Draco was drooling. Sitting on his bed in his room at Malfoy Manor, his gaze locked onto the glossy cover of a magazine. It was the first edition since the war, and he had to admit that the editor had come back to the party in full swing.
The building that housed Witch Weekly Magazine had perished in the battle, but with funding from prominent politicians and the like, they had climbed their way back to the top. The only thing missing was a glamorous cover and an untold story.
But the man who had saved the world, ended up saving the magazine as well - and not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, they took the opportunity with both hands wide open.
Harry Potter had approached the editor with an offer of an exclusive interview. They had all agreed on the grounds that he proof read the article before it was published.
And so it was.
The cover photo had him sitting on a chair - dressed in a suit - The jacket and shirt were open and his tie was loose, hanging down both sides of his neck. His arms were leaning on his elbows, and his face had a sultry look. His piercing green eyes, with one eyebrow raised - as if in a challenge. His long hair just past his collar looking soft and wavy, with his sexy fringe flicked down just above one eye.
His famous wire rimmed glasses were nowhere to be seen on his gorgeous face, and it appeared that he had earrings in his ears. There was also a lip ring that had been pierced through his bottom lip, giving him a sense of mystery and sex appeal. The fact that he was biting said lip only added to the image of that.
Potter hadn't been seen in the Wizarding world since the war, only coming out to give testimony at trials to those who he thought were deserving of his favor. He had spoken up at the Malfoy, Zabini, and Parkinson trials - stating that we were all children fighting an adult's war.
And - if you really want to lock them away in a prison cell, you better make space for me - because I wasn't exactly innocent in the war either. I bloody killed a man for Merlin's sake!! The Wizengamot just sat there in their seats, with a look of shock and disbelief on their faces, and finally relented.
They knew if they took him up on that offer, they were going to get the brunt of it. Locking Harry Potter away was a big no no - and so they had offered freedom to the three families, with the only punishment being - house arrest and no wands for a year.
The families hated having to admit that they were grateful to Potter for saving them, although they were happy with their narrow escape. Not one of them, parent or child had written to Potter to thank him for his unselfish act, except of course Narcissa Malfoy.
She had penned many letters to him, telling him that there was no way she could ever repay what he had done for her family and for their world. If there was ever anything that he needed, all he had to do was ask.
Harry would often write back to her, thanking her every time for saving his own life during the war. He would tell her that he wasn't ready to face anyone just yet, and that perhaps when he was feeling up to it, they could have lunch together some time.
She waited for the letter of invite, but it never came.
18 months had passed since the downfall of Voldemort, so the last time he had actually been seen was at the trials, and also not by everyone - and so a shorter period where people had last seen their hero.
He had been invited back to complete his final year at Hogwarts, but had turned that down - he wasn't strong enough to see anyone yet, was his reasoning. He wasn't ready to face the scrutiny that came with his name, and certainly not ready to eat in a hall where his friends and fellow students had met their demise.
