“A Balancing of Scales”
(My first Drarry!)
When Harry got the first letter, he regarded it as a one-off.
—
Potter,
You saved my life. You had no reason to do it. You’re a bloody imbecile.
Still, I thought it poor manners not to say: Thank you.
I don’t believe in life-debts, but you did almost kill me once, so let’s call it even?
-DM
—
Harry did not respond to it, even though it had made his blood boil. As if Malfoy hadn’t been trying to have Harry expelled, and his wand snapped, since their first year!
Harry was only a trainee Auror, even having defeated the greatest Dark Wizard of all time, he still didn’t know the ins and outs of casework. For this reason, he did not have his own office at the Ministry of Magic, but was out on a public floor at a desk instead.
The sight of an Owl swooping to his desk became something he expected.
—
Potter,
I saw you in the back at my trial well before you stepped onto the stand. When I saw you, I wasn’t sure why you were there at all, if not to testify against me.
Imagine my surprise.
You bloody wanker, you’ve unbalanced our scales again.
Don’t think I will forget about this.
-DM
___
Harry had, indeed, testified. How could he not have? At the end of the day, Malfoy was just a kid, like him, like they all were.
Their first few steps into adulthood should be different. They shouldn’t need so many years to remove grudges. In Harry’s opinion, it was more important for people to see Malfoy’s release than his sentencing.
His father was another story, he needed to pay penance, but Draco…
So Harry had done what he could to help his former tormenter. His voice held power, and he would use it where he saw fit.
Somehow, though, he felt he’d made an error.
Because Draco Malfoy seemed to have chosen him as a one-sided penpal.
Perhaps wizards called it “Quill-Friend,” but Harry didn’t know.
—
Potter,
Yes I’m writing to you again, even though you’ve rudely left my letters unanswered.
Not that I expected a reply, just acknowledging the rudeness, which does not come as a surprise, mind.
I’m about to leave for the mandatory school year my sentencing demanded. Thanks, again, for recommending this over the sucking out of my soul.
That little joke about how it would’ve been a waste seeing as I didn’t have one anyway… that was good, by the way. Excellent deadpan. I greatly enjoyed seeing the Wizengamot so confused before you told them you were joking.
I hear you and Weasley are leaving Granger to fend for herself this school year. Think she can keep as good an eye on me as you did?
-DM
__
Harry’s heart raced by the end of the letter. The swirl of emotions he was feeling was a convoluted plot. An almighty agitation mixed with panic, confusion, and anticipation? All at once, he wished that the wizard had said any of this to his face, before deciding that that absolutely would not be a pleasant experience.
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