Harryrella

A/N: First of all I'd like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has read and taken the time to review this fic. Also thanks to my wonderful beta, shadow_samurai, who has given me lots of advice, inspiration and a kick up the arse when I needed it. Love ya, hun.

**WARNING** This chapter contains angst, but it's still funny. So without further ado...


Chapter 5

The journey back to Privet Drive was a slow, agonizing one for Harry. He’d cried most of the way, and now, in the solace of his cold dank cellar, he was crying again. Everything his fairy godfather had said came true. He was no longer clothed in his beautiful white suit, and his hair wasn’t tousled sexily anymore. The magic had gone, worn off, just like Dumbledore said it would.

Now Harry lay on his mattress sobbing his heart out, praying it would break and shatter into a thousand pieces, so he would never have to face the world again.

‘I don’t even know why I’m crying. It’s not like Draco would really care for me. Nobody does and no-one ever has. I’m just a freak, a servant with no right to friends or a life outside these bloody walls. I am just a nobody,’ he thought.

Harry drifted off into a restless sleep. Dreams came easily, and in his subconscious mind, his fairy godfather was murmuring soothing words, stroking his hair and filling his befuddled head with hope. ‘It will all work out in the end, Harry. You’ll see! Just rest, my boy. I said I would always be a memory, and so I shall. Draco will find you, I didn’t put a spell on that ring for nothing. Lemon drop? Oh, sorry, you’re asleep, how silly of me.’

Harry moaned, rolled over and continued to dream.

********

Draco awoke with a start. He still had ‘James’s’ ring clutched tightly in his hand, and dried up tear stains stuck to his face. “Eww, I feel like I’ve been dragged through a bloody monsoon and thrown unceremoniously on my arse. I need some strong coffee and a shower, and then I need to find James. I don’t care if I have to walk barefoot through freezing winds and snow, I’m gonna find him.”

A soft knock at the door stopped Draco’s train of thought. “Come in, but I’m just going in the shower so make it qui… what the fuck do you want?” Blaise stood in the doorway, mouth agape at the sight of his ‘man’ in just a towel, exposing his upper body, which was, in Blaise’s opinion, mighty fine.

“Um… I just wanted to say goodbye, and um… thanks for the invite. Mind you, it seems a shame to let a good body like that go to waste. I can give you a thorough servicing, if you’d like,” Blaise purred.

Draco’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline. ‘What the fuck? Who the hell does he think he is? Elijah fuckin’ Wood? No, my Elijah James Wood is out there, and this muppet ain’t gonna stop me finding him,’ Draco mused. “I don’t think so, Blaise, but thanks for the offer. Now if you don’t mind, I have things to do. Thanks for coming last night, now please leave.”

Blaise didn’t let Draco’s icy tone stop him. He closed the distance between them and placed his hands on Draco’s shoulders. “I don’t recall ‘coming’ at all last night, but that bed looks inviting and well, maybe, you could ‘come’ with me. I can give you what your little bit of stuff failed to.”

Draco saw red. “WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? MY BIT OF STUFF, AS YOU SO ELOQUENTLY PUT IT, HAD TOO MUCH TO DRINK AND HAD TO BE HOME BY UM… WELL HE HAD TO BE HOME. JUST FUCK OFF,” he yelled.

His heart was pounding in his chest and his legs were shaking with the anger radiating from him. But still Blaise refused to go. “Are you deaf? I asked you to leave. Get your filthy hands off my aristocratic body and disappear.” Draco shook off Blaise’s hands and stomped towards his shower room. Turning round, he said, “If you’re still here when I get out the shower, I’ll have you removed by force. There was only one guy I was interested in last night, and I intend to let him know that. So you just toddle off and let me get ready. Goodbye, Blaise.”

Blaise turned and left the room. ‘Ah well, you win some, you lose some, Zabini. Not the end of the world. There’ll be more blond stunners to find along the way, at some point. But I wanted Draco. Not for his wealth, just for… I dunno, I just think he looks like the sort of guy to complete me. Sigh, maybe I’ll just go and find a bottle of bourbon and drink myself into oblivion,’ he mused as he made his way through the long halls and out of the front door into the early morning sunlight.

