disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own anything related to Harry Potter or his world. If I did, i can guarantee that I would have Draco Malfoy as my personal slave ;D

Warnings: angst, slash, anddd that's about it.

no flames or I will destroy you in your sleep. =P

now, go enjoy the amazing tale of a cross dresser and a hero.

Draco sat, wringing his hands in his lap. For the first time in his life, he was nervous to go back to Hogwarts. He had not wanted to go back but his mother had absolutely insisted. According to her, a proper Malfoy must have a proper education. And so, Draco sat in an enchanted limousine on his way to the train station. He was alone as usual, seeing as his mother had become quite a bit of a recluse as of late. So much had changed. So much.

Since the beginning of the summer, at the end of the Final Battle, his life had been changing. So much had happened. Potter had tricked the Dark Lord into accidentally killing himself. Even though Draco would never admit it, he had always suspected that the Gryffindor would get the job done.

Then, Draco had lost his godfather, Severus Snape, at the mouth of the Dark Lord's monstrous snake. The man had been as good as a true father to the blonde; acting as a shoulder to cry on, someone to learn from, someone to trust, and someone to love the boy for who he was.

It was safe to say that the beginning of Draco's summer had not gone well. Then, suddenly, in the middle of July, while Lucius Malfoy was awaiting his trial, Narcissa Malfoy walked into her husband's study to find him lying on the floor in a pool of blood.

To say that the remaining Malfoys were shocked would be a gross understatement. Neither had expected that the leader of their strong family would sink to the level of suicide to avoid punishment. Besides shock, Draco and Narcissa felt not much else towards Lucius' actions. Neither had any true attachment to the man and, on Draco's part, there was distinct fear of the man's iron fist.

Once the man was out of their lives, the two began to act as they wished, resulting in some surprising changed in the young blonde. He had begun to grow his hair out until it had reached a length that would befit someone of the female gender. Of course, his mother had noticed that but she chose not to mention it. If that was who her son wanted to be, she would not stop him. Several weeks later, Narcissa received a shock when she called upon her son and he came to her wearing a skirt and blouse.

Naturally, she forgot what she had been planning to say, but still, she would not stop her son from being himself. And she told him so. Draco had smiled at her with the brightest smile she had seen in years. He had looked at her with love and adoration, simply because she accepted him. She knew she had done the right thing.

Two weeks later, the Malfoys received a very unlikely visitor in the form of Harry Potter. Draco's naturally horrible luck seemed to kick in at that moment for he was the one to open the door for the green eyed Savior. He had cringed in on himself when he saw the shock on Potter's face, hoping against hope that the boy would not be mercilessly cruel.

Draco was surprised then, when the Gryffindor simply followed him to a parlor for tea without any comment on his appearance. They had sat across from each other, silently appraising. When the quiet became unbearable, the taller boy reached into his robes and pulled out a very familiar wand.

"My wand," Draco gasped as Potter placed it in his hands. He looked up at the other boy, who was now standing, with an expression of awed admiration on his face. He had never expected to see the wand again. He had hoped that Mr. Ollivander would be kind enough to make him a new one. He had never even imagined seeing his Hawthorne wand again. Potter took the expression for what it was: a silent show of gratitude. With a nod, he turned sharply and left the manor.

Draco came out of his haze of memories to see that they were fast approaching their destination. He took a deep breath, trying to control his heart rate. This was it.

Draco closed the door to his mother's limousine quietly as the driver placed his trunk and owl on a luggage cart. The blonde could not help but fidget nervously with the bottom of his new uniform skirt. He knew that people were going to be horrible to him; staring, gawking, laughing, teasing, and yet, he could not give up being who he truly was. With a shuddering sigh, Draco took the cart and entered King's Cross Station for, possibly, the last time.

AS he felt the cool air caressing his legs and arms, the tiny blonde felt a roaring blush rising on his face. All around him, muggles were watching his progress, little children pointing and laughing at the "girly boy." Draco tilted his head down so that his now long hair blocked his face from view. His pace quickened to a near jog as he desperately tried to reach the barrier to Platform 9 ¾.

For some reason, he just knew that something was waiting for him there. Something safe and protective, maybe even warm and loving. The more he wished for this presence, the faster he ran. As he saw the barrier up ahead, he put on a burst of speed, running straight through the wall (completely ignoring the fact that at least twenty muggles had been watching him).

Draco leaned his forehead on the handle of his luggage cart and closed his eyes. A tiny sob escaped from his trembling lips as he thought of all the disgust he had seen in the muggles' expressions. He had always been told that he was better than them, better than most people in the wizarding world, even. It was what he had been taught and it was how he had always acted, arrogant and spoilt to the core. It had always been that way, up until this past summer where the wizarding world began to call to Malfoys trash.

