was naked.” Draco let out a small laugh.

“Oh. I didn’t mean to… It’s just I… I’ve never seen you in a state of undress before.” Harry’s face turned to a darker shade of red. Shaking his

head, Harry looked up at Draco with a bit of uncertainty. “Oh and you woke up earlier than I did today.”

“I know, and I thought my human alarm clock wasn’t working,” Draco smirked down at Harry. It was a good thing the topic changed; Draco didn’t want to talk about the awkwardness of the bathroom incident anymore.

“Human alarm clock?” Harry asked, a small smile was on his face. “Oh… Well, I woke up at the same time I do every morning. So it’s just you. I think I woke up because I heard yelling… Was it you?”

Draco stiffened then shook his head, “Uh… No. No, it wasn’t me.”

How pathetic.

“Really? Oh well,” Harry shrugged. “It kind of sounded like you.”

“No. It wasn’t me.” Draco said firmly, “Anyway, get up, Harry. We’re going to visit Hermione today.”

Harry rolled around until he was on his back again. Draco caught Harry glimpsing down at his legs and the blond arched an eyebrow at that.

How… interesting.

Draco wracked his brains and came up with twenty different reasons why Harry would look down at his crotch… Ah. Draco then remembered the time when he was twelve; that was the start of when it would move when he saw something arousing. Harry couldn’t be having the same problem was he? All the boy saw was him in boxers. Draco mentally kicked his head and threw that thought out. It was not possible. Harry can’t be falling in love? In like? With him.

Was he?

________________________________________

Draco and Harry walked side by side as they made their way up the castle, to the Gryffindor Tower. More than once they got lost on their way there—Draco never found out how to get to the Gryffindor tower and Potter wasn’t quite sure with his messed up memories—and Harry had to ask the paintings on how to get to the tower. While they walked, Draco had his hands stuffed into his trouser pockets and Harry was swinging his arms at his sides. Once or twice, the brunet would look up at Draco, biting his lip. Draco would smile down at the young teen and then kept his eyes straight ahead.

Draco would be lying if he said he didn’t miss holding Harry’s hand like he used to when the boy was still young. But since Harry was a pre-teen now… it just didn’t seem right.

They rounded a corner and Draco could see the three flights of stairs they had to go up to get to the Gryffindor common room. He groaned and before he took a step forward, Harry shot past him and started bounding up the steps.

“Harry! Wait!” Draco called out and ran after the younger teen.

Harry stopped and turned his head back, one hand on the rail. “I just want to get up there. Mini might be somewhere else and we would miss her.”

Draco snorted and he was now behind the brunet. “Where would she go? She told me she was the only one that stayed.”

“Well…” Harry started; he slowly took a step. Draco was right behind him. “Mini is this bookworm see? She loves going to the library when she has nothing to do.”

Draco was sure Granger never said anything to Harry about loving to read during his de-aged days.

“Ah. Well, go on up then. You’re younger than I am. Run up there and knock on the Fat Lady’s painting.”

Harry laughed and picked up his pace, but not too much. “You’re not that old, Draco. You’re only like what? Five years older than I am?”

“How do you know I’m only seventeen?” Draco demanded, “Do I look seventeen?”

Harry stopped once more and looked back at the blond, a full frown on his young face. “I-I just know you’re seventeen.” Harry shook his head slowly, confused. “Don’t ask why I know, I just do.”

Seeing the aggravated expression, Draco chose not to press on the matter. He smiled testily and placed a hand on Harry’s narrow shoulder.

“Well, you’re right. Now, go on up.”

Harry blinked a few times, his expression softened. He then smiled at Draco before bounding up the rest of the way, leaving Draco to slowly walk up the flights of stairs. When the blond was finally up on the seventh floor, he found Harry chatting with the Fat Lady.

“… I’m looking for Mini, can you let me in?” Harry asked politely; the Fat Lady chuckled and shook her head.

“I’m afraid I don’t know who Mini is dear.” She said, “Are you sure the person you are looking for is named Mini? I must say, that is one peculiar name.”

Draco chuckled and stood next to the scowling brunet. “Dear Lady, we’re here to see Hermione Granger.”

“Oh! You’re here to see Ms. Granger? Well, why didn’t the young man say so? I was wondering who this Mini was.” The Fat Lady let out a chortle

before she opened the portrait. “Well, go on in gentlemen. Ms. Granger seems to be in the common room. She’s been awfully lonely these past few days.”

“Thank you,” Draco bowed and stepped through; Harry also bowed and followed Malfoy inside.

Hermione was sitting on a couch, writing in what seemed to be a journal when Draco and Harry came in. She looked up when the portrait slammed closed.

“Draco? Harry? What are you guys doing here?” Hermione asked.

Before Draco could answer, Harry ran to where Hermione was sitting and plopped right down next to her on the couch. Draco rolled his eyes and went to them at a more leisurely pace; he made himself comfortable in an armchair across from them. He noted that the armchair was a ruby red…

Not bad.

“Well, we thought we can give you some company,” Harry grinned at the girl, “I know you must be--”

“Harry just wanted to bother you for the rest of the day,” Draco interrupted; Harry scowled at him. Malfoy sent Granger a look and Hermione caught it.

“I don’t mind some company. It’s awfully quiet here, all by myself.” Hermione said, “Harry, would you like to see my scrapbook? I do quite a bit when I’m bored.”

“You have a scrapbook? That’s fantastic!” Harry smiled at the older girl.

Hermione took out her wand and flicked her wrist. A moment later a large album flew down the stairway and landed gently on her lap. She tapped her wand on the book cover before handing it over to Harry, who gladly accepted it.

Both Draco and Hermione waited until Harry was engrossed into the book before standing and walking to a far off corner in the common room. They sat down in armchairs; Draco crossed his legs and folded his hands over his knees while Hermione tucked her feet under her.

“You wanted to talk?” Hermione asked softly; her eyes darted to where Harry was flipping through pages of her scrapbook. “And don’t worry, I took out all the pictures with Harry in it.”

Draco nodded; she answered his unasked question.

“Yes. Something happened this morning… and well, I found it weird.” Draco answered; he was staring at the small, round table in between the two chairs. Suddenly, two cups of steaming hot tea appeared; Draco took his cup and sipped.

“Oh?” Hermione took her cup and cradled it in her hands, “What happened this morning? Nothing bad I hope?”

Malfoy put his cup back onto the saucer and turned his attention on Harry. “I wouldn’t say bad. Harry sort of ran into the bathroom and saw me half naked…”

Hermione arched her eyebrow and took a sip of tea, but remained silent.

“I was dressed so don’t think of anything inappropriate,” Draco hissed.

Granger smiled behind the cup and then she set it on the round table. “I didn’t say anything Draco and you said you were half naked so I assume you were somewhat dressed.” She patted Draco’s folded hands, “What happened then?”

“Harry screamed, I screamed. I grabbed a towel and covered myself… I kind of forgot I was dressed. I was freaked out, you know?” Draco muttered, “Then Harry apologized and ran to his room.” Draco paused and looked into Hermione’s brown eyes. “I’m sure you know about puberty

and all that crap right?”

Hermione smiled and nodded, “Of course, why do you ask?”

“Well, I went into Harry’s room later and found him lying on his bed. When I came in, he squeaked and didn’t want to look at me.” Draco explained; he was waving his hand around as he talked.

“That has nothing to do with puberty, Draco.”

“I’m getting there!” Draco sniped, “Anyways, when I finally got Harry to look at me, I saw him looking down at his… er between his legs so to speak.”

Hermione laughed but stopped when Draco glared at her. She cleared her throat and put on a straight face.

“Are you saying you think Harry got… interested when he saw you half naked in the bathroom?”

“Yes! That is exactly what I am saying!” Draco slapped his hand down on his thigh. “You know… I don’t mind if it was a seventeen year old Harry that came in, but this is a twelve year old we’re talking about here. It’s wrong, Hermione, just plain wrong.”

The browned haired girl bit her lip and looked up at Draco; Malfoy narrowed his eyes.

“You know something. I can tell. Spill it, Granger.”

“Well… I know you fancy Harry, am I correct?” Hermione asked hesitantly; Draco snorted and nodded.

“I told you that last time we saw each other, Granger.” Hermione glared at him and Draco looked away.

“What if… I’m saying what if alright? What if Harry… fancies you as well?” Hermione said, “I know he doesn’t have his normal memories, but you know that he’s getting them back slowly. What if the real him… liked you? It is possible. I had my suspicions since last year; I noticed how he looks at

you sometimes during classes.”

Draco licked his lips and stared at the girl sitting beside him; he then looked at Harry who was now lying on his belly on the couch, looking through the

scrapbook with interest.

“Are you saying…?”

“Yes Draco, you know exactly what I am saying.”

“Harry… No, he can’t. He would never--”

Hermione leaned over the small table and held Draco with a heavy gaze; her hand was clasped over Draco’s slightly trembling one.

“Harry has feelings for you, Draco. That’s why he acted the way he did this morning. Trust me on this.”

Draco was left speechless.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 14: Path to More Confusion

“Well, it’s great that you guys came to visit me today,” Hermione smiled at both men; she bent down and gave Harry a light kiss. She straightened and smirked at the brunet, “And Harry, remember next time you come here, don’t go up the stairs that leads to the girls’ dormitory.”

“I didn’t know it would turn into a giant slide!” Harry exclaimed; he grumbled and stood next to Draco, leaning slightly against the blonde’s body. “I just wanted to check out what’s upstairs…”

Draco held back his laughter and looked at Hermione; he placed one hand on Harry’s shoulder. “We’ll take our leave now.” He steered Potter towards the opened portrait hole. Before he stepped outside he turned back, “And thanks for… the talk.”

“What talk?!” Harry asked from outside; Draco rolled his eyes and then nodded at Hermione before departing.

During their return trip, more than once did Harry bump hands with Draco, clearly wanting the blond to actually hold hands with him. But every time Draco looked at Harry’s direction, the brunet would be looking to the side; he simply didn’t meet Draco’s eyes. Now, they were at the flights of

stairs, both walking side by side, every step matching the other.

They didn’t talk much, which was really surprising since Harry was usually the talkative one. But here they were, silent. One was deep in thought, while the other was contemplating whether he should try again to take the other’s hand.

Draco stared unseeingly ahead; his body was working on its own. It was a wonder that he still hadn’t tripped and rolled down the stairs…

.: Back in time… thirty minutes ago :.

“What do you mean?!” Draco hissed, after getting over his speechlessness. “Are you sure, Hermione? Harry has feelings for me?”

Hermione scowled at the blond next to her and placed her teacup a bit firmly on the saucer. It made a sharp ‘clink’ and at Hermione’s icy glare, Draco shrank back just a bit.

“Of course I’m sure, Malfoy!” Hermione whispered snappishly; Draco arched his eyebrow at being called by his surname. Hermione cleared her throat, realizing what she just did. “Sorry. But yes, Draco, I’m quite sure.”

“How can you know for sure?” Draco looked away from the girl, “Harry could’ve stared at me all those times because he… he hated my guts! You, being one of his best friends, should know we ‘hated’ each other for a good five years!”

“I know that!” Hermione threw her hands up in the air, “Look Draco, I’m not stupid or blind. Believe it or not, Harry talks about… you sometimes… Of course it was never when Ron’s here, but he talks to me.”

Draco narrowed his eyes at the brown haired girl, “What does Harry talk about? I bet you it’s all the stuff he hates about me.”

“Actually, no. There was this one time when we were studying in the common room late at night. It was for Potions you see, and Harry wanted to do well in Snape’s exam. Anyway, all of a sudden… well I guess it wasn’t since I saw him fidgeting around, but he blurted out how… handsome you look when you brew potions in class.”

Draco almost choked on the tea he was drinking. He quickly put the cup on the round table and coughed a few times. Hermione looked at him with a small smile; Draco glared at her.

“Yes… surprising isn’t it? I had the same reaction as you did just now. But then I put on a straight and asked him why he thought of you that way.”

“Yeah… why indeed…” Draco muttered.

“Harry just shrugged and told me he just does and went back to studying. I almost wanted to strangle him that night, but I refrained from doing so.”

Hermione sat back in her chair and looked at Harry, who seemed to be still occupied by the scrapbook. Hermione then let out a sigh with a shrug of her shoulders, “It was then I started to think about Harry’s true feelings towards you.”

“I still think it’s impossible for Harry to like me…” Draco muttered, “Every time we saw each other, we wanted to hex each other’s arse off. I did it because I had to mask my feelings; Harry had no reason to…”

“Oh god… Draco, would you stop being so pessimistic?!” Hermione snapped; Draco clamped his mouth shut. It was unwise to make Hermione angry. “Why can’t you accept that Harry can love you, too?”

“I-It’s hard…”

“No it’s not!” Hermione grounded out, “God, you’re as stubborn as he is!” She jerked her head in the direction of the brunet on the couch, “You two will make such a great couple.”

Draco furrowed his eyebrows and refused to look at the girl beside him. Hermione sighed and shifted in her seat. The blond glanced at her warily.

“It’s not as one sided as you think, Draco.”

.: Present time :.

“… Draco? Draco?”

Malfoy looked around; it seemed he had stopped walking all of a sudden. He and Harry were now standing in a empty hallway, far away from their

quarters. He looked down—not much since the top of Harry's head reached his forearms—and found the brunet looking at him worriedly.

“Are you alright? You just stopped… I’ve been saying your name for the past minute or so.” Harry frowned at his guardian.

“Oh… I’m fine.” Harry looked at Draco skeptically, “Really, I am.” Draco tried a smile; Harry’s expression softened and returned the smile.

They started walking again and as they went to the lower levels of the castle, the air around got cooler. Harry shivered and tugged at his jumper; Draco shuffled at bit closer to the teen.

“Harry?” Draco said the brunet’s name without looking at him.

“What is it?”

“What if… What if one day, you wake up and you realize… everything in the past was just a dream? Like, it was an alternate reality. What would you do?” Draco asked; he had been thinking about it… since the days with Harry were getting short.

“That’s crazy!” Harry laughed, “How can everything that happened be a dream?” He looked up and found the blond scowling and realized it wasn’t a joke. Harry looked sadly at Draco, “You’re… not kidding.”

“No, I’m not.”

Harry swallowed; his throat was feeling unusually dry. “Well, I can tell you that… if this was a dream, then I would think of it as a really nice dream.”

Harry smiled softly, “My time with you were filled with happiness. You were always there for me and loved me unconditionally, Draco. I will never forget that.”

‘Are you sure…?’ Draco thought sadly.

“Harry… what if you wake up one day and you… hate me.”

“I will never hate you!” Harry cried out; he grabbed Draco’s arm forcefully, stopping the taller teen from walking. “How can you even say such a thing?!” Tears were filling Harry’s eyes and he quickly wiped them away with his free hand. “I can’t hate you, Draco… I never…”

Right there and then, Draco felt like a first class jerk. He pulled the sniffling teen to him and wrapped him in a hug.

“I’m sorry, Harry… I was just… Never mind. Forget everything I said in the past ten minutes.” Draco murmured; he carded his fingers soothingly through Harry’s mop of hair. It calmed the brunet immediately.

“I just don’t understand why you would ask me such things,” Harry sniffed; he moved away from Draco’s warm body and glared up at the blond. “And as far as I’m concerned, none of this is a dream.”

Draco smiled but didn’t answer Harry; he let go of the brunet and was about to continue his way when Harry took his hand.

Not caring that this was a teenage Harry, Draco linked their fingers together. Time was short and Draco was going to cherish every second of it.

________________________________________

It was well passed midnight and Draco was huddled on the couch, watching the fire in the fireplace dance. Harry had wanted to stay with him that evening but the blond ushered the younger teen to bed.

Words from his conversation with Hermione repeatedly replayed in his mind. Draco wanted to believe every word that came out from Hermione’s mouth but it all seemed too surreal. More than anything, Draco wanted Harry to like him, and in time love him, as well.

It was just too much to think about. His head was starting to hurt from thinking too much.

With a sigh, Draco straightened his legs and stretched—he had been sitting in a curled up position for the past half hour. He slowly got up and padded in the direction of his bedroom. Draco was fumbling with the door knob of his door when he saw, from the corner of his eyes, that Harry’s door was slightly ajar.

‘Why do you care? Let the boy sleep!’ Draco chided himself, ‘Besides, it’s not like Harry’s doing anything interesting… He’s sleeping.’

Draco shrugged and was back fumbling with his door knob when he heard a soft groan coming from the other side of Harry’s door. Draco stopped twisting the knob and marched (three steps) to the door next to his own bedroom.

A number of questions ran across Draco’s mind:

1. Is Harry sick?

2. Is Harry having a nightmare?

3. Did he fall off his bed and bumped his head?

4. None of the above.

‘There should be a fifth option…’

Draco used the toes of his right foot to push the door wider so that he could slip in without making any unnecessary sounds. Draco stood by the doorway, his hands behind his back so that he could close the door.

The first thing he saw was a squirming lump on top of Harry’s bed; Draco immediately crossed out question number three. As he got closer to the moving body under the covers, Draco started hearing soft moans; questions number one and two came back. Worried about Harry’s health, the blond quickly made his way to the side of the bed and was about to check if the teen had a temperature, when Harry moaned again.

“… Oh… Don’t…” Harry murmured breathlessly in his sleep; he twisted under the blankets, hands gripping the top in tight fists.

Draco loomed over the distraught brunet and inspected Harry’s face. It was a good thing the window was right there behind Harry’s bed. Soft moonlight shone through the glass and illuminated Harry’s face. Malfoy could see that Harry was a bit flushed, his lips parted fractionally; beads of perspiration dotted across Potter’s forehead, making his dark tresses stick to the skin. And he was still moaning... And his hips were making subtle, small thrusts. One thing came to Draco’s mind: Harry looked like he was in a middle of an extremely good shag.