Draco showered quickly and after drying himself off, he dressed in casual clothes consisting of a pale green, tight fitting tee shirt and faded blue jeans with a leather belt. He found a pair of trainers and pulled them on. Then with a quick comb of his hair and a splash of expensive cologne, he was ready to start his search for the man who stole his heart the night before.

Draco left his room and made his way downstairs, wondering if there were any stragglers left from the party. They would have to be cleared out as soon as possible. He was on a mission, one he didn’t want to fail.

As he approached the double doors to the main ballroom, he peered inside at the sight before him. His mother was sprawled in a very unladylike manner across a table, head in her arms and fast asleep. He turned his nose up in disgust as he found his father, and he decided to wake them as quickly as possible. But instead of approaching quietly, Draco wanted to give them the best wake up call ever.

“FATHER, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING WITH YOUR HEAD STUCK BETWEEN SEVERUS’S CLEAVAGE? GET OUT OF THERE RIGHT NOW!”

Lucius stirred, but didn’t get up from the comfortable sofa he had managed to fall onto, face first, in a drunken stupor the night before. Snape, on the other hand, was a bit shocked at the compromising position they had been found in.

“Lucius, you great arse, move your thick head from my tits right now before I poke a hole in that bloody insufferable leprechaun you insist on clutching,” Severus said angrily.

Draco shook his head and called Crabbe and Goyle to make a large pot of black coffee. He turned back to his father and sneered. “One would think you were enjoying yourself, Father. Honestly, you’re an embarrassment; you were more or less humping Severus’s leg when I walked in here. Disgusting!”

Snape looked like he was about to pass out. “You… you… hum… ped my leg? What kind of pervert are you, Lucius? Sick fucker.”

“Um, sorry, Sevvie, but you know I have a soft spot for blonde haired, big breasted women, hmm?” Lucius grinned.

Severus wasn’t impressed. “I’M A FUCKIN’ BLOKE, YOU MORON. AND I’M NOT BLONDE,” he seethed.

“Correct me if I’m wrong here, but last night… YOU WERE BLONDE WITH BIG TITS, AND I WAS DRUNK AND DIDN’T BOTHER TO LOOK BELOW THE WAIST,” Lucius roared, finally losing his temper.

Draco thought this would be a good time to smooth things over. He calmed them down, and then told Severus and Lucius about ‘James’ and the ring, and what had transpired before ‘James’ left in a hurry, leaving his ring behind. “I have to find him, Father, I have to,” he choked.

***********

Once Malfoy Manor was back in its original state, and the occupants were more or less functioning properly, Draco ushered Severus and his father to the front door with the keys to the Rolls Royce clutched in his hand. He kissed his mother and told her to expect a guest later, and to have a dinner fit for a king prepared.

Narcissa was a bit sceptical at Draco’s enthusiasm. “You don’t even know where this James lives, Draco. It may take days - weeks even - to find him, and what’s to say he wants to come back with you, hmm? He did make a bid for freedom quite unexpectedly,” she said, with a raised eyebrow.

Draco huffed and folded his arms across his chest. “Oh ye of little faith, Mother. I will find him, even if I have to die trying. I’ll do it. Now please amuse yourself while we’re gone, and ask the goons to help prepare dinner. Good day, Mother.” ‘Bloody hell, I know she’s blonde and all, but does she have to be so blatantly stupid? Hmph! As if I’m not going to find him,’ Draco chided as an afterthought.

Severus read through the invitation replies one by one, and as the three men sat in the back seat of the flashy car, they argued about where to start. Draco was first to speak.

“Father, I think it would be easier starting closer to home. That way we can eliminate as many as possible, and then work our way through the cities. I think the furthest place we received acceptances from was Surrey.”

Lucius bit his lip, and then opened and closed his mouth as if he were imitating a goldfish. “Um, Draco, how much alcofrol did you consume last night? This will take days, not a few bloody hours, and my sodding head is splitting. Besides, how do you know that the ring won’t glow on all the other guests’ fingers?”