He had thought that he, at least, still had something over the muggles. He was royalty and they were scum. If that was true, though, then they shouldn't have looked at him like he was the filth. But they had. They had looked at him and judged him as worthless, despite the fact that his trunk, his cloak, his shoes, his everything practically screamed money. He had known, of course, that people would not react swimmingly to his change, but he had not expected those reactions to hurt so much.

And what of that mysterious, caring presence? Where was it now? It was supposed to be here, holding him, comforting him, drying his tears. At that thought, Draco's tears finally spilled over. There was no presence. There was no one here who truly cared about him, who could make everything okay. No. He could not think like this. He could not let people see his weakness, his loneliness. He was a Malfoy and he had to uphold what little pride he had left.

That decided, he stood up and brushed the tears off his red cheeks and his slightly puffy eyes. The tiny blonde shook his head and let his expression fall into a sneering mask. He would face the school with his head held as high as he could. Once he looked up, he noticed the people staring at him. Again. God, it was exactly the same, except this time, he couldn't run and these people knew him. As he heard the first whispers, his fragile mask broke, leaving him completely vulnerable and exposed.

"Who is tha- Oh my god. Is that Malfoy?"

"I always thought he was a bender. I mean, what guy cares that much about his hai-"

The second whisper was cut off by a loud, familiarly cruel laugh. Draco turned his head, searching for who he knew would be his true tormenter. He somehow knew that the red head stepping through the crowd, followed by, none other than, Potter, was aiming to hurt, to sting, to scar. He braced himself for the inevitable sharp words. He had to stay strong. He would not let Weasley break him; he never had before.

"So, Malfoy, daddy's gone and you decide to become mummy's baby girl, instead? Should I be calling you an it or a she, now? I think an it does fine, personally," Weasley pretended to muse. "Ya know, I don't think I would have pegged you for a shirt lifter, but then again, your obsession with Harry is a little suspicious," Weasley smirked watching the pain that flashed in Draco's eyes. At not receiving a reply, he continued. "What, am I wrong? No, I don't think so. After the way you attached yourself to him, like a sloth, in the Fiendfyre, it'd be impossible to miss. You hate how he ignores you, don't yo-." The red head was cut off as his best friend's fist slammed into his still open mouth.

Draco stared at Potter. Fury was rolling off his muscular frame. His eyes were hard as diamonds and his fist was still raised in the air. Potter stood glaring at his best friend as is he was the devil. The blonde trembled as he realized that tears were pouring down his face once again. Before he could turn away, Potter spoke in a deadly whisper.

"That was low, Ron, even for you. Whether it's true or not, I don't care. I don't care if you're my best friend. If you ever do something like that again, to anyone, I will beat the shite out of you. The muggle way." Everyone stared in shock as the Golden Boy reprimanded his best friend. However, the brunette did not seem to notice the shock he had caused. He simply walked over to Draco and looked searchingly into his eyes.

Without breaking eye contact, Harry pulled a napkin out of his pocket, leftover from breakfast in the station, and handed it to the still crying Draco. As he grasped the napkin, the blonde tilted his head down and broke from Harry's gaze.

"Thank you," he whispered, brokenly. While he could not admit it out loud to everyone, he could admit to himself that Weasley's accusation had been spot on. It had stung. But then, to have Harry defend him was a small bright spot.

"You're welcome. You know, not everyone's like Ron. He knows I'm gay and doesn't care. He was just being an arse. Ignore him because I think it's bloody amazing that you were brave enough to do this. And I'm willing to bet that you don't want to be called an it, right," Harry said in a quiet and understanding voice, so quiet that people became bored with the lack of information and began to walk away.

Draco's head shot up again and he stared at Harry, his eyes immediately filling with tears as he shook his head. He watched as a frown marred Harry's handsome features. After a moment, the brunette nodded. "Sit down on your trunk, okay Malf- Draco? I'll be right back," Harry murmured as he wiped tears off the blonde's face. Draco went to speak but all that came out was a pathetic hiccup so, he nodded and did what he was told. It didn't matter to him what people thought now. He had someone protecting him for once. He didn't have to be strong.

He watched as Harry walked over to where the rest of the Weasley family was congregated and spoke to them. After several minutes, the girl Weasley and Granger looked at Harry with beaming smiles before smiling slightly in Draco's direction. Harry pulled his wand out of his pocket and levitated his trunk over to Draco.

When Harry got near him, the blonde slid off his trunk. Harry sighed before placing his own luggage on top of Draco's. He began walking purposefully, with the cart, toward one of the doors of the red steam engine. It would still be mostly sempty, seeing as there was at least half an hour until the train left. "Well, come on," Harry called over his shoulder. Draco quickly followed after him, tears still gently falling from his eyes.