Bloody hell.

“Draco…” Harry moaned; he unconsciously bent his legs and opened them.

Draco squeaked. Yes, he squeaked. For god’s sake, Harry just moaned out his name; who wouldn’t squeak?!

“Harry… Oh Merlin…” Draco shook his head, “Stop it, Draco. You can’t think of Harry that way. Not now.” Draco reminded himself and slowly backed away from the moaning brunet. “You just can’t.”

Then Harry started panting.

Draco’s blood pressure went through the roof… then all the blood rushed south. This time it was Draco’s turn to groan. It was just so enticingly delicious to see Harry writhing on top of the bed, even though Harry was just dreaming. Draco turned on his heels and bolted out the door, before he was going to do something drastically stupid to the brunet.

That night, Draco Malfoy didn’t get any sleep at all.

________________________________________

Like clockwork, Harry the human alarm clock ran into Draco’s room at exactly eight o’clock Sunday morning. The winter holidays were coming to a close; actually, school starts the next day. Harry clambered up onto the soft mattress and smiled when Draco shifted away, making room for the smaller teen. Potter sighed and lied down next to the blond, green eyes staring up at the ceiling.

“What? I don’t get shaken up today?” Draco asked; he was already half awake when Harry ran in. Draco groaned tiredly and rolled onto his back,

lying in the same position as Harry. “You’re awfully quiet.”

“Oh… I-I uh… didn’t get much sleep last night. Woke up very early. Yeah.” Harry said choppily; Draco twisted his head to the side and found Harry looking at him. The younger teen blushed and looked away quickly, back to staring at the ceiling.

“And why didn’t you get any sleep?” Draco queried. He knew the answer of course; Draco just wanted to see if Harry would actually tell him. He was not disappointed; Harry folded his hands on top of his stomach and began fiddling his thumbs.

“I-I had a dream last night. Yup. It was… interesting.” Harry said offhandedly, “I kept thinking about it… that’s why I couldn’t sleep.”

“Really?” Draco drawled and sat up; he slowly stretched, not noticing the way Harry was eyeing him.

“Ye-yeah…” Harry stammered; his green eyes traveled downward to where a sliver of pale skin showed as Draco’s pajama rode up. “I-I don’t remember much about it though.”

Draco hummed and turned to smile at the brunet who was still lying on his back. His smile turned into a smirk when he saw how Harry’s eyes were drawn near his hips. There were two splotches of pink on each of Harry’s cheekbones. An evil smile slowly formed and Draco inched his hand towards Harry’s stomach. With a sharp jab, he got Harry’s attention.

“Why’d you do that for?!” Harry whined as he rubbed the sore spot on his stomach. “And stop looking at me like that!” Harry mumbled when

Draco continued to smirk at him.

“What were you staring at?” Draco shot back; he smiled in satisfaction when Harry blushed.

“N-nothing!” Harry said quickly, his eyes diverting away from Draco. He rolled to his side and curled up into a ball. “I wasn’t staring at you, that’s for sure.” Harry said firmly.

“Oh yes, Harry, I am sure you were only staring at my beautiful wardrobe on the other side of the room.” Draco said sarcastically; Harry made a nonchalant grunt. “Now if you’re just going to lounge around on my bed, be my guest. Me, on the other hand, will go out to the Great Hall and have breakfast after I freshen myself. You can join me when you decide to get off the bed.” Draco said and got off; he walked to his ‘beautiful’ wardrobe and took out some fresh clothes. “I suggest you go to your room and dress. I know the house-elves are going to make a nice English breakfast for us if we’re not too late.”

Draco heard Harry gasp and without turning around, he knew the teen had run out the room, if the running footsteps were anything to go by. The blond chuckled to himself and got ready for the rest of the day.

________________________________________

Since it was the last day of the holidays, students were coming back and thus, the Great Hall was about a quarter filled. Draco had barely opened the heavy double doors when Harry ran passed him and straight to the Gryffindor table. Draco was secretly glad that the Lions’ table only had a few students, most were of underclassmen. He spotted Granger right away; Harry was already there, sitting right across from the girl. Malfoy made his way over and calmly sat down next to his charge, who was waiting impatiently for his plate of breakfast to appear.

“Good morning, Hermione.” Draco greeted politely; Hermione smiled at the blond.

“Morning, Draco.” Hermione grinned, “It seems Harry is a bit excited.”

“Of course he is. I mentioned food when we were still back at our quarters. It only took him ten minutes to do his morning rituals.” Draco said.

“I’m hungry!” Harry cried indignantly, “You can’t starve a growing boy!” He humphed and went back to fidgeting.

“Sooner or later you are going to break the bench from all the fidgeting.”

Draco rolled his eyes when Harry scowled but stopped moving nonetheless; Hermione giggled at the interaction between Draco and her best friend.

Harry whooped when a huge plate of breakfast appeared before him; Draco and Hermione calmly started on their breakfast while Harry ate with fervor. It was a wonder how Harry had managed to stay so slim, seeing the amount he consumed each day.

Potter cut a piece of sausage, stuffed it in his mouth, chewed and swallowed before speaking. “Mini, how come you stayed during Christmas? Don’t you always go with Ron to his house?”

Hermione stopped forking her eggs and looked up at Harry, shocked. She caught Draco shaking his head at her and whatever question that was about to tumble out of her mouth was gone. The brown haired placed her fork down beside her dish and dabbed her mouth daintily with her white napkin. Glancing at Draco, the blond teen was back sawing into his sausages. Hermione sighed and tried a small smile; Harry was looking at her, his cheeks puffed out from food.

“Ron did ask me to visit his family this year…” Hermione started, “… but I thought better of it. It is his only time spent with his family after all. I didn’t want to intrude.” Hermione said softly; Draco looked up from his scrambled eggs and just from the look on the girl’s face, he knew there was more to what she said.

“Oh… So that’s why you stayed?” Harry tilted his head to the side, “Well, Christmas is the only time of year when… Charlie would come back from Romania; you know how Ron almost never sees Charlie--”

“What else do you remember!?” Hermione forced out; Draco was glaring at her now but she ignored him. “How much you know? You… Harry do you remember everything?”

“Hermione, why don’t you finish your breakfast?” Draco gritted out, “Maybe we’ll talk after we’re all done.”

“I’m full, Draco.” Hermione glared at the blond.

Harry was looking back and forth between the two older teens. Why did he say Charlie? Where did that come from? When he tried to search through his memories of who Charlie was, Harry couldn’t find it. Harry frowned and placed his own fork down; he wasn’t so hungry anymore. Half of his breakfast was left uneaten.

“I don’t know, Mini…” Harry muttered, “The name just seemed familiar… but now I can’t recall…” Harry scowled at the plate in front of him and pushed it away.

Draco snarled at the bushy-haired girl; Hermione returned Draco’s snarl with one of her own glares.

“We’re going to have a nice long talk, Draco.” Hermione said in a deadly tone; there was a thin smile, but she was anything but happy.

“I’ll be more than happy to converse with you, Hermione.”

________________________________________

Draco watched as Harry was running along the lake shore, stopping every now and then when there was a ripple across the lake. Draco assumed the giant squid had come out from hibernation. Malfoy had told Harry that he needed to talk with ‘Mini’; Harry told them that he would be by the lake and did not ask any questions before he ran off. Draco sighed and leaned against a giant oak tree trunk; Hermione was making herself comfortable on the hard, icy snow. Once she was, she scowled at the blond beside her.

“Tell me, just how much does Harry remember of his real memories?” Hermione shot out, “I thought he only remembers a little. But there he was, remembering Charlie and me going to the Burrow every Christmas!”

“It’s was a gradual thing, Hermione.” Draco answered tiredly, “It started when Harry aged to seven years old. It was then he began getting these relapses and he would see images of his real memories.” He pulled back his arms and folded them behind his head. “Harry would blank out for minutes and everything would be back to normal. Sometimes I fear that he would remember how he hated me…”

Hermione’s angry expression softened, “Is that why you think Harry doesn’t like you?”

“That’s part of the reason I guess,” Draco murmured, “I’m always afraid that he would hate me one day… because he remembers every little detail… all the hatred between us.”

“Well, from what I’m seeing, he loves you more than anything.” Hermione smiled softly, her eyes trained on the brunet who was now sitting by the lake, watching the scenery before them.

“I asked him yesterday,” Draco said, “I asked Harry what would he do if everything that happened was all but a dream. I asked him what if in reality, he hated me.”

“What did Harry say?”

“He broke down and he asked me how I could say such things.” Draco laughed bitterly, “If he only knew how true my words were.”

“That’s the thing. Harry doesn’t know.” Hermione put her hand on Draco’s shoulder and gave him a comforting squeeze, “Let him believe this is all true. There is a chance the things that happened now would be remembered, right?”

“A slim chance, but you’re correct.” Draco confirmed, “But I just have this feeling that Harry won’t remember.”

“Maybe… maybe not.”

“This is all so confusing!” Draco yelled; he leaned forward and placed his chin on his bent knees. “Part of me wished that the accident never happened. I live my life, and Harry lives his life. Another part of me is thankful that the accident happened because I got to know Harry better… Am I

being selfish?”

Hermione chuckled and shook her head, “Of course not, Draco. You’re not being selfish.”

They stayed silent for a moment, both watching Harry trying to make a snowman. It was a very badly made snowman, but it was still one nonetheless.

Draco tore his eyes away from Harry and glanced at the girl beside him; Hermione was still watching Harry so she did not notice Draco looking at her.

“How come you didn’t go with Weasley this year?”

Hermione snorted at how bold the question was, but she obliged by answering the blond.

“We’ve been… having many disagreements ever since Harry got turned into a toddler.” Hermione murmured, “The first day, Ron complained about why Harry was in your care. His exact words were ‘How come the Ferret gets to watch Harry? He’s our friend and his enemy!’”

“Typical of Weasley to say such things,” Draco scoffed, “Do continue.”

“Well, you know how Ron is. He’s very stubborn. So everyday after that, he always complained. He’s always asking me why we couldn’t see Harry. At first, I agreed with Ron. Harry is a Gryffindor after all and he should’ve stayed with us.”

“You said ‘at first’. What changed your mind?” Draco asked; it was interesting to hear about other people’s problems. Draco knew it was awful for thinking that way, but he was tired of always talking about his problems to people.

“That day when we first saw Harry during Potions,” Hermione smiled at the memory, “Harry was three… and he called Professor Snape, ‘Professor Slaps’.” Hermione let out a small giggle, “I thought he was so cute… and then I also saw how he was so happy around you.” She looked to the side and met a pair of grey eyes. “When you were gathering ingredients, Harry was asking for you the whole time. He was telling me and Ron how you told him about Potions… It was then I realized, it was the right choice for Harry to be in your care. You made him happy. You gave him the chance to have a normal childhood, without all the harsh words that came from his relatives.”

“I see… But still, that didn’t tell me why you refused to go with Weasley.” Draco looked away from Hermione and back at Harry—the snowman was half done now.

“Ron had actually planned to ‘visit’ you and Harry and then forcefully take Harry away from you!” Hermione fumed, “That was the most preposterous thing he had ever come up with!” She furrowed and frowned at the memory. “I yelled at him, telling him to stop being a git and just accept the fact that Harry is happy being with you. Do you know what he said to me?” Hermione asked.

Draco shook his head. This was all so amusing.

“He actually asked me why I was taking your side!” Hermione threw her hands up and rolled her eyes, “Then he asked me if I like you… I slapped him. I couldn’t take any more of his words.”

Draco was speechless… and happy. Hermione slapped the Weasel!

“Is that why you didn’t go with him? Well, good for you, Hermione. Weasley needed to be slapped.” Draco smirked.

“Yeah… that’s about it. He was mad at me and didn’t talk to me for days… I was kind of glad not to hear him yap about you and Harry. But, knowing Ron, he’ll probably forget everything when he comes back.”

“Huh… wait until he finds out his best friend might actually like me. He’ll explode.” Draco said humorlessly.

“I’m not stupid enough to tell Ron that!” Hermione scoffed, “He can find out himself. He’ll be angry… but later on, he’ll accept it.”

“Really?” Draco asked skeptically.

Hermione clucked her tongue, “Ron’s the least of your problems. Do you plan on telling Harry… when he’s normal again?”

“Tell him what? That I like him?” Draco combed his fingers through is blond hair.

“Tell him… everything I suppose.”

“Hermione, you should know Harry is not the most level headed person in the world.” Draco sighed, “I still think he won’t take it too well if I told

him…”

“You should try at least.” Hermione suggested, “What harm can it do?”

