Ember to Ember DVD Extra for February 8

[annafugazzi]

This is a DVD Extra for scrtkpr, nimue, My Secret Pleasure, and a few others who asked for "Boys! Getting a clue and getting back together!"

This bit takes place about a week after the accident in Chapter 10.

Thanks so much to scrtkpr and kestrelsparhawk for wonderful and rather extensive beta :) :) :)


February 8
"Mr. Potter?" the Healer had said softly, and somehow Ron and George and Arthur were all instantly awake, as was Harry, standing up unsteadily, feeling himself going pale, automatically reaching for Draco's hand. Draco took it and stood up with him, and they approached the Healer together.

The moment wouldn't stop replaying itself, over and over again, Harry thought wearily as he brushed Alec's fine ginger hair back from his forehead. He watched Alec's chest rise and fall as he slept peacefully in Harry's bed, and marveled at the miracle of it. And thought, for about the hundredth time, that he should really get some sleep himself.

How long had he been living on occasional two-hour naps anyway?

He looked around his bedroom, with the myriad of empty potion bottles and spoons and children's books and stuffed toys scattered all about, and wondered if he should try to tidy up instead.

No, no need. It wasn't as though he was going to be entertaining casual visitors any time soon. He bent his head forward, trying to massage away a persistent neck-ache.

"Mr. Potter?" said a soft voice behind him, and he moved aside automatically so that the visiting Healer could take another reading from Alec.

"Has he woken up since last time I was here?" she asked Harry, and he nodded.

"Twice," he said, and had to clear his throat. Damn, how long since he'd spoken? "He smiled at me. Asked for Draco."

"That's good," she said, smiling. "How's his eyesight?"

"Still blurry. And he... he didn't seem to hear everything I said," Harry said nervously.

"Mr. Potter, it's been less than a week. You know it's unlikely his hearing will be fully recovered for a few more days at least. The spells that are knitting together his--"

"I know, I know. I just..."

"We're not worried," said the Healer reassuringly. "His hearing may be somewhat diminished, but still quite good. If he's still missing words three days from now, we'll start monitoring that more closely, but for now--"

"Can't you test to see if it's been permanently damaged?"

"Mr. Potter, there wouldn't be much point. Even if there is some hearing loss, there're all sorts of spells we can do to help him compensate, he'll easily adapt to--"

"No, he won't," said another voice.

Harry turned, a bit surprised to see Draco this early in the day. "Has Ben already been released? Thought that normally happened in the afternoon."

"They decided to give Ben one last treatment," said Draco, then turned back to the Healer. "Music is the most important thing in Alec's life. If his hearing is affected in any way, it's going to be--"

The Healer nodded stiffly. "We do understand that, Mr. Malfoy, but--"

"I don't think you do," Draco interrupted mildly. "I know what you've told Harry, but I don't think you understand that this is not something to just brush aside. We know he's doing much better than before, but please don't minimize our fears."

The Healer pursed her lips. "Very well."

"Thank you," said Draco blandly, and she left, her mouth in a tight line.

Harry smiled at Draco tiredly. "I don't think you're her favourite person right now."

"Probably not." Draco smiled back. "Listen, have you eaten since the last time I was here?"

Harry blinked. "Erm. When was the last time you were here?"

"Yesterday."

"Oh." He blinked some more.

"You have no idea, do you?" Draco sighed. "Here." He set a bag of Chocolate Frogs and what looked like a packet of crisps onto the side table. "Eat. Please."

"I'm fine," said Harry.

"You're not. You need to sleep, eat, and take a shower. And shave," he said, running a finger along Harry's jaw.

Harry blinked, and Draco drew back, taking the other chair next to Alec's bed and clearing his throat. "Thought there were supposed to be people here with you? Your e-mail said Demelza'd be here."

"She came earlier, but Alec needed to be put back into sleep again for a treatment, so she took her twins back home. Besides, they were wearing Alec out."

"Is it still all right for Ben to come see Alec?" Draco leaned over Alec, brushing his hair back. "Looks like he's still sleeping an awful lot."

"Yeah, he's just being kept asleep right now while they do treatments for the muscles in his hands. He should be awake in an hour or so."

