A Dark Time For The Light

47

To distract everyone a bit, after dinner, Harry bought another round and led them all into the games room, quiet that night, and, bagging one of the two baize-covered tables inducted his pureblood lover and friends into the mysteries of snooker. Seamus was already a cracking player, and after teaching the others a bit, ended up with Harry at the table while they fought out a nail-biting best of three games. Harry won by the black ball.

They all staggered a bit going back to the flat, but all of them kept as vigilant an eye out as they could after four pints and a big dinner, bagging some carry-out on the way. They ended up getting drunk again, then the little blunts were lit and the eight languished and laughed in front of a fifties horror movie.

The girls were assigned the spare room and the four boys had the living room, Seamus shamelessly bagging the sofa for him and Terry. Colin and Dean had to make do with a selection of cushions. They’d all brought their bedding, so there was no lack of covers. The girls lent theirs as they had a proper bed, then they all retired. As the flat quieted, Harry had Draco’s sleeping head on his shoulder. He could hear murmuring from the living room, a low laugh, then sniffles and quiet murmurs from the room next door. He lay awake, aware of the small sounds around him now, the new ones, a snore from the lounge, a muffled moan from next door. Only when the flat went quiet could Harry finally sleep.

Lunchtime the next day and Harry had a couple of calls to make. He slipped on his dressing gown and tiptoed into the kitchen. He knew the girls were awake, but the boys were sleeping in. He made a pot of tea, poured four mugs and took two to the girls and laid one on Draco’s bedside table, leaning down to plant a kiss then went back into the kitchen.

Severus first. The man answered after two rings, “Hi, Harry. It’s fucking chaos up here”. Harry chuckled, “We’ve got six here at the flat. Good afternoon to you too”. He heard the man sigh, “What happened, Harry?. I take it Hermione is with you?”. “Yeah, she and Gin are here, and we’ve got Seamus and Terry, Colin and Dean”. Harry then repeated Hermione’s tale. “A fucking rat!?”, came the reply. “Yep, crushed with a frying pan”. “Merlin’s bollocks. A safe place had to break because of a frigging rat”. Harry reasoned, “Yeah, but it was Pettigrew, and as he died, his spirit cast a dark mark. Apparently everyone got out okay. This lot were the last to leave and two are still in the honeymoon suite, Tonks and Kingsley”. Severus sounded pleased at that, “Did you get the computer out?”. Harry grinned, “Yes, it’s all over the living room. Hermione’s going to sort it out today. I’m going to call my landlord later, see if he’s got a house or something”.

They continued the call then Harry said, “Oh. With everything going on, I bet you’ve not heard our news. Mine and Draco’s?”. Severus laughed, intrigued, “Can’t say I have. Do tell”, in that arch purr he had when the gossip promised to be juicy. “Draco and I are getting married. He asked me and I accepted”. The line went silent. “Sev, Sev, are you still there?”. A strangled whisper, “Yes”, came back. “God’s teeth, Harry. Two men can marry?”. Harry chuckled, “Apparently so. Ginny saw it on a Government website, though I intend to check it out”. His voice became bashful, “We’ve even exchanged rings, although mine is at a jewellers being stretched, it’s a bit small”.

“Harry, that’s incredible. I congratulate both of you, from both of us. Marriage, eh?”, his voice tailed off thoughtfully. “We’re still on for our little party, though, aren’t we?”, his voice seductive. Harry giggled, his cock responding to that voice, “Dead right. The flat’s a little crowded at the moment, and folk are emerging, so I must go. We’ll have the machine up and running later. Speak to you soon, ‘Bye”, he closed the connection. Severus Snape had the horniest phone voice on the fucking planet.

Next he called Kilmarnock, the London contingent had arrived safely even though they were scared witless. Harry then told Neville the tale Hermione had related. “It was an accident, Nev. We’ll have the website back up this afternoon apparently. All the stuff’s here and ‘Mione will write her tale. Pettigrew was spying on us, he’d sussed the Bunker out”. They talked for a while longer then rang off.

He called Pansy next, bringing her up to date, then Leeds, getting only the answering machine. Lazy bunch of hippies, he mused grinning as he left a message and hung up.

