A Love So Belated
folder
Harry Potter › Slash - Male/Male › Harry/Draco
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
44
Views:
46,657
Reviews:
358
Recommended:
1
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Harry Potter › Slash - Male/Male › Harry/Draco
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
44
Views:
46,657
Reviews:
358
Recommended:
1
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Chapter 7: Can You Catch Me?
Chapter Number/Total: 7/44
Chapter Title: Can You Catch Me?
Words: 2981 Words
"Hi, Rusty," Harry greeted the elf that had just appeared before him. "Is, uh, Draco in?" He scratched the back of his neck, vaguely remembering the elf having brought him home the previous night.
The old elf seemed to stare at Harry for a moment and then answered, "Yes, Mr Potter." He ushered Harry inside, taking his jacket and then popping away to get Draco.
Harry waited in the hall, slipping his hands into his pockets. He was actually quite disturbed by the fact that he couldn't really remember much. He could remember getting drunk, but he couldn't remember exactly what had happened when he'd got drunk. Very drunk.
As he stood there, he could hear footsteps echoing along the corridor. He smiled sheepishly, thinking it was Draco, but his smile faltered a bit when he saw that it was actually Draco's mother. Merlin, he hoped she hadn't somehow found out about what they had been doing.
She looked startled to see him. "Oh," she said. "Draco didn't tell me you were going to be here."
Harry took his hands out of his pockets, because he thought the posture probably looked rude. "Erm, well, I didn't tell him I was coming," he replied.
"Ah," she said. "And Rusty's just gone to get him?"
Harry nodded.
"Ah," she said again.
Harry nodded again.
Narcissa looked like she was going to continue about her way, and took a few steps, but then stopped again, looking at Harry. "You've been spending a lot of time with Draco," she acknowledged.
Harry shifted awkwardly. Merlin, she always made him feel like a caged animal under inspection, which was even more uncomfortable under the current circumstances. "Yeah," he said.
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "And ... you like him?" she asked.
What kind of question was that? Why did she always ask him questions like that? In fact, she'd already asked him this. "Yes ..." he said slowly.
"Hm," she hummed in a curious way.
Harry shifted again, wondering where exactly Draco was.
"I'm ... glad that he goes out with you," Narcissa continued. "It's good for him."
"Yeah," Harry said awkwardly, adjusting his glasses.
"He only goes out with you," she went on, and Harry didn't know if he imagined the ... disappointment and slight resentment he heard in her voice.
"Oh," he said.
"Yes," she replied.
Draco appeared then at the other end of the hall. He was dressed casually - for him, at least, and had a smudge of something like soot on his nose. "Harry," he said, "nice to see you."
Harry felt relief wash through him and he smiled sheepishly again. "Hi," he said, glancing at Narcissa. "Er, hope I'm not bothering you or anything."
Draco smiled, wondering how much of the other night Harry remembered. "No, it's fine," he answered. "I was just working on something in my lab. It can wait."
Narcissa raised her eyebrows at her son. "Well, that's a first."
Draco glanced at her with a frown, but turned his attention back to Harry. "So, what brings you here today? Is everything well?"
Narcissa actually looked a bit amused with Draco. "I'll see you boys later," she said before Harry could answer Draco's question, and then strode away.
Harry let out a small sigh. He got the feeling Narcissa didn't like him a whole lot, but tolerated him because he was 'good' for her son, which Harry found was a weird thought to have. "Everything’s pretty good," he finally answered Draco, giving him a bit of an odd look. "Er, I don't really ... um. Sorry if I got too pissed last night. I ... actually don't really remember a whole lot of it. It's strange. That - that doesn't usually happen to me." He laughed a bit, quietly.
Draco arched an eyebrow. "I had Rusty take you home," he said. "You didn't do anything that ... upset me." Draco tried to control his face so that it didn't show how much what Harry had done had affected him.
Harry laughed again. "Well, that's good, I guess," he said.
“So you can come in," Draco said, gesturing. "Do you want tea or something?"
"Yeah, sure," Harry answered. "But, uh, you've got something on your nose." He smiled at the smudge on that interesting part of Draco's face.
Draco made a face, trying to look at his own nose and then rolled his eyes. "Where?"