Draco paused. "He'll be all right. His hearing, I mean."

"That's what I keep telling myself." Harry sighed. "Not always doing so well believing it."

Draco nodded. "In the meantime, back to the topic at hand. You need to take a nap."

"I will, I will, it's just..." that it's not terribly restful, plunging into memories and hallucinations every time I close my eyes--

"Look, you've a big enough bed here; use it." Draco sighed as Harry opened his mouth to protest. "I'll stay here. You've been mostly awake for almost a week. You're not doing Alec any good this way."

"The Weasleys've been trying to get me to rest this whole time too; I just haven't been able to--"

"Try again. You're exhausted."

Harry gave in. "Fine," he said, putting his glasses on the night table and lying down next to Alec. "Wake me up if he does, please."

"I will."

"He'll be all right," the Healer had said, and the world started again. But it started in slow motion, and oddly distorted. He was aware of Draco's hand in his, then Draco supporting him, almost holding him up, as the Healer explained Alec's injuries and current condition and Harry did his best to listen, did his best to filter out the sights and sounds around him--

"Very strong little boy..."

"Thank God, thank God," Molly sobbed, having burst into tears in her husband's arms the moment the Healer had said those magical words.

"Won't wake up for a while yet - not to worry, though..."

Fred and George drew near, their pale faces wearing eerily identical expressions, as Ron and Hermione whispered words of comfort to one another and the light in the hospital waiting room seemed somehow brighter.

"Not sure he'll be totally unscathed, but that's our assumption right now..."

"Can we see him?" Draco had asked.

"Yes, of course," the Healer said, and it had momentarily occurred to Harry that Draco had said "we" and that the Healer had accepted that without question.

"Harry, we'll t-tell the rest of the family," George said.

"Malfoy, we'll let Kara know too," Fred said, and Draco glanced at him, startled.

"Thanks," he said uncertainly, and Ginny's picture smiled at him from the waiting room wall.

"... kept in a Healer-induced coma for a few days..."

Alec floated in a bubble, his small features indistinct, a bruise at his temple...

"He just needs to grow till he can be out of the bubble," Ron told his son Jason, as they watched Alec floating. Jason nodded, his blue eyes very serious, and reached out for the bubble hesitantly.

"And he won't be able to play till he's all better," Ben told Jason seriously. "Even after he gets out of the bubble you need to be gentle."

He jerked awake.

"Go back to sleep," Draco murmured impatiently and stood up, leaned over Alec and touched Harry's shoulder to gently push him back down.

Harry lay back. No change from Alec. He yawned, his head fuzzy, and almost chuckled to himself. Funny the way dreams worked. Alec hadn't been in a bubble; that was Ron and Hermione's boys, both born too early and both finishing their development in a magical womb. Nothing Alec had been subjected to.

The Healer's words were pretty much as they had been, though. And the confusing jumble of words and feelings throughout her reassurances that Alec would live.

He closed his eyes again, reaching for sleep.

Gave in and sat up, running a hand through his hair.

"You know, you don't have to be here," he said to Draco. "I won't sleep anyway--"

"I can't be with Ben right now anyway," said Draco, handing Harry his glasses. "Kara's with him, but my own magic was interfering with Ben's treatment. I've been banished for the next four hours, till he's ready to be released."

"Oh." Harry sank into the chair next to Draco.

"So, is the schedule working well?"

"Yeah, good so far. They kept coming in waves for the first few days." Harry wearily spared a thought of thanks to Percy Weasley for bringing order to that situation; it hadn't been easy, having his small flat inundated by Weasleys off and on, no matter how well-meaning or welcome their presence. He let his head drop forward and rubbed the back of his neck, startled when Draco gently moved his hands away and started massaging it himself.

"Any reporters?" Draco asked.

"No. I've wards. Bill put them up." He suppressed a moan of contentment as his neck muscles relaxed slightly. "Only family and Healers allowed anywhere near the place."

Draco's hand paused briefly. "I didn't feel them."

"You and Kara and Ben were added in. Fred's suggestion, actually." Harry paused and rubbed his eyes, vaguely registering that Draco didn't seem as surprised by that as Harry had thought he'd be. "How's Ben doing?"