On the train, much of the noise from the platform was muted; making Draco's sobs all the more obvious. Harry threw open a random compartment and placed their luggage on the rack above the two benches. As Draco followed him inside, Harry shut and locked the door before closing the curtains to the hall and placed a strong silencing charm on the door.

Harry flopped down on one of the benches while Draco made an attempt to sit primly on the opposite one. The curious Gryffindor watched with worried eyes as the boy across from him completely broke down. The Slytherin was shaking from the force of his heart wrenching sobs. He had his face tilted down in an attempt to hide himself. Draco wrapped his arms around his torso and slid down the seat so that he could lie on his side, facing away from Harry.

For a while it was silent, the only sound breaking the quiet, Draco's mewling cries. The blonde gasped as he felt arms slip under his body; one under his legs, by his knees, and one under his shoulders. His body tensed as he was rolled onto his back and picked up into strong arms. A tiny squeak escaped him as he realized that Harry Potter was holding him and his hand was sending tingles up his thigh, where his skirt had ridden up.

As Harry turned and sat down with Draco on his lap, the blonde's sobs slowed a tiny bit. Draco began to relax and let his face fall into the crook of Harry's neck, only slightly embarrassed at the tears he was getting on Harry. It seemed his worry was for nothing, as the brunette's hand came up and began to stroke Draco's silky hair.

"Shh. It's alright, Draco. You didn't do anything wrong by deciding to be yourself. I can see that; Ginny and Hermione can too. Everyone else is just a worthless git if they can't," Harry's chest rumbled as he spoke. The vibrations soothed Draco and made him feel as if he was being cared for by the strongest man alive.

"B-but no one c-cares about me," Draco sobbed into Harry's neck, grasping tightly to the front of Harry's robes.

"That's not true. Your mother-"

"No one else, H-Harry. N-no one loves me. No one w-wants me aro-ound,"

"Sweetheart, that's not true. You didn't let me finish. I care about you, despite everything. I have for a while. Do you really think I'd be here if I didn't," Harry murmured against the blonde head buried in his chest.

Upon hearing Harry's words, Draco froze. Slowly, he pulled his head back from the Gryffindor's neck. He tilted his head back to look up into impossibly green eyes that shone with acceptance and something unnamed. "Really, Harry," he whispered, not daring to hope too much, lest he get his fragile heart broken.

Harry smiled down at Draco. He couldn't help it. The blonde was too adorable. Wide silver eyes, shining with hope, framed by dark blonde lashes were Harry's undoing. He nodded before he pulled Draco back into his chest. The blonde relaxed immediately, placing his open palm over Harry's heart and closing his eyes.

As darkness fell outside the train windows, the two boys woke to find that they had somehow tangled themselves together. Harry lay on his back with Draco resting on top of him. Draco's hands were curled under his cheek, still placed over Harry's heart, while Harry's arms were wrapped possessively around the blonde's waist. Their legs, tangled together, were bound by their individual robes.

Harry grinned up at Draco as the blonde shifted to see his pillow's face. "Hi, sweetheart. You know, you look absolutely adorable when you first wake up with that messy hair and those glassy eyes," Harry said as he stretched his neck to press a quick kiss to the tip of Draco's nose. Harry's grin grew as he watched a blush rise in Draco's cheeks.

"H-Harry," Draco said quietly, testing out the sound of the unfamiliar word in his mouth, now that he was aware enough to use it. He decided that he liked it, very much indeed.

"Yes, Draco," the amused Gryffindor prompted when the other boy seemed to space out.

"C-can you, that is, um… would you, maybe…"

"Sweetheart, I can't do anything if you don't tell me what you want," Harry soothed, sensing Draco's distress in the way he had begun to fidget on top of him.

"Canyou,please,givememyfirstkiss?" A blush appeared on Draco's face.

"Say that again?"

"Can you, please, givememyfirstkiss?" It grew.

"What was that last part?"

"….give me my first….kiss," Draco whispered the last word as if it was something horrible. Once he saw understanding light Harry's eyes, his blush exploded to shocking levels.

Harry's eyes became soft as he smiled up at the blonde. "Of course, I'll do that for you," he whispered. "I promise it'll be everything you ever hoped for, Sweetheart."

Draco began to shake, nerves beginning to take over. What if he wasn't good enough? What if Harry didn't like it? What if Harry laughed at him? He gasped as he felt soft, warm lips placing tiny kisses along his jaw line. "Don't worry, Draco. It'll be perfect simply because you're you and that's all I care about," Harry whispered against his cheek. Draco could do nothing but nod in response. He trusted what Harry was telling him. He trusted everything about the larger boy. He would never hurt Draco, at least never purposefully.