Harry stepped up close to Draco. "There," he said, briefly touching the spot with a fingertip. He felt a flash of memory that he couldn't quite place and then he flushed slightly and stepped back, wondering if it was weird of him to have touched Draco instead of simply pointing. Ron would have thought it was weird.
Draco tried not to react - to not tremble at that small touch. He felt the shiver down his spine and glanced away nervously. "Come in?" he repeated, gesturing toward the sitting room.
"Um, yeah," Harry accepted, happy to cover the awkward moment. He didn't know if it was only him.
Draco led the way to the sitting room. The drapes were pulled open and sunlight streamed in the windows. "I didn't realise it was so nice out," he commented absently.
"Yeah, it is," Harry said, watching him. "It's not cold out either, just cool. No wind."
"Probably turning cold soon," Draco agreed. Then he cocked his head and looked at Harry. "We could go for a walk or something on the grounds?"
"Sure," Harry answered, smiling. "Been curious about what's out there."
"Flowers, peacocks and doves," Draco said, arching an eyebrow in amusement. He nodded and led the way to the back terrace.
Harry snorted and followed. He realised he was walking pretty close to Draco after a while and casually increased the distance between them. He found he did that a lot without meaning to, even the other times he and Draco had spent together. He didn't know why. Maybe he did that with other people as well and only noticed it with Draco.
Draco began giving him a tour of the grounds, pointing out features - the fountains, special trees, a pond, the roses and other flowers. "That's the Quidditch pitch down there." He pointed off in the distance.
Harry stopped walking. "Wait ... what?" he asked, a slow smile spreading across his face.
Draco smirked. "Quidditch? The game where you fly around and try not to get killed chasing the little gold ball?"
Harry laughed. "You didn't tell me you had a pitch," he said. "A wicked collection, yes, but not an actual real place to play."
"You just want something you can beat me at," Draco accused with a smirk, stepping closer and looking down into those sparkling green eyes.
When Draco moved towards him, Harry felt a very unexpected swoop in his stomach and shivered from it, and then he sort of wanted to step back, but he wasn't one to back down. He moved even closer, his face only a few inches from Draco's. "Have you got an extra broom?" he asked testily. His blood rushed ... probably just from the excitement of a challenge.
"Sure, we have several," Draco said, grinning. His heart raced as the other man stood so close. He licked his lips nervously.
Harry looked at Draco's lips very quickly, then his eyes flashed back up and he swallowed and shook his head a tiny bit. What the ...? But he smirked. "Let's play then."
Draco held his hand out. "It's a long walk," he said. "Want me to Apparate us?"
"Uh, sure," Harry replied, looking down at Draco's hand. Was he supposed to take it, or Draco's arm? He struggled with it inside his head for a few seconds, and then thought it was probably stupid to be so caught up over it. He took the offered hand, feeling another disconcerting swoop.
A shiver went up his arm and Draco took a deep breath. He focused and Apparated them to the pitch.
Harry let go of Draco's hand once they arrived and then smiled at him. "So," he said. "Where's the gear?"
Draco's hand still felt warm and he found himself closing it as if he could hold onto the feeling. He shrugged and led the way to a building with a locker room. He opened a closet and gestured at several brooms, including a couple Nimbus 2000 models.
"These will do," Harry said, reaching forward for one of the brooms. He sighed at the familiar feeling. Ron had the best broom out of his entire family and only had a Cleansweep 11 - that Harry couldn't even use most of the time because Ron used it. A Nimbus wasn't a Firebolt, but it was still pretty good.
"We have some gear that might fit you, if you want to change," Draco offered, gesturing to the uniforms that hung in the closet. They were Slytherin colours, of course.
Harry snorted at that. "A Gryffindor in Slytherin green?" he asked, smirking.
"Matches your eyes," Draco noted, and smirked as well, arching an eyebrow.
"Oh, well in that case," Harry said with a laugh, though he flushed at the comment. Merlin, what was wrong with him? He reached for the gear.
Draco felt his own heart flutter at the colour that swept into Harry's cheeks. He swallowed and picked out a uniform for himself.
Without even thinking about it, because, well, he'd spent six years on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and six years in a communal boys' bathroom, Harry reached and pulled his shirt off, tossing it onto the bench in front of him.