"Pretty well. Other than irritable as hell."

"Good. Not the irritable part. The pretty well part."

"Your family's been to see him, by the way," said Draco.

"Really?"

"Well, none of Kara's friends can visit him at St. Mungo's, of course. And he was getting restless. Granger and Weasley brought their kids over; so did Bill, and George and Demelza. Even Fred dropped by for a bit."

"Did it help?"

"Yes and no. He's getting rather twitchy."

"I can imagine." Ben was such an active little boy. Harry couldn't imagine him confined to a hospital room for days on end.

There was a pause.

God, Ginny, what I wouldn't give for you to be here right now too.

"Draco. I... don't know what I would've done if you hadn't been here."

Draco shrugged. "You would've been all right."

"I'm not sure about that."

"You've got your family behind you," Draco said, and Harry could almost feel the effort it cost him to say that without bitterness.

"Not the same." Harry tilted his head as Draco's hand moved to the side of his neck. "It's not the same. You're the closest thing Alec has to another parent. He's woken up and seen you with him, and he's smiled because you were there. You've told the Healers not to minimize the hearing issue..." You literally held me up while I was ready to collapse with fear--

There was a knock at the door. "Harry? All right to come in?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, and Draco withdrew his hand from Harry's neck.

Damn. That had felt rather nice.

Ron entered, carrying a cup of tea and a newspaper. "Hi, Malfoy," he said pleasantly, putting them both on the side table. "How's Ben?"

"Good, good."

"Still no news about Alec's hearing?"

"Still no news." Draco paused. "How's Hermione?"

Ron sat down at the foot of the bed, smiling as Alec rolled over in his sleep. "Good. Getting ready to go back to work."

Draco blinked. "Back to work? I thought she was staying home with your kids."

"She was, but we'd finally decided she'd go back to work when Joshua was ten months old and I'd stay at home." Ron registered Draco's slight puzzlement. "Thought Harry'd told you."

"Oh. No, that must've been after--" Draco cut himself off before saying "we broke up," but there it was, floating among them.

"Mr. Potter - oh!" said a mediwitch, entering the room. She smiled nervously at Draco, a bit flustered. "Erm. Mr. Malfoy. Pleased to meet you."

Draco's eyebrows rose. "Thank you."

"Mr. Potter, we're supposed to give Alec another dose of Nasturtium potion now." She started to pour one of the potions by the bed into a small silver spoon, muttering a spell at it. She glanced at Draco shyly. "Mr. Malfoy, I was asked to tell you that your little boy is doing very well. Should be released early, in an hour or two. He's looking forward to seeing his teddy."

"His teddy?" Draco repeated, mystified.

"Yes."

"He doesn't have one."

"Oh. His mum seemed to know what it was."

Draco shook his head.

"Must be a Muggle teddy though, she said it wouldn't work in a magical place."

Draco's frown cleared. "His telly!" he said, and Harry and Ron chuckled.

"Alec?" the mediwitch said, waving her wand over Alec and gently bringing him back to consciousness. "Dearie, let's get you sitting up and let's take our potion now, shall we?" Harry moved back onto the bed and pulled Alec onto his lap, cradling him and turning him towards the mediwitch.

"Don't want to," Alec said sleepily, turning away from the silver spoon. "'S yucky."

"Come on, Alec," Draco leaned forward and smiled at him, and Alec blinked at him drowsily and stopped squirming.

"He really responds well to you, doesn't he?" the mediwitch said, once Alec's potion was downed and Alec was mostly back to sleep.

"I suppose so," Draco said.

"He's lucky to have you both," said the mediwitch, before scurrying off with a half-embarrassed smile.

"What was that all about?" Draco said.

Ron looked at him in surprise. "You haven't read today's paper, I take it," he said.

"Bloody hell," muttered Draco, and Harry's heart sank. He hadn't been paying much attention, but had seen a few headlines in papers left discarded in the hospital. Apparently the accident at the stadium had made the news in a big way, and was still newsworthy almost a week later. Between the publicity and the letters and e-mails and few Howlers he'd received, he couldn't blame Draco if Draco decided to hide from the wizarding world for the next ten years, as soon as he was able to take Ben home.