Draco shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. ‘Why do I have to be blessed with such fucking idiot parents?’ he mused. Taking a deep breath, he hoped his voice was calm before he answered Lucius’s questions. “I think the word you’re looking for is alcohol, Father, not alcofrol. Looks like you had more than you could stomach, huh? And also, it won’t take days because I know what James looks like. We’ll try the first few guys, and if the ring doesn’t glow then we just… Christ, I dunno, we’ll think of something, alright? Now can we please bloody well get going?” He slumped down in his seat in a very un-Malfoyish way as Severus read out the first address.

************

Harry was woken abruptly from his sleep by four hands dragging him out of his bed. “Mmff! What the fuck?”

Tom and Dudley pulled him swiftly to his feet and threw him against the wall. Harry heard something crack and realized one of them had stood on his glasses, which he left by his mattress every night before climbing into bed. He didn’t bother to bend down to retrieve them; instead his mind was working overtime. ‘I’m done for, they’re gonna kill me for sure. Fuck, what do I tell them? Should I own up or just let them pummel me into a bloody pulp?’

He didn’t have time to think anymore as a hand found its way into his messy hair and his head was slammed hard against the stone wall. A warm breath ghosted over Harry’s ear, which was accompanied by Tom’s cold tone. Harry whimpered and closed his eyes, waiting for the first punch to knock him to the floor. It never came.

“Enjoy yourself last night, Potter?” Tom spat his name as though it would burn his tongue if he said it nicely. ‘I did as a matter of fact, thanks for asking. Shame Draco didn’t want anything to do with you two morons,’ Harry said to himself, not really listening to Tom’s verbal abuse. “I’m talking to you, you ignorant piece of shite. Answer me or…” He was cut off by Harry’s calm voice.

“Or what, Tom? I have no clue what you are gibbering about. So if you don’t mind, I would appreciate it if you untangled your slimy paw from my sexy hairdo and crawled back beneath the stone you slithered your way out from under.”

Tom’s eyes flashed dangerously. It scared Harry a little as he’d never seen his cousin this angry before. He thought he could maybe stick the knife in a bit, and snorted to himself.

“What’s up, Tom? Did Prince Draco turn you down for someone more tempting, hmm? Or maybe, just maybe, he thought you and fuddy Duddy were lovers and he didn’t want to step on his mighty big toes!” He grinned from ear to ear as he watched Tom's and Dudley’s faces take on three different expressions, and change from normal skin tone to white, then red, pink, and back to white again, in the space of five seconds.

Harry couldn’t help himself. He burst out laughing and held his stomach, pointing his finger at his two stunned cousins as he tried to speak and laugh at the same time. “Ha ha ha ha… oh my God, ha ha, fuck me… no, on second thoughts, scrap that last bit, don’t want you getting any ideas. Hee hee, judging by the look on you… your… f… ha ha, faces, he did think you were lovers. Ooooh my great balls of fire, I wish I’d seen that.” He managed to straighten up and wipe the happy tears from his face as he watched Tom taking deep breaths.

“You sick, twisted little bastard, neither Dudley nor I are gay, as you know. We went there just to see how the other half lived,” Tom said angrily. “And for your information, Potter, the snobby pouf spent the last part of the night draped over some guy, who happened to look a bit like you, I hasten to add. Then the soppy fuckwit danced with said Potter doppelganger and fainted, all in the same night.” He snorted as he remembered the embarrassment of the host dropping to the floor at the mere mention of a Porsche. ‘You’d think he’d be used to expensive gifts, or maybe he faints at every gift he receives because he has to show surprise at being given such treasures,’ he thought.

Harry sighed at the memory of Draco holding him in his arms and whispering beautiful words in his ear.

He closed his eyes as he thought about that kiss. His very first kiss, perfect, full of passion and sacred. Harry would treasure that one kiss forever, etched in his brain and residing there till the day he died. ‘I’ll never see Draco again, but at least I have the memories of his perfect mouth. Oh God, I wonder what that hot mouth would feel like wrapped around my cock or…eek! Lose that train of thought now, Harry. You’ll come in your fuckin’ drawers if you continue with those thoughts. Who the hell invited you back? I told you to get out of my head. Take over Tom’s head, he needs the company, you bloody halfwit,’ he chided.