Draco froze, mouth suddenly gone dry as his eyes were drawn to Harry's exposed flesh.
Completely oblivious to Draco's reaction, Harry kicked his shoes off and then reached to unbutton his trousers, pulling those off as well before reaching to get the uniform and pads on.
Draco's heart was hammering in his chest. He couldn't tear his eyes away, watching as Harry stripped. He had imagined that lean body many times and his own body's reaction now was even stronger to the reality.
Harry began to pull the pads on first, standing there in only his shorts.
Draco felt rooted to the spot, still holding the uniform clenched in one hand.
Harry bent over to get the pads and trousers on his lower half, and then pulled on the green top of the uniform. He turned, once dressed, and saw Draco standing there ... not dressed at all. He raised an eyebrow.
Draco came back to himself. He opened his mouth to speak and then cleared his throat. "Excuse me," he said, and headed for one of the stalls.
Harry flushed again, wondering why Draco had stood there and watched him, and why he was going to change in a stall.
Draco changed as quickly as he could, hoping the cup would cover his troublesome arousal. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to get control of himself. When he felt better prepared, he exited the stall and walked over, picking up one of the brooms. "Ready?" he asked.
Harry nodded, taking the broom he'd been handling before and hoping both of them could forget those few awkward minutes, because he himself didn't want to think about what they could have meant.
Draco didn't dare look at Harry's face as he led them out on to the pitch.
Harry was silent, walking with Draco and glancing at him every few moments. "So, uh, I take it with the gear, we play with Bludgers?" he asked. "It'll be more challenging." He waggled his eyebrows in an attempt to tease.
Draco didn't know if he was up to a full game, even one on one. "How about we just play with the Snitch?"
"Oh, okay," Harry said, shrugging. "Where are the balls?" He really wanted to get started. Perhaps flying would ease them both up again.
Draco got the box out and took the Snitch from it. "Ready?" he asked, smiling now as he mounted his broom.
Harry grinned at him. "Very," he said, swinging a leg over his own broom as well.
That grin definitely set Draco's heart racing. "We go on ten," he decided, holding his hand out. He released the Snitch, letting it fly and beginning to count. "One, two, three ...."
Harry listened to him count and leaned low over his broomstick, smirk on his face as he prepared to dart off from the ground.
Draco's eyes scanned the sky as he continued to count. "Eight, nine, ten!" He launched into the air.
Harry left the ground at the exact same time and felt the same rush that flying always gave him. He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath of the cool air when he had actually slowed down enough to breathe at all. He smiled and opened his eyes again, beginning the search.
Draco loved that feeling, too. He couldn't believe it had been two years since he had done this. It felt good. Even better, he felt that thrill of trying to beat Harry. He flew in circles, trying to spot the golden ball.
Harry's eyes darted around quickly. It was very different to play on a real pitch without the roar of a crowd in his ears. He loved hearing that, but found it was actually nice without it as well - exciting, but also relaxing in a strange way. His gaze flickered on Draco. He'd seen him fly before, but had never truly watched him. He found himself watching him right then, watching and ... admiring. Draco was a good flier. Harry had known that since he'd first seen him on a broom, but he'd never quite noticed how good he looked. Not that - well - not that he looked good-good or anything. Noth-nothing like that, of course not. Just ... good. Harry tried to make sense of it.
Draco was actually looking at Harry again when he saw the flicker of gold behind the man. He grinned and made to fly in the opposite direction, trying to misdirect before looping back after it.
Harry sucked in a slightly sharp breath. Damn Draco for ... looking, well, erm ... on a broomstick and messing with his concentration. Horrified with himself, he spun round, trying to spot the Snitch and then darting after it when he saw where Draco was headed.
Draco sped after the Snitch, one hand outstretched as the wind made his hair fly back. It felt fantastic.
Harry actually tried to scoot up the broom handle to reach further, his hand outstretched as well. He was going so fast he couldn't breathe again, but refused to slow down. He absolutely had to catch that damn ball. He didn't spare Draco a glance as he flew alongside him, their bodies so close in the air it was probably dangerous.
Draco tried to resist, but he could feel the other man beside him. He glanced at him, the image so beautiful it made him shiver.
