FIC: The Art of Comforting a Slytherin (Harry/Draco)
Title: The Art of Comforting a Slytherin
Author/Artist: bloodisshrp
Prompt: Prompt #58
Prompt submitted by: isinuyasha
Pairing(s): Harry/Draco
Word Count: 1856
Rating: G
Warning(s): None
Disclaimer:Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: L, you’re a darling for going over this and listening to me whine all the time. Thank you for making me change the ending! ♥ S - thank you for fixing all the errors and making it readable! :) All other mistakes are my own because it’s fun to meddle and move things around even when I know I shouldn’t.
Summary: There’s no way Draco Malfoy could be scared of the thunder! So it’s up to Harry to take the fall and be in need of some comforting.
Harry loved being an Auror - the constant thrum of adrenaline, the need to always be prepared to strike; he’d craved that since the end of the war.
Hermione had tried to convince him to take a break, travel and figure out what he really wanted to do. And he had tried that, he really had but even then he had known that he was only doing it to make Hermione happy. It had taken him only one day of observing Aurors at work, for Harry to decide that this was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Or till he got injured enough that quitting seemed prudent; he didn’t really want to end up with a wooden leg and a magic eye.
Ron, being the perfect boyfriend, had listened to Hermione and dropped the idea within a week of joining the Auror Academy to focus on helping George instead. Harry had played the role of the supportive best friend and assured Ron that he wasn’t angry at him for leaving Harry alone. Which was partly true, he wasn’t angry but he was terrified. It was one thing to kill a madman after years of knowing it would happen, but it was an entirely different thing to face opponents he didn’t know and fight for his life. Still, even though a part of him had been nervous at having to go through this alone he had been confident enough to stick with it.
The only other person from their year at the Auror Academy had been Draco Malfoy.
Draco had surprised him from the start. There was none of the old biting humour or snark; gone was the air of superiority the boy had carried around with him. In place of the Slytherin who’d made Harry’s life hell during school was a man changed by war. Harry could sympathise with that. It hadn’t really come as any surprise when they’d been paired to be partners.
Harry had recklessness in the field that was balanced by Draco’s strategic planning and they had proved to be a formidable pair. What had been surprising was just how fearless this new Draco was when faced with a challenge.
This was why it was difficult for Harry to accept that maybe, just maybe, Draco might be scared of the thunder.
They’d faced Death Eaters and Inferi, Werewolves and Vampires and nothing had made Draco flinch or look as scared as he was looking now. Though he was trying really hard to hide it but you can’t be someone’s Auror partner without being attuned to their every movement. Harry pointedly kept his head turned the other way, ignoring the little wince that every jolt of thunder produced. Harry knew it was only going to get worse; he made it a point to check the weather forecast before every stakeout after once being caught in a snowstorm unawares.
Harry wasn’t new to comforting someone who was afraid of a little thunder; Teddy couldn’t sleep at all when it rained. He would only sleep in Harry’s bed with the blankets piled around him like a fort. And as much as Harry would love to take Draco to bed with him, and it’s not like they hadn’t already, once or twice when they’d had too much to drink and it could be written off as a one night thing, he knew that if he tried to comfort Draco now he’d most likely get hexed.
Harry knew that the secret to comforting a Slytherin was to think like a Slytherin and be as subtle as he could.
At the next shock of thunder Harry flinched, muttering under his breath and trying to curl up. He could feel Draco’s eyes on him but he pointedly looked the other way, turning the other side... It was crucial that he time this out perfectly. He jumped at the sound of thunder and whimpered, closing his eyes and shaking his head.
One, two . . .
“Harry?” Draco asked his voice small but determined and Harry felt a rush of adoration run through him, a feeling he was quite used to these days, “Are you okay?”
“I - I’m fine, ju-just the thunder, you know?” Harry said, turning a little to look at Draco out of the corner of his eyes. Draco looked pale, his teeth biting into his lower lip as he reached out a hand to rub Harry’s arm. Harry gave himself a mental pat on the back for his acting skills.
At the next flash of thunder Draco moved a little closer, his wince more noticeable as he tried to comfort Harry, “Are you scared of it?”
Harry nodded miserably and looked at the sky, where the darkness was broken by the flashes of light. He could feel Draco’s hold on his shoulder tighten at the next crash and he let himself relax into the touch, making his shudder more noticeable to Draco.
“Yeah, a - a little, just, it reminds me of my childhood,” Harry whispered, making Draco lean closer so he could hear what Harry was saying. He leaned back a little onto Draco, “It’s so loud and sudden.”
Draco nodded sympathetically before catching himself and trying to look brave but failing as another bright flash of light made him scoot even closer to Harry, “That’s okay, it - it won’t harm you.” The doubt was clear in Draco’s voice and Harry’s mind was assaulted by images of a little Draco huddling under the covers as it rained outside. He hoped little Draco had had someone there to comfort him.