“Possibly, a lot.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

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水刃

Chapter 15: Do You Remember?
The first thing Draco found upon waking up early Monday morning was a folded letter sitting innocently on the dining room table. His name was written in skinny, cursive letters and Draco immediately knew the letter was from Snape.
It was the first day of school after the winter holidays and just like every year after holidays, his internal clock let him wake up nice and early, even before Harry. Draco sighed and picked up the letter, not really wanting to read what his Potions professor wrote. But Malfoy knew he couldn’t ignore it; something told him that there was something important in the letter or else Snape wouldn’t have written to him. The blond unfolded the parchment and read…
Mr. Malfoy,
It is my intention to tell you that the last batch of aging potion for Mr. Potter is ready. As you already know, when Mr. Potter drinks this vial, he will turn back to his original age of seventeen. I know over the past two months you have gotten extremely close to the de-aged Potter, so I tell you this, Draco, be ready for Mr. Potter to not remember anything that had happened over the course of two months. I’ve told you before and I am reminding you again.
You must be wondering why I wrote this letter and not visiting you at the quarters as I normally do. This is because I want you to bring Mr. Potter to the infirmary after your Ancient Runes class. I’m sure you don’t want the seventeen year old Potter to wake up in the quarters and finds you with him. He might be confused for the next couple of days because of all the messed up memories. In this last vial, I will put a stronger dose of the Sleeping Draught, making Potter sleep for at least twenty four hours.
I don’t know what you see in Potter, but I can tell you truly care about the boy. But I don’t think it would be a good idea for you to be at the hospital wing when Potter wakes up.
I know you’re thinking how to get him to go to the hospital wing with you; tell him Madam Pomfrey is giving him a check-up, no excuses. I gave the vial to Madam Pomfrey already; she will know what to do.
S. Snape
Draco reread the letter once, twice, three times before he finally crumpled it up into a ball. With a yell, he threw it against the kitchen wall and watched it bounce off and landing on the ground. He stood there for a moment, possibly a minute or so before walking to the ball of paper and picked it up. With a heavy heart, Draco trudged to the living room, where the fireplace was. One last glance at the balled up letter, Draco threw it into the fire and watched it burn.
The paper burned black, its edges glowing red. It crackled and withered, before finally turning into ashes. With a blink of an eye, the letter was no more.
Just like his time with Harry.
________________________________________
“Mornin’ Draco,” Harry said with a yawn; he was dressed properly, looking almost as if he was attending school as well. “Are we having breakfast at the Great Hall today?”
Draco hummed absently; he was sitting on the couch, his book bag at his side. He almost didn’t notice Harry sitting down beside him. Until the brunet poked him on his arm.
“Draco, are you alright? Did you hear what I said?”
Draco snapped out of his stupor and turned his head to face the green eyed teen. He put on a small smile, trying to act as if nothing happened.
“I heard you. Yes, we’re eating in the Great Hall today. I don’t want to be late to Professor Snape’s class.” Draco murmured and stood up, hoisting his bag onto his shoulder. “Are you ready to go?” Draco asked, looking at Harry.
Potter nodded and stood up; he tilted his head and frowned at the blond. “You look like you have something else to tell me. What is it?”
Draco gripped his bag strap a wee bit tighter; he awkwardly patted Harry’s head. The younger teen continued to frown, only this time an eyebrow was arched in confusion.
Draco sighed, “Madam Pomfrey asked me to take you to the hospital wing after my Ancient Runes class. She told me this morning when you were still sleeping.” Draco lied.
Harry’s lips curved up slightly, “Oh. Is that all? What does Madam Pomfrey want?”
“She wants to give you a check-up. Don’t ask why, she asked me to bring you.” Draco said firmly.
Harry shrugged and walked ahead of Draco. For a moment, Malfoy thought Harry had seen through his lie. But when the brunet reached the portrait and turned around, there was a grin on Harry’s face, showing no indications that he knew Draco lied. Malfoy immediately relaxed and returned the smile; he walked over to the younger teen.
“We should hurry to the Great Hall or we won’t have enough time to eat,” Draco reminded Harry.
That was all he needed to say before Harry dashed out, with Draco following leisurely behind.
________________________________________
“Harry, can you help me out a bit?”
Harry turned on his arse on the stool and faced Draco. He smiled and nodded.
“Sure, what do you want me to do?” Harry asked; Draco handed him a paper with the list of ingredients needed for him to brew the potion that was on the board. Harry scanned the list and looked up at the blond again. “You want me to get these for you?”
“Yes, if it’s not too much trouble.” Draco said, hoping that Harry will go without any more questions. He wanted to speak with Hermione; she was also alone (Ron was sitting in the other aisle of desks).
“No, I’ll go get it.” Harry said cheerily; he looked down at the list again and made a face. “Bat eyes pulp? Crushed beetles? Merlin, I hope you don’t have to drink this potion, Draco.” Harry stuck out his tongue before hopping off and walked to the ingredient cabinets.
“Really Draco, couldn’t you go up and get the ingredients yourself? I didn’t know you were so lazy.” Hermione’s voice drifted to Draco.
The blond shrugged and didn’t say a word to the girl behind him. He sighed dejectedly and planted his elbows on the table, propping his head up.
Granger stopped stirring her boiling potion base, “Draco, I’m talking to you!”
“He’s going to be seventeen again. You should be happy, Granger.”
Hermione almost had to strain her ears to hear what Draco said. She doused the fire and let her potion sit undisturbed. She leaned forward and reached out to tap Draco on the shoulder.
“Is Professor Snape giving Harry the last vial?”
Draco nodded, “I’m going to have to take him to the hospital wing later in the day. Snape gave the potion to Pomfrey so that she can give it to Harry.”
“I see... How long is he going to be sleeping?” Hermione asked, concerned.
“Snape said about twenty-four hours. He asked me not to be there when Harry wakes up…” Draco whispered, “Today’s my last with Harry.”
“Don’t say that, Draco.” Hermione said sadly, “You’ll see Harry around. Maybe he’ll remember all you’ve done for him.”
“No… No, he won’t” Draco shook his head, his blond hair falling into his face.
“Draco--”
“Draco! I got them! I got everything you needed!” Harry called out as he made his way back to Draco’s table. Hermione clamped her mouth shut and Draco sat up straight, putting an end to their conversation.
Harry waved at Hermione with his free hand as he passed by the girl. “I think I got the last jar of bat eyes… I almost had to fight that guy for it.” Harry jerked his head in the direction of the right side of the room. He set down the jars and bottles in front of Draco before sitting back down on his stool. “Well, you can begin now. I’ll just watch you.”
“Oh. Er… thanks Harry.” Draco smiled briefly; he started a fire and dumped the base of the potion into the cauldron. “You can help me if you want. I know how much you like to help.” Draco pushed the instructions towards Harry, “You can tell me what to add and what to do, alright?”
Hermione shook her head sadly and went back to her own potion. It was saddening to see Draco act this way. It was as if Harry will be gone the next day and he’ll never see him again. She prayed to every god and deity that might exist, praying that Harry will remember.
It was the least she can do.
________________________________________
Twenty more minutes.
Fifteen.
Ten.
Five…
“Alright, class dismissed! Tomorrow, I want you all to turn in two feet of parchment of a summary from chapters thirty to thirty-five. Have a great day!”
Students groaned and started putting their things away. Draco was slowly putting his quills, ink bottle, and notes away in a very slow motion. He was trying to prolong the time; he didn’t want to bring Harry to the hospital wing.
Draco had been dreading it. Ever since they had lunch, he had been watching the time. Time gradually trickled away and before he knew it, Ancient Runes ended. It was four-thirty. Draco gave up being slow and angrily shoved his text book inside his bag and closed it.
“Come on, Harry, let’s go. Madam Pomfrey is waiting.” Draco muttered. He walked off without even checking if Harry was following him.
Harry had watched the way his Draco was packing his things. Draco never shoved things into his book bag. The blond was always so careful of his things… Harry knew something was wrong. He ran after the blond, who was already halfway down the hall. By the time he caught up, Harry was out of breath.
“Slow down… I’m sure Madam Pomfrey wouldn’t mind if we’re late.” Harry panted.
Draco had been walking so fast, his thigh muscles were starting to hurt. He slowed down when he heard Harry panting next to him. Looking to the side, he found Harry staring at him with wide eyes.
“You’ve been acting all weird the whole day, Draco.” Harry said, “Was it something I said? Or--”
“No, it’s not you, Harry.” Draco cut him off, “I’m just being an arse. Sorry.” Draco put on a tight smile, “I guess I’m just… worried what Pomfrey will do.”
“It’s just a check-up!” Harry laughed, “Nothing wrong can happen.”
Draco’s expression turned stony and he again started walking ahead of the smaller teen. This time, Harry followed without questioning.
‘Many things could go wrong. You just don’t know it.’
________________________________________
“Well Mr. Malfoy, I see you have brought Mr. Potter with you,” the medi-witch said, smiling.
Draco wished he could wipe that smile off her face. He didn’t think this was a happy moment. Harry, of course, was his happy self and went up to the medi-witch, giving her a brief hug. Why Harry gave her a hug was anybody’s guess.
Madam Pomfrey chuckled as Harry released her from his hug. “What a nice greeting. Now, Harry, can you go over to that bed over there and wait for me? Undress and I’ll be with you shortly.” She gestured to a bed at the far left side of the hospital wing.
“Erm, alright…” Harry said; he looked over to the blond. “Draco, you’ll wait for me right?”
“Yeah, of course I’ll wait for you. It shouldn’t take too long.” Draco replied. Grey eyes followed Harry’s retreating back. With one last grin, Harry pulled the screen around the bed, obscuring anybody’s view of Harry being nude.
“I’m sure Severus sent you a letter this morning?” Madam Pomfrey asked Malfoy after she was sure that Harry wouldn’t be able to hear them.
“Yes, he did.” Draco murmured; he sat down on a bed that was near him, looking extremely tired. “Can I stay here until Harry falls asleep?”
“Of course, Severus warned me about this. He told me you might ask to stay for awhile.” The medi-witch smiled warmly at the teen. “Actually, I’m giving you special permission to stay while Mr. Potter is sleeping. Don’t tell anybody else that I’m doing this alright?”
Grey eyes lit up, “I can stay?” Draco felt a little bit better at hearing the nurse’s words; he was trying so hard not to laugh out loud in joy. He smiled at Madam Pomfrey, “Thank you for letting me stay… I guess Professor Snape told you about how I…”
“Yes, he told me.” Poppy said softly, “I was quite shocked, seeing how you and Mr. Potter did nothing but fight each other for the past five years. I treated both of you quite a number of times if I recall.”
Draco chuckled, “I remember those days…”
“Madam Pomfrey! Where are you? I’m ready for the check-up!” Harry called from behind the screen. “It’s getting kind of cold lying on the bed without clothes!” The brunet parted the curtain and stuck his head out, his eyes landing on Draco. “Is this going to take long?”
Pomfrey took out her wand, “No, it shouldn’t take more than five minutes.” She walked over to Harry’s bed and left Draco. She paused, however, and turned back. “Mr. Malfoy, if you want, you can sit next to Mr. Potter’s bed.”
“That would be fine,” Draco said graciously.
Malfoy padded over to Potter’s bedside and pulled out the wooden chair. He sat down and waited as Madam Pomfrey went through the curtains and started the ‘check-up’. Every once in awhile, he heard Madam Pomfrey chiding Harry, telling the brunet to eat more or that he was way too small for a twelve year old boy. Draco smiled and was silently agreeing to every word the witch said. A few minutes later, possibly more than five, she came back out, pushing the curtains aside. Harry was sitting on the edge of the bed, buttoning his dress shirt. He looked up and grinned at Draco.
“It’s all done! Now I just have to wait while Madam Pomfrey gets a nutrient potion. She said I’m underweight and too skinny for my age.” Harry frowned while Draco smirked.
‘So that’s how she’ll give him the potion…’
“Well, that’s good then. You won’t be so small anymore.” Draco said as Harry straightened his shirt.
Before Harry had the chance to reply, Madam Pomfrey came over to the bed, holding a small vial of green liquid in her right hand. Draco knew that potion well… and after today, he wouldn’t have to see it ever again. Pomfrey came to a stop right in front of Harry; she handed over the vial to the brunet. A glass of water magically appeared on the bedside table. Harry took the potion without hesitation; he pulled the stopper out and downed it by tilting his head back.
“Merlin, this is awful!” Harry gagged and quickly grabbed the glass of water, taking three gulps.
“You very well know potions aren’t very tasty.” Madam Pomfrey said, taking the now empty vial from Harry.
Draco did not contribute to their conversation. All he was doing was sitting there, watching Harry intently. He knew, any moment now, Harry will fall into a deep slumber and the aging will take place.
Harry was about to stand up when Poppy placed a hand on his shoulders; he looked up, surprised.
“I thought you said I can… go…” Harry shook his head, “I don’t… Oh my god…” He blinked, trying to get the sleepiness out. “Why do I--” Harry’s body swayed and went lax.
Before he fell back, his eyes found Draco. Malfoy was already standing; his face was one of concern and worry. Harry tried reaching out to his Draco but he was just so tired… so tired…
“… Dray”
Draco’s breath hitched as Harry’s eyes fluttered close. Madam Pomfrey held Draco back when the blond wanted to touch Harry. He let the nurse move Harry into a more comfortable position while he stood at the side, watching.
“It’s done, Mr. Malfoy.” Poppy said softly, “He’ll age at night. I’ll spell on his school robes later.” She turned to face the blond, took his hand and held it within hers. “Why don’t you go back to the quarters? You can visit Harry after dinnertime. He’s not going to wake up any time soon.”
“I-I don’t want to go back. I want to stay here,” Draco said hoarsely; he looked at the medi-witch with pleading eyes. Madam Pomfrey held back a gasp. She never saw Draco this way before. “I promise I’ll leave before he wakes up.”
Poppy sighed and nodded, “I’ll have your dinner brought here then. Also, you can always come back in the early morning. I’m sure Harry will still be sleeping then.”
“Thank you.” Draco looked down. He would not cry. Malfoys did not cry.
“You’re welcome, dear.” Madam Pomfrey said softly, “If you need anything, I’ll be in my office.” She released Draco’s hand and started walking to her office, leaving the two teens alone.
Draco slunk down into the chair once he heard the door to Pomfrey’s office closed. He took Harry’s hand and brought it up to his cheeks. Malfoy rubbed his cheek tenderly against the warm hand. Harry had no reaction of course. All he did was breathing in and breathe out.
They stayed that way for a long period of time. One holding the other’s hand, the latter lying on the bed in deep sleep. It wasn’t until Madam Pomfrey came over with a tray of food did Draco moved.
“Draco, you have to eat.” She whispered, setting down the tray on the bedside table.
“I’ll eat later…” Draco murmured and he looked up at the nurse, “Thanks for bringing the food, Madam Pomfrey.”
Poppy smiled understandingly; she patted Draco’s shoulder and left, once more leaving them alone.
Draco sighed and planted his elbows on the bed. He leant forward until his face was right above Harry’s. He was close enough to hear soft snores coming from the sleeping brunet.
“… I wonder if you can hear me talking to you,” Draco said quietly, “There are so many things I can say to you right now but not when you’re awake.” He reached out and brushed Harry’s hair aside so that it wouldn’t cover his forehead. “Do you know how worry I am right at this moment?” Draco asked, looking down at Harry’s face. “Of course you don’t; you’re in your own world and not worried about anything.”
Malfoy scooted his chair closer to the bed and he smoothed his hand up and down Harry’s arm.
“Remember when you said all of this isn’t a dream? Well, you’re going to wake up from that. Everything was a dream. You don’t love me in reality. You said you can’t hate me, but you do.” Draco’s hand traveled down Harry’s arm until he was touching his hand; he linked their fingers together and brought their hands under his chin. “It was a nice dream though. I enjoyed getting to know you better during the past two months…” Draco swallowed, his throat was suddenly dry. “I’ll remember everything even if-if you don’t…”
Draco blinked; a single tear came tumbling down.
“There is something I wanted to say… I kept it in for so long.” Draco sniffed, “Maybe you can hear me now, maybe you don’t, but it doesn’t matter, I’m going to say it anyway.”
Draco didn’t know if it was the shadows playing tricks on him, but he thought he saw the corners of Harry’s mouth curved slightly upward. Malfoy let out a small laugh; he kissed Harry’s fingers before letting their hands drop onto the bed.
“I love you, Harry.”
________________________________________
Morning came and went. Afternoon came and went. Harry’s subconscious had been floating in between the real world and his dream world. He struggled to open his eyes, but they felt so terribly heavy. More than once, he tried and gave up, letting sleep take over again.
“You’re a good baby today,” Draco cooed, his arms wrapped around Harry’s small body.
Harry gurgled and placed his hands on Draco’s face; the Slytherin leaned forward and rubbed the tip of his nose on Harry’s. Harry giggled and let Draco have his way.
-flash-
“Dway tis!”
Draco shook his head in amusement and planted a small kiss on Harry’s cheek.
-flash-
“Kay. I’m gunna dwall pwetty picters. I’m gunna dwall me and you!” Harry said happily.
“Are you going to draw me nicely?” Draco asked.
‘Draco…’
“Yups, I dwalls you pwetty cus Dway is always pwetty.”
“Well, I’m flattered. That was the first time anybody called me pretty.”
‘Draco you’re always beautiful…’
-flash-
“Look love, do you like the teddy?”
‘Teddy bear… Draco gave me one… Eddy.’
“I wuv da bwere! Dank you Dway!”
-flash-
"Draco! You're up! I called you a couple of times but you never answered so I came to your room! I kinda remember you telling me I can… So I did!" Harry grinned and bounced again, "But then you were still sleeping and I watched you for a few minutes… Then I tried waking you up by poking you… and now I'm here!" Harry laughed.
"You little monster! Is this how you wake people up? By jumping on them?" Draco growled playfully and went on to tickle Harry, who squealed and tried rolling off Draco's stomach but was trapped when the blond held on tight. "That's what you get for bouncing on me early in the morning."
-flash-
"Draco… this-this is a Firebolt,” Harry murmured in awe, “You-you really got me one like you promised!”
‘My Christmas present… My first present from you.’
“So I take you like it then?” Draco asked cheekily; Harry nodded furiously and carefully put the toy broom on the floor before throwing himself at Draco.
“Thank you, Draco… this is the best present I’ve ever gotten.” Harry whispered into Draco’s shoulder.
“I’m glad you like it,” Draco said and kissed the top of Harry’s head.
-flash-
“Harry?”
“What is it?”
“What if… What if one day, you wake up and you realize… everything in the past was just a dream? Like, it was an alternate reality. What would you do?” Draco asked.
“That’s crazy!” Harry laughed, “How can everything that happened be a dream?”
“You’re… not kidding.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Well, I can tell you that… if this was a dream, then I would think of it as a really nice dream.” Harry smiled softly, “My time with you was filled with happiness. You were always there for me and loved me unconditionally, Draco. I will never forget that.”
‘I didn’t forget… Draco… ’
-flash-
“There is something I wanted to say… I kept it in for so long.”
‘Then say it already…’
“Maybe you can hear me now, maybe you don’t, but it doesn’t matter, I’m going to say it anyway.”
“I love you, Harry.”
‘Draco… I lo--’
________________________________________
Harry opened his eyes, hoping and wishing that the first person he’ll see would be a certain blond that had been appearing in his dreams.
Except Harry knew they weren’t dreams.
He remembered the time the potion went wrong and he drank it. He remembered the days he spent with him. They were filled with happiness and Harry was glad he was the one to take care of him when he was turned into a toddler. He even heard the words the blond whispered next to his ear. Harry didn't know how it happened, but it did.
Harry groaned and he tried to sit up, only to have a hand placed on his chest, pushing him back down onto the bed.
“Don’t move, Harry, I’ll go get Madam Pomfrey.”
Harry blinked and looked at the brownish blob above him. Brown… only one person had brown hair and a feminine voice.
“… Mione?” Harry croaked; he groped around the bedside table until he found what he was looking for. Harry placed his glasses on and his vision was clear.
“Yes, Harry. Do want some water?” Hermione asked; she moved the headboard of the bed and helped Harry to a sitting position.
Harry nodded his thanks and took the glass of water Hermione offered to him. He took two sips and sighed when his throat felt not so scratchy anymore.
“How do you feel?” Hermione asked as she sat down in the chair next to the bed. “I’ve been watching you for at least two hours. You’ve been waking and falling back asleep. It seemed like you were struggling…”
“Where is he?” Harry asked, cutting off Hermione. “Where is he, Hermione?”
The brown haired girl moved back a bit and stared at her friend. “Where is who, Harry?”
“Draco… Where is he? He’s not here…”
Hermione gasped and gripped Harry’s arm; the brunet winced and Hermione relaxed her hold.
“Draco? You’re asking for Draco?” The girl asked, shocked.
Harry growled; he was more awake now. Actually, he felt fine. Just a bit stiff from sleeping so long. He swung his legs over the bed, shoving his feet into his shoes.
“I’m going to look for him. I need to talk to Draco.” Harry said briskly and threw the curtains around his bed aside.
Hermione grabbed his arm and stopped Harry from walking any further.
“Wait!” Hermione jerked Harry back; he glared at her but said nothing. “Harry… Do you mean you remember--”
Harry yanked his hand back, “I know what he did. The past months it was Draco that was with me. He was the one that took care of me. It wasn’t a dream like he said. It was all real and I remember, Hermione.”
Hermione lowered her hand and a small smile began to form on her face. “Go on then, I’ll tell Madam Pomfrey that you’re fine.”
Harry’s expression softened and grinned at his friend, “Thanks!”
He ran out of the hospital wing and was on his quest to find his special blond.
Wherever Draco was Harry will find him.
________________________________________
“There is something I wanted to say… I kept it in for so long.”
“Maybe you can hear me now, maybe you don’t, but it doesn’t matter, I’m going to say it anyway.”
“I love you, Harry.”
‘I love you, too, Draco.’

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 16: As Fate Would Have It

Harry ran down hallways as fast as his legs would carry him. He paid no attention to the people muttering and whispering at him as he ran by them. He paid no attention to the murmuring paintings that hung on the walls. The only thing on Harry’s mind was finding Draco.

Draco was all that mattered right now.

The brunet ran straight, turned right, turned left; he was going back to the place where he had spent his past two months in. All Harry hoped

was that Draco was really there… If not, well, he’ll continue looking for the blond.

‘Please be there…’

As Harry continued on his way to the private quarters, he ran past a corridor where a blond headed teen was walking out. Said person turned in the opposite direction, never noticing the brunet that ran by him.

Both never realized that they were so close, yet so far as well. One disappeared down the curving hallway while the other made his way to the front gates of Hogwarts.

