Long Overdue - Part 6/7 of Coming Home (H/D, PG-13)
Title: Long Overdue (Part 6/7 of Coming Home)
Author: sesheta_66
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~ 580
Pairing/Characters: Harry, Ron, Draco, past Harry/Draco
Challenge: 100quills prompt 019 - spoiled
Warnings: No beta. Please point out any errors you find.
Summary: Harry has a long overdue discussion with Ron.
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.
Need to catch up? Click Part 1 - Wind to start at the beginning.
The day of the wedding arrived with much fanfare. The cathedral was the perfect place for the wedding; the majesty, the sheer vastness of it made the service a grand affair, befitting two such wonderful people.
Harry couldn't bear to look around while in the cathedral, choosing rather to focus on a point at the front of the church, beyond where the bridal party was standing. Some exquisite stained glass windows provided the perfect distraction. It was much easier to focus on that than to look around at happy couples and teary-eyed witches.
Afterwards, the reception was held in a wizarding town nearby, numerous portkeys having been issued for the occasion for those that didn't wish to Apparate to the hall.
Not wanting to be one to spoil the mood, Harry put on a brave face, smiling, nodding and laughing at the jokes as appropriate. He had found the ceremony difficult to sit through, Neville and Luna professing their love for each other. He tried to feel supportive, and not wallow in self-pity, but he hadn't done a very good job of it. He had, however, given a good impression. Internalizing his emotions was something he seemed to be getting better at.
A short while after arriving at the hall, he saw a familiar blonde head, and his stomach did a flip. He hadn't seen Draco at the church, hadn't heard his voice, and had thought that perhaps he wasn't there. Harry was sure his eyes had bugged out of his head when Ron said, "Oi, Harry! What's the matter?"
"Oh … uh … nothing." Ron looked at Harry, and then in the direction he was looking.
"Malfoy," Ron practically spat out. "Don't let him get to you."
"No, that's not it. I just suppose it's been awhile since I've seen him, and I wasn't expecting to," Harry explained lamely, trying to cover up his initial shock.
"Yeah, well, no accounting for taste. Neville works with him now and he claims that he's not so bad."
"He's not," Harry found himself saying before he could stop himself. "He's not the same spoiled brat we went to school with, Ron." Harry took in the shocked look on Ron's face, but continued anyway. "Even before I went away, Malfoy had changed. The war did that to him; it changed us all. You know that's true, Ron."
"Yeah, well ... maybe. But he's still Malfoy."
"No, Ron. He's Draco. Malfoy was his father, and no matter how much he is like his father in looks, he most certainly is no Lucius Malfoy." Ron looked at him sceptically. "Just like I'm no James Potter." Ron wouldn't understand what Harry had meant by that, but Draco would. He was the only person besides Sirius and Remus that Harry had told about Snape's memories. And who better than the son of a Death Eater to understand being painted with the same brush as your father?
Ron argued, but Harry was having none of it. He explained that Draco, despite having made some grave mistakes in his youth, had been as much a victim as anyone else. He was young, and perhaps a bit too eager to please his father, and by the time he realized what he had done, he was caught up in it all. Ron wasn't buying it, but Harry persisted.
The conversation was long overdue, and Harry realized that he didn't much care what anyone thought anymore, not even Ron.
Part 7
Author: sesheta_66
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~ 580
Pairing/Characters: Harry, Ron, Draco, past Harry/Draco
Challenge: 100quills prompt 019 - spoiled
Warnings: No beta. Please point out any errors you find.
Summary: Harry has a long overdue discussion with Ron.
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.
Need to catch up? Click Part 1 - Wind to start at the beginning.
The day of the wedding arrived with much fanfare. The cathedral was the perfect place for the wedding; the majesty, the sheer vastness of it made the service a grand affair, befitting two such wonderful people.
Harry couldn't bear to look around while in the cathedral, choosing rather to focus on a point at the front of the church, beyond where the bridal party was standing. Some exquisite stained glass windows provided the perfect distraction. It was much easier to focus on that than to look around at happy couples and teary-eyed witches.
Afterwards, the reception was held in a wizarding town nearby, numerous portkeys having been issued for the occasion for those that didn't wish to Apparate to the hall.
Not wanting to be one to spoil the mood, Harry put on a brave face, smiling, nodding and laughing at the jokes as appropriate. He had found the ceremony difficult to sit through, Neville and Luna professing their love for each other. He tried to feel supportive, and not wallow in self-pity, but he hadn't done a very good job of it. He had, however, given a good impression. Internalizing his emotions was something he seemed to be getting better at.
A short while after arriving at the hall, he saw a familiar blonde head, and his stomach did a flip. He hadn't seen Draco at the church, hadn't heard his voice, and had thought that perhaps he wasn't there. Harry was sure his eyes had bugged out of his head when Ron said, "Oi, Harry! What's the matter?"
"Oh … uh … nothing." Ron looked at Harry, and then in the direction he was looking.
"Malfoy," Ron practically spat out. "Don't let him get to you."
"No, that's not it. I just suppose it's been awhile since I've seen him, and I wasn't expecting to," Harry explained lamely, trying to cover up his initial shock.
"Yeah, well, no accounting for taste. Neville works with him now and he claims that he's not so bad."
"He's not," Harry found himself saying before he could stop himself. "He's not the same spoiled brat we went to school with, Ron." Harry took in the shocked look on Ron's face, but continued anyway. "Even before I went away, Malfoy had changed. The war did that to him; it changed us all. You know that's true, Ron."
"Yeah, well ... maybe. But he's still Malfoy."
"No, Ron. He's Draco. Malfoy was his father, and no matter how much he is like his father in looks, he most certainly is no Lucius Malfoy." Ron looked at him sceptically. "Just like I'm no James Potter." Ron wouldn't understand what Harry had meant by that, but Draco would. He was the only person besides Sirius and Remus that Harry had told about Snape's memories. And who better than the son of a Death Eater to understand being painted with the same brush as your father?
Ron argued, but Harry was having none of it. He explained that Draco, despite having made some grave mistakes in his youth, had been as much a victim as anyone else. He was young, and perhaps a bit too eager to please his father, and by the time he realized what he had done, he was caught up in it all. Ron wasn't buying it, but Harry persisted.
The conversation was long overdue, and Harry realized that he didn't much care what anyone thought anymore, not even Ron.
Part 7