"I brought a copy for Harry," said Ron, nodding at the side table. "You may want to take a look." He chuckled at Draco's expression. "No, seriously."

"No thanks," Draco said stiffly. "Well, Harry, you've got your family here - I'll get out of the way--"

"You don't have to," said Ron.

Draco gave a casual shrug. "I wasn't going to stay very long anyway," he said. "Ben's being released in a few hours, and--"

"Draco?" Alec murmured, turning over. "Sing to me? That sunrise song from Kara's choir?"

"You'll have to stay now, mate," said Ron with a smirk. "You can't let Harry do that; we all know what he sounds like." He got up. "Listen, I have to go too, Mum's expecting me back. I just wanted to check in and bring Harry the paper."

Draco gave a sigh and leaned forward, taking Alec's hand and murmuring to him reassuringly. Harry sat back, glancing at the paper as Draco began to sing softly.

Potter's Mystery Man Revealed

He sighed and picked up the paper, then began to read.

Half an hour later, he put the paper down.

"Draco, I really think maybe you should read this," he said slowly. Draco looked up at him expressionlessly, then let go of Alec's hand and switched places with Harry, taking the paper. Harry settled himself down next to Alec, who'd subsided into peaceful sleep a while ago, and let his mind drift again as Draco read.

He held Alec's small fingers in his own, remembering the dust, and shouting, the freezing sensation in his heart as he felt his entire world teetering on the brink once more, shutting down everything but cold grey fear for Alec. The Healer's words regarding Ben's condition momentarily breaking through like a brief ray of sunshine, before the cold closed in again. Knowing that if Alec didn't survive, there was no way he could go on.

And Draco. Clinging to Draco for strength, barely hanging on until he could see his son again. Finally seeing Alec again, feeling gratitude flooding every fiber of his being at the soft, slow rise and fall of Alec's chest.

He looked over at Draco, his brow furrowed as he read. Wondered what it was he was reading now: the listing of his various crimes, or the witnesses from the accident telling how he'd saved Alec's life? The section on his time in Azkaban, or the rescue workers praising his actions?

"You know," Draco finally said slowly, "I don't know if I really did any of what they say I did."

"Sorry?" Harry asked, frowning slightly.

"I... I went back for Alec, but the part of the wall he was under hadn't collapsed yet. It didn't fall at all."

"It did eventually."

"That's only because the rescue workers Vanished it, once they thought everyone was out."

"That might've hurt Alec too, if he'd still been under there."

"They were pretty sure there wasn't anybody still in there - and they know how to do that safely anyway. These people are saying I should be forgiven for... well, everything, because I saved your son's life. I don't think I did."

"Does it matter? You went into a dangerous place to rescue a child that wasn't even yours."

"He's as good as--" Draco began dismissively, then cut himself off and looked away. "I just don't think--"

"You showed more bravery than any of those people thought you could. That's why they changed their minds about you. It has nothing to do with whether or not you were directly responsible for saving anybody's life."

"Maybe not to you."

Harry gazed at Draco, who was looking down at the part of the article that listed his crimes and record in Azkaban. Right before they named Ben, again - though happily, Harry had yet to see a picture of him in the press.

"I'm sorry," Harry said. "Sorry you're still getting bad publicity."

"It's funny, this is what I was afraid of all along," said Draco thoughtfully. "That people would find out. That Ben might get hurt. And that... is exactly what happened."

Harry winced, nodding.

"But not... I didn't expect anybody to say anything like... this." He gazed at the photograph of the collapsed stadium.

"Even after some of the Weasleys had accepted you?"

Draco shrugged. "It's more tolerance than acceptance," he pointed out.

"Did you read what George and Demelza said about you in the article? What more do you want?" Harry paused, realizing that probably sounded pretty insensitive, though Draco hadn't reacted. "I - I'm sorry," he said awkwardly. "I didn't mean that the way it came out." Draco shrugged, still gazing at the paper. "And... I'm sorry you were still targeted. I'm sorry that what you were afraid of happened."