“I know, I’m sorry, I’m sure you think I’m so stupid to be scared of thunder,” Harry started, watching Draco carefully to plan his next move. As Draco shook his head and stared to say something Harry cut him off, “Do you think - no, forget it.” He tried to move away but Draco’s hold on his shoulder stopped him.
“No, what?” Draco asked, giving Harry’s shoulder a light squeeze as he moved even closer, “how can I help?”
The fact that Draco was trying to comfort him when he was so clearly scared of thunder himself made Harry want to grab hold of Draco and never let go. He waited for the next clap of thunder to make his next and final move. As the loud crash reverberated through their hideout Harry pulled Draco to him and buried his face in Draco’s neck, holding onto Draco’s robes tightly. He smiled a little when he felt Draco hold on back to him even tighter, the little shakes even more noticeable now that they were so close.
“It’s okay,” Draco mumbled, Harry’s robe bunched up in his fists, “I’ve got you.”
Harry smiled against Draco’s neck, rubbing his back as thunder crashed around them. As the night wore on he found it harder to focus on the stakeout with his entire concentration devoted to holding on to Draco. If Draco whimpered at a particularly loud crash Harry kept quiet and just tightened his hold on Draco’s waist, rubbing his back and talking about random things in an attempt to keep his mind off their surroundings. It was raining heavily enough that keeping an eye on their target was well-nigh impossible.
Finally when his watch showed fifteen minutes to three he moved gently, whispering to Draco, “We can leave now, Tom and Patrick will be here soon.”
Draco took his time in letting go of Harry, moving slowly until they were facing each other. He gave a stiff nod and started to move out of the hideout when another clap of thunder sounded making him jump and turn to look at Harry.
“I think,” Harry started, moving to stand next to Draco, “the storm’s going to go on all night.”
“Well, then,” Draco swallowed, flinching as lightning flashed in the sky, “try not to be too scared at night, Potter.”
Harry moved his hand till it was touching Draco’s, their fingers brushing against each others, “How about you help your partner sleep, Malfoy? After all, if I’m sleepy tomorrow because I was too scared to rest you’ll have to do all the paper work.” He shrugged, not missing the look of relief that flashed on Draco’s face.
“When you put it that way,” Draco said thoughtfully, already moving to entwine their fingers together, “it seems like it’s my duty to make sure you feel safe.”
Harry nodded sagely, wrapping an arm around Draco’s shoulder and steering him out the door, “Yes, it’s just something you have to do. There’s no point in fighting your duty Draco.”
Draco nodded tiredly as Harry wrapped his arms around Draco’s waist and pulled him close, turning them together. They arrived with a bang in the foyer at Grimmauld Place, awakening Mrs. Black who promptly launched into another of her tirades. Draco watched in fascination as his grand aunt ranted about abominations and blood traitors.
“Why don’t you place a silencing charm on her?” He asked Harry, who’d been busy trying to push his shoes and newspapers out of the way before Draco noticed and made him clean it all up. Harry wouldn’t put it past him; the first time they’d shared an office Draco had made Harry clean his half of the room too before he was allowed to sit down and get to work.
“I’ve tried,” Harry slumped against the wall, yawning as he explained, and “it doesn’t work. The old bat has some sort of charm in place that erases it.”
Draco looked interested now, the possibility of a challenge making him all but rub his hands in glee. Harry yawned again, making a big enough production of it that Draco rolled his eyes and grabbed Harry’s arm, pulling him up the stairs.
“Come on, before you fall asleep on me here and I have to drag your sorry arse up three flights of stairs.” Draco steered Harry towards his bedroom.
Thunder was still flashing outside, making the room light up in intervals. Harry fell down onto the bed and pulled Draco down on top of him. Another burst of thunder made the windows rattle and Draco moved closer till he was almost curled into Harry. He reached up with a hand and patted Harry’s head, “It’ll be fine Potter, I’m here now, you can go to sleep.”
Harry smiled into Draco’s hair and tightened his arms around him, glad to realise Draco wasn’t shaking anymore. He toed off his shoes and waited till Draco had done the same before nudging him to make Draco turn over. With a happy sigh Harry reached down to pull the covers over them before lying behind Draco and pulling him closer with an arm around his waist. Draco didn’t resist, pushing back into the warmth surrounding his body.
“Comfortable, Potter?” Draco asked around a yawn, holding onto Harry’s arm that was around his waist.
Harry instinctively tightened his hold as thunder boomed again, rejoicing in how relaxed Draco was.
“More than I’ve ever been,” Harry whispered into Draco’s neck and decided to make sure that Draco was never alone during a thunderstorm ever again.