Such, was fate.

.:0:.0:.0:.0:.

Draco had his head down the whole time; he never looked up. Students muttered angrily and avoided bumping into the blond. Draco didn’t notice any of that.

‘Harry’s probably awake now… He’s probably all confused on why he’s there.’

Malfoy let out a long, suffering sigh and turned left, just as a breeze swept by. All Draco saw was feet as the person ran by him. He never looked up to see who it was; Draco didn’t care.

“I hope he’s alright…” Draco whispered as he trudged in the direction of the front gates. “I should’ve stayed longer this morning… None of it matters anymore, my job is done.” Draco said and he blindly walked to the gates.

He needed some time alone and what better place to be than the Lake.

---

Harry stopped running and instead started walking in a slow pace. He looked around the hallway he was now in; everything looked so familiar yet… There was still a small part of him that didn’t quite believed it all happened. Harry shook his head and smiled when he saw the portrait that led to the private rooms. The green eyed teen stood two feet away from the painting and reached up to touch the soft canvas. The young lady in the portrait lowered her white lacy umbrella and smiled softly.

“You, young man, look strangely familiar,” The lady said, “Have I seen you before?”

Harry chuckled and peered right at the woman’s face. “Have I really changed that much, Lady Lia?”

“Lady Lia? It’s Lady Adalia to you! Nobody calls me Lady Lia except little Har--” She snapped then stopped in mid sentence; the lady narrowed her eyes and then smiled again, recognition present in her eyes. “Harry? Is that you? My my… You’re all grown up! I haven’t seen you for a day and now you’re a handsome teenager!” She giggled when Harry blushed.

“Er… Yeah. I’ve been in the hospital wing; just got released today.” Harry said when he got over his blush.

“So I assume you are properly aged now are you?” Lady Adalia asked; Harry nodded.

“How did you find out? I’m sure paintings didn’t know about the accident… do they?” Harry was perplexed; the young woman laughed and closed her umbrella.

“Oh no, Professor Dumbledore told me the day he assigned me to the rooms.” Adalia replied, “He told me about how you took a potion and it de-aged you. Then he said another teen, Draco, will be taking care of you.” She shrugged daintily and stood up from the bench she was sitting on. “For the past two months, I’ve seen you grow… So I pretty much knew what was going on.”

“Ah. Well… Uhm… Do you mind if I go inside?” Harry asked, gesturing to the covered doorway.

Lady Adalia chuckled and sat down again, picked up her lacy umbrella, and opened it.

“Of course I don’t mind Harry, but you must tell me the password.” She smiled at the brunet and started spinning the opened umbrella. “No password, no entry.”

Harry chuckled softly, “You know, when I was a toddler, I used to laugh when you start spinning your umbrella. I remember calling you ‘Pretty Lady’.”

“Hmm… You were such a sweet child,” Adalia said softly, “Well… You’re still a nice, young man now.” She stopped spinning her umbrella and looked around Harry. “Where’s Draco? He’s always with you. I remember how he always smiles when you were around. I could tell that boy really loves you, Harry.”

Harry blushed again and gulped; he scratched the back of his head and looked up at the portrait.

“Really? You could tell?”

“Of course! It was really obvious.”

Harry coughed into his hand and looked helplessly at the lady. “I’m looking for Draco actually. Is he inside?”

“Oh, well… He’s not. I haven’t seen him since yesterday.” Adalia frowned, “Something happened to Draco?”

Harry was crestfallen when the painting said Draco wasn’t inside. He shook his head and smiled lightly.

“Nothing’s wrong… I’m just looking for him and I don’t know where he’s gone.” Harry murmured, “Can I go in anyway? I think I’ll wait for him… I’m sure Draco will come back.”

“Password?” Adalia smiled and waited; Harry grinned at her and winked.

“Rubber Duck.”

Adalia giggled and the whole portrait swung outward; Harry stepped back and waited until the pathway was revealed. He walked over and stepped over the threshold.

“Thanks Lady Lia!”

Harry took a deep breath and opened his eyes once he was inside. Everything was just the way he had remembered it. Not one single thing was out of place. Harry walked over to the couches and danced his fingertips on the soft leather. He smiled, reminiscing the times he jumped onto the sofa and made Draco bounce. He could see his younger self sitting there, with Draco, cuddling into the blonde’s side. Potter patted the couch a few times and sat down. He leaned back and let his head rest on the couch; Harry closed his eyes and smiled.

“How nice it would be if Draco and I could stay here for the rest of the year…”

.:0:.0:.0:.0:.

Draco stood gazing at the dark waters of the Lake. It was late afternoon already; the sun was well on its way to disappearing behind the

many hills that surrounded Hogwarts. Malfoy dropped his book bag carelessly onto the pebbled ground and sat down, mindful of not wrinkling his school robes. Not that it really mattered.

Draco had stayed in the hospital wing well into late morning. He never left Harry’s unconscious body, not even to take a shower or change his clothes. Thus, the clothes he wore were from yesterday. Students stared at him rudely in his classes. He had this beaten look on his face; his clothes were disheveled and starting to smell a bit. Nobody ever saw Draco Malfoy in such a state, not even the professors. Most of his teachers knew about the case of him and Harry, some did not. They asked him why he was such a mess. All Draco did was shrug and went back to his own world.

“I wonder… what Harry is doing right now…” Draco said to himself, “Is he with his Gryffindors? I hope he’s alright…” Draco smiled, his eyes stared straight ahead. “He’ll go back to hating me… He won’t remember anything…” He drew his knees up and rested his chin on top.

“Nothing matters… It’s all gone.”

Draco picked up a pebble from the ground and flung his arms in an arch, throwing the rock as far as he could. It landed in the water with a ‘plop’ and made the water rippled. The blond slid his shoes closer to the edge of the water, close enough so that the tips of his shoes were barely touching. Draco tuned out everything around him; all he was focused on was the still water before him. He looked into the water, letting images inside his head be projected. Draco’s mouth curved slightly upward as he thought back when he was out here, playing with Harry in the snow…

Draco scooped up a handful of snow, rolled it into a ball, and with perfect aim, threw the ball at Harry’s bum. It landed with a sharp sounding ‘splack’…

“Snowball fight!!” Harry hollered and grabbed a snowball. He threw it at Malfoy, who merely moved his head to the left.

“You have to do better than that, Harry.” Draco smirked and took a snowball…

“It wasn’t fair! You can aim better than me!” Harry laughed when Draco started putting specks of snowflakes on his flushed cheeks.

“Just admit you were an easy target, love.”

Love.

Draco smirked; he wondered if he’ll ever get the chance to call Harry ‘love’.

“… Never.”

---

Harry tentatively opened the door to his old bedroom; he was immensely surprised when he found that all his things were still the way they

were. Harry had thought that since he was his rightful age again, the toys, furniture, and clothes would’ve all vanished. But that wasn’t the case. Harry’s emerald orbs lit up when he saw his toy Firebolt propped against a bookshelf. The brunet dashed over to the small broom and held it at arms’ length.

“How happy I was when you gave this to me, Draco…” Harry said; he hugged the broom to his chest. “The first time I played with it, you had to chase me around the quarters.” Harry chuckled and he gently placed the toy broom back against the shelf. “And then you were so worried

when I tumbled off the broom after making a very sharp turn…”

“Look at me! I’m flying!” Harry squealed and shot past the dining table. Draco stopped running and placed his hands on his hips, his breathing coming in short bursts.

“Careful of the furniture,” Draco said huffily, “Don’t knock into things!”

“I won’t!”

Draco smiled as Harry flew by him and then made a wide turn around the kitchen and back into the living room. He followed the flying boy; his grey

eyes watching every move.

“Don’t go too fast when you turn.” Draco warned as Harry curved around the couches. The blond winced when the end of the broom kissed a table lamp, making it wobble.

“I’m not going fa—WHOA!” Harry was making a turn and the broom handle swiped against a wall, which in turn tossed Harry off. The brunet rolled on the floor and laid there on his back, stunned.

“HARRY!” Draco screamed and ran to where Harry tumbled off; the young boy was now groaning in pain.

“Ow…” Harry grimaced and sat up slowly; he was about to stand up when Draco appeared beside him and held him tight.

“Are you alright? I told you not to go that fast! Did you hurt your head? Did you break anything?” Draco asked, worried. He pulled back and started checking every inch of Harry’s body. "You're so clumsy!"

Harry giggled and shook his head, “I’m fine, Draco! But I think I kinda banged my head on the floor…” Harry pressed his palm to the back of his head. “I think I feel a bump…”

Draco’s lips formed a thin line and Harry gulped; he knew Draco was mad at him now.

“I-I’m sorry Draco… I should’ve listened…”

Draco sighed and kissed Harry’s forehead, “It’s okay, love. Just remember not to go fast next time. You know what? From now on, you can’t play with the broom indoors. If you want to play, we’ll play outside.”

Harry nodded and Draco picked him up. The toy broom was levitated and floated behind them as they walked into Harry’s room…

Harry’s hand lingered on the cool wood of the broomstick a bit longer than necessary before walking away. He arrived at his bed, with the soft blankets, two fluffy pillows, and last but not least, Eddy. Harry grinned and crawled onto the bed; he tackled the teddy bear and wrapped his arms around it. The teen was on his back, the giant bear sitting on his stomach. Harry petted the soft brown fur, held the ‘paws’ in his hands and made the bear clap. He knew it was childish to be acting this way, but Harry didn’t care. This was his bear, a special bear that was given by Draco. Harry sighed blissfully and rolled until he was on his side, the bear facing him. He tapped the tip of the bear’s snout and hugged the teddy tight.

“Did you know, Eddy? Every night since Draco gave you to me, I pretend you were him.” Harry told the bear; Eddy remained silent and listened to all the words Harry had to say. “He asked me once… Draco asked me what would I do when I pretend you were him…”

“… What happens when you pretend Eddy is me?”

“Welps… I sleeps betta and den I can kiss-kiss Eddy. Aftew kiss-kiss I says night to Eddy and then I sleeps betta.”

Draco laughed at Harry’s explanation, “Would you do all that if you were hugging me instead?”

“Yups! Dway kiss Hawwy night-night,” Harry smiled, “Den you an’ me sleeps betta!”

Harry chuckled at the memory; he was only three then. Who could blame him for not really explaining anything? But it was true. Every night, after Draco had tucked him into bed, Harry would place kisses on Eddy, give the bear a hug, and slept. Not one night he failed to do all that.

The Gryffindor sighed softly and buried his face into the soft fur. He should be confused for remembering all the things that happened during his de-aged days, but alas, he was not. It was as if those days replaced his horrible childhood he had when he was with the Dursleys.

Well, good riddance.

Harry let out a yawn and he smacked his lips, “I… I shouldn’t be sleepy… I slept for a day…” He let out another yawn. “Oh geez… Well, it doesn’t hurt to… rest my eyes a bit…”

Harry closed his eyes and snuggled closer to Eddy. Sleep consumed him and Harry became a resident in the Land of Nod.

.:0:.0:.0:.0:.

Draco stood up and stretched; he had been sitting by the Lake for a good hour. The sun was well below the horizon now and the sky was turning a light purple with orange splashes. Evening was approaching. The blond bent down and picked up his school bag, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and hiked his way back to the castle.

Once he was inside, he found that the halls were empty. Draco shrugged and went in the direction that would lead him to the private quarters. It should be dinnertime by now and that would explain why the castle was so quiet. When he finally arrived at the portrait that would lead him to his rooms, the lady guarding the door was singing a soft lullaby. She caught Draco staring at her and stopped singing.

“You have a beautiful voice, Lady Adalia.” Draco complimented. Adalia giggled and nodded her head in thanks.

“Thank you, young man. Now, where have you been?” She asked, a pout marring her face. “I was worried about you!”

“I’m sorry… Something happened and I have been spending time outside… thinking about things.” Draco muttered, “I feel a bit better now… though I am famished.”

“Of course you are!” Adalia huffed and opened her umbrella with a bit of force. “I bet you haven’t eaten a single bite of food since yesterday afternoon!”

Draco didn’t answer her and instead he looked down at his shoes. Adalia let out a small growl and stood up from her bench; she cleared her throat and Draco looked up at her.

“Are you going to stand there the whole night?”

“Ah… no. Sorry…” Draco murmured, “Rubber Duck.”

The lady ‘humphed’ and the portrait swung open. “You better order some food. The house elves will bring you some no doubt.”

“I will.” Draco said softly and stepped over the threshold. “Have a nice evening Lady Adalia.”

Draco whole body deflated once the painting covered up the entryway. It was so quiet now without a young Harry chattering with him. His face became expressionless; Draco walked to the couch and slid his bag down his arm, letting it fall onto the furniture. Malfoy dropped into the couch and sat there like a sack of rocks. His arms lay limp at his sides, his head tilted back, and his eyes were staring up at the ceiling.

“It’s so lonely without you, Harry…” Draco whispered; he closed his eyes. He felt so emotionally drained.

Draco was about to nod off when he heard an indistinct ‘thunk’ from somewhere behind him. The blond was instantly alert; he shot off the couch and turned around, facing the doors to the bedrooms. His and… Harry’s. Draco took out his wand and was going to investigate when…

“Ow! Fuck that hurt!”

Draco pointed his wand at the door and tiptoed over to where the voice came from. He couldn’t tell who it was; the voice was muffled by the door. Draco placed his hand on the doorknob and opened it slowly…

---

Harry was having the most wonderful dream; it was of him having a full blown make out session with Draco. He swore he was giggling like a girl when dream Draco kissed him full on the lips. Actually, Harry did giggle… In his sleep.

The brunet smiled in his sleeping state and was mumbling incoherent words. He started rolling closer and closer to the edge of the bed. Since Harry was now bigger in size, the bed really wasn’t all that wide. So in two rolls, a good half of Harry’s body was out. The teen was still

happily dreaming and didn’t realize the situation. So with one more flop, Harry was out and down. Hard.

That woke him right up.

“Ow! Fuck that hurt!” Harry cried out and rubbed the side of his head. It was a good thing he was holding Eddy; the bear cushioned his fall.

Harry whimpered slightly when he felt a small bump on the side of his head. He sat up and looked around the room dazedly. It was dark. How long had he slept?

“Great… I probably missed dinner…” Harry muttered; he was still rubbing his head. “God, the floor is hard!”

Just then the door to the bedroom flew opened. Harry looked up, his hand still pressed into his hair. Green eyes met blond hair… Only one person he knew had short blond hair.

Draco stared, wide eyed, at the person sitting cross-legged on the floor by the bed. The person was holding Eddy. Said person had a mop of hair strangely familiar to him. He took a step closer and that’s when he saw it.

Beautiful green eyes. Eyes that shone like emeralds. Only one person had those eyes…

“Oh my… Harry?”

“Draco… You’re here.”

‘I found you.’

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 17: Wanted

Draco snapped his mouth shut and closed the bedroom door softly behind him. He walked over to where Harry was still sitting there, clutching Eddy like a lifeline.

“Potter, what are you doing here?” the blond asked, his voice was unbelievably soft. “How did you get in here? Did the portrait let you in even though you didn’t know the password?”

Harry shook his head and set the teddy bear aside. “No Draco, I--”

“You must be so confused right now.” Draco cut Harry off; he bit his lip and held out his hand to Harry. “You shouldn’t be wandering around.”

Draco tried a small smile. “Come on, I’ll take you back to the Gryffindor common room.”

Harry sighed exasperatedly and eyed the blonde’s hand. “Draco, I’m not lost or confused! I’ve been wait--”

Malfoy frowned. “Of course you are… look at you! You’re calling me by my given name!” Draco bent down and grabbed Harry’s arm, pulling the smaller teen up. Harry rolled his eyes and let Draco pull him up. “Harry, you shouldn’t be wandering around the school. Go back to your dorms and rest.”

Potter let out a growl and yanked his arm back. “Draco, listen to me!” He slapped his hands onto Malfoy’s shoulders and gripped them tightly. “Look at me right now! Do I look confused to you?!”

Draco smiled lightly. “There you go… you’re screaming at me. That’s the Potter I know.” He reached up and tenderly pried Harry’s hands away from his shoulder. “You must be angry… Don’t worry… I’m sure Granger will explain everything to you when you head back.”

“What happened to you?” Harry asked, shaking his head at Draco. “What the bloody hell is wrong with you?!”

‘Nothing is wrong with me, Harry.’

Draco looked up into green eyes. “Nothing is wrong with me, Harry,” Draco said. “Stay here and I’ll go find Granger; I’ll tell her that you’re here.” He patted Harry’s shoulder once before turning away from the brunet.

Harry let out a low growl, which stopped Draco in his tracks. “You’re not going anywhere, Draco Malfoy! You bloody stay where you are!” Harry yelled out harshly. “I’ve waited for you for hours and this is what you do?! Walk away from me and act all… I don’t even know why you’re acting this way!”

Draco let out a sigh and turned around. “Harry, you don’t understand,” Draco said softly as if he was talking to a child. “I’m sure you don’t even remember--” Draco paused and took a breath, “—the things that happened.”

Harry let out a low chuckle; his head was down, dark tresses covered his eyes. His right hand slowly reached out for Draco’s biceps; Harry held on and had no intention of letting go.

“You know better than to think portraits would let a person into a room without saying the password,” Harry whispered. “No matter how many times they’ve seen you, paintings will never let someone in without telling them the password.” Harry took a step closer to the now shocked blond; his head remained down and his hair still covered his eyes. “If I didn’t remember, Draco, why would I even know the way to this room? Did you think I just ended up here by chance?!” Harry gritted his teeth and finally looked up into wide, gray eyes. “Answer my fucking question, Draco!” Harry shoved away and stood, shaking lightly, with his arms by his sides.