He was dialling the next number when he felt sleepy arms around his shoulders, a kiss in his hair, “You weren’t there to wake up to”, a touch petulant. Draco loved his Sunday mornings with Harry. “Sorry, babe, I had to call the cadres, keep up to date”. Warm insistent hands were diving into the top of Harry’s dressing gown, making his nipples stiffen. Harry tipped his head back and found his lover’s mouth, closing his phone again as the kiss deepened. Draco dragged them both back to bed.

It was a struggle to stay quiet, but they swallowed each other’s noise, mainly. The others all ignored it as they dressed and tidied up their sleeping spaces. Dean found the ingredients of a fine breakfast and started cooking, the girls tidying away empty cans. When their hosts emerged a short while later with flushed cheeks, it was to a large breakfast already prepared.

Later, the two made their way to the shop owned by their landlord’s family. Hussain appeared at a yell from his mother. “Hi boys, is everything all right?”. Draco turned his megawatt charm on his clearly besotted landlord, not much older than themselves. “Everything’s fine. Brilliant in fact. We love the flat, but we have a small group of friends who are looking for a house to share. You’ve been a good landlord to us and we thought of you first”.

Harry tried not to laugh as his lover turned on the Slytherin silkiness, then added his own Gryffindor-ish contribution, “They all work. No-one’s on the dole or anything. There’s six of them, and they’re very good friends of ours”.

Hussain took them outside, out of earshot of his mother, “You know when I rented to you and I advertised for the ‘right people’?”. They both nodded, “Well the right people are gay”. Harry laughed, “These six are two girls and four boys, all in couples”, he wasn’t entirely sure what Dean and Colin were to each other precisely, but he had told two-thirds of the truth as he knew it.

The small man pondered a moment. “It’s not the poshest property I own, it may need decorating, but I think I have something that may suit. How soon can you round all of your friends up?”. Harry made a quick calculation. “We could all be here for about seven”. Hussain grinned, “I can’t let you view the property until at least six when I know that the leaving tenant will be gone. Seven sounds good to me. Make sure all six are here. I want to meet them all”. Harry grinned widely then shook Hussain’s hand. “See you later tonight, and, thank you”.

They were jubilant as they went back to the flat, relating the news. Harry took Dean aside, carefully explaining that their landlord was gay and preferred to let to gay clients. Dean shrugged, “I wouldn’t say I was exclusively gay, Harry, but I’m certainly, erm, enjoying it for now”, he blushed as he spoke, “And, let’s face it, we need somewhere to live. I think we can get on, even if it’s just as room-mates for now. I like him, Harry”, He flushed even deeper and leaned towards his old dorm-mate, “I never knew guys blew each other like that”. Harry roared laughing and hugged him.

As they set out to meet their landlord with their friends, both Draco and Harry slipped their cards in their pockets. The man met them and was introduced to them all. He cast a shrewd gaze over them all. He used his instincts. All were bright eyed, healthy looking, wearing decent quality clothes in the scruffy way of ex-students, their genuine smiles as they shook his hand. He nodded slowly, “The house is two streets away, off the main road, nice and quiet, so I hope you don’t make too much noise”. They all shook their heads. The man led them away from the main street down a side street, then left, then right, then left again, then a small gateless gateway up a path, unlocking a green-painted front door.

The house was completely empty. They were shown around. A three up and three down terrace. A bit shabby, the previous tenants had been there ten years and were moving to warmer climes. After they’d been shown round, the six grinned at each other, Ginny particularly interested in the long skinny garden out the back. The rooms were a reasonable size. Storage heaters rather than central heating kept the rent low.

Hussain enquired after all their professions. Hermione now had three book-keeping clients and was working hard to expand. The others all stated their line of work and the man seemed happy. He made a decision on the spot. “750 a month, with a deposit if you want furniture, of 500 quid”. They smiled and Dean stepped up. “We’re happy with the deposit. But we don’t need that much furniture. How about 650 a month, then we have a deal”, he held his hand out. Hussain countered, “700 and we sign”. Their hands joined then shook.