There was a long silence, and Harry wished he could reach out to him again, but there was a barrier between them now. Had been, ever since their break-up, only briefly vanishing during the first horrific hours in the hospital. And he was too exhausted right now, too battered by fatigue and all of the emotions of the last few days, to do more than wish that barrier gone. Maybe if he'd had more energy, he might have been able to reach out, or to try to fight for them, but...

Draco glanced at his watch and got up. "I really should get back to Ben now. I'll bring him by when he's released, all right?"

"All right," said Harry, and settled back into the chair. He held Alec's hand and smoothed back his hair, shorter now than ever before, where the Healers had had to work to heal head injuries that would probably have killed a Muggle child.

He stifled a yawn and rubbed his eyes, then closed them, just for a few minutes...

Alec's hair was short, he'd noticed when he was finally allowed to come see him, and for the first time ever it was as messy as Harry's had been when he was little. Draco had smoothed it down, a small smile on his lips.

"He'll look like himself again," Hermione said, smiling. "Soon."

If only Alec's hair were one of their major concerns, Harry thought, everyone would be a lot happier.

Sabotage at Brand-New Pennington Stadium! Death Eaters Suspected! said the front page of the Prophet, and Ron vanished it with an angry flick of his wand before Harry had a chance to read it.

"Don't worry, Mr. Malfoy," said the no-nonsense Head of St. Mungo's Security. "Your son's room has been protected." She pointed to the intense blue glow around Ben's door, and Bill nodded with satisfaction.

"And I've warded your flat," said Bill. "Kara's, too. Probably should've asked you first, but I didn't want any hothead to track down where you lived and torch your flat while you were still worried about Ben."

"It's not right, the Aurors not letting him have any kind of disguise, even now," Molly was whispering to Hermione. Crookshanks shook his head in disapproval.

"He put his own life in danger and they still won't let him?" asked Hermione angrily. "That's outrageous!"

"Daddy, I can't read that, it's fuzzy here," said Alec, blinking myopically at Harry.

"It's okay, little man, you might need glasses but that's not so bad," said Harry. And when had Alec learned to read anything but music?

"Mummy didn't have glasses, though," Alec said, a little worried.

"I guess now you've really got my eyes, then."

"Harry, he'll be fine," Draco said, taking him into his arms. "You heard them, Alec will be fine. The Healers know what they're doing."

"Didn't you leave?" Harry asked him, confused.

"Of course not," said Draco, running a hand through his hair. "Where would I go?"

"Eet eez not fuzzy 'ere," said Fleur disapprovingly, tossing her silvery hair. "You 'ave to teach Alec not to lie like that."

"He's not lying," Harry said angrily.

"But that is," said the mediwitch, pointing to words scrawled on the wall in angry red.

Death Eater: only Azkaban wants you back!

"It's not that bad," Draco said, and sang a soft lullaby to Alec and Ben, who settled into their beds and closed their eyes.

"Those people don't matter," he said to Harry, and Harry believed him...

Harry was drifting slowly into consciousness, but the chair was so warm and soft and comfortable that all he wanted was to keep sleeping, maybe forever. He snuggled deeper into the comforter, the clean, homey scent of it filling him with images of pine trees and flowers and...

He blinked. He hadn't had a comforter on him, last he remembered. Must've fallen asleep in the chair again, and whoever was supposed to come in next had kindly covered him up. And transformed the chair into a low couch to make it more comfortable, and taken Harry's glasses off. He yawned. Glanced over at Alec and gave a small start. Alec was asleep on the bed, and so was Ben.

Ben.

He sat up, picked up his glasses from the side table and glanced at the window, registering that the light had dimmed considerably. He'd fallen asleep sometime in the late morning, and it looked like evening...

"You're awake," murmured Draco, settling into the chair next to him and holding out a tray with two teas and a plate of biscuits. Harry automatically took it, feeling almost awake.

"How long have you been here?"

"Not that long, actually. Got here about an hour ago. Demelza was here again, reading, but she mentioned her twins seem to be coming down with something, so I sent her home."

"Oh. That's good." He glanced at the boys. "How long have they been out?"

"About ten minutes. They weren't terribly cheerful anyway. Thank god for magic-induced naps. Ben's driving me insane."

Harry smiled tiredly, and Draco cleared his throat. "Demelza says Molly's coming in for her overnight shift."