Draco carded his fingers through his hair and watched as Harry tried to fight back his tears. “I-I… Harry, do you really… You remembered what happened to you?” the blond asked hesitantly. Draco felt himself relaxing when Harry gave him a curt nod.

“I wasn’t confused at all when I first woke up; I recalled being taken care of by you,” Harry told the blond. “I had hoped I would see you

when I wake, but you weren’t there.” Harry sent Draco a watery smile and took one step towards Draco. “Was it because you don’t want me to remember? You don’t want anything to do with me, is that it? Was what you whispered to me while I was sleeping a lie?” The brunet tilted his head up and caressed Draco’s cheek; Malfoy’s breath hitched as Harry’s warm hand touched him. “Tell me now and I’ll leave. I won’t bother you anymore.”

Draco saw the hurt swirling in Harry’s emerald orbs. He wanted to shout out that everything was true, everything he said he meant it. Draco wanted to grab Harry and hug the smaller teen tight. He wanted to whisper sweet nothings into Harry’s ears. Draco silently thanked all the deities for letting Harry remember. It seemed all of his worrying was for naught.

“No… No, Harry. I did not lie to you. I would never do that.” Draco covered Harry’s hand with his own; he leaned into the soft touch. “The reason I wasn’t there in the hospital wing was that… I thought you would forget everything and go back to the way you were before the accident. I thought you would go back to hating me.” Draco laughed lightly when Harry scowled at him.

“I still remember myself telling you that I will never hate you.” Harry wiggled his hand away from Draco’s and now he had his hands on his hips. “I remember that day clearly. Don’t tell me you forgot.” Harry narrowed his eyes at the taller blond. “If that’s the case--”

Draco chuckled and placed the tip of his forefinger on Harry’s lips. Harry stopped talking immediately.

“Are you calling me old, Potter?” Draco asked cheekily. “I assure you, my memory is fine.” Malfoy took away his finger and waited for Harry to say something.

Harry smacked his lips and grinned at Draco. “You are old; you’re a month older than I am!”

He let out a shocked cry when Draco reached out and mussed up his hair. With a yell, Harry tackled Draco to the ground, successfully pinning the blond on the hardwood floor. The back of Draco’s head landed with a loud ‘thud’; he winced when his skull connected with the wood floor.

“Harry, are you trying to kill me!?” Draco glared at the beaming brunet sitting on top of him. “You’re not seven anymore… You're way heavier than you were back then!” Draco grumbled and rubbed the back of his head.

Harry gasped, finally realizing they had landed quite hard on the ground. He lowered his head and parted Draco’s hair, checking for any bumps that might have formed. Harry grimaced when he found a red spot on the side of Draco’s head. When Harry looked back at Draco apologetically, Malfoy was still glaring at him.

“Have I mentioned that you’re bigger?” Draco growled; Harry blushed and rolled off Draco’s stomach. He propped himself up and smiled down at Draco.

“Does it hurt that bad?” Harry looked at the sore spot then back at Draco. “You want me to kiss it better?” Harry asked, a mischievous smile etched on his face.

“No, I thought of something better.” Draco sat up and pushed Harry back onto the floor. He hovered over the smaller teen, taking in great pleasure to find Harry squirming beneath him. “Do you know what I’m going to do to you?” Draco asked.

Harry shook his head. “No?” Harry squeaked when Draco’s lowered his face closer. “I’m sorry! I kind of forgot… you know how I used to love tackling you to the ground when I was smaller…” Harry let out a nervous laugh. “I didn’t mean to make you get a bruise!”

Draco’s smile turned into a feral grin. He was looking down at Harry as if the brunet was his prey. Harry gulped and tried his best puppy eyes. Well, it worked when he was a toddler! It was worth a shot.

“Not going to work, Harry,” Draco smirked, “your huge, round eyes only make you look… much more edible.”

“Edible?!” Harry cried; he squirm a bit more under Draco’s weight. “Draco, please! I-I’m sor…HAH!” Harry started laughing uncontrollably when

he felt fingers tickling him.

Instead of ‘eating’ Harry, Draco had snaked his hand between their bodies and was now skimming his fingers around Harry’s navel.

Potter’s ticklish spot.

“Stop… STOP!” Harry laughed; tears of mirth were making his eyes bright. “Alright! Alright! You win, Draco!” Harry tried to roll away but Draco had him pinned.

All this squirming and moving made Draco a bit… aroused. Of course, Harry was too busy laughing to notice it. Draco had to bite his lips to stop himself from moaning when Harry thrust his hips upward and into the blonde’s growing arousal. Malfoy shivered as a tingling sensation traveled up his spine; he begrudgingly pushed his body up and moved to sit next to the panting brunet. Harry blinked as the weight on top of his body disappeared; he looked up and found Draco staring down at him.

Harry sat up and pulled his school robes; Draco did the same thing, to cover up his problem.

“Well! I’m wide awake now,” Harry said, scooting closer to Draco, “and quite hungry.”

Draco let out a shocked laugh. “Even though you’re back to normal, you still think about food. You used to ask for food once you wake me up. It’s the first thing you did.” He turned and faced Harry, a soft smile forming on his face. “I was going to order some food, but then I heard someone crying out in pain so I came in here to investigate.”

Harry smiled sheepishly at Draco and bumped shoulders with the blond. “I fell asleep waiting for you, and as you can see—” Harry gestured over to the bed, “—the bed is still the size for a twelve year old. I rolled off and landed on the ground. It was a good thing Eddy cushioned my fall.”

“Ah, I see… Do you want to take Eddy now? Since… you know… I don’t know if we can even stay here anymore.” Draco scratched the side of his head absently. “I know how much you loved the bear, Harry. So… er… if you want, you can take it with you.”

Harry chuckled and shook his head; Draco opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but he closed it. “Oh. It-it’s alright. If you don’t want it… I can… keep it.” Draco finished lamely; a faint blush decorated his cheeks.

“I don’t need Eddy anymore,” Harry whispered; he turned his head and moved until his lips were close to Draco’s ears. “I once said that I pretend Eddy was you when I go to sleep. Do you remember?”

Malfoy couldn’t get his mouth to work so all he did was nod. Harry let out a low chuckle; his warm breath danced across the shell of Draco’s ear.

“I want the real thing, not Eddy.” Harry nipped Draco’s earlobe, making the blond moan softly. “Do you understand, Draco? I want you, not some teddy bear, when I sleep. I want you to be with me.”

“You-you do?” Draco asked, his voice an octave higher.

‘Please Merlin! I’m not hearing things am I?’

Harry released the soft flesh and nuzzled Draco’s neck. “Mmm… I do. The question is: do you?”

---

‘I think I’m dreaming… Yes, I’m dreaming. There is no way that Harry had just confessed he wants me.’ Draco thought while Harry continued to nuzzle his neck.

‘You’re an arse, you know that?’

‘Shut up. I didn’t ask for your opinion!’ Draco yelled at his own inner voice.

‘Pfft… You can’t make me shut up. Anyways, does it look like this is a dream? Harry’s here, isn’t he? Look, he’s right there, kissing your neck now.’

‘What!?’

“H-Harry?” Draco stammered and moved his head away from the brunet’s searching lips. “What are you doing?”

Harry looked at Draco through half-lidded eyes. “You were quiet for so long so I thought kissing you would bring you back,” Harry

answered. “It seems that it worked.” Harry frowned when Malfoy blinked at him owlishly. “I just made a fool out of myself, didn’t I? Oh god,

you don’t want… I-I… Oh god…” Harry stammered and pushed himself away from Draco. “I thought you wanted… I--”

Draco put his hand behind Harry’s head and pushed the smaller teen to his chest; he then wrapped his arms around the lean frame and nuzzled against Harry’s soft hair. A small squeak emitted from Harry’s mouth when Draco pressed a kiss on top of his head.

“You were rambling, Potter, so I thought doing this might stop you,” Draco smirked when Harry let out a huff, “it seems like it worked.”

“You’re a git,” Harry mumbled, his voice muffled by Draco’s chest. Harry struggled to look up at Draco; the blond loosened his hold and Harry

had the chance to tilt his head up. “You-you want me? Please… tell me you do.”

“I do,” Draco whispered.

“You do…” Harry repeated; he moved closer to the blonde’s lips, drawn as if they were magnets.

Draco smirked and lowered them, just so that Harry didn’t have to strain his neck. Everything around them ceased to exist. The only thing in

Draco and Harry’s eyes were each other’s face. Just a bit more…

Their lips met. It was soft; both were testing waters seeing how it was their first kiss. Harry closed his eyes and let Draco lead. The blond covered Harry’s lips, softly nipping at the bottom lip. Harry moaned and parted his mouth; the tip of Draco’s tongue pushed inside, meshing their lips together. Malfoy now had his arms around Harry, pulling the smaller teen closer to his body. He moved his head and kissed Harry’s jaw.

Potter, who had been enjoying the kiss, now had his hands behind Draco’s head, moving it until Draco’s face was in front of him. Harry licked his lips, smirked when he saw how Draco’s eyes followed the movement of his tongue. The green-eyed teen swooped in and started his assault. He nibbled Draco’s lips, making them red and swollen. Draco groaned and just let Harry have his way. His own hands swept down Harry’s waist; he parted Harry’s robes and lifted the shirt within. Draco was kneading the soft skin of Harry’s abdomen when…

A loud rumble disrupted them and they both moved back. Harry groaned in disappointment while Draco rolled his eyes. He grinned at Harry and went to rub the brunet’s toned abdomen. Harry’s stomach let out another growl.

“I guess you really are hungry,” Draco said; his lips quirked upward when Harry blushed. “Let’s go satisfy you stomach, shall we?”

Malfoy stood up gracefully and he offered his hand for Harry to take. Potter took the proffered hand and let Draco pull him up. He helped the brunet straighten out his robes.

“I think it’s too late to go to the Great Hall… You want to ask a house-elf to bring us something?” Harry asked.

Malfoy hummed in response while leading Harry out of the bedroom. “Harry… do you think Dumbledore will let us stay here?”

“I don’t know… We can ask him,” Harry answered. “Why?”

Draco cleared his throat; both teens sat down on the couch in the living room. Draco made himself comfortable and snuggled into Harry’s side. Potter sighed and wrapped an arm around Draco.

“Well, since we made it clear that we want each other…” Draco started tracing circles on Harry’s thighs, “I just want to be near you more… and I kind of miss having you around.” Draco shrugged when Harry chuckled at his confession. “You can’t blame me. I got used to having you run into my room and wake me up.”

“The only time I failed to wake you up was today,” Harry laughed. “And you say you already miss having me around? My my, Draco, it seems you really do love having me with you at all times.” Harry wriggled when Draco’s circling finger jabbed him in the belly.

“Hmm… So tell me, Harry, how long?” Draco asked; he was now making circles on Harry’s chest. Harry grunted and tried moving the blonde’s hand away; Draco batted at Harry’s hand and he smirked when Harry gave up and just let Draco do whatever he wanted. “How long have you fancied me?”

Harry mumbled something under his breath; Draco caught the word ‘year’ and that’s it. The blond then slapped Harry hard on the chest, making the latter cry out.

“What was that for?” Harry whined, rubbing his chest to sooth the sting. “I answered you. It’s your fault for having bad ears.” At Draco’s death glare, Harry sighed. “Two years, Draco. Because of my feelings for you, it explains why I acted the way I did when I was de-aged. It was because I do love you, not because you took care of my needs when I was a baby.”

“It’s been that long, eh?” Draco muttered. “And here I thought it would be hopeless.”

Harry smiled and put his chin on top of Draco’s head. “Nothing’s hopeless. I never acted upon my feelings because I thought you’ll hate me even more. The way we always fight with each other… I just thought it would be better if I didn’t say anything.” Harry took Draco’s hand and held it, linking their fingers together. “What are we now, Draco?”

“We’re two extremely hungry young teens that haven’t eaten anything since yesterday afternoon,” Draco answered. “If we don’t get some food soon, we will die of starvation.”

Harry rolled his eyes. “I’m serious here. Let’s not think about food… yet.” Harry smiled when Draco snorted. “Are we… together? Lovers?” Harry flushed at that word. “Boyfriends?” The brunet’s face turned an interesting shade of puce when Draco peered at him. “Well, if you want

me to be your b-boyfriend…”

‘Am I stuttering? God, I’m pathetic… and I’m sure my face is as red as a tomato. I can feel it!’

“Potter, do you always stutter when you’re so… red?” Draco asked, amused. “You know, I think it’s very adorable when you get all flustered.”

“Oh shut up, Draco,” Harry muttered.

Draco put his left hand in front of his eyes and he checked his nails, as if to see if there was any dirt.

“Do you mind being seen with me?”

“What?” Harry asked, dumbfounded by the sudden question.

“I asked if you mind if people see us together, Potter,” Draco drawled in a bored tone.

“Why would I—Oh… Ohhhh.”

Right there and then, Draco wanted so much to slap Harry across the head for being so slow. But then again, it was one of those traits he

liked about Potter. He was cute that way.

Haha.

“I don’t care what people think,” Harry frowned, “they should mind their own business anyway.”

“They will, but you are, after all, with a Malfoy.” Draco sat up and turned to face Harry. “I know they saw us together when you were de-aged.

But now that you’re back to your old self, they will assume you hate me still.”

“I don’t give a rat’s arse about that,” Harry said easily. “Like you said before, I want to be with you as much as possible as well.” Harry cupped Draco’s face and leaned forward to plant a kiss on the blonde’s nose. “I’ll talk with Dumbledore about letting us keep the quarters… He’ll probably let us… He’s easy.” Harry then patted his stomach. “My stomach is about to eat itself… I need some nourishment.”

Draco scoffed and snapped his fingers; a house-elf appeared right before them, bowing so low that the tip of its nose touched the floor. Draco coughed and the elf looked up at them with golf ball sized eyes.

“What can Dipsy do for you sirs?” the elf squeaked.

“Bring us dinner, Dipsy. Whatever was for dinner tonight, bring it here,” Draco ordered. “As for drinks, I’ll have a glass of cold pumpkin juice and…” Draco turned to Harry.

“Can you bring me a cup of hot chocolate please, Dipsy?” Harry asked the elf.

“Of course, sirs! I is bringing you the foods right away!” The elf popped out in a puff of smoke.

---

Hermione was pacing back and forth in the Gryffindor common room. Harry had disappeared for the entire afternoon. Sure, he told her that he was going to look for Draco, but just how long did it take to look for a person with bright, blond hair?

Hermione let out a small growl, her eyes darting to the entrance to the common room. She could always go to their private rooms and see if the boys were there… Determined, she threw down the book she was hugging onto an armchair and walked up to the portrait hole.

“I better not walk into something inappropriate when I get there…” Hermione muttered. She pushed the painting outward and stepped out into the hallway.

.:0:..:0:..:0:.

“Oh man… I love Shepard’s pie!” Harry exclaimed through a mouthful. “Love how tender the lamb is… Then there’s the mashed potato filling…”

Draco smiled behind his glass and just watched as Harry gobbled up the rest of his pie. He had finished not too long ago; both of them were ravenous. The reason why Draco finished first was because Harry would groan at every bite, therefore taking time to finish the pie. Draco set his glass down and sat back; he stretching his back when someone knocked on the portrait.

Harry was in mid-bite when Draco stood up. “Who ish it?” Harry swallowed and drank his hot chocolate. “Does any of the Slytherins know where you were staying for the last two months?”

“No, I never told anybody. I made sure nobody followed us when we come back here after my classes.” Draco furrowed his eyebrows. “I’ll go check who’s at the portrait. It could be a professor or…” Draco opened the door and was met with a pair of angry blue eyes.

“What did you do to Harry, Malfoy!?”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 18: What Did You Do?!

Harry snorted into his hot chocolate; he set the cup down and hurriedly got up from the dining table and rushed out to where Draco was standing. The brunet was by Malfoy’s side in five seconds; angry blue eyes turned away from the blond and landed on Harry.

“How… How come you’re here?” Harry asked; Draco growled and was shoved aside when Ron pushed through the doorway.

“I know you were given the last batch of potion today, mate,” Ron said, ignoring the scowling blond. “But you didn’t go back to the tower so I--”

“How did you know where our rooms were, Weasley?” Draco spat.

“I followed Harry, Malfoy,” Ron smirked, “I was on my way to visit Harry this afternoon; Hermione was there already. Before I went in, Harry

came out, running.” The redhead turned to Harry and frowned at his friend. “Didn’t you see me standing by the doors, Harry?”

Potter shook his head, but before he got to answer Draco stood in front of him, taking his hand and linked their fingers together. Ron looked shocked for a second but then the shock turned into a sneer. In a blink of an eye, Weasley’s wand was out, pointed between Draco’s eyes.

Harry gasped and grasped Ron’s wrist, pushing the arm down.

“What the fuck are you doing, Ron?!” Harry yelled angrily; he was between his newfound boyfriend and his long time friend.

“Is Malfoy threatening you to stay with him?” Ron snapped, his eyes trained on Draco. “You’re back to normal now and I know you wouldn’t stay with him—” Ron jerked his head at Malfoy, “—on your own free will.”

“He didn’t threaten me, Ron!” Harry exclaimed, shoving Ron’s arm back to his side. “You put that wand away; I don’t want anybody firing

spells.”

Draco sneered at the redhead. “You heard Harry, Weasel.”

Ron growled and made to step close to Draco but Harry was there and put a hand on his chest, stopping him from advancing. Ron looked at

his best friend in total bemusement; Harry removed his hand and pressed the heel of his palm on his forehead.

“Look… Draco’s not threatening me nor am I under any spells if that’s what you’re thinking, Ron,” Harry said tiredly. “I’m here because I wanted--”

“No way, Harry!” Ron snapped, throwing Draco a dirty look. “Don’t tell me you wanted to be in the same room as Malfoy.”