That second-long glance was all Harry needed. Draco's hand dropped a fraction lower and Harry reached over those long, pale fingers, snatching the gold right from the tips of them. He felt a burst of the familiar triumph and energy, and grinned fiercely as he held the Snitch tight.
Draco saw the expression on Harry's face change and knew before he even turned his head that the other man had the Snitch. Losing had never looked better.
"Yes!" Harry shouted, slowing in the air to actually allow himself to breathe properly.
Draco looped again, circling back to Harry. He smiled, shaking his head.
Harry smirked at him, his mouth open a bit as he panted from the rush. "Now that," he teased, "was winning."
Draco laughed. "Can you catch me?" he asked, arching an eyebrow before heading into a dive.
Harry raised both his eyebrows, taken off guard by the challenge. He smirked again, plunging after Draco.
Draco swerved, banking and changing directions, heart pounding with both the speed and the thrill of being chased by Harry.
Harry once again found himself thinking of what Draco looked like, and he couldn't think of anything else because he had to look at him to catch him. He put on a burst of speed, spotting the very small twitch of a fake right in Draco's shoulders, so he went left, pleased when Draco did as well. He was definitely gaining on him after that and reached, trying to grab him.
Draco swooped upward, putting on a new burst of speed and laughing as Harry just missed him.
"Dammit," Harry muttered under his breath, grinning in an almost predatory fashion as he darted upwards as well.
Draco had never gone so fast before and it was exhilarating. He looped overhead, coming 'round behind Harry.
Harry looked over his shoulder, pulling off to the right to swerve around and try to meet Draco.
Draco kept his flight steady, waiting for Harry to catch up with him.
Harry smirked, reaching and then grabbing Draco around the waist. It sent them spinning at a weird angle, but Harry continued to smirk.
Draco reached to Harry too, holding on to him while they spun in the air.
Within a few short moments, the brooms slowed and the spinning stopped, but Harry's and Draco's arms were still around each other, and they hung that way in mid-air. "Caught you," Harry said, grinning without quite realising yet that he was holding Draco.
Draco shuddered with the feel of Harry's embrace. He thought, About time. "Yes, you did," he answered, grinning back at him.
Then Harry did realise he was holding Draco and laughed nervously. He began slowly untangling himself, because Draco was holding him too and he didn't want to just throw him off.
Draco reluctantly released the other man, still smiling. "Dinner?" he asked.
Harry smiled back at him. "Sure."
Chapter Title: Can You Catch Me?
Words: 2981 Words
"Hi, Rusty," Harry greeted the elf that had just appeared before him. "Is, uh, Draco in?" He scratched the back of his neck, vaguely remembering the elf having brought him home the previous night.
The old elf seemed to stare at Harry for a moment and then answered, "Yes, Mr Potter." He ushered Harry inside, taking his jacket and then popping away to get Draco.
Harry waited in the hall, slipping his hands into his pockets. He was actually quite disturbed by the fact that he couldn't really remember much. He could remember getting drunk, but he couldn't remember exactly what had happened when he'd got drunk. Very drunk.
As he stood there, he could hear footsteps echoing along the corridor. He smiled sheepishly, thinking it was Draco, but his smile faltered a bit when he saw that it was actually Draco's mother. Merlin, he hoped she hadn't somehow found out about what they had been doing.
She looked startled to see him. "Oh," she said. "Draco didn't tell me you were going to be here."
Harry took his hands out of his pockets, because he thought the posture probably looked rude. "Erm, well, I didn't tell him I was coming," he replied.
"Ah," she said. "And Rusty's just gone to get him?"
Harry nodded.
"Ah," she said again.
Harry nodded again.
Narcissa looked like she was going to continue about her way, and took a few steps, but then stopped again, looking at Harry. "You've been spending a lot of time with Draco," she acknowledged.
Harry shifted awkwardly. Merlin, she always made him feel like a caged animal under inspection, which was even more uncomfortable under the current circumstances. "Yeah," he said.
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "And ... you like him?" she asked.
What kind of question was that? Why did she always ask him questions like that? In fact, she'd already asked him this. "Yes ..." he said slowly.
"Hm," she hummed in a curious way.
Harry shifted again, wondering where exactly Draco was.
"I'm ... glad that he goes out with you," Narcissa continued. "It's good for him."
"Yeah," Harry said awkwardly, adjusting his glasses.