***********

It took at least another fifteen minutes to convince the wannabe Kray twins that Harry was most definitely not at Malfoy Manor the previous evening. He even agreed with them about the poor guy who had the unfortunate pleasure of looking like him, and pitied the poor lad. ‘Yeah, Harry. You sure do pity ‘James‘. How sad for the poor guy to have everything within reach one minute and to be grasping fresh air the next. You’re a sad, lonely loser, and Draco is better off without you.’

He ignored the mocking tone of his inner voice, even though it was the truth. Draco was probably shagging someone else happily right at this very moment, and Harry only had himself to blame.

He pushed the thoughts aside and dragged himself lazily up the stairs to start on his daily duties. As soon as Harry entered the kitchen, he noticed the pack of whales eyeing him suspiciously. Taking a deep breath, one he hoped wouldn’t show how nervous he was, he made his way to the cooker and set the frying pan on the burner.

“Good morning, everyone. Welcome to Potter’s bistro. Would you like the house speciality this morning? It’s called ‘Hovis à la wheeped eggs,” Harry said in a mock French accent.

Vernon’s face took on a lovely ripe tomato colour and he began to splutter incoherently. “What the ruddy hell are you talking about, boy? Have you lost your marbles? ‘Hovis à la wheeped eggs’, what in ruddy’s name is that? And I don’t recall ever giving you permission to open that impudent little mouth of yours unless you’re told to, boy. Now get the breakfast on, cheeky, useless, waste of space that you are,” he spat.

Harry could feel the sting of tears as they tried to squeeze forth from his eyes. He turned around to the fridge and pulled out the bacon and eggs, but not before muttering, “I was trying to bring some cheerfulness to the house this morning. I thought that if I have to live here with a bunch of moody psychopaths, I could at least enjoy it. Sorry for trying, and breathing, and for me being born in the first place. Now you’ve pissed me off, you can get one of your supposedly perfect sons to make the fucking Hovis à… I mean scrambled eggs on toast.” Harry ran from the kitchen as fast as his legs could carry him, ignoring the shouts of his uncle whale.

“BOY, GET YOUR ARSE BACK HERE RIGHT NOW, DO YOU HEAR ME? POTTER?” When no reply came, Vernon charged through the house and stopped at the door leading to the cellar. He tried to yank it open, but found it locked. His anger bubbled even more. “UNLOCK THIS RUDDY DOOR THIS INSTANT, YOU UNGRATEFUL, IGNORANT LITTLE FUCK. YOU HAVE UNTIL TONIGHT TO GATHER YOUR MEASLY BELONGINGS AND FUCK OFF OUT OF OUR HOME. I WON’T TOLERATE YOUR BEHAVIOUR ANYMORE.”

Harry listened to the whale bellowing through the door. ‘I wonder if that’s the mating ritual for whales. Better watch out then, there will be hundreds of blubbering females showing up on the doorstep hoping to mate and produce baby whales. Eww, that’s just disgusting. Who in their right mind would want to willingly shag that over-stuffed balloon? Well apart from the horse, that is. She must have been seriously pissed when she got in the sack with that slimy, oversized fish up there,’ Harry snorted as he jerked his head towards the door.

The pounding on the door had ceased and the silence which had settled made Harry uneasy. He’d been given the one thing he’d always wanted, and that was his freedom. Uncle whale had told him to pack his bags, but now, as he sat there thinking about the choices he had, he realized he was well and truly up shit creek without a paddle.

“I’ve nowhere else to go.” He thought for a moment before continuing, “I’ve got no real friends, apart from Ron, but I don’t know his family very well, and the only other option is the park at the end of the street. I could sneak a duvet and a pillow from someone’s bed and bugger off before they knew I was gone. Better start packing my few clothes and books that I have then, huh? Should only take me five minutes, then I’ll sit here until it gets dark and quietly slip out.”

With the packing done in less than a minute, Harry sat on his mattress and gazed morosely at the wall. ‘I wish Draco were here. I wish my knight in shining armour would rescue me from this nightmare and take me in his arms, holding me so close that I’m unable to breathe. I want Draco,’ Harry thought silently as the first tear began to fall before being joined by several others. He lay down on his make shift bed and cried himself into an uneasy sleep.