Draco snarled; he looked to the side and saw Harry biting his lips. He knew the brunet wanted to make Weasley understand… but the git was so stubborn. So to prove his point, Draco stood behind Harry and wrapped his arms protectively around Potter’s waist. He moved his head to the side and kissed Harry on the cheek. The blond smiled when Harry giggled softly.

“What the fuck!?” Ron yelled. “You keep your dirty mouth… lips away from Harry!” Ron’s hand shot out and grabbed Harry by the hand. “Come on, Harry! I’ll take you back and see if Hermione can check if you’re under any spells…” Blue eyes looked straight into gray ones. “I’m sure Malfoy have you under Imperious.”

Harry cried out frustratingly and yanked his hand back. “I’m not under the fucking Imperious! Why can’t you get it through your thick skull that I want to be with Draco?” Harry seethed. “I had hoped you could be more understanding… but I-I…”

“Understand what, Harry?” Ron asked; his face was turning red from anger. “How can I understand? You’re in the same room with fucking

Malfoy, acting all chummy with each other!” He shook his head. “No… more than that. He KISSED you, Harry! Kissing! The last time I checked, you hated his guts!”

Harry pried Draco’s arm away; he turned around and gave Draco a smile when the blond made a sound of protest. Draco sighed and caressed Harry’s face; he understood that Harry wanted to take care of this problem himself. The blond stepped back and let his boyfriend work it out with the redhead.

Harry took one step towards Ron; they were face to face. Harry had to tilt his head up for Ron was a good four inches taller than he was. With a defiant look on his face, Harry crossed his arms and stared at Ron with confidence.

“I do not hate Draco,” Harry said calmly. “I want you to know one thing, Ron, just one thing. Can you do that?”

Even though Harry’s voice was calm, Ron felt anger radiating off in waves. He gulped and gave the brunet a feeble nod. Ron knew what would happen if he got Harry angry; he didn’t want to be on the receiving end of that. He looked away from the hard green eyes and found Malfoy smiling smugly at him. He looked away when he felt Harry’s hand clamped tightly on his shoulder.

“Listen carefully. I’m only going to say it once,” Harry said without blinking, “you will see Draco a lot more from now on. You understand, Ron?”

Harry finished with a glare.

“Why?” Ron set his jaw; his lips forming a thin line. His eyes narrowed, finally understanding. “You… How could you, Harry?!” Ron all but screamed. “You and Malfoy?”

Harry smirked. “Yes, Ron, I love him.” He looked back at Draco and smiled. “I love him… very much.” Harry turned back and wasn’t too surprised to find Ron really red in the face. “Accept it. I won’t stop loving Draco because you’re to stubborn to accept it.”

Weasley let out something close to a roar and roughly pushed Harry away from his path. Harry stumbled a bit and as quick as lightning, he tried to stop Ron from walking over to Draco.

Draco sneered at the angry redhead and calmly pulled out his wand; he paid no attention to Harry when the brunet shook his head at him.

Ron pulled his arm away from Harry’s grasp and instead grabbed the collar of Draco’s robes. He yanked Malfoy until the tips of their noses were almost touching. Cool, gray eyes never left the flashing blue when Draco dug his wand into Ron’s stomach.

“What are you doing to do, Weasley?” Draco hissed, pressing the wand deeper. “How dare you push Harry like that? I thought he was your friend.” Draco felt a hand curling around his wand hand and he knew it was Harry trying to pull his wand away from Ron’s stomach. Draco ignored it. “If you hurt Harry, I promise I’ll hurt you more.”

“Shut up, Malfoy. Don’t act like you actually care about Harry,” Ron snapped. “I know you did something to him… this isn’t the Harry I know.” Ron growled; his hands tightened around Draco’s robes. Draco answered that movement by jabbing his wand at Ron, making the redhead wince.

“Draco… don’t.” Harry pleaded.

“No, Harry. Move--” Draco stopped in mid-sentence when a small gasp came from behind Weasley.

“What’s going on?!”

---

Hermione had memorized the directions she needed to take to get to Draco and Harry’s private rooms. The blond had told her how to get there the last time he went to visit her. As Hermione turned a corner, she was just in time to see a certain redhead stepping through the doorway. The girl frowned and quickened her pace. Why in the world was Ron there? And just how had he found out where Draco and Harry were?

Once she was close to the entrance to the rooms, Hermione could hear Ron’s loud voice and Harry’s annoyed tone.

“Look… Draco’s not threatening me nor am I under any spells if that’s what you’re thinking, Ron…”

“No way, Harry! Don’t…”

Hermione rolled her eyes and stopped within a couple of steps to the doorway. She stood there, contemplating whether if she should go in now or later. The lady on the portrait stared down at the bushy haired girl and sniffed.

“That redheaded boy is giving me a headache,” Adalia said. “I would greatly appreciate it if you go in there and take him out of Draco’s rooms.”

“I’ll be more than glad to do it,” Hermione grumbled. “But I want to hear what Ron has to say first.”

Adalia twirled her umbrella and shrugged. “I think Harry is trying to tell… Ron is it? Harry is trying to tell Ron that he wasn’t kept because of a spell Draco supposedly cast.”

“Ron thinks Draco…” Hermione closed her eyes and breathed deeply. “I was right to slap him… He just doesn’t understand!”

Suddenly, a roar came from the other side of the painting; both Adalia and Hermione winced.

“I think your redheaded friend is going to do something drastic,” the lady frowned while continuing to spin her umbrella. “Give me the password and I’ll let you in. Do you know the password?”

“Yes, I do…” Hermione answered and was about to say it when Draco’s voice was heard.

“What are you doing to do, Weasley? … You push Harry like that? I thought he was your friend. If you hurt Harry, I promise I’ll hurt you…”

“My dear, I don’t think it can wait. You must go in now,” Adalia urged.

“I’m going to give Ronald a piece of my mind,” Hermione griped. “Rubber duck.”

The portrait swung open and Hermione stomped through; the painting closed softly behind her. Hermione could hear Harry pleading to Draco most likely, after hearing the threat from the outside. She walked deeper into the rooms and saw Ron holding Draco by his robe collar and Draco pressing the tip of his wand into the redhead’s stomach.

Hermione let out a small gasp, but then anger took over and dampened her shock.

“What’s going on?!” Hermione screeched.

Harry swiveled his head and grimaced when he saw Hermione, her face screwed up in frustration. The brunet took one step back for every step Hermione took forward; Harry gave up on walking backwards and hid behind his taller boyfriend. Draco had moved his head a bit when he heard the girl’s voice; his eyes widened when he saw who it was. Ron’s grip on Draco’s robe slacked; he turned around and gulped audibly when Hermione was staring right at him with her hands on her hips. She looked absolutely livid and all three male teens knew how Hermione was like when she’s upset.

“Tell me, Ronald, why are you in their private rooms?” Hermione asked, her voice low. “And why, pray tell, do you have your hands on Draco’s robes like that?”

“The bastard kidnapped Harry!” Ron growled; he shoved Draco away and moved to Hermione’s side. “I followed Harry when he ran out from the hospital wing. I saw him going in and had thought that Harry will come back out… but then he never did.”

“Was this why you came back to the common room late?” Hermione asked, her lips pursed in a thin line. “You lied when you said you were going to dinner! You just came here and started all of this didn’t you?!”

Ron flushed and shook his head. “No, Mione… I did go to the Great Hall… I thought Harry would be there as well seeing how he never came back to the Gryffindor tower… But when he wasn’t there, I… came here.” Ron said lamely.

Hermione glared at the redhead and poked Ron in his chest. “Ronald Weasley… you are one stubborn man! Why can’t you accept that Harry loves Draco? Is it really that bad? Harry is happy with him! And I know, deep down, you know Draco loves Harry as well, but you’re just too damn obstinate to admit it!”

“Hermione… I-I… Alright. Fine! Yes, I know the bastard loves Harry… but I… Why does it have to be him?”

During this heated argument, Draco had gather Harry into his arms. He watched with amusement as Hermione poked and yelled at Weasley. Harry was also watching; his arms were wrapped tightly around Draco’s waist.

“… I don’t care Harry likes boys! I don’t care about that! What I don’t like about this is that Harry chose Malfoy!” Ron continued. “There are plenty of nice looking blokes in school for Harry to choose from. But he just had to--”

SMACK!

Draco’s eyes widened; Harry let out a gasp, his mouth forming a small ‘o’. Ron’s hand flew to his cheeks, covering the red mark that was starting to form. His eyes stared down at Hermione in surprise. Hermione lowered her hand that had just slapped the redheaded teen.

“… Twice I did this… and I’m not sorry for doing so,” Hermione whispered; her hand was by her side, curled into a loose fist. “Twice I did this for the same reasons. You are selfish, Ron.”

“… What?” Ron’s whole body deflated.

“Twice?” Harry asked. “Hermione… What’s going on?”

Hermione sighed and looked at Harry. “Draco… I told him. You were twelve… Remember when we were outside and you were trying to build a snowman?”

Harry nodded slowly; he remembered that day. His snowman turned out all lopsided.

“Well, I was telling Draco why I stayed at Hogwarts this year.” Hermione looked back at Ron who now seemed subdued. “Ron… When you were still a toddler Harry… Ron had planned to take you away and keep you in Gryffindor tower. He had complained why Draco was the one to take care of you when he and I are your friends.”

“Ron… Is this true?” Harry frowned at the redhead. Ron nodded but didn’t say anything.

“When I told him to leave you two alone, Ron accused me of… of liking Draco,” Hermione continued; she then huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I couldn’t take any more of his whining so I… slapped him.”

Harry shook his head and looked at his friend with sadness. “Why, Ron? You could’ve just asked Draco if you can take care of me for a day or two… You didn’t have to plan to kidnap me… I’m… disappointed, Ron.”

Ron dropped his hand; his cheek was somewhat swollen from the slap. He shrugged halfheartedly and looked down.

“I thought Malfoy was going to do all these bad things to you… I didn’t want to believe that he would actually care for you. I didn’t want to believe.” He looked up, blue eyes bright. “Hermione’s right… you’re right. Maybe I-I’m selfish. I’m sorry, Harry.”

Harry smiled but was still disappointed at his friend. “I think I forgive you… But I have to ask you to leave. I need time…”

“Right. I think it’s time we leave,” Hermione said. “Harry, are you going to come back?”

“No… Draco and I decided to see if we can keep the rooms,” Harry answered softly. “We’ll stay here for the rest of the year if we can.”

“I see… You can come visit us if you’re really staying here.” Hermione smiled lightly at the brunet. “We’re sorry for disrupting you guys…” She turned to Ron and took his hand. “Come on, let’s go.” Hermione tugged and Ron followed her. “I’m going to have a nice, long chat with you.”

Harry and Draco chuckled when they heard Ron groan. They followed Hermione and Ron to the portrait, seeing them out. Hermione stepped out first, then Ron. The redheaded teen turned back and gave Harry an apologetic look.

“I really am sorry, Harry…”

Harry came forward and patted Ron’s shoulder. “I know…” Harry smiled and dropped his hand. “Good luck with your chat.”

Ron whimpered and stepped out; Hermione hooked her arm with Ron’s and waved at the blond and Harry.

“Good night you two,” Hermione said and she departed with a grumbling Weasley.

The portrait snapped shut and the teens had the rooms to themselves once more.

---

"Well, that was certainly entertaining," Draco drawled; both him and Harry were lying on his bed. Harry had his head on Draco's chest while the blond was stroking the smaller teen's dark tresses.

"That was not entertaining! Merlin, I was worried that you and Ron were going to hex each other... and I was worried you were going to get hurt," Harry mumbled. "I'm still upset that Ron had actually planned to kidnap me..."

"Good thing Granger was there, eh?" Draco murmured; Harry sighed and rolled until he was lying on top of Draco. The blond smirked and kissed the tip of Harry's nose.

"I felt kind of bad when Mione slapped Ron..." Harry frowned; he lowered his head and nuzzled Draco's neck.

"He deserved it..." Draco closed his eyes and held Harry, relishing in the warmth that radiated off from Harry's body.

"Mmm..." Was Harry's reply; he kissed under Draco's ear and started nipping on the flawless pale skin.

Draco grunted and bared his neck to give more room for Harry to give attention to. The green-eyed teen was more than happy to do so; he

started kissing and sucking, drawing blood to the surface and leaving marks.

"You taste so good..." Harry whispered. "Love you, Draco..." Harry moved up from the blond's neck and nibbled on Draco's earlobe.

It's going to be a long night...

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 19: Wait No More

“Love you, Draco…” Harry murmured again; his face was pressed right at the crook of Draco’s delectable neck. The blond groaned and slid lower on his bed, bringing the writhing brunet with him.

Draco gasped when Harry bit into his skin. “Harry… H-Harry, love… If you continue that…” Draco gulped and turned his head to give Harry more room. “… Are you suuuuure?” Draco’s voice went up a pitch when Harry’s warm tongue soothed a bitten spot.

“Of course I am… Let’s hope nobody else will barge in here tonight,” Harry whispered against Draco’s neck. He slinked down, his lips grazing the blond’s collarbone. “You have too much clothes on.” He tugged halfheartedly at Draco’s jumper.

“I-I do?” Draco squeaked; he groaned inwardly. This was so unlike him… squeaking. “You could take it off… Or do you want me to help?”

Harry smiled and pushed his body up. “I’ll do it. You just lie there and relax.”

The brunet gave Draco a tender kiss before sitting up; legs straddling the blond’s thighs. Since Draco was half lying on the bed, it was easy for Harry to roll up the hem of the jumper and pulling it up painstakingly slow. Draco was groaning and closed his eyes when the jumper was

passing over his eyes; Harry was rolling his arse on top of Draco’s arousal. At that moment, Draco wanted to just throw Harry onto the bed and ravish the beautiful man.

Harry smirked when Draco looked at him, spots of pink decorating the otherwise pale cheeks. He threw Draco’s jumper to the side, where it landed, it didn’t matter. The other teen was panting now and Harry could see Draco’s chest moving up and down, up and down…

“Let me pleasure you tonight, Draco…” Harry murmured; he swooped down and kissed the blond’s Adam’s apple. Draco hissed and threw his head back. “What do you say?” Harry mouthed Malfoy’s heated skin, licking and nipping his way up to the jaw.

Draco nodded his head, not trusting his voice to answer. He snaked his own hands under Harry’s sweater, kneading the soft skin and sinewy muscles of the brunet’s back. Everytime Potter moved, his back muscles rippled, making Draco purr and in response, squeezing Harry’s back.

When Harry lowered his body, Draco found himself spontaneously parting his legs so that the green-eyed teen could be nestled in between.

They were touching crotch to crotch and Draco let out a long moan when Harry gently thrust upward, pressing into Draco’s erection.

“D-don’t tease, Harry…” Draco whimpered; Harry was now smirking up at him, his hips continuously thrusting up. Draco let out a gurgle and tilted his head back, eyes snapping shut. “Please…”

“Please what?” Harry purred; he circled his hips and made himself moan in pleasure. “Do you want those trousers off?” Harry was panting along with Draco now. When Malfoy bit his lip and nodded, Harry chuckled and slid lower and knelt between the blond’s legs. “Very well… I’ll take them off. Don’t worry.”

Draco shivered. There was something very wicked in the tone of Harry’s voice. So… so sensual. He never knew Harry could be this way and it was making Draco very excited. When the sound of the zipper becoming undone reached his ears, Draco finally opened his eyes again and glanced down. All he saw was the top of Harry’s head, his fingers busy fumbling with the buttons. Malfoy smirked when Harry sighed happily after finally getting the buttons undone. Green eyes looked on mischievously; Draco lifted his hips while Harry slowly pulled his black trousers down, taking his boxers with it. The blond hissed when cool air hit the heated flesh of his cock; it sprang up without being confined beneath his boxers. Harry chuckled low in his throat and chucked the trousers away.

“That looks painful,” Harry said softly, nodding at the proud erection Draco was sporting.

“It is. Are you going to do something about it?” Draco asked cheekily. He reached down and circled his fingers around the girth of the hard flesh.

Draco then lazily began moving his hand up and down, sliding the foreskin down and up. His breath hitched when heat bubbled in his belly; Draco squeezed the base of his cock, stopping the oncoming release.

Harry licked his lips; his eyes following the movement of Draco’s hand slowly tugging at his cock. He smiled when Draco tightened his fingers around the base. Silver eyes met green and they challenged Harry. The brunet slowly let his hand travel towards Draco; he covered the head of Draco’s swollen cock and smeared the pre-cum that was collected at the slit.

Draco mewled and squeezed harder. If Harry didn’t stop…

“Draco, it’s alright. Let go.”

“B-but… I-I can’t…” Draco stammered but nonetheless slowly released his prick. Harry also removed his hands and he planted them next to Draco’s hips.

Harry crawled closer to Draco again; he pressed his lips on top of Draco’s warm ones. He sucked on the blond’s bottom lip before licking it, asking for permission. Draco didn’t even hesitate to grant it; he parted his lips and right away, Harry’s tongue was mapping the warm cavern of his mouth. His own tongue was doing a dance with Harry’s, tangling together. When the blond was busy playing with tongues, Harry had moved his hand to Draco’s chest. They were still kissing hungrily when all of a sudden, Harry circled the sensitive nub with his finger. Malfoy jolted then groaned into Harry’s mouth when the brunet pinched his nipple.

They parted, their lips were now red and swollen. Breathing deeply, Harry latched onto Draco’s neck and sucked; his fingers were still rolling the abused nub. Draco arched, and snapped his hip upward. Harry bit down when Draco’s erection collided with his own.