Author/Artist: bloodisshrp
Prompt: Prompt #58
Prompt submitted by: isinuyasha
Pairing(s): Harry/Draco
Word Count: 1856
Rating: G
Warning(s): None
Disclaimer:Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: L, you’re a darling for going over this and listening to me whine all the time. Thank you for making me change the ending! ♥ S - thank you for fixing all the errors and making it readable! :) All other mistakes are my own because it’s fun to meddle and move things around even when I know I shouldn’t.
Summary: There’s no way Draco Malfoy could be scared of the thunder! So it’s up to Harry to take the fall and be in need of some comforting.
Harry loved being an Auror - the constant thrum of adrenaline, the need to always be prepared to strike; he’d craved that since the end of the war.
Hermione had tried to convince him to take a break, travel and figure out what he really wanted to do. And he had tried that, he really had but even then he had known that he was only doing it to make Hermione happy. It had taken him only one day of observing Aurors at work, for Harry to decide that this was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Or till he got injured enough that quitting seemed prudent; he didn’t really want to end up with a wooden leg and a magic eye.
Ron, being the perfect boyfriend, had listened to Hermione and dropped the idea within a week of joining the Auror Academy to focus on helping George instead. Harry had played the role of the supportive best friend and assured Ron that he wasn’t angry at him for leaving Harry alone. Which was partly true, he wasn’t angry but he was terrified. It was one thing to kill a madman after years of knowing it would happen, but it was an entirely different thing to face opponents he didn’t know and fight for his life. Still, even though a part of him had been nervous at having to go through this alone he had been confident enough to stick with it.
The only other person from their year at the Auror Academy had been Draco Malfoy.
Draco had surprised him from the start. There was none of the old biting humour or snark; gone was the air of superiority the boy had carried around with him. In place of the Slytherin who’d made Harry’s life hell during school was a man changed by war. Harry could sympathise with that. It hadn’t really come as any surprise when they’d been paired to be partners.
Harry had recklessness in the field that was balanced by Draco’s strategic planning and they had proved to be a formidable pair. What had been surprising was just how fearless this new Draco was when faced with a challenge.
This was why it was difficult for Harry to accept that maybe, just maybe, Draco might be scared of the thunder.
They’d faced Death Eaters and Inferi, Werewolves and Vampires and nothing had made Draco flinch or look as scared as he was looking now. Though he was trying really hard to hide it but you can’t be someone’s Auror partner without being attuned to their every movement. Harry pointedly kept his head turned the other way, ignoring the little wince that every jolt of thunder produced. Harry knew it was only going to get worse; he made it a point to check the weather forecast before every stakeout after once being caught in a snowstorm unawares.
Harry wasn’t new to comforting someone who was afraid of a little thunder; Teddy couldn’t sleep at all when it rained. He would only sleep in Harry’s bed with the blankets piled around him like a fort. And as much as Harry would love to take Draco to bed with him, and it’s not like they hadn’t already, once or twice when they’d had too much to drink and it could be written off as a one night thing, he knew that if he tried to comfort Draco now he’d most likely get hexed.
Harry knew that the secret to comforting a Slytherin was to think like a Slytherin and be as subtle as he could.
At the next shock of thunder Harry flinched, muttering under his breath and trying to curl up. He could feel Draco’s eyes on him but he pointedly looked the other way, turning the other side... It was crucial that he time this out perfectly. He jumped at the sound of thunder and whimpered, closing his eyes and shaking his head.
One, two . . .
“Harry?” Draco asked his voice small but determined and Harry felt a rush of adoration run through him, a feeling he was quite used to these days, “Are you okay?”
“I - I’m fine, ju-just the thunder, you know?” Harry said, turning a little to look at Draco out of the corner of his eyes. Draco looked pale, his teeth biting into his lower lip as he reached out a hand to rub Harry’s arm. Harry gave himself a mental pat on the back for his acting skills.
At the next flash of thunder Draco moved a little closer, his wince more noticeable as he tried to comfort Harry, “Are you scared of it?”
Harry nodded miserably and looked at the sky, where the darkness was broken by the flashes of light. He could feel Draco’s hold on his shoulder tighten at the next crash and he let himself relax into the touch, making his shudder more noticeable to Draco.
“Yeah, a - a little, just, it reminds me of my childhood,” Harry whispered, making Draco lean closer so he could hear what Harry was saying. He leaned back a little onto Draco, “It’s so loud and sudden.”
Draco nodded sympathetically before catching himself and trying to look brave but failing as another bright flash of light made him scoot even closer to Harry, “That’s okay, it - it won’t harm you.” The doubt was clear in Draco’s voice and Harry’s mind was assaulted by images of a little Draco huddling under the covers as it rained outside. He hoped little Draco had had someone there to comfort him.