************

The black Rolls Royce pulled up outside number four, Privet Drive eight hours later. The occupants were tired, irritable and ready to head back. No luck had been found in any of the homes Draco had entered. He didn’t even remember half of the faces from the night before. They had made the decision not to go to the home of Blaise Zabini. Draco told his father he was one hundred and fifty percent positive that the ring hadn’t glowed around the greasy stalker, and they drove on to Surrey in silence.

Draco looked at the the last two invitations Severus had handed to him. “This one is where the Dursleys live. If my memory serves me correctly, then we don’t really need to go in there. The two homophobic twits didn’t make a very good impression on me last night and I have no desire to see them again.” He glanced at the next invitation and nodded. “Number thirty-eight, Privet Drive instead then.”

As the car slowed to a stop, Draco stepped out and turned up his nose in disgust. The house was shabby, with paint peeling from the door and window frames.

The garden looked as though it hadn’t seen the light of day in years. No flowers adorned the soil, only weeds and litter that had fallen from the overflowing bin. As the three men approached the front door, Draco wondered if he had made the biggest mistake of his life. If this was where ‘James’ lived, then he was obviously very poor and had maybe acquired his suit from a neighbouring home. The thought made Draco’s stomach lurch.

After a brief ten minutes in the dilapidated house, Draco was relieved that the young man who lived there had no recollection of a ring. He couldn’t even remember Draco. “I was way too pissed on your bubbly, sir, to even know what day it was. I hope you find him though,” he’d said. Draco nodded his thanks and they left in a hurry.

Severus finally managed to convince Draco to try number four this time, but he wasn’t so sure. They sat in the car for what seemed like hours, but only minutes had passed, and tried to think about the situation they were in.

Severus finally snapped. “For the love of God, Draco, just go in there, will you? It’s nearly dinnertime and I certainly have no desire to eat at a fast food place, not when I can enjoy your mother’s fine cuisine.” This was said with a slight tug to the usually tight mouth and Draco relented.

Smoothing down his shirt and checking his hair in the mirror, Draco stepped out of the car and the other two followed reluctantly. He knocked on the door and silently prayed it wouldn’t be answered by…

“The frigging he-devil himself,” Lucius sneered. “Greetings, my friend, we come in peace. May we come in?” Draco was trying desperately to suppress his laughter at his father’s welcoming speech. He watched Tom Dursley closely as the boy tried his best to form a coherent reply.

Tom stepped aside and ushered the three men into the hallway. Draco looked around at the bland décor and his eyes strayed to a heavy wooden door to his right, just below the stairs. Something didn’t sit right with him. The door was too big to be the entrance to a storage cupboard, and it looked out of place. Tom followed his gaze and swallowed nervously.

“Um, that’s our cellar. Just a load of junk down there, you know? Stuff we have no use for, but are unable to get rid of. What are you here for? Did my brother and I leave something behind last night?” Tom eyed Draco suspiciously, waiting for an answer. He suddenly felt very hot under the collar as Draco’s eyes never left the cellar door. He was thankful they were interrupted by the head whale, who pushed his son aside to glare at the intruders.

“What the ruddy hell is this? A gathering of ‘snobs are us’? What are you doing in my house?” Vernon bellowed.

Draco cringed at the intense glare from this man. ‘Fuck me, now I know where the canary fits in with this family,’ he mused. Before he could say anything, Lucius spoke up, and Draco wished the floor would open up right then and swallow him whole.

“Oh, how rude of us. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lord Malfoy. This is my son, Prince Draconis - Draco for short - and our butler, Mr Severus Parton-Snape.” Here Severus snorted and tried to hide his embarrassment as memories of the night before filled his mind. “We are here to discuss a ring Draco has acquired and to test it out on your sons.” Lucius sneered at the unusual family. ‘Two oversized whales and two horses in one home? I think I’ve walked into a bloody farm and right through that door are the pigs and sheep.’

At the mention of the ring, Vernon snatched it from Draco's hand and tried it on his sons' fingers. But no matter how hard he tried, the whale couldn’t get the ring to glow. He had tried shining a torch on it, polishing it and rubbing it over his shirt, but all it did was shine in the light. Dudley was looking rather green at the sight before him, but that didn’t stop Draco teasing the twit.