“I think it’s only fair that you take off your clothes as well, Harry.” Draco moved his hands and went passed the waistband of Harry’s pants.

He kneaded the soft globes of flesh beneath his palms; Harry whimpered and started humping Draco earnestly, trying to get the pressure off his own arousal. Draco growled and dug his fingernails into Harry’s arse, stilling the movement. The material of Harry’s trousers was chafing his skin and there was one part of him that was extremely sensitive as of now.

“Get those trousers off. Now.” Draco held out his hand and Accio’d his wand from his neglected trousers. While Harry was fumbling with his zip, Draco pointed his wand at Potter’s legs. With a muttered spell, Harry’s trousers were gone. “Much better…” Draco whispered and let his wand roll out of his hand.

“You have to teach me that spell some time,” Harry smiled, “it took me awhile to get your trousers off.” He laid himself down; Draco wrapped his legs around Harry’s and pulled the brunet closer.

“I’ll teach you… if you beg,” Draco murmured in Harry’s ear. He felt absolutely giddy when he felt Harry shiver.

“You wish, Malfoy… You’ll teach me after I have my wicked way with you.”

Harry planted his knees on the mattress and moved away from Draco. The blond’s legs fell off from Harry’s back and then he bent them, feet flat on the bed. He was displaying himself like a wanton slut, but Draco didn’t care. He wanted Harry to see. Malfoy gave Potter a saucy smile and let his legs fall further apart, nothing was hidden. It was to his pleasure when Harry flushed a deep crimson, mouth gaping like a fish. But soon, Harry poised himself and went down on Draco like a hawk. In that moment, Harry was hovering right above Draco’s prominent erection and Draco was debating whether he should grasp Harry’s hair to stop him or not.

“No more waiting. No more teasing, Draco,” Harry said, his warm breath puffing on the swollen head. Harry then swiped his tongue flat on the dome-shaped head and then he swirled it before delving into the slit, tasting bitter saltiness.

Draco was using every ounce of self-restraint to not thrust his hips up. He was sure Harry wouldn’t be too happy to be poked in the eye by his cock. All musings were set aside when Harry finally wrapped his lips around his hardened member; warmness just covered the very sensitive head. Draco thought he had died and gone to heaven when Harry started moving and humming around his erection.

Harry was making small moans in the back of his throat; he was also slurping. The brunet’s tongue molded around the wide flesh and he felt every bump, every popped out vein. Draco had given up and now had his hands buried in Harry’s nest of hair; he was tugging everytime Harry bobbed his head down. A warm hand was now wrapped around the base, twisting and tugging. Harry moved up and hollowed out his cheeks, giving Draco’s cock an exceptionally hard suck.

“H-Harry… Gonna come! Can’t…!” Draco babbled right before he felt his balls drew up.

All Harry did was smile around the hard member and continued with his sucking. Draco wailed when he climaxed; his seeds were spurting out and down Harry’s greedy throat. The green-eyed teen swallowed every last drop without jerking his head away. When Draco laid there, after the orgasmic bliss, Harry released the softening cock and climbed up, putting his head on Draco’s chest. The blond tiredly splayed his hand on the back of Harry’s head, stroking the sweat-soaked hair.

“That was… That was unbelievable. It was… fantastic,” Draco sighed. He could feel Harry’s erection pressing against his thigh. “Harry… you didn’t…”

“Later. I’ll get to that,” Harry mumbled. “Just don’t… move. I want to be inside you.” Harry then looked up at the sated blond. “Will you… let me?” Harry asked shyly.

---

“When are you ever going to get it through that thick skull of yours? They love each other. Can’t you see that?”

“I told Harry I was sorry, Hermione! What more do you want me to do?”

“No, Ron. You-you’re not sorry. I can tell.”

“What do you mean? Of course I meant it! I’m sorry for acting the way I did… I’m sorry for…”

“Are you really? Can you really see that Draco loves Harry? They’re not playing games, Ron. Draco isn’t playing around.”

“He’s not…”

Ron sank down into the couch and Hermione also sat down next to him. She took Ron’s hand and held it; the redheaded teen tightened his grip.

“They like each other,” Ron stated; he sighed. “There’s nothing I can do—”

“You better not do anything, Ronald Weasley!” Hermione snapped.

“I was just saying! I don’t want to be slapped by you again. It bloody hurts!” Ron mock pouted; Hermione smiled and brushed her fingertips

along Ron’s face.

“Does it hurt now? I’m sorry… I was just so mad…”

“It’s fine. I deserved it. It woke me up, that slap.” Ron brought their hands up and he kissed Hermione’s fingers. “Am I forgiven?”

“Yes, Ron.”

They sat there and watched the fire dance in front of them, the orange light flickering across their faces.

“I wonder what they are doing right now…”

“Ron!”

“Sorry.”

---

“Will you let me?”

Draco thought Harry was really cute, with that small pout on his face. It was the second time he asked Draco that question and the blond had not answered. In reality, he was more than happy to let Harry be inside him. Just the thought of it made Draco squirm in anticipation. It was going to hurt, Draco knew. He never… bottomed before. But he’ll do it for Harry, the man he loved.

“Yes, Harry. You may,” Draco finally answered; it was well worth it seeing the grin spreading across Harry’s face.

++++++++++++
HD part

++++++++++++

“Are you alright?”

“I should be asking you that, Draco,” Harry murmured tiredly. He pulled out and rolled to Draco’s side. He threw his arm across Draco’s chest and sighed, snuggling into the blond.

“Draco… You’ll be with me forever… Right?”

“Of course, Harry. I promised you forever.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 20

The Next Step

Four Years Later…

“So… You’re really going to do it?”

Draco looked over to Hermione before taking one last sip of water from his glass. He set the goblet down and folded his hands on the table.

Hermione arched her eyebrow and waited for an answer to come from the blond sitting across from her.

“I told you last month, if I remember correctly, that I will do it,” Draco answered. He smirked at the witch and leaned in closer. “Swear that you’re

not going to tell Harry.”

Hermione scoffed but nodded anyway. “I won’t tell him. I’m not even going to tell Ron, alright? All I said was that I was going to meet you.” She smiled when Draco looked relieved. “Do you need help looking for--”

“No!” Draco blurted; Hermione chuckled. “I-I already found it. Thanks for offering though… I know you’ve been through this already and all.”

“Believe me, Draco, it’s stressful. All the planning and waiting… But in the end, it’s all worth it.” She reached out and patted Draco’s hand. “Just think, Harry will probably love you even more when you tell him, and his love for you is probably at the highest level already.”

“I want to show him that I see our relationship as… It’s going to last and I’ll prove it to Harry,” Draco whispered; Hermione grinned at him, making Draco blush. “I want Harry to be happy.”

“I’m sure you’ll make him the happiest man in the world.”

“Hmm… Yeah. Anyway… For the past month, I wasn’t the only one who kept on looking for you to talk to. Harry had been going to your house

every now and then. What are you guys planning?”

Hermione pulled her hand away and looked a bit panicked. “We are not planning anything. Harry just wanted to visit me since… Well, we don’t really see each other much anymore. I’m working as a Healer, Ron’s an Auror… But you and Harry are two big sacks of rocks, sitting in your home

all day long.”

“Not just sitting, we do more than sitting. So how is your dear husband, Ron, doing?” Draco asked, smirking.

Hermione smiled and played with the wedding ring on her finger. “He’s still whining about you taking Harry away… You know how Ron is.”

“He thinks I stole Harry away,” Draco said, “but it’s not like I’m forbidding Harry to go and visit you guys.”

Hermione giggled. “Ron’s not complaining today. Harry’s over at my house right now.”

“Harry doesn’t know I’m meeting you,” Draco muttered. “I told him I was out shopping and I know he hates shopping. This was the reason why he’s not here with me.”

“I won’t say a word, but you better not be this sneaky once you guys—”

“I know,” Draco cut Hermione off.

Hermione smiled smugly. “Good.”

“I’m going to do it tonight,” Draco said. Hermione beamed at Draco.

“I wish you luck, Draco.”

HPDMHPDM

Ron came sauntering back from the kitchen, two bottles of Butterbeer in his hands. He walked up to his friend and set the bottles down on the

coffee table. Ron sat down next to Harry on the couch and draped his arm on the back of the couch behind Harry’s head.

“Where’s your boyfriend?” Ron asked, picking up his bottle of Butterbeer. “You guys are always together nowadays.”

“Not today,” Harry laughed. “Draco went shopping and I hate shopping. Knowing him, he’s probably going to shop for hours. Besides, it gives me time to see you. Where’s Hermione?”

Ron’s eyes darted to the side and he set his bottle down. He knew where his wife went. But she had made him promise not to tell Harry.

Hermione had told him that she was going to meet Draco and they were going to talk about something but Ron didn’t know what.

“Hermione’s at St. Mungo’s. They needed her for something so she had to go,” Ron lied. “Being a Healer’s not an easy job.”

“Oh, I know that. But it’s Saturday…” Harry frowned. “Must be some emergency. I was hoping I can see her, too.”

Ron waved his hand dismissively. “You can see her any time. Just Floo over here and you’ll see us. We should have dinner together, tell Draco he’s invited.”

Harry chuckled and drank his beer. “I’ll tell him.”

“Oh, before I forget, Hermione told me to give you this.” Ron fished out a medium sized vial from his pocket and handed it to Harry. The green-eyed man took it and swirled the vial around.

“Is this the--?”

“Yes, Hermione finally perfected it. Took her awhile, but she got it,” Ron confirmed. “You know how the potion’s going to work, right?”

“Yeah, Mione told me about it. I have to drink it before… before…” Harry flapped his hand; Ron snorted.

“I know what you mean; you don’t have to be all embarrassed about it. We’re grown men after all.”

Harry blushed and ducked his head. “I just hope this works. Draco… I want to do this for him. For the past four years we’ve been together… He did nothing but love me. I just know he’ll love this, too.”

“Well, he better appreciate you doing this for him. He doesn’t even know you’ve been planning this, does he?”

“No, Draco doesn’t know about this,” Harry replied. “I want this to be a surprise. Hermione said I would know the results about a week after… if everything works properly.”

Ron picked up his bottle while Harry did the same. They clink their drinks together and took a swig. Harry sighed and set his bottle back onto the table and carefully tucked the vial into his pocket.

“I’m sure it will, mate,” Ron said. “But tell me, why did you suddenly want this? I never even heard of you mentioning this.”

Harry shrugged and sat back in the couch. “I just thought back to four years ago.”

“You mean back when you were…?”

“Mhmm… I realized he loved taking care of me so I thought: Why not?”

“You are sacrificing a lot, Harry,” Ron said, frowning, “not to mention you’re a male taking the potion…”

“I know, but it’s worth it.”

---

When Harry arrived back at his and Draco’s flat three hours later, it was already six o’ clock. The brunet half expected Draco to be still out

somewhere, shopping. But Harry was surprised when he found Draco in the kitchen, stirring something in a pot. Both Harry and Draco took turns cooking and today was Draco’s turn.

Yes, Draco Malfoy was taught by Harry on cooking skills. Since they were now living together, without the help of house-elves, Harry had thought

it was important for the blond to learn how to cook. It took Harry almost a year to teach Malfoy how to make the simplest dishes, such as boiling pasta. But what surprised Harry the most was that Draco had a knack on making dessert… it certainly befuddled Harry to no end.

Harry was smiling as he made his way quietly to the kitchen; he could hear Draco humming softly, his hips moving as he stirred whatever was in the pot. Potter was leaning against the entryway to the kitchen, watching as Draco stopped stirring and tasted the wooden spoon.

“… Need a bit more salt,” Draco mumbled; he reached over and grabbed the saltshaker. He shook it two times over the pot before putting it back down. “Harry hates bland chicken noodle soup.” Draco dunked the spoon back into the pot and stepped aside, in front of a chopping board.

“I love anything cooked by you, Draco,” Harry said, announcing to Draco he was home. Potter chuckled when his blond lover let out a small gasp and turned around sharply. “But, I wouldn’t mind if you add more chicken into the soup. Why are you making that anyway? Are you sick, love?”

Draco rolled his eyes and smiled at Harry. “No, you dolt, I’m making this soup because of what we ate last night. I think I’m still feeling the

lasagna you made, with all the cheese and sauce. I want something light for dinner tonight.” He turned back around and continued cutting up

the cooked chicken breasts. “You want more chicken?”

Harry pushed himself away from the entryway and walked up to his boyfriend. He wrapped his arms around the slim waist and stood on his tiptoes. Draco was at least five inches taller than he was so Harry had to stand on his toes to look over Draco’s shoulder; he could smell the heavenly fragrance of the soup now.

“Yes, please, and add some pepper in there,” Harry murmured beside Draco’s ear. Malfoy snorted but did what Harry asked.

“You should go take a shower, the soup’s almost ready and then I’ll start on the salad,” Draco told him. “You want a taste?” Draco held up the

spoon.

Potter took his arms away from Draco’s hips; he moved his head and kissed the blond on his lips. The taller man hummed, turned his head more, and returned the kiss passionately. When they pulled back, Draco was happy to find Harry breathless, his lips swollen and red from their kiss.

“It’s alright… I’ll go shower now and then we’ll have dinner. The sooner we finish, the sooner I can get you to bed,” Harry purred; Draco laughed and shoved Harry away.

“You’re such a prat,” he chuckled, “just go and leave me to my cooking.”

Harry gave Draco a salute before walking away to the bathroom. Draco shook his head with a smile and turned back to his cooking. As he finished up cutting the chicken breast, Draco turned his head to check if Harry was still in the bathroom.

Draco could hear Harry singing and the water running.

Draco put the knife down on the board. He plunged his hand inside his trouser pocket and took out a small jewelry box. He snapped it open with his thumb and smiled softly. Nestled in a bed of violet satin, was a single silver ring. Small emeralds and rubies were encrusted into the metal, forming a wave of sorts; Draco chose those gems because of him being a Slytherin and Harry, a Gryffindor. It was a simple ring, but Draco was sure Harry will love it.

On the underside of the ring, words were engraved.

Love for all Eternity.

HPDMHPDM

Harry was putting on a clean t-shirt when he remembered the vial in his trouser pocket. He groaned; he had almost put the pair of pants into the hamper without taking the potion out!

“Fuck… if I did that, Hermione will be pissed off at me,” Harry mumbled and took the vial out from his trousers.

Harry was spinning around in the bathroom, trying to find a spot to put the vial, when his eyes landed on the shelf where all their… bottles of body wash, shampoos, conditioners (Draco’s not Harry’s, mind you), and different vials of potions were. There were potions for headaches, colds, muscle pains, fevers, and others. With a huge grin, Harry put his vial behind some headache potion.

“I’ll just have to remember to get it back later,” Harry said to himself. “Draco’s not going to look through here…”

Nodding in satisfaction, Harry left the steamy bathroom. He couldn’t wait to tell Draco the good news one week from now, if the potion worked properly.

---

“Harry, what are you doing in the bathroom? The bed sheet is cold without you to warm it up!”

Potter chuckled as he reached for the vial; it was yellow and sparkly so it was quite hard to miss or forget.

Harry had told Draco to wait for him on their bed while he would be looking for something for his ‘headache’. The green-eyed man had no intention of telling his blond lover what he was up to, or what the potion was for that matter. Like he told Ron, it was to be a surprise.

“I’m coming! Just give me a second!” Harry hollered; he pulled out the stopper and downed the yellow liquid. Harry shivered as the thick potion slid down his throat.

‘Hope this works!’

“You better not be ‘coming’, Potter! Not when I’m here and you’re in the bathroom!”

Harry snickered and padded out of the bathroom and back to their bedroom. He stopped short when he found Draco in the middle of their king

sized bed, naked like the day he was born. Malfoy had one elbow and hand propping his head up, his body was turned to the side so that Harry

clearly saw the frontal view of Malfoy’s perfect body. Harry sent Draco a warm smile before closing the door.

“What took you so long? I thought you just needed a headache potion.” Draco eyed the brunet as Harry shimmied out of his boxers, leaving him fully naked just like Draco.

As Harry flopped onto the bed, Draco shuffled over and lied on his stomach.

“I’m here now, aren’t I?” Harry asked; he rolled to his side and pulled the taller man closer, their lips almost touching. “Well? Are you going to

fuck me into the mattress like you promised, Draco?” Harry asked seductively, his voice low and husky.

“Mm… I did promise you, didn’t I?” Draco murmured and brought his face closer to Harry’s, their lips finally touching.

Harry moaned into the kiss and rolled until he had Draco hovering above him. The blond had his hands framed around Harry’s head, his legs straddling Harry’s hips. Draco did one upward thrust that had Harry moaning for more.

“Please… No, don’t--” Draco thrust again. “Fuck, Draco! Stop now, or I’ll--” Draco smirked and ground his hips down into Harry’s arousal, making Harry sob piteously.

Draco’s smirk disappeared and instead, he cupped Harry’s face lovingly, making the brunet look up at him with warm, green eyes.

“I want you to be coherent for this, not blabbering and sobbing,” Draco whispered; he sat up and moved down so that he was no longer rubbing

his cock against Harry’s.

“What… You’re not going to leave me like this are you!?” Harry wailed, his eyes looking down at his own erection, standing in a nest of dark curls.

“No, love, I’ll never leave you…” Draco murmured softly and held out his hand.

In the darkness of their room, Harry could make out a small object flying into Draco’s waiting hand. It was too dark to see what the object was,

however.

“Draco… What’s wrong?” Harry propped himself up on his elbows and looked at his lover worryingly.

Draco chuckled and moved away from Harry; the brunet was staring at him with confusion in his eyes.

