For The Will Of It

Chapter 8: Exculpation

By pantheradraconis

Draco slumped. Draco never slumped. But now he slumped. His shoulders fell inches lower then they usually were held. His head fell too. The blond sat with every body part shorter than Harry thought possible. But he didn't mention it. The blond needed to think so Harry simply sat next to his friend. Tears fell. They had been sitting in Harry's eyes along with all the furry he held inside of him, but that burst of anger, that explosion of feelings caused the tears to fall. He wasn't crying, at least he didn't feel like he was crying. There were no sobs, no awkward inhaling, no cries. Just tears. And there were tears in Draco's eyes too. They didn't fall as freely, but the fact that they fell at all nearly broke Harry's heart. The Slytherin besides him, the prince on the couch next to him, was broken.

Harry had no idea what caused him to do it. There was no explanation for why he moved to the floor in front of Draco. The blond couldn't figure out how or why the motions wound up into place, but the kiss was perfectly imperfect. Their lips touched so softly that neither boy was really sure if it had happened at all or if they had simply dreamed it to be so.

The Slytherin's emotions were so offset that the boy didn't know what to do. What was he thinking kissing the chosen, gold boy of Gryffindor? The favorite of Dumbledore? The honest, wonderful, perfect boy that he had held onto in silence for over 5 years now? Maybe it is just so unexplainable that it can only be true. Draco leaned in and kissed the brunette before him again. And then again. The two boys embraced as their lips became one, their thoughts connecting.

I can't believe I'm doing this. How is it possible that I'm kissing the very boy I've dismissed for 5 years? Harry tried to compose himself, to think his way out of his own head, but the thoughts and the feelings made too much sense to fight. We're too much the same. It was inevitable.

Harry pressed deeper into Draco's mouth, allowing their tongues to wrestle for supremacy. Harry's hands rubbed along the blond's back as Draco reached into Harry's tangled up hair. The passion grew as the boys began to moan, not knowing whose mouth was letting out the soft noises. Out of breath and panting quickly, Draco leaned his forehead against the Gryffindor's and relaxed into the boy's arms.

"Will you got out with me?" The question was simple, but the answer held so much inside of it.

"I don't know if that's such a great idea Harry...I'm not sure if the rest of the school would quite understand..."

"They won't. But they don't understand us anyways. We're the black sheep. We're the outcasts. Sure, we both have our sides of the school, we both rule the good and the evil." Harry laughed at that, but Draco squirmed a little. Luckily, the other boy didn't notice and went on with his speech. "Opposites attract and together we could rule this school. Or we could slip away from reality and simply be together. Either one would be perfect with me, although I'd rather have you all to myself."

"I don't know. I just, I need to think about it."

Harry heart sank a little. Maybe he hadn't thought it through well enough. But the kiss was just... He let the idea slip from his mind and decided to show Draco that they should be together.

"One date. And the school doesn't even have to know about it. We'll stay away from them. Let me try?" Harry tried to bat his eyelashes the way that girls do when they want something really bad. Draco laughed at the way the brunette's lips pouted and finally agreed. I'm going to regret this later.

It was Thursday evening. Four days after Harry had asked his dream boy out. He still couldn't believe that Draco had actually said yes, that the two had kissed! Harry shivered as he remembered the kiss with such clarity it was like the two were kissing again. Draco walked up the stairway from the dungeons and smiled at the shivering form on his date for the night.

"Need a new jacket chosen one?" Harry swung around and smiled.

"Come on, or we're going to be late!" Draco was then tugged out the the main doors of the castle by a very excited Gryffindor teenage boy. How on earth did I end up in such a... nice predicament as a date with Harry?

The brunette rushed the two boys off towards Hagrid's hut, hurried past the gigantic pumpkin patch and right into the forbidden forest. "What are you doing?" Draco grabbed his arm back and stopped abruptly. "There no way I'm going in there! Don't you remember first year? I haven't been anywhere near the forest since seeing that..that...beast eating a unicorn! I'm not about to get attacked by some crazy warewolf or..or... whatever else is in there!"

Harry just smiled and continued walking, slowly now. Draco didn't know what to do. He's gone crazy! Where does he think he's going? I can't let him just get himself killed. I mean, I can...but, who am I kidding. "Harry! Wait up!"

The Slytherin caught up with his date just as they entered a small opening a ways into the forest. The view was astonishing. The small bit of field was covered in unicorns, all grazing quietly and relaxing in the sun. None of them even seemed to noticed the two boys standing at the edge of the grass so the two could look on without fear the whole group would gallop away.

"How on earth? When did you learn of this?" Draco whispered into Harry's ear. The brunette leaned into the soft voice and felt his shoulder touch Draco's. The blond couldn't help but smell the musky skin of his counterpart. It was pleasant and soft smelling. Can a smell be soft? Mmm, this one can. Draco leaned in and touched his lips to his date's ear. His mouth slowly grazed Harry's skin, down across his neck, onto his collarbone and, turning their bodies to face one another, Draco continued his trail up Harry's chin and onto this lips. The kiss was bare, simple, complete. It was amazing how well the two boys lips went together.

"It's perfect, isn't it." It was meant to be a question, but Harry couldn't help but simply state how he was feeling.

"What's perfect?"

"This, us, you and me. You don't need to be afraid of everyone else."

"I'm not afraid."

"Liar."

Draco frowned at this. "I'm not a liar. I may be a cheat, sneaky, determined young man, but a liar I am not. Have I ever lied to you?"

Harry thought that over. Whenever him and Draco were arguing over something, Draco was blunt and truthful. When Harry got up the courage to try and talk to Draco about things, he didn't lie. He didn't tell the truth, exactly, but he never told an outright lie. Except... "What about the time in the bathroom when you said you were trying to do that transfiguration spell... Rei Vertie something? You lied about crying the bathroom!"

"No I didn't. And it was the Res Rei Verto spell. I was telling the truth. Myrtle is... obnoxious, but she would stay quiet and stare at me like I'm the dream come true that I am, but the way, in case you forget how irrestible I am, and let's me practice spells. Now, my father being in jail might not have been the only thing messing up my concentration and I might have continued... allowing my eyes to water... for more reasons then just chemical imbalance, but besides all that I was completely honest."

Draco's voice was so calm and exact, Harry couldn't help but believe every word. Even if the blond did like to bend the truth, it was...well truthful that he told the.. uh truth. Harry decided to agree with this and as his stomach grumbled the two boys walked back into the castle. Hand in hand this time, not caring who was looking.

Well that's not completely true. Draco was smiling at the looks he got from old flings and at how red Ron's face became when the two boys walked into the Great Hall for dinner. He couldn't help but laugh when Hermione's mouth dropped open as Draco sat next to his...well his boyfriend, at the Gryffindor table. To Draco's great surprise, he enjoyed every glance, every gawk, every scowl that was pressed upon him while he held Harry's hand under the table.