“What’s wrong with you, Tweety Pie? Worried that the ring is going to glow and I’ll have to take your fat arse right here in your front room? Sorry to disappoint you, but it only seemed to glow around one person and if I find him, and it doesn’t glow, I’ll still not be shagging you. So don’t get your feathers ruffled, you’re not my type,” Draco chided. ‘He needs to lose some weight and stop being so bloody prudish. Fuckin’ arsehole thinks I want to touch him? In his dreams; I wouldn’t spit on the lump of lard if he was on fire,’ he added as an afterthought.

Vernon Dursley was anxious to get these people out of his house quickly, even if it meant letting them take one of his precious boys with them. After all, what did it matter that the blond prick was gay? He was loaded and to have one of his own shack up with the prince wouldn’t be a bad thing. His bank balance would treble and he could retire from his dead-end job selling drills, and go off and see the world. The suggestion didn’t go down too well with everyone in the room, though.

“Not on your life!” yelled Tom.

"Eep!" squeaked Dudley, shielding his arse.

“Vernon, cupcake, that is disgusting. We don’t need their filthy money,” Petunia spluttered.

“You are off your fuckin’ trolley! My son has taste, you fat bastard,” Lucius roared.

Draco was speechless.

Once they had all calmed down and were ready to leave, the cellar door opened and Draco’s eyes fell on the waif-like boy who had appeared from the cellar. The boy looked startled and he muttered out a quiet ‘hello’ as he hurried past them to the kitchen. Vernon followed and grabbed the stunned boy by the collar.

Because one of the lenses of Harry’s glasses had been smashed during his confrontation with his cousins that morning, he was too slow to react to the fist that caught him in the ribs. Vernon punched him twice more before pulling him forward and roaring in his face. “What the fuck are you doing, boy? You know you don’t come out of that ruddy cellar unless it’s to work or because I requested it. Get your filthy little self out of my sight, now.”

Harry was stunned. Not only was the man of his dreams standing in his living room, but he also had to endure three heavy blows to his ribs. They hurt like hell, and he wrapped an arm around his torso protectively before taking in a great lungful of air and spitting out his retort. “I was thirsty, you great, blubbering fuckwit. Even servants have to drink, and it may be the last I have since I’m leaving your humble abode tonight. I must admit, though, I’m glad I came out of that hellhole to water my parched throat or I may never have set eyes on that fine specimen of a guy over there. You don’t mind if I drop my pants and shag him senseless on your carpet, do you?” Harry raised a questioning eyebrow at his now reddish-looking uncle whale. ‘Wait for it, Harry. Any second now he’s going to collapse in a heap from a heart attack.’

“Wha… you… you ruddy… freak. How dare you… you insolent little pouf. You are not welcome here anymore; we should have sent you away when we had the chance. All these years of taking care of you and this is the thanks we get? Get out… get out, NOW,” Vernon roared.

Harry was on form though, and having an audience, more than the usual ones at that, made him more confident.

“Yeah, yeah, blah de blah blah. Are you quite finished, you oversized tramp?” Harry heard sniggering from the other side of the room and turned to look at his crush, who was trying hard not to fall over from laughing silently. He turned back to the whale, whose mouth was hanging open in shock, and continued his rant. “I don’t recall you ever taking care of me, as you put it.

Locking a child in a dark cellar and using them as a servant isn’t, in my opinion, taking care of me. You have shown me no love, or anything remotely caring, in sixteen years, and I’m shocked that you call yourself a parent. Any decent parent wouldn’t treat a child the way you treated me, whether I was yours or not. You’re a disgrace, the lot of you. Now if you don’t mind, I’m going now. I hope your wonderful sons know how to cook and clean,” he sneered, before pushing past his uncle and heading for the front door.

A warm hand on his arm stopped him and Harry sighed in frustration. He just wanted out of there, away from the hurt and pain he’d endured for most of his life, and away from Draco, who was probably here to tell him that what had happened the night before was a mistake and he never wanted to see him again. But Draco’s warm voice stopped him in his tracks.

“Wait, don’t go. I… I need to ask you something.” Harry shifted from foot to foot nervously and looked at the floor. ‘He wants to ask why you are such a half- baked fuckwit, Harry,’ his inner voice mocked. He pushed it away and nodded for Draco to continue. “Can… um… would you err… try this ring on for me?”