"Right."

Harry took a bite of biscuit, though to tell the truth he wasn't that hungry. He gazed at Ben, noting how utterly different he looked when asleep. His eyes were the same shape and roughly the same colour as Draco's, but asleep, the resemblance between the two was far less pronounced. Although come to think of it, Ben's face, once it lost its baby fat, might turn out a bit angular... maybe in the cheekbones... the eyebrows, though, and the hairline, were all Kara.

"Where's Kara?"

"At home, resting. She said it would be all right if Ben had a sleepover here, as long as you weren't alone. She didn't want to saddle you with an extra sick kid. I'll let her know Molly will be here."

"Yeah, of course," Harry said, nodding. "Of course. He's welcome to stay." He yawned. Odd to still feel so off, even after a long nap. He thought of his schedule for the next day: Healer's appointments, a meeting with the goblins, discussing handing over some ongoing projects to his colleagues, as well as his eventual return to work...

If he could just get a full night's good sleep, maybe tomorrow he would be able to face all of that. Maybe he would also be able to help Alec enjoy Ben's visit. And not wish that Draco had also stayed the night.

Things were going well with Draco. They had been slowly getting back into a friendship of sorts in the last few days, relaxing a bit in each other's presence, even teasing each other sometimes. Was that going to change now, after today's article?

He sighed and watched their boys sleeping. God, if only things were different... if only this were a regular sleepover, both kids healthy and happy, Draco staying here with them, if only they could go back to before the accident, before their break-up...

"Kara's been spending a lot of time with Ben lately," Draco said abruptly. "A lot more than I thought she would."

"That's good," said Harry. "She's a good mum. Just... distracted sometimes."

"Yeah," said Draco. "She's been praying a lot, too." He paused, smiled slightly. "I'm not sure St. Mungo's has ever had a Wiccan praying at their chapel."

Harry smiled. "Probably not."

Draco shifted slightly in his chair, then took off his glasses and started to polish them. "I... I ended up praying again too," he said. He put his glasses back on. "Merlin, I haven't done that in years, not since I first ended up in the Muggle world."

Harry's eyebrows went up. Draco had never seemed to genuinely believe any of Kara's Goddess worship; Harry had assumed he had only become involved in it out of curiosity, and then left it when he'd learned enough about the subject to satisfy that curiosity. He waited, but Draco seemed done with the topic, his thoughtful gaze fixed on the boys.

Harry sighed, wondering if maybe he should pray too. For Alec's full recovery, for the publicity over Draco to die down... for restful sleep that wasn't plagued with flashbacks...

"Kara said, a while ago, that I'd made some bad decisions," said Draco, breaking his silence again, but still looking at the boys. "Going against the wishes of the Goddess."

Harry blinked, confused. "You mean... why, because Ben was hurt? Did she think that was some sort of... punishment for that?"

Draco shook his head quickly. "No, no, nothing like that. Just... that I'd made some poor decisions. And that I needed to apologize to Her. The Goddess, that is. Not Kara."

"Right." Poor decisions. Yeah, that was one way of characterizing Draco's life before the end of the war. Though it seemed odd for Kara to say that the Goddess needed apologies. It seemed to Harry that Draco had done enough apologizing and atoning in the years between his crimes and now, but maybe the Goddess needed things more personal. Harry certainly wouldn't have been able to say anything on the matter; everything he knew about Wiccan customs and beliefs could probably be painlessly tattooed onto his eyelids.

And speaking of eyelids, his were still gritty from lack of sleep. He rubbed them wearily, glancing at Draco and noting dark shadows under his eyes too. Vaguely wondering what his own face looked like right now, and deciding he probably didn't want to know.

"Though I suppose Kara's owed some apologies too," Draco said quietly. "She... she says the Goddess needs to be given thanks for Her gifts, and apologies when we don't appreciate what She's given us."

Harry turned to look at him. Draco was looking off to the side, his voice hushed. Harry blinked and made himself pay closer attention. There was something happening here, Draco was trying to communicate something to him, and they might not be lovers any more but they were still friends, and the last thing Harry wanted to do was miss whatever Draco was trying to say just because he was tired.