"He only goes out with you," she went on, and Harry didn't know if he imagined the ... disappointment and slight resentment he heard in her voice.
"Oh," he said.
"Yes," she replied.
Draco appeared then at the other end of the hall. He was dressed casually - for him, at least, and had a smudge of something like soot on his nose. "Harry," he said, "nice to see you."
Harry felt relief wash through him and he smiled sheepishly again. "Hi," he said, glancing at Narcissa. "Er, hope I'm not bothering you or anything."
Draco smiled, wondering how much of the other night Harry remembered. "No, it's fine," he answered. "I was just working on something in my lab. It can wait."
Narcissa raised her eyebrows at her son. "Well, that's a first."
Draco glanced at her with a frown, but turned his attention back to Harry. "So, what brings you here today? Is everything well?"
Narcissa actually looked a bit amused with Draco. "I'll see you boys later," she said before Harry could answer Draco's question, and then strode away.
Harry let out a small sigh. He got the feeling Narcissa didn't like him a whole lot, but tolerated him because he was 'good' for her son, which Harry found was a weird thought to have. "Everything’s pretty good," he finally answered Draco, giving him a bit of an odd look. "Er, I don't really ... um. Sorry if I got too pissed last night. I ... actually don't really remember a whole lot of it. It's strange. That - that doesn't usually happen to me." He laughed a bit, quietly.
Draco arched an eyebrow. "I had Rusty take you home," he said. "You didn't do anything that ... upset me." Draco tried to control his face so that it didn't show how much what Harry had done had affected him.
Harry laughed again. "Well, that's good, I guess," he said.
“So you can come in," Draco said, gesturing. "Do you want tea or something?"
"Yeah, sure," Harry answered. "But, uh, you've got something on your nose." He smiled at the smudge on that interesting part of Draco's face.
Draco made a face, trying to look at his own nose and then rolled his eyes. "Where?"
Harry stepped up close to Draco. "There," he said, briefly touching the spot with a fingertip. He felt a flash of memory that he couldn't quite place and then he flushed slightly and stepped back, wondering if it was weird of him to have touched Draco instead of simply pointing. Ron would have thought it was weird.
Draco tried not to react - to not tremble at that small touch. He felt the shiver down his spine and glanced away nervously. "Come in?" he repeated, gesturing toward the sitting room.
"Um, yeah," Harry accepted, happy to cover the awkward moment. He didn't know if it was only him.
Draco led the way to the sitting room. The drapes were pulled open and sunlight streamed in the windows. "I didn't realise it was so nice out," he commented absently.
"Yeah, it is," Harry said, watching him. "It's not cold out either, just cool. No wind."
"Probably turning cold soon," Draco agreed. Then he cocked his head and looked at Harry. "We could go for a walk or something on the grounds?"
"Sure," Harry answered, smiling. "Been curious about what's out there."
"Flowers, peacocks and doves," Draco said, arching an eyebrow in amusement. He nodded and led the way to the back terrace.
Harry snorted and followed. He realised he was walking pretty close to Draco after a while and casually increased the distance between them. He found he did that a lot without meaning to, even the other times he and Draco had spent together. He didn't know why. Maybe he did that with other people as well and only noticed it with Draco.
Draco began giving him a tour of the grounds, pointing out features - the fountains, special trees, a pond, the roses and other flowers. "That's the Quidditch pitch down there." He pointed off in the distance.
Harry stopped walking. "Wait ... what?" he asked, a slow smile spreading across his face.
Draco smirked. "Quidditch? The game where you fly around and try not to get killed chasing the little gold ball?"
Harry laughed. "You didn't tell me you had a pitch," he said. "A wicked collection, yes, but not an actual real place to play."
"You just want something you can beat me at," Draco accused with a smirk, stepping closer and looking down into those sparkling green eyes.
When Draco moved towards him, Harry felt a very unexpected swoop in his stomach and shivered from it, and then he sort of wanted to step back, but he wasn't one to back down. He moved even closer, his face only a few inches from Draco's. "Have you got an extra broom?" he asked testily. His blood rushed ... probably just from the excitement of a challenge.
"Sure, we have several," Draco said, grinning. His heart raced as the other man stood so close. He licked his lips nervously.