“I’m not going anywhere… I just need to be down here.” Draco got off the bed and was now kneeling on one knee. “Sit up and face me, Harry. I need you to be looking at me for this to work,” Draco smirked.

Harry’s heart was pounding within his chest. He put two and two together… and came up with one conclusion. First, there was that small object. Second, Draco was kneeling like he was proposing. Harry’s breath hitched as he sat, facing his love. Potter grew more nervous when Draco snapped his fingers and candles lit up the room. Emerald orbs were on silver ones as Draco slowly opened his palm, revealing the box that held the ring.

“Draco… What are you…?”

“Shh…” Draco hushed. He opened the ring box and presented it for Harry. “Harry, let me make you happy… I know you’ll make me happy if you say yes.” Draco took out the silver ring with a trembling hand; he set the box down on the ground and took Harry’s hand. “Marry me, love, and let me show you that our love will last forever.” Draco slipped the silver band down onto Harry’s ring finger.

Harry didn’t even bother to stop his tears as Draco pronounced his eternal love. He brought his hand up and smiled. The ring was beautiful…

“You-you… Draco… Oh Merlin! I-I… Yes… Oh god…” Harry slipped off the bed and was kneeling in front of Draco, his arms thrown around the blond’s neck. “Even if you never planned on asking, I know our love would last forever… I never doubted our love. Never.”

“So I’m taking that’s a ‘yes’ then?” Draco joked; he laughed when Harry smacked his back.

Harry pulled back and kissed Draco firmly. He leaned forward and touched Draco’s forehead with his.

“I love you so, so much…” Harry smiled and threw himself back into Draco’s embrace. Malfoy kissed Harry right under the brunet’s ear.

“Four years ago I promised you forever, Harry. I’m not going to break that promise.”

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Chapter 21

The Start of Something Wonderful

“Four years ago I promised you forever, Harry. I’m not going to break that promise,” Draco whispered into Harry’s ear. He moved back and wiped away his fiancé’s tears. “Are those happy tears?”

Harry let out a small laugh and sniffed. “Of course! I can’t… Oh god, I’m acting like a bloody girl right now…”

‘I’ll be more of a girl when I…’

“It doesn’t matter,” Draco’s said, his voice breaking Harry’s thoughts. “I love you, even with your puffy, red eyes.” The blond slowly stood up, offering his hand to Harry, who took it. “Now, where were we before I proposed and you started crying?”

Draco grabbed Harry’s shoulder and gently pushed the brunet back towards their bed. Harry’s eyes widened when he fell on top of the mattress, Draco falling over along with him. As he was being pinned down by the taller man, Harry wrapped his legs and arms around Draco’s body and rolled them both until they were in the middle of the bed.

“I don’t want you to fall out of the bed when you fuck me,” Harry whispered when Draco looked at him questioningly. “Besides, it’s more

comfortable this way; my legs aren’t dangling on the edge.”

Draco growled and circled his hips; Harry whimpered and snapped his eyes shut as the blond ground his erection into his. Harry bucked when Draco pressed down and stayed that way.

“Are you going to tease me again?” Harry asked, his breath coming in short pants. “You-” Harry thrust his hips upward. “-shouldn’t!”

Malfoy gasped; he smirked down at his lover before lifting his torso away from Harry’s. The green-eyed man pouted at him; Draco craned his neck and kissed the pout away. Draco slid down, his hands brushing Harry’s heated skin. Potter writhed and squirmed as Draco’s fingers massaged him; he held his head up when he felt the fingers stopping right at his hips. Silver orbs met his eyes; Draco was right above his crotch, his mouth very close to his erection.

His tongue darted out and gave Harry’s cock a tentative lick. Harry whimpered again and tried to press the head into Draco’s mouth but the blond was holding down his hips, stopping any movements.

“Please… Please, Draco…” Harry sobbed; he tried to move his hips but didn’t get far.

“Yes, Harry? What do you want?”

“You know what I want, Draco!” Harry cried; he tried a smile when Draco pulled back and looked up at him, his eyebrow arched. “Sorry… But… Don’t stop?” Harry pleaded meekly.

Draco chuckled and ducked his head. “No… Never stop, not with you…” His warm breath caressed the tip of Harry’s hard member.

Potter tightened his grip on the bed sheet when Draco’s lips finally wrapped around his cock. Then there was the suction; he could see Draco’s cheeks hollowing as the blond sucked, his head bobbing up and down. Harry gurgled when Draco’s tongue molded against the underside of his cock, caressing the skin and flesh… and the way Draco used his teeth, gently scraping them over his sensitized skin. Harry shivered; he wasn’t going to last if Draco kept this up.

With a groan, Harry fell back against the pillows. He just didn’t have the strength to hold himself up anymore. It was when Draco hummed did Harry scream out. His hands flew to the top of Draco’s head, his fingers curling around the blond tresses.

“Draco… Finish it. I want you… I need you inside…” Harry ground out through gritted teeth; he was really trying not to cry out in pleasure.

Harry was a very vocal person.

The green-eyed man flexed his fingers and he somewhat guided Draco’s head, pushing it down onto his prick. At this point, Draco wasn’t really pressing Harry’s hips down anymore; he was too busy attending Harry.

“Yes… OH! Draco… DRACO!!” Harry screamed and bucked his hips.

The blond closed his eyes in content and relaxed his throat, welcoming the creamy substance that was sliding down his throat. He swallowed and sucked gently, milking Harry. The brunet was now limp, his chest heaving. With one last lick, Draco slithered back up and kissed Harry fiercely, letting his fiancé taste himself.

Harry was sated and tired, but he was never too tired to kiss Draco. Their kiss was slow and deep. By the time they separated, Harry got his breathing back under control. He smiled up at Draco and parted his legs, letting the blond know he was ready. Harry bent his legs and placed his feet flat on the bed, presenting his body to the man he was to marry.

“Beautiful… My beautiful Harry…” Draco murmured; he placed soft kisses down Harry’s neck, to his collar bone, down his chest, his abdomen, and finally one last kiss right above Harry’s navel.

“I love you, Harry…”

Harry smiled and reached up to cup Draco’s face. “I love you, too…”

When he heard Draco muttered a spell, Harry almost gasped out loud when he felt something cold and gooey coating his opening. Draco smirked at him when Harry tried to wiggle his arse; the damn lubricant spell felt weird, no matter how many times Draco used it.

“Do you really have to use the spell instead of summoning a tube?” Harry grouched; Draco smiled and splayed his hand over Harry’s belly, gently rubbing it. Harry blushed.

‘That feels nice… I wonder if it’s because of the potion I took…’

“Too lazy… The spell works just as well,” Draco replied offhandedly; his hand was still making small circles on Harry’s stomach.

“It feels weird and it’s all cold!” Harry complained; Draco only smirked at him. “You’re such a bitch…” Harry’s eyes gleamed and he also muttered the same lubrication spell.

Draco yelped and wrapped his hand around his cock. “A little warning?!”

“You did the same thing to me,” Harry said cheekily.

Draco growled and held his hard cock right in front of Harry’s eager hole. Potter was trying to relax as Draco slowly pressed in. Sometimes, they did it without any preparation. They didn’t do that often, but Harry liked the burn when Draco stretched him wide with his thick member.

Once Draco was fully sheathed inside his lover, he stayed still, waiting for Harry to get used to the burn and the fullness. Harry groaned and shifted his hips, lifting up and pressed downward, taking Draco even deeper.

“Move… Move, Draco…” Harry moaned and began pressing down onto Draco’s cock.

Malfoy hissed and did what Harry asked; he pulled back and thrust in, hard. Harry mewled and wrapped his legs around Draco’s back.

“You want it hard, do you?” Draco panted; Harry nodded frantically and cried out when the head of Draco’s cock hit his prostate. “Merlin… Harry, you’re tight… feels good…”

Harry whimpered and didn’t even bother to answer. He knew he couldn’t, not when Draco was thrusting hard and fast now.

A low, guttural growl escaped Draco’s lips when Harry’s inner muscles clenched. He released his seeds deep inside Harry while the brunet released and coated his stomach and Draco’s chest.

“Fuck…” Draco’s arms gave and he fell on top of Harry. Potter did not complain and just lied there, very still.

‘It… it’s done… hope it worked…’

“… I know I said it many times,” Draco murmured against the juncture of Harry’s neck, “but I love you. I want you to know.”

Harry smiled tiredly and brought one hand up to card his fingers through the sweat-sodden blond hair.

“I know.”

---

.: Four days later :.

“Well?” Hermione asked impatiently. Harry and Draco looked at each other and smiled.

“Hermione, calm down,” Harry laughed; he held up his hand and let the witch see his ring.

“Oh! Oh my god! Congratulations!” Hermione squealed and threw herself at Harry, giving the brunet a bear hug. Harry laughed merrily and

returned it.

Ron and Draco rolled their eyes as Hermione sat back down next to her husband.

“Can I help you guys plan the wedding?” Hermione asked excitedly; Ron placed a hand on top of his wife’s.

“So, you finally popped the question eh, Malfoy?” Ron smirked at the blond. Draco returned the smirk.

“Yes, I did it. Naked, I might add. I saw everything from where I was kneeling.”

Harry flushed and smacked Draco’s arm.

Hermione pulled her hand away from her husband’s and stood up from the couch.

“Can I borrow your soon-to-be husband for a few minutes, Draco?”

Draco looked over at Harry, who was twiddling his thumbs, and then looked over at Hermione.

“Of course, but bring him back, alright?”

Hermione nodded and pulled Harry up; Potter looked back at Draco as he was pulled away. He sent Malfoy a kiss and disappeared around the

corner. Ron cleared his throat.

“Why looking so nervous, Weasley? Do you know something that I don’t?” Draco asked; he calmly sat back in the couch and crossed his legs.

“No… Hermione’s probably telling Harry all about how to plan a wedding,” Ron said; he was looking straight at Draco. “She’s been waiting for this

for ages.”

‘Just look at Malfoy’s eyes… so that he doesn’t know I’m lying.’

Draco smiled; it sounded plausible.

HPDMHPDM

“Did you bring it?” Hermione asked; she and Harry were now in the dining room, far away from the other two men.

“Yeah, I almost forgot… but I did what you asked,” Harry answered; he reached into his jeans and took out a very small vial of blood. “I

remembered just before we came here. It was a nice spell you put onto the vial; all I had to do was touch it against my skin and it drew blood!”

“I didn’t want you to cut yourself on purpose, and this method is pain-free,” Hermione said; she took the vial from her friend and put it into a clear, plastic bag she had produced earlier. “I’m going to send this right to my office. I’ll do the test tomorrow once I get to St. Mungo’s.”

“When will I know if I’m…” Harry bit his bottom lip.

“The test results will be ready in a few days. When I have the answer, I’ll owl you,” Hermione said; she laughed lightly when Harry looked scared

and happy at the same time. “You really want this to happen, don’t you?”

Harry looked at his friend solemnly and nodded. “The topic will come up sooner or later; it’s only a matter of time. Since he just proposed to me and we’re about to be married, it’s going to come even faster.”

Hermione went up to Harry and gave him a motherly hug. “I’m sure it will work. Let’s just say I have this feeling it will be a positive result.”

Harry sighed and hugged her. “I hope so. I really do.”

---

.: Another four days later… :.

Harry was sitting on their bed, waiting for Draco to walk in; the blond was still taking his shower. It was late at night and Harry was feeling

extremely nervous and tremendously happy. He had gotten Hermione’s letter yesterday. The result of his blood test was in it as well. Harry

almost fainted after reading the letter the first time. Not really believing what he had read, Potter read the letter twice.

Harry’s wish was granted. He wept happy tears but they were gone before Draco had the chance to ask him what was wrong. It was a good thing Draco was making dinner when the letter arrived.

Now, all Harry had to do was tell Draco the great news.

(Last night…)

Harry was sitting in the living room, watching television, when a gray owl swooped through one of the opened windows. Harry gasped and quickly looked around; Draco was nowhere in sight. The owl landed gracefully next to him and held out its foot; a rolled up letter was attached to it. His heart pounding in his chest, Harry took the letter and thanked the owl quietly; he watched the bird fly out soundlessly.

With shaking fingers, Harry untied the ribbon and unrolled the parchment. It was from Hermione; Harry had been expecting a letter from her, but not so soon.

Harry,

I got the test result! Oh dear God! I’m so happy for you! Well, you can probably tell that it’s good news. I know, I know, you want the answers already. Well…

YOU’RE PREGNANT, HARRY!

You and Draco are going to be fathers! Well technically, you’re the ‘mother’, Harry, but you already know that. To be honest, I was shocked when you asked me about the potion two months ago. As I had told you, the potion was initially for women that had trouble conceiving. You must be the first male that had successfully conceived. The child will have yours and Draco’s DNA. Better than finding a surrogate mother. But as you know, it was really a fifty-fifty chance. But, no more worries! There’s a baby growing inside you; you’re around a week along (obviously) and I am going to strictly say: YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR HEALTH, HARRY POTTER! From now on, you’re going to have appointments with me every month. I’m not going to take any excuses! You better show up!

Congratulations once again, love. On the proposal and the baby on the way. It’s going to be a tough nine months, but I’m sure you’re alright with that since I told you this before and you readily accepted that fact.

Oh, you’re going to look so adorable with a round belly, Harry!

Lots of love,

Hermione

P.S. Ron’s really happy for you, too.

Harry had laughed when he read the last sentence; he wasn’t sure if he was going to look adorable with a round belly. Then he sobered and folded the letter neatly before tucking it in his pocket.

Placing a hand on his abdomen, Harry thought he could almost feel a small throb of magic coming from within. He smiled and rubbed his belly gently. A child. He was going to be a parent to a child that belonged to him and Draco.

HPDMHPDM

“Harry? Are you alright?” Draco asked as he came in; Harry was sitting on the bed, his legs tucked under him. “You look a bit pale… Are you sick,

love?”

‘Sick isn’t the right word…’ Harry had to bite his lip in order to stop his smile from appearing.

Harry shook his head and beckoned his lover over. Draco padded to Harry and sat down next to the brunet, and then he wrapped his arms

around Harry; Potter sighed and laid his head on Draco’s shoulder.

“Draco?”

“Hmm?”

“You know how we’re about to be married, right?”

Draco chuckled softly and placed a kiss on top of Harry’s head. “Of course I do. I was the one that asked you to marry me.”

Harry smiled into Draco’s neck. “Do you also remember how we talked about having kids…?” Harry moved away and looked into Draco’s eyes.

Harry was glad Draco wasn’t frowning or scowling at him. Instead, the blond was actually smiling, his eyes were warm. Harry felt himself relax.

“I remember… We talked about adopting… or maybe finding a surrogate to carry our baby,” Draco said. “Why are you asking all these questions,

Harry? Do you… want to adopt now? Or start finding a surrogate mother?”

“No, Draco,” Harry said softly; he took one of Draco’s hands and held it in his. “Draco, love, we’re going to have a baby.”

Draco tilted his head to the side. “Are you saying you already found a surrogate?” When Harry frowned, Draco quickly leaned in and kissed his

fiancé. “I’m not upset. I want a child as much as you do, you know that. I guess it’s about time we start looking for a woman to help us.”

Harry giggled as Draco babbled; he slowly moved Draco’s hand and placed it over his stomach. Draco looked down at their hands and then looked up again.

“What… Is your stomach hurting? Was it what I cooked tonight?” Draco asked worriedly; Harry laughed and shook his head.

“No! My stomach’s not hurting… but you will see it grow bigger though,” Harry said, his eyes shining.

“Grow? What are you—”

Things clicked into place. Draco’s eyes grew wide. First his mouth formed an ‘o’, and then it grew into a smile. Lastly, the smile blossomed into a full blown grin. Harry was watching all the emotions flitting across his lover’s face. He sighed in relief when Draco started laughing.

Draco pulled the smaller man to his chest with one hand and peppered kisses all over Harry’s face.

“Harry… Are you saying…?”

Harry pressed Draco’s other hand more firmly on his belly. “I’m pregnant, Draco. We’re going to be fathers to a child of our own.”

“A baby?”

“Yes, love.”

“Oh… I-I love you so much… We’re going to have a baby. Our baby.” Draco sobbed and held Harry close. "A little baby boy or girl for us to take

care of."

When Harry felt Draco’s tears on his cheeks, he knew he made the right choice.

Their life together was just beginning.

FINIS

lavendar047

Draco mommy is very adorable!He will make a goog dad anyway when he had a real child, strict but tender~
真是可爱啊，真是喜欢这样的文~

crystal6651

Baby!Harry is soooo adorable! Chubby face and round eyes...Awwww
How could Draco resist that puppy-eyed look?
這篇超可愛的!!雖然...雖然H有雷到我(淚奔)
不過，總結果而論...還是bottom!Harry啦>////<

olorosow

Yes，Draco will be a good daddy,obviously.What a lovely family they've got!                 But,Where's the outlandish?
虽然生子文会淡化hp世界观的深度，但依然上瘾，原因就是希望看到harry拥有一个强大，诙谐，高贵的家庭，并且成为他从未有过的parent!

月夕佳

英文废柴，看到好累。这篇居然是生子，虽然不常看，但这种设定真的很萌，希望哈利能和家人相亲相爱，弥补他年幼时的创伤。

英文有點看不懂
我完了
只好默默的想字了
所以正在看當中

xiruvia

当我看到标题上的dm/hp就不自量力的点进来时，顿时觉得自己文盲了……泪奔~

oh merlin, what a lovely family and lovely little harry... i liked the act draco saw harry moaning in his dream, haha 很难接受找代孕母亲的现实文，以及好奇Draco做的菜会是怎样的Xd

weiwei1217

YOU’RE PREGNANT, HARRY!
When I read this one I love most
是生子文ㄋ
反正這句話
對我而言很有愛