Draco swallowed hard. "It's hard, when you pray... you never know if what you hear or feel is somebody actually listening and answering, or whether it's all in your head. Just a manifestation of your own need to have someone listen to you."

Harry hesitated. "Did you... hear an answer? When you prayed?"

Draco gazed at the boys silently for a while. "It's hard to tell; sleeplessness and stress and all that. I... I apologized to Her for what I'd done. In case She existed, and in case Kara was right."

Now he was blushing mightily, and Harry was getting completely confused. There must be some reason for what he was saying, because Draco just didn't do this kind of thing, reveal difficult personal things, just to hear himself talk.

"And... I think She responded."

Harry tilted his head to the side. "What did she say?"

"That Kara was right. That I'd been wrong. That I needed to apologize to you too." Draco grimaced slightly. "Though if that was really just me, I'm rather annoyed at myself."

Harry stared at him, utterly lost. Why apologize to him, specifically? To some of the Weasleys, maybe, or to people like Katie Bell, but...

"I still think I was right, at the time, but I know it hurt you and Alec and Ben..." Draco stopped, looking down. "I felt like I had to do it, had to put Ben first. It felt like I'd been... selfish, before. That I was letting how I felt for you come first, ahead of Ben, and I couldn't live with myself for doing that. But then... I don't know, Kara said that she thought the Goddess would disapprove and you know how much I believe in that kind of thing, but." He stopped, pressing his lips together.

Harry stared at him.

"So. I think, what I want, is to say I was wrong. And that I understand if - after everything that's happened... I know I hurt you too, and if you want to keep things the way they are, that's... but I just wanted you to know I wish I hadn't." He stopped. "What we had... not just you and me, but the kids, too... that was a gift," he said quietly. "And I wanted to tell you how s--"

And then he wasn't talking any more, because Harry had pulled him close and pressed their lips together, stopping his words. It wasn't something that needed words, and really, neither one of them would be likely to say any useful ones. Harry would probably just be incoherent, and Draco didn't really do humble terribly well.

They could do this pretty well, though. They could certainly communicate to each other every apology and every forgiveness and every longing thought they'd had since they'd broken up. He could show Draco every night he'd wished Draco would say exactly this, every time he'd thought that if Draco came back he'd never let him go again, because this losing loved ones routine was just not on any more, and every moment he'd thanked God that Draco had been there during the accident and afterwards...

They didn't need words for any of that.

God, he'd missed this. Harry gave himself to the kiss, noting distantly that though it wasn't exactly arousing - not with two sleeping children lying two feet away from them - it felt better than just about anything he could ever remember. The rush of relief, and elation, and a sense of coming home, of everything becoming right again--

"Oh!"

They jerked apart, staring at the doorway, where Molly, Percy and George Weasley stood gaping at them.

"Well. How... cozy," George finally broke the silence, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. Harry glanced at Molly, who looked slightly nauseated, and Percy, whose mouth was drawn into a tight, thin line, before returning to George, who was now apparently trying to suppress a case of the giggles.

"Is this a b-bad time?" George asked brightly.

"Erm."

"I suppose we'd best be going, then..." Molly began, her voice uncertain.

"Harry," Percy began. "This is... this is hardly the most sens--"

"-sensual k-kiss in the world," George broke in smoothly, drawing an outraged glare from Percy, followed by a muffled grunt of pain as he calmly put a hand over Percy's mouth and stepped on Percy's foot. "Come on, mate, n-needs a little more tongue, a l-little less--"

Percy struggled free and stepped on George's foot, highly annoyed. "That is not what I was going to say at all. This is not--"

"-any of our business, Percy," Molly said quietly.

"Do you t-two need to be left alone?" George asked. Harry and Draco gave each other slightly panicked looks. "That would b-be a yes. Let's go." He turned on his heel, grabbing Percy's elbow and dragging him out despite his protestations.

Molly looked like she was suppressing a number of things as well, but she made herself smile. "We'll be back tomorrow." She hesitated and moved closer to the bed. "The boys are all right? Both of them?"

"Yes," Draco said.

"Ben's release went well?"

"Yes."