Harry looked at Draco's lips very quickly, then his eyes flashed back up and he swallowed and shook his head a tiny bit. What the ...? But he smirked. "Let's play then."
Draco held his hand out. "It's a long walk," he said. "Want me to Apparate us?"
"Uh, sure," Harry replied, looking down at Draco's hand. Was he supposed to take it, or Draco's arm? He struggled with it inside his head for a few seconds, and then thought it was probably stupid to be so caught up over it. He took the offered hand, feeling another disconcerting swoop.
A shiver went up his arm and Draco took a deep breath. He focused and Apparated them to the pitch.
Harry let go of Draco's hand once they arrived and then smiled at him. "So," he said. "Where's the gear?"
Draco's hand still felt warm and he found himself closing it as if he could hold onto the feeling. He shrugged and led the way to a building with a locker room. He opened a closet and gestured at several brooms, including a couple Nimbus 2000 models.
"These will do," Harry said, reaching forward for one of the brooms. He sighed at the familiar feeling. Ron had the best broom out of his entire family and only had a Cleansweep 11 - that Harry couldn't even use most of the time because Ron used it. A Nimbus wasn't a Firebolt, but it was still pretty good.
"We have some gear that might fit you, if you want to change," Draco offered, gesturing to the uniforms that hung in the closet. They were Slytherin colours, of course.
Harry snorted at that. "A Gryffindor in Slytherin green?" he asked, smirking.
"Matches your eyes," Draco noted, and smirked as well, arching an eyebrow.
"Oh, well in that case," Harry said with a laugh, though he flushed at the comment. Merlin, what was wrong with him? He reached for the gear.
Draco felt his own heart flutter at the colour that swept into Harry's cheeks. He swallowed and picked out a uniform for himself.
Without even thinking about it, because, well, he'd spent six years on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and six years in a communal boys' bathroom, Harry reached and pulled his shirt off, tossing it onto the bench in front of him.
Draco froze, mouth suddenly gone dry as his eyes were drawn to Harry's exposed flesh.
Completely oblivious to Draco's reaction, Harry kicked his shoes off and then reached to unbutton his trousers, pulling those off as well before reaching to get the uniform and pads on.
Draco's heart was hammering in his chest. He couldn't tear his eyes away, watching as Harry stripped. He had imagined that lean body many times and his own body's reaction now was even stronger to the reality.
Harry began to pull the pads on first, standing there in only his shorts.
Draco felt rooted to the spot, still holding the uniform clenched in one hand.
Harry bent over to get the pads and trousers on his lower half, and then pulled on the green top of the uniform. He turned, once dressed, and saw Draco standing there ... not dressed at all. He raised an eyebrow.
Draco came back to himself. He opened his mouth to speak and then cleared his throat. "Excuse me," he said, and headed for one of the stalls.
Harry flushed again, wondering why Draco had stood there and watched him, and why he was going to change in a stall.
Draco changed as quickly as he could, hoping the cup would cover his troublesome arousal. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to get control of himself. When he felt better prepared, he exited the stall and walked over, picking up one of the brooms. "Ready?" he asked.
Harry nodded, taking the broom he'd been handling before and hoping both of them could forget those few awkward minutes, because he himself didn't want to think about what they could have meant.
Draco didn't dare look at Harry's face as he led them out on to the pitch.
Harry was silent, walking with Draco and glancing at him every few moments. "So, uh, I take it with the gear, we play with Bludgers?" he asked. "It'll be more challenging." He waggled his eyebrows in an attempt to tease.
Draco didn't know if he was up to a full game, even one on one. "How about we just play with the Snitch?"
"Oh, okay," Harry said, shrugging. "Where are the balls?" He really wanted to get started. Perhaps flying would ease them both up again.
Draco got the box out and took the Snitch from it. "Ready?" he asked, smiling now as he mounted his broom.
Harry grinned at him. "Very," he said, swinging a leg over his own broom as well.
That grin definitely set Draco's heart racing. "We go on ten," he decided, holding his hand out. He released the Snitch, letting it fly and beginning to count. "One, two, three ...."
Harry listened to him count and leaned low over his broomstick, smirk on his face as he prepared to dart off from the ground.
Draco's eyes scanned the sky as he continued to count. "Eight, nine, ten!" He launched into the air.