Harry’s head snapped up. His stomach lurched as he looked at his ring, which Draco was holding between his thumb and forefinger. He felt the nausea rising to his throat and the tears springing to his eyes. ‘He’s going to mock me, I know he is. He’ll hate me, I mean, look at me. I’m not exactly the good looking bloke he danced with last night. I’m just a skinny, underfed, geeky teenager with messy hair and… oh fuck… a growing arousal.’

Harry tugged his jumper down trying to hide his obvious erection from everyone. No one seemed to notice his discomfort as he took the ring from Draco and placed it on his third finger of his right hand. Nothing happened. Harry let go of the breath he was holding and started to take off the ring. Draco chose that moment to put his hand on Harry’s wrist and watched in awe as the ring glowed to a vibrant green. Harry groaned out ‘oh God’ and turned to stare at the shocked looks on everyone’s faces.

“James?” Draco asked. He didn’t get to find out as all hell broke loose.

Vernon tried to pull the ring from Harry’s finger, breaking the digit in the process. Harry cried out in pain and slumped forward. Lucius, always the one to protect his son, quickly reached out to grab Draco, who had lunged at Vernon with his fists flying in rage.

Harry was led to the sofa, much to Vernon’s chagrin, and was joined by Draco seconds later. Draco took hold of Harry’s trembling hand and whispered softly, “I’ve found you at last, James. Come home with me. You won’t ever have to see these morons again, huh?”

A long silence ensued as Dudley tried to piece together what was going on. Why was Draco calling his cousin James? It didn’t make sense. Harry had sworn he wasn’t at the party the night before, but then again, maybe he had somehow managed to get there and give a false name so he wouldn’t be recognized. It made sense. ‘Time to crush the hopes of those two ever getting together then,’ he silently said.

“His name isn’t James, you dumb arse. He’s playing you for a fool,” Dudley said, looking for Draco’s reaction.

“Sorry? Did you say something, Big Bird? Only I’m sure I heard a slight twittering in my ear hole. I don’t recall asking you to stick your large nose into a very private conversation.”

Dudley ignored Draco’s nasty comment and ploughed on. “His name is Harry, or Potter, but Tom and I call him Harryrella. You know? As in the story of Cinderella?” Dudley mused. Draco saw red and leapt from the sofa, pulling Harry with him.

“You are a bunch of sick, twisted individuals. How dare you treat another human being like that? I have a good mind to report you to the social services.” At this statement, Harry flinched. Draco squeezed his hand in reassurance and dropped the subject. “You won’t mind then, if I take Ja… Harry with me, will you? Don’t worry about paying his way, I’m loaded, in more ways than one actually,” Draco raised his eyebrows seductively.

“And my family and I will take care of him. He’ll want for nothing. I’m surprised you manage to shit, Mr Dursley. It must be awfully difficult considering how tight you really are. Good day to you. Come on, Harry, let’s go home, love.”

They left quickly before the family could start protesting. Not that they were too bothered about finally getting rid of their unwanted burden, but it was the hate-filled words that Draco was more worried about. He didn’t want to be on the wrong end of Dursley’s fists or the he-devil’s wrath.

Draco would have to get his mother to check Harry’s finger and ribs when they got back. He felt sick, seeing what those people did to his love. ‘Yes. Love! You heard right. I never, ever believed in love at first sight, until last night. I thought it was something that happened in a children’s fairytale. Speaking of which, Harry has obviously led the same sad, lonely life as Cinderella. I wonder if they’re related. Shut up, Draco, she’s not real. But Harry is, and just as beautiful as last night. He does look awfully like Elijah, though. Dark hair, gorgeous, come to bed and shag me senseless eyes, and just… sigh. I’m in love.’

*********

Harry was silent throughout the long ride back to Wiltshire. He was praying Draco wouldn’t ask him any questions. He wanted to answer them without the prince’s father and butler present. The other three engaged in quiet conversation for most of the journey, and Harry took comfort from Draco’s hand, clasped tightly in his, and the shy glance they occasionally shared. He was nervous about going back to the Manor, but at least it would be with Draco, and he couldn’t help but smile.

TBC