The paperwork was signed that night and Harry paid the deposit. Ginny dropped three months in advance and Hussain was a happy man, handing the keys over. It was getting late as they trailed back to the flat, but they still insisted on hefting bedding out and large bags in a taxi to their new home. Dean thought to fix a new meeting point between them and called Cellan with the new instructions. In as much of a whirlwind as they’d entered, the six left, leaving the flat empty and echoing with voices gone.

Harry and Draco didn’t blame them in the least. At least four of them had to prepare for work in the morning and all were glad of their new bolt-hole even though it smelled a bit weird. The boys felt sorry for their friends having to relocate so quickly, but were proud of the speed of their adaptability and thanked their landlord silently for his speed in divining people. Harry nuzzled Draco’s neck, “D’you think Hussain is a demi-magique, he seems to have a skill for reading people right off the bat?”. Draco sniggered and pulled Harry to him for a kiss, “No. He’s just a good guy”.

At lunch the next day, Harry sat with his friends out in the sunshine. They tried to fill Steffie, Cellan and Alan in on their last several days. Harry described coming across the graveyard, a little of the state of his old school, the dead that none were aware of. The blowing apart of the London cadre, but not why, then his and Draco’s engagement. This last with a shy smile and flushed cheeks.

Steffie leaned over and hugged him, “Quite a week, then?. Is everyone alright?”. Harry nodded. “Everybody got out okay, but people are scared...”.

At more or less the same moment, Draco was having more or less the same conversation with his own colleagues which had started out with a sharp-eyed Saskia spotting his ring. On that finger. Which had led to his other tales of the previous week, then sobbing suddenly, his face giving way and Jacinta gathering him to her, telling of the cemetery and the necessary but awful name-gathering, the state of his old school. The rest of the team were silent. Caroline sniffled at the waves of loss that lapped at her consciousness, then the anger that rose in her, a mug suddenly exploded next to her. They all started. Draco dived over to his colleague and held her, her distress was making her untrained Magic react.

“Breathe Caro, just breathe. Nice long breaths. This has happened before, when you are angry or distressed?”. The girl in his arms nodded. “It’s your magic, love. Quite strong, too. Don’t take this the wrong way or anything, but I reckon if there had been any dropouts in your entry year at Hogwart’s then you would have been on the reserve list”. This drew her totally stunned gaze snapping up to his, “Are you serious?”. His eyes teared involuntarily and he looked down at her, “Yes. I can feel it. And believe me, if I ever get to use my Magic again, I want to train people like you and Harry’s boss. Ginny has given you the name of demi-magiques and I think that’s right”.

Caroline smiled, even though her eyes were wet, “Demi-magiques. I like that. It doesn’t derogate, but it fits. Remind me to thank her sometime. Ginny is the beautiful redhead with the brilliant girlfriend?”. Draco grinned and nodded. Caroline thought back to the party, “I really liked those two...”.

They were both tired that night, slumping in front of the TV with a take-out, relating their days. Emotionally tired, their bosses easing them back to the toil which both welcomed. A happy lassitude engulfed them as they kissed before some cheesy movie playing ignored on the TV. The flickering light was enough to see by as Harry took his lover, bent over the seat of the sofa, pants pushed roughly around their knees.

They cleaned up and Harry fetched both of their gowns. They curled up and cuddled on the sofa, Draco idly watched the TV while Harry dozed in his arms. For two pins, Draco wished that time would stop right there and then. He treasured moments like this.

Oh god!. He’s really here. In my fucking bed. With as near tacit permission from Snape as I’ll ever get. He crawls up the mattress, displaying himself, albeit clothed, then glances over his shoulder. He cannot disguise the want in his eyes, more likely does not want to. He sends it all my way and I am helpless before it. He beckons me to him. I cannot help myself. I’m almost salivating. We move together, the intervening week making us strain towards each other but we hold back. Fuck. I could just throw him on his back, his legs over my shoulders, bury myself balls-deep in him, then he twines around me, kisses me like he means it, twisting us until he straddles me. Our clothes are lost somewhere. I want him so much. A short preparation then he is buried in me. I have never felt so complete in my life. He’s my other half. In that short moment of completion, I know I am his to do with whatever he pleases. I scream his name as I come, “Harry”.