The Music of the Heart

Chapter Title: "Back of the Bottom Drawer"

By: Ree

Pairing: Harry Potter/Severus Snape with mentioning Harry/Draco and Harry/Bill Weasley pairings, so enjoy!

Song: "Back of the Bottom Drawer" by Chely Wright

Summary: While looking through a box of his old things, war-hero Harry Potter reflects on what made his life change for the better. He also reflects on some of the relationships he had in the past.

Disclaimer: I am not Miss Rowling and if I were, I would be filthy rich and be in heaven, so don't sue me.

"In the back of the bottom drawer

Of the dresser by our bed

Is a box of odds and ends

That I have always kept.

But the man who sleeps beside me

Doesn't know it's even there

Little pieces of my past

That I shouldn't have to share."

A young man stirred and woke from a deep slumber early on a Saturday morning. It was strange to be awake at this hour, but something had called to him to get up and look through his old box. Pushing aside the thick comforter, he was careful to keep his lover covered, since he knew that the other was bound to complain of the cold if the covers weren't on. Sliding onto the stone floor, he knelt in front of the dresser by their bed and made sure that his lover was still sleeping. Positive that things were safe, he removed his wand and unlocked the bottom drawer.

The person that slept beside him didn't know he had this old box, and as long as the young man had anything to say about it, they weren't going to find out. Removing a small, wooden box from the drawer, he closed it carefully and tiptoed to the sitting room, a smile on his face as he watched his lover toss a bit in bed. I know I should tell him about this boxbut, he thought with a smirk as he closed the door. Some things have to be sacred. And with that, he sat cross-legged in front of the hearth and carefully unlocked the box.

"A napkin that is stained with time

Has a poem on it that didn't quite rhyme

But it made me cry

And a Dear Jane Letter from a different guy

He broke up with me and told me

I'm not always right

And a stolen key from an old hotel room door

In the back of the bottom drawer."

Lifting the lid, he pulled out a napkin with Draco Malfoy's name scrawled over it and the room number where they had stayed that night after graduating. Taking out the key, he turned them both over in his hands and laughed at the memories he had shared with the blonde Slytherin. The two of them had gone streaking during a Quidditch game and that was something he'd never forget. Harry Potter's dark green eyes scanned the letter that his old boyfriend, Alexial, had written to the Daily Prophet, divulging some of his more intimate details.

"Thank Merlin I got out of that relationship," he muttered as he rolled onto his stomach and placed those items back into the box before removing something his first boyfriend, Seamus, had given him.

It seems like yesterday when I was running around with all of these different guys, the former Gryffindor thought as he rolled over again, onto his back and read through the note with a smile on his face.

"I don't keep these things

Cause I'm longin' to go back

I keep them cause I wanna stay right where I'm at

I'm reminded of my rights and wrongs

I don't wanna mess this up

But I wouldn't know where I belong

Without this box of stuff"

Harry remembered some of the fun times he had in his youth. After all, once Voldemort had been defeated, with the help of his fellow professors and peers, everyone rejoiced. Everyone that is, except for the Weasleys. They had lost their son Percy to the forces of Darkness without the chance to reconcile with him. It had torn at their hearts and Harry was glad that they had recovered from the shock. Even though he knew he had messed up in the past, this box of stuff actually helped remind him that there are things he did right.

"Like breaking up with all of my old boyfriends. If I hadn't, then I never would have been able to realize my relationship with himand it's been worth it. It took us six years just to admit we tolerated each other," running a hand through his black hair, Harry chuckled and removed a birthday card from another boyfriend, tracing the "I love you" on it.

"A birthday card from my first boyfriend

He signed it I love you, so I gave in

Yeah we went too far in his daddy's car

And those Mardi Gras beads from '98

We danced all night, stayed out so late

We thought we were stars

Closin' down the bars

That champagne was cheap

But still I got that cork

In the back of the bottom drawer."

Taking the card in his hands, Harry traced the cover with a gentle finger. He remembered that birthdayit was the most special one he'd ever had. Bill Weasley had given him that card.

"Right before he shagged me," he sighed and placed it back into the box before taking out a cork from an old champagne bottle.

It too was from that birthday and he smiled softly as he remembered the cheap champagne that Ron and the twins had gotten him the birthday he came of age. It had been a great night, especially afterwards. When the sun went down, Harry and Bill made love under the moonlight in the fields near the house.

"Well I'm not trying to hide these things

From the man I love today

But I'm a better man for him

Thanks to my yesterday

So now I try to give more than I take

And I bite my tongue, fight the urge to say

It's my way or no way at all

And I cherish love a whole lot more

Cause of what's in the back of the bottom drawer."

Nodding in satisfaction, Harry placed the contents of the box back inside and closed the lid before spelling it closed. Carefully taking the box into both his tanned hands, he slipped back through the sitting room to the bedroom. Kneeling down, he placed the box into the back of the bottom drawer and slowly closed it. With a soft smile on his features, he got to his feet and crawled back into bed just as his lover was starting to wake up. Closing his eyes and trying to fall asleep, Harry snuggled into the strong back and used it as a pillow.

"I am not something for you to sleep on you bloody imbecile," came the groggy voice from the other person.

"Budge up, Snape, you know that you love me," he grinned.

"It's too early for you to be this cheerful. Now go back to sleep you little brat," Severus Snape growled under his breath, black hair falling limply over his coal-black eyes, and buried himself in his bedding.

"Love you too, Sevlove you too," Harry whispered and wrapped his arms around his beloved's waist.

Well, what did you think? Like it? Hate it? Want me to write more song ficlets like this? Lemme know, R&R!! Also, since I have gotten such positive reviews, I'm going to turn this one ficlet into many! A whole novel of them, so look for more songfics coming your way!

Ree