Intimately Close

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Draco seldom admitted it, but he could never get enough of the first glimpse of Hogwarts he got.

They had arrived in Hogsmeade, Harry convincing his friends to go ahead, before pulling his hood over his head. He glanced at Draco, unsure of whether he would wait with him.

"Will you stay with me? I don't want to go for the carriages until most of the place is empty."

Draco seemed taken aback for a moment before replying. "I was going to suggest the same thing."

They stayed in their cosy compartment, watching from the window as people they had known for years slowly made their way away from the train.

"Where do you think we'll be staying?" Draco asked, worry creeping in. "I'm not sure how many Slytherins are staying."

"I think Hermione said Eighth Years have a different dorm to the rest of the school. It makes sense."

Draco hummed in response, seeing the platform close to empty and pulling his trunk from overhead.

"Come on, you're coming with me." He grabbed Harry's hand, giving him just enough time to grab his trunk before striding out onto the platform.

Harry didn't argue. The cool evening air was refreshing, the warmth of Draco's hand in his grounding him.

It was strange.

After so many years of calling the boy he once knew his arch enemy, here he was holding the hand of a man he had never noticed.

Get over it, Potter!

"So, now that we've probably missed the last carriage, let's try something new. Tell me about yourself. Something I have no idea about."

"There are magical machines in the muggle world that allow you to watch events years after they happened."

"Oh come on, don't start with something muggle. I want to know you."

"Fine," he conceded, feeling the grip on his hand tighten. "Whenever something bad was happening at school, I'd usually blame you. Or Snape. Quite commonly both. The one year I was actually right, it turns out the two of you are cavorting around plotting to overthrow the school."

Draco laughed – another of those deep ones he rarely let loose.

"Maybe this year we can leave that behind. And seriously? I wasn't half as bad as you. Didn't you smuggle a dragon in your first year?"

"One, it was Hagrid's. Two, I was trying to get it out of Hogwarts."

"Of course, how could I forget? Then we had the fiasco with the Chamber of Secrets-"

"I forgot about that one! Ron and I snuck into your common room that year. We thought you were the heir, so we spent months brewing Polyjuice Potion in the girls' bathroom, turned ourselves into Crabbe and Goyle, started questioning you about it. You just thought we were idiots."

"Potter, I'm starting to see a slight pattern. Are you sure you weren't stalking me?"

"Of course, how silly of me. I was so madly in love with you that I couldn't help but watch you, admire the way you bullied me and my friends. I was just so in love with your arse that I couldn't help but stalk you."

"Was it really that difficult to be honest?" Draco laughed, squeezing Harry's hand and ignoring the sarcasm. "Look, I was right. All the carriages are gone."

"Best get walking then. Or would his royal highness like to owl up and demand a private carriage."

"You really are unbearable."

They walked most of the way in silence, neither quite prepared for the return. Perhaps the carriages would have been easier – no option of turning and running in the other direction.

They had both seen too much – no eighteen-year-old should be able to say that they had seen friends die, or had killed to survive. But they had.

"What if nobody wants me there?" Draco asked as the doors came into view, candles lighting every window in sight. "What if people see the Mark?"

"They see my scar and see it as a victory. Yours is too." When Draco turned to argue, Harry stopped and pressed a finger to Draco's lips. "This Mark," he held Draco's wrist, pushing the shirt material out of the way. "It shows everybody that you followed the Dark Lord. But you weren't a Death Eater. Not as far as I'm concerned. You saved me, and that says something. If anyone has a problem with you, they have me to get through first."

They stood there, neither seeing the scene as others would. Fingers brushing against the still-raised skin of the Mark gazes lingering on lips and drowning in eyes. To them, at that moment, nothing else mattered. Just the warmth of each other's skin against the night air.

"So, about that pick up line earlier?" Harry asked, inching closer. "I quite liked it. But I feel as if we should test it."

"You're willing to risk my life for a snog? That's horrible." Draco couldn't help but snake his arms around the shorter boy's waist.

"Shut up and kiss me, or so help me-"

Draco was happy to comply, closing the gap between them. Considering Draco had only been kissed by a half-drunk Pansy, and Harry's kissing was limited to awkward pecks with Ginny, it wasn't as heated as either wanted.

But they couldn't deny that there was a spark. Something seemed to click in their brains until Harry's hands were in blond hair, pale fingers were ghosting under Harry's shirt, and lips moved slowly against each other.

When they pulled away, not out of breath but with a mutual understanding that they should go inside, tiny smiles were matched on both faces.

"We should definitely look into doing that more often." Draco murmured, staring into Harry's eyes. They looked far darker in the poor light – close to black.

"I would recommend we repeat such an act. All the time."

"You could at least wait until after dinner." Draco chastised, squeezing Harry's hip. "Then again, your pick up line-"

Harry laughed, lowering his head into Draco's chest.

"I'm not saying anything, but if everything goes well you will very much enjoy your dessert."

Draco revelled at the sudden depth of Harry's voice – he had no idea how they had reached this moment, but he very much liked the idea of what would happen next.

"You know I've never had a boyfriend," Draco admitted, scared Harry would laugh at him.

Surprisingly, Harry did laugh. "Really? I was almost certain your father would sit there, lecturing you about how you should marry a nice pureblood, but 'don't forget to make sure he's gay'" Harry did his best impression of Lucius Malfoy, sneering slightly at the end.

Draco simply raised an eyebrow, as if questioning the hilarity of the subject. "Of course he did. The only condition was that he killed the Dark Lord as a baby and that by getting into his bed I could hand him over for execution whenever You-Know-Who stopped laughing."

"Oh, shut up." Harry lightly batted his arm. "I'm freezing, let's get inside and eat."