Harry left the ground at the exact same time and felt the same rush that flying always gave him. He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath of the cool air when he had actually slowed down enough to breathe at all. He smiled and opened his eyes again, beginning the search.
Draco loved that feeling, too. He couldn't believe it had been two years since he had done this. It felt good. Even better, he felt that thrill of trying to beat Harry. He flew in circles, trying to spot the golden ball.
Harry's eyes darted around quickly. It was very different to play on a real pitch without the roar of a crowd in his ears. He loved hearing that, but found it was actually nice without it as well - exciting, but also relaxing in a strange way. His gaze flickered on Draco. He'd seen him fly before, but had never truly watched him. He found himself watching him right then, watching and ... admiring. Draco was a good flier. Harry had known that since he'd first seen him on a broom, but he'd never quite noticed how good he looked. Not that - well - not that he looked good-good or anything. Noth-nothing like that, of course not. Just ... good. Harry tried to make sense of it.
Draco was actually looking at Harry again when he saw the flicker of gold behind the man. He grinned and made to fly in the opposite direction, trying to misdirect before looping back after it.
Harry sucked in a slightly sharp breath. Damn Draco for ... looking, well, erm ... on a broomstick and messing with his concentration. Horrified with himself, he spun round, trying to spot the Snitch and then darting after it when he saw where Draco was headed.
Draco sped after the Snitch, one hand outstretched as the wind made his hair fly back. It felt fantastic.
Harry actually tried to scoot up the broom handle to reach further, his hand outstretched as well. He was going so fast he couldn't breathe again, but refused to slow down. He absolutely had to catch that damn ball. He didn't spare Draco a glance as he flew alongside him, their bodies so close in the air it was probably dangerous.
Draco tried to resist, but he could feel the other man beside him. He glanced at him, the image so beautiful it made him shiver.
That second-long glance was all Harry needed. Draco's hand dropped a fraction lower and Harry reached over those long, pale fingers, snatching the gold right from the tips of them. He felt a burst of the familiar triumph and energy, and grinned fiercely as he held the Snitch tight.
Draco saw the expression on Harry's face change and knew before he even turned his head that the other man had the Snitch. Losing had never looked better.
"Yes!" Harry shouted, slowing in the air to actually allow himself to breathe properly.
Draco looped again, circling back to Harry. He smiled, shaking his head.
Harry smirked at him, his mouth open a bit as he panted from the rush. "Now that," he teased, "was winning."
Draco laughed. "Can you catch me?" he asked, arching an eyebrow before heading into a dive.
Harry raised both his eyebrows, taken off guard by the challenge. He smirked again, plunging after Draco.
Draco swerved, banking and changing directions, heart pounding with both the speed and the thrill of being chased by Harry.
Harry once again found himself thinking of what Draco looked like, and he couldn't think of anything else because he had to look at him to catch him. He put on a burst of speed, spotting the very small twitch of a fake right in Draco's shoulders, so he went left, pleased when Draco did as well. He was definitely gaining on him after that and reached, trying to grab him.
Draco swooped upward, putting on a new burst of speed and laughing as Harry just missed him.
"Dammit," Harry muttered under his breath, grinning in an almost predatory fashion as he darted upwards as well.
Draco had never gone so fast before and it was exhilarating. He looped overhead, coming 'round behind Harry.
Harry looked over his shoulder, pulling off to the right to swerve around and try to meet Draco.
Draco kept his flight steady, waiting for Harry to catch up with him.
Harry smirked, reaching and then grabbing Draco around the waist. It sent them spinning at a weird angle, but Harry continued to smirk.
Draco reached to Harry too, holding on to him while they spun in the air.
Within a few short moments, the brooms slowed and the spinning stopped, but Harry's and Draco's arms were still around each other, and they hung that way in mid-air. "Caught you," Harry said, grinning without quite realising yet that he was holding Draco.
Draco shuddered with the feel of Harry's embrace. He thought, About time. "Yes, you did," he answered, grinning back at him.
Then Harry did realise he was holding Draco and laughed nervously. He began slowly untangling himself, because Draco was holding him too and he didn't want to just throw him off.
Draco reluctantly released the other man, still smiling. "Dinner?" he asked.
Harry smiled back at him. "Sure."