“I know, I’m sorry, I’m sure you think I’m so stupid to be scared of thunder,” Harry started, watching Draco carefully to plan his next move. As Draco shook his head and stared to say something Harry cut him off, “Do you think - no, forget it.” He tried to move away but Draco’s hold on his shoulder stopped him.
“No, what?” Draco asked, giving Harry’s shoulder a light squeeze as he moved even closer, “how can I help?”
The fact that Draco was trying to comfort him when he was so clearly scared of thunder himself made Harry want to grab hold of Draco and never let go. He waited for the next clap of thunder to make his next and final move. As the loud crash reverberated through their hideout Harry pulled Draco to him and buried his face in Draco’s neck, holding onto Draco’s robes tightly. He smiled a little when he felt Draco hold on back to him even tighter, the little shakes even more noticeable now that they were so close.
“It’s okay,” Draco mumbled, Harry’s robe bunched up in his fists, “I’ve got you.”
Harry smiled against Draco’s neck, rubbing his back as thunder crashed around them. As the night wore on he found it harder to focus on the stakeout with his entire concentration devoted to holding on to Draco. If Draco whimpered at a particularly loud crash Harry kept quiet and just tightened his hold on Draco’s waist, rubbing his back and talking about random things in an attempt to keep his mind off their surroundings. It was raining heavily enough that keeping an eye on their target was well-nigh impossible.
Finally when his watch showed fifteen minutes to three he moved gently, whispering to Draco, “We can leave now, Tom and Patrick will be here soon.”
Draco took his time in letting go of Harry, moving slowly until they were facing each other. He gave a stiff nod and started to move out of the hideout when another clap of thunder sounded making him jump and turn to look at Harry.
“I think,” Harry started, moving to stand next to Draco, “the storm’s going to go on all night.”
“Well, then,” Draco swallowed, flinching as lightning flashed in the sky, “try not to be too scared at night, Potter.”
Harry moved his hand till it was touching Draco’s, their fingers brushing against each others, “How about you help your partner sleep, Malfoy? After all, if I’m sleepy tomorrow because I was too scared to rest you’ll have to do all the paper work.” He shrugged, not missing the look of relief that flashed on Draco’s face.
“When you put it that way,” Draco said thoughtfully, already moving to entwine their fingers together, “it seems like it’s my duty to make sure you feel safe.”
Harry nodded sagely, wrapping an arm around Draco’s shoulder and steering him out the door, “Yes, it’s just something you have to do. There’s no point in fighting your duty Draco.”
Draco nodded tiredly as Harry wrapped his arms around Draco’s waist and pulled him close, turning them together. They arrived with a bang in the foyer at Grimmauld Place, awakening Mrs. Black who promptly launched into another of her tirades. Draco watched in fascination as his grand aunt ranted about abominations and blood traitors.
“Why don’t you place a silencing charm on her?” He asked Harry, who’d been busy trying to push his shoes and newspapers out of the way before Draco noticed and made him clean it all up. Harry wouldn’t put it past him; the first time they’d shared an office Draco had made Harry clean his half of the room too before he was allowed to sit down and get to work.
“I’ve tried,” Harry slumped against the wall, yawning as he explained, and “it doesn’t work. The old bat has some sort of charm in place that erases it.”
Draco looked interested now, the possibility of a challenge making him all but rub his hands in glee. Harry yawned again, making a big enough production of it that Draco rolled his eyes and grabbed Harry’s arm, pulling him up the stairs.
“Come on, before you fall asleep on me here and I have to drag your sorry arse up three flights of stairs.” Draco steered Harry towards his bedroom.
Thunder was still flashing outside, making the room light up in intervals. Harry fell down onto the bed and pulled Draco down on top of him. Another burst of thunder made the windows rattle and Draco moved closer till he was almost curled into Harry. He reached up with a hand and patted Harry’s head, “It’ll be fine Potter, I’m here now, you can go to sleep.”
Harry smiled into Draco’s hair and tightened his arms around him, glad to realise Draco wasn’t shaking anymore. He toed off his shoes and waited till Draco had done the same before nudging him to make Draco turn over. With a happy sigh Harry reached down to pull the covers over them before lying behind Draco and pulling him closer with an arm around his waist. Draco didn’t resist, pushing back into the warmth surrounding his body.
“Comfortable, Potter?” Draco asked around a yawn, holding onto Harry’s arm that was around his waist.
Harry instinctively tightened his hold as thunder boomed again, rejoicing in how relaxed Draco was.
“More than I’ve ever been,” Harry whispered into Draco’s neck and decided to make sure that Draco was never alone during a thunderstorm ever again.