"That's good. He's a wonderful little boy. Tell him I'll come by tomorrow with some--"

"Tomorrow it's Fred's shift!" Percy said, coming to the door again.

"Perce." George gave him a gentle cuff to the back of the head. "Shut it and l-leave them alone."

Molly gazed at Alec and Ben fondly, and tucked the blanket up a little higher on them both. "Take care of them, dear," she said to Harry, giving him a tight hug. She turned to go, then touched Draco's shoulder. "And please... take care of Harry."

"I'll do my best."

"Good." She smiled at him, not quite the warm motherly smile she gave Harry, but getting there. "We'll leave you two alone, then."

"Merlin, Perce, g-give it up!" George's annoyed voice came floating through the open door as Molly moved into the hallway.

"But the schedule--"

"Is quite lovely and we're all very proud of you drawing it up, dear," they heard Molly say patiently. "We'll just let it go for tonight, all right? Into the Floo with you, now," she said, and there was a whoosh as the Floo activated.

Harry and Draco stared at each other for a moment, then the corner of Draco's mouth quirked and Harry realized with a shock that his own was doing the same and that the unfamiliar feeling bubbling up from inside him was... laughter. Laughter - God, he hadn't laughed in so long, and Draco's eyes were bright with amusement as they tried to stifle themselves--

And they were going to wake up the boys. They hurried out of the bedroom, and Harry leaned back against the wall, letting go.

"Oh my God, did you see his face--" Draco said, laughing helplessly beside him.

"He's going to have screaming nightmares, I swear," Harry choked out. Percy the perfectly appropriate. If he'd hand-picked the Weasley most likely to suffer serious mental damage if he stumbled across the two of them snogging...

All right, that's enough, he told himself sternly after a few minutes, getting control of himself and wondering at the euphoric feeling still flooding through him. Probably due to lack of sleep; the encounter hadn't actually been that funny. But it was all right; he could laugh, there was a reason to laugh - in fact, many reasons to laugh, because Ben was out of the hospital, and Alec would get better, and Harry didn't have to keep facing any of this alone. Forget this pathetic façade of settling for Draco being just another good friend, forget pining and wishing and regretting.

Draco wiped at his eyes, finally settling himself down as well. "Screaming nightmares. Yeah." He sighed and shook his head ruefully. "I'd say a few of them will."

Harry shrugged, still chuckling. "Not as many as you'd think. Fred and his wife may cause problems; I don't much care."

"He won't," Draco said quietly. Harry looked at him questioningly. "He... he said maybe we were better off together. If I'd left you because of - well, because of people like him."

Harry's eyebrows shot up. "What? When?"

"At the hospital. And he apologized for how he'd acted before."

Harry gaped, struggling to process Draco's words. Draco swallowed hard, then added hesitantly, "A lot of apologies going around these days, I think."

"Yeah." Harry touched his arm, smiling as Draco breathed a small sigh of relief.

Draco looked down. "It's... I am really s--"

"Don't talk," Harry interrupted him and kissed him again, clinging and not particularly caring. His head was throbbing, and his back hurt, and his eyes still felt gritty with lack of sleep, all of him weary and worn, and no doubt Draco felt the same way, but it didn't matter. It didn't matter at all. He felt better than he could remember feeling in years. He kissed Draco again and felt warmth spreading through him as Draco's arms tightened around him and he surrendered to Harry, mouth opening under his, hands grasping him, running through his hair - and there was no way either of them was up for much more than this, whether they were near the kids or not, but there was something intensely comforting about it anyway...

It felt right. It felt like home, like healing, and it didn't matter what had happened before now, or why Draco had left. He caressed Draco's cheek, noting the roughness of stubble there, holding him close. And it was heaven, feeling Draco breathing against him, drowning in his scent and his warmth, the low hum of his magic caressing Harry's senses.

Harry pulled back slightly. The impulse to just go with this and enjoy it was almost overwhelming, but he needed to know for sure. He rested his forehead against Draco's, looking down as they held each other close. "So..." he began, and cleared his throat. "Does this mean - are you..."

Draco shrugged. "If you'll have me back," he said quietly.

If. Harry laughed softly and drew him close again, and answered him in the best way he knew how.