Carey ‘W’Recs Wednesday(｡•̀ᴗ-)✧ presents:
Fandom:Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Characters: Blaise Zabini, Terence Higgs, Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Gregory Goyle, Pansy Parkinson, Theodore Nott, Millicent Bulstrode, Daphne Greengrass, Astoria Greengrass, Molly Weasley, Narcissa Black Malfoy, Lucius Malfoy, Original Characters
Additional Tags: Post-War, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Character Study, A Love Letter to Therapy, fastburn, unreliable narrators, Mental Health Issues, Sort of Unredeemed Draco, Auror Harry Potter, Dialectical behavior therapy, Involuntary Commitment, psychiatric hospital, traumatic mutism, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Depression, Recovery, Strong Supportive Friends, Enemies to Lovers, Nothing to Everything, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Art Therapy, Falling In Love, Enthusiastic Consent, Reclaiming Sexuality After Trauma, Masturbation, Anal Sex, Frottage, Family Issues, Impact of Dark Magic, Jealousy, Forced Sedation, anger issues, Past Rape/Non-con, Rape Recovery, past abusive relationship, Past Child Abuse, Referenced Drug Use, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Medication Noncompliance, Codependency, Harry's POV and Draco's POV, Angst with a Hopeful Ending (all bolding is mine not the author’s)
Draco learns that running from his present only leads him back into the silence of his past. Harry finds that the battle never ended; his mind simply brought the battlefield home. When both are committed to the same psychiatric ward, survival becomes its own kind of war.
Love becomes the most dangerous treatment of all.
Draco taps his board, biting his lip. “I saw when the Aurors brought you in.”
Harry flushes. Well, so much for safe topics, he thinks.
Feeling a hot flare of shame, he crosses his arms, his head bowing slightly. “Yeah, that was not my finest moment. I didn’t exactly come quietly, know what I mean?” he admits, feeling utterly stupid for his unintended pun. He looks at Draco, trying to gauge his reaction when he sees a lack of one. “What did you think when you saw me?”
Draco hesitates for a moment before tapping his board, almost thoughtfully. “I wasn’t surprised.” He then looks up at Harry, his eyes growing softer. He taps. “You’ve always been a dramatic bellend.”
Harry laughs, full-bellied and gleeful, the sound echoing in the small room.
Draco lifts a finger to his lips, signalling a soundless shush. Harry zeroes in on those lips—pink, full, and perfect. Draco taps his board again, his bottom lip once again trapped between his teeth. “Honestly, I was worried about you…and I blamed myself.”
Harry’s smile vanishes so quickly that it leaves his cheeks aching. “What?” he blurts out. “Why would you think it was your fault?”
Draco’s gaze drops to the ground, but he taps his board, his hand slightly trembling. “Because I’m a Death Eater. I was part of a group that ruined countless lives, including yours. Every day, I think about the pain and suffering I caused. When I saw you brought in, I thought maybe the past had finally caught up with you—the past that people like me forced upon you. I couldn’t help but feel responsible, or like the darkness I contributed to had seeped back into your life. It haunts me, Harry, knowing that my actions and choices might still be hurting people. Hurting you. You, of all people, don’t deserve to suffer.”
Harry wishes he could touch Draco. The need to place his hand over his or wrap his arms around Draco’s body is profound. He takes a deep breath, trying to squash the feeling before he crosses a line.
“Draco,” Harry says softly, his voice calm. “You didn’t choose that life; it was forced on you. None of what happened was your fault; you were a bloody kid. We were all caught up in something so much bigger than us, and the adults that were meant to protect us from all of that shit failed us.” When Draco winces, Harry pauses, swallowing hard, and he lifts his hand to rest on Draco’s shoulder. “I don’t blame you for any of it. I admire you for wanting to change, for wanting to be better. The fact that you’re even worrying about me shows how much you’ve changed. And I’m just like any other bloke out here struggling to deal with his demons. They’re…quiet…right now, in my head. I feel a little more in control of my anger for the first time in a while. There are moments, but I’m not…manic. So Draco, it’s not your darkness that haunts me. It’s my own.”
Draco’s gaze lingers on Harry’s hand resting on his shoulder, and Harry can feel the subtle shiver that runs through him. Withdrawing his hand so as not to make Draco uneasy, Harry watches as Draco’s lips part slightly, a soft, soundless exhale escaping him.
Draco turns his attention to his board, his marker hovering over the surface as he hesitates, then begins to tap. “Okay. Thank you, Harry.” Harry notices Draco biting the side of his lip again, and he catches on that this is a nervous habit—one that he finds devastatingly endearing.
Draco taps his board again, his expression betraying a hint of vulnerability. “About your question from your letter.”
Curiosity piqued, Harry leans in slightly. “Yes?”
A faint blush appears on Draco’s cheeks. “I’d like to be your friend, too.”
Harry grins at him, excited and loving how Draco’s sincerity seems to dance in his eyes. “That’s–that’s great, Draco, thank you! I’d really, really like that. And, it’s been a while since I had a new friend, and well, I think, I know, you’re going be a great one.”
Draco taps. “I think you’re going to be a great friend, too.”
They smile at each other, and Harry feels a shift within himself: the pull towards Draco is undeniable.
Suddenly, a mischievous glint flashes in Draco’s eyes, and he sets his board on the bed before he leans back slightly, his arm extending to snatch something from behind Harry. Harry’s heart races as he realises it’s his bodice-ripper.
“Oh, Merlin, no!” he exclaims, attempting to grab the book back, but Draco evades his reach, a smirk playing on his lips. “It’s not mine, it’s Hermione’s!” Harry explains quickly, feeling heat rise to his cheeks. “She, er, packed it in my bag for some reason.”
Draco inspects the book, flipping it over to examine the cover. A handsome brunet, the Wandmaker, stands heroically with his wand raised, shirtless, with his robe billowing out dramatically. His Apprentice, a younger, half-naked blond man, clings to him and gazes up in admiration. Draco quirks an eyebrow at him, and Harry seizes the opportunity to make a grab for it.
As Harry lunges for the book, Draco lifts it above his head, causing Harry to fall against him, their chests pressing together awkwardly. Caught off guard, Harry feels a burst of Draco’s warm, minty breath against his cheek as he exhales. Something instinctual takes over in the space between a gasp and a heartbeat, and Harry finds himself closing the minuscule gap between them to press his lips against Draco’s.
Dropping the book, Draco reacts instantly. His hands come up to roughly shove Harry back, his cheeks flaming red. His chest rises and falls rapidly as he stares at Harry, wild-eyed, shock and confusion playing out on his face in a loop.
“Oh, fuck!” Harry splutters. “Draco, I’m so—”
Draco surges forward, pressing his lips against Harry’s in a bruising kiss.
Taken aback, Harry’s eyes widen, his glasses shoving up the bridge of his nose. Any words he may have had die in his throat as Draco’s hands run up his bare chest, leaving a scorching path in their wake. They slide over his shoulders before he wraps his arms around Harry’s neck. Harry encircles his arms around Draco’s waist, hauling him forward to press their chests together as the kiss turns passionate.
Draco’s touches are commanding, his grip firm and possessive as his fingers greedily find purchase in Harry’s hair. Harry responds with a gasp, his own hands sliding up Draco’s delicate neck and into the long, silky strands of his moonlight-touched hair. His thoughts whiten out as Draco sucks the bottom of Harry’s lip into his mouth, and he moans as Draco slips his tongue into his mouth. They explore each other with an urgency that feels like they’re drowning in each other.
Suddenly, Draco wrenches himself away from Harry.