Suddenly, Draco felt a jolt rush through his body as Harry's lips met his own for the first time. The blonde's entire weight sagged against the other boy, causing the Gryffindor to smile against his lips. They lay there for quite some time, lips pressing together over and over until Draco became accustomed to the act.

Curiously, Draco poked his tongue out against Harry's bottom lip. The result was an immediate shudder passing through both of them. Harry opened his mouth and slowly twined his tongue around Draco's, drawing it into his own mouth. Draco let out a startled moan as Harry began to lightly suck.

The kiss went on for a while longer before the pair ran out of breath. Gasping, Draco laid his head down upon Harry's chest. He smiled when he felt the fast tattoo beating beneath his ear. "Thank you, Harry," he whispered while he buried his smile in the front of Harry's robes. As Harry's arms came up to wrap around his again, Draco couldn't stop the happy sigh that escaped him.

Everything seemed so much better now. He knew there were still people waiting to make fun of him, waiting to gape at his 'odd' attire, but somehow, that all seemed unimportant. With Harry protecting him, he felt as if nothing could go wrong. No insult could ever truly destroy him because Harry would be right there to pick him up and put the pieces back together.

It didn't matter to him that he only truly had one person at Hogwarts, besides Goyle, to care about him. No, it was not important because he had something better than someone who just cared about him. He had someone who loved him. Although it had not been said yet, Draco just knew that it was felt.

Draco could feel Harry's love for him in the way his arms tightened every time the train tilted sharply, in the way he rubbed his fingers across the tiny patch of skin showing at the base of his new female jumper, in the way he randomly stretched his neck to kiss Draco's head, in the way he sometimes untangled an arm to run it through Draco's silvery blonde locks.

Draco didn't have to question Harry's intentions for they were plain as day. We would protect Draco. He would be that rock for Draco to hold in a storm. He would support Draco. He would defend Draco against anyone and anything.

Draco was still pondering the nature of his and Harry's newfound relationship as the train pulled into Hogsmeade Station. As it lurched to a stop, Draco sat up, his legs straddling Harry's waist, and stretched his arms upwards with a yawn. Harry chuckled beneath him as he watched. The innocent blonde had no idea how provocative he looked like that in Harry's lap.

"What," Draco asked with a raised eyebrow, arms still in the air.

"Do you have any idea what you look like you're doing right now?" Draco looked down and noticed his position. He promptly squawked and fell to the floor, a glowing blush painting his cheeks.

"I'm s-..I didn't mean to…I'm sorry, Harry," he mumbled, not meeting the amused Gryffindor's eyes. Warm fingers made their way under his chin and lifted his face until his silver eyes clashed with emerald green ones.

"I don't recall saying I minded, Sweetheart," Harry smirked as he pulled Draco from the floor. Draco watched as Harry quickly dismantled the silencing charm on the door. At the last moment, Harry turned towards Draco with his hand outstretched. Draco immediately latched himself onto Harry, practically gluing his side to Harry's arm. "Are you ready for this?" Draco couldn't speak so he simply nodded his head. With Harry at his side, he could face them all, always.

Harry slid the door open and they walked out into the hall. Draco squeezed his protector's arm as people stared at him. As if reading his mind Harry spoke loud enough for many people to hear. "Stop staring, you arseholes! I don't care what you think about me, but you aren't going to hurt him." At that, practically everyone turned away.

"Thank you, Harry," Draco whispered as they climbed off the train and breathed in the fresh air of Scotland.

"You don't have to thank me, Draco. It's my self-appointed job."

"Won't Weasel – sorry – Weasley be mad at you for all this," Draco asked as they walked towards the thestral drawn carriages. He was worried, of course, that his Harry would go choose the weasel over himself again. That would hurt, immensely so.

"Of course he'll be annoyed, but he really doesn't have a say in it. Besides, I'm pretty sure he knows that he was in the wrong, considering I've never hit him before," Harry said absently as he moved his arm to encompass Draco's waist and pull him into the his side.

As they reached an empty carriage, Harry held the door open for Draco. The tiny Slytherin smiled up at him, truly happy for the first time since his childhood.

Just as Draco stepped his foot up to climb in, Harry leaned forward to whisper in his ear.

"You'll never be your mum's baby girl, Draco. However, I can promise that you'll be my baby girl forever, so smile for me, sweetheart," Harry ended with a light kiss just below the blonde's ear.

And Draco smiled.

So if you love Harry and Draco please give them a review because they might decide to reappear in another oneshot if they like you reviews=D

No flames, please. Although, constructive criticism is welcome

xx Bee