Harry/Draco Coming Out Fics
This is a long overdue rec list for the Anon who requested “discovery/coming out fics where Harry or Draco realise they are gay. Ones with great character development and a bit of angst.” Sorry it took so long to get back to you! I made a list right when you wrote, accidentally deleted it, and then got too busy with school to redo it. I’ll admit that I originally thought this was two separate asks, so let me know if you’d like another list of fics with character development and a bit of angst. :)
I have to admit, Anon, that at first your request had me pretty stumped. It seemed like looking for hay in a haystack. What I mean by that is that most slash fic for a non-canon pairing probably has some coming out element since the writer has to deal with bending a canonically heteronormative character. But then, at the same time, one of the things that I like most about slash fic is that it often dispenses with the coming out narrative right away, which is the opposite of most lgbtqia+ YA lit. That being said, I came up with some absolutely wonderful fics that I think fit your request.
“I Bet That You Look Good on the Dancefloor” by birdsofshore
NC-17, 27970 words
Summary: Harry felt lit up from inside as soon as he entered the bar. There were blokes dancing together, their bodies close to one another, not keeping a wary distance as Harry was always careful to do when he was near another man. God, he wanted this – wanted it so much he could taste it, a metallic tang of heat and desire. He suspected nothing would ever be the same again – especially when he saw who else was in the room.
[I think this is my favorite thing that I’ve read this year. It’s soooo good.]
“The Dragon’s Arms” by ani_mage
NC-17, 22650 words
Summary: Since the war, Harry’s been living on the fringes of the Muggle world and alienated from the Wizarding world. Draco’s struggled his whole life to satisfy his father’s idea of what it means to be a “Malfoy Man” in the Wizarding world, never comfortable in the role. Can they help each other find a place where they feel at home?
[yeah, that’s right, I’m rec’ing my own fic]
‘Twas Brillig by Queenie_Mab @mab-speaks
NC-17, 73998 words
Summary: Harry reads a chapter of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to his children before bed every night and through the story, he and his middle child find an ally in each other as they, along with Alice, discover a world that just doesn’t seem to make sense when taken at face value. The more aware Harry becomes - embracing his child’s reality - the more motivated he is to build a wizarding world that is fully inclusive, and by processing these life lessons finds he’s able to connect with another person in ways that have always eluded him.
Any Instrument by dictacontrion
NC-17, 131102 words
Summary: Draco Malfoy wouldn’t go back to England for anything less than an exceptional case. Being asked to figure out why Harry Potter can’t control his magic might be exceptional enough to qualify.
“Welcome to the Broomcloset” by incapricious
NC-17, 23143 words
Summary: Harry thinks he knows how his life will go: Become an Auror. Marry Ginny. Have a family. But then he sees an advertisement in the paper that no one else can see, and his life is turned upside-down. The Broom Closet: you can be anyone you want while you’re there, but you won’t remember it in the morning.
“Desire Unveiled” by Frayach
NC-17, 14881 words
Summary: Harry is emphatically NOT a pouf, and thus his reoccurring fantasies involving Draco are due to his Occlumency lessons with Snape, NOT to his sexuality. Or so he tries to convince himself. Meanwhile, Voldemort has returned, and Harry is about to learn that he is the Chosen One – whether he’s ready or not. Set during OotP.
Mental by sara_holmes
NC-17, 186678 words
Summary: Harry has had quite enough of sharing his mind with someone else, thankyouverymuch. A miscast Legilimecy spell says otherwise.
“Aural Gratification” by birdsofshore
NC-17, 10988 words
Summary: Harry’s not gay – he just likes listening to exciting stories about Aurors. It’s not his fault that the narrator’s voice is so smooth, so expressive… and really rather hot.
“Seeing Draco Malfoy” by khalulu [there’s also a great podfic read by fire_juggler!]
NC-17, 12356 words
Summary: It’s a few years after the war, Harry is an Auror, Ginny’s broken up with him, and Draco runs a “Magical Repairs and Reparations” service. And then there’s Ignatius – devastatingly good-looking, temperamental, and addicted to gingernut biscuits. When Harry loses his glasses in a fight and learns that they’ve landed in Draco’s hands, he’s suspicious. But soon after that, life starts looking up.
“I’ll Tell You A Secret (Just Don’t Tell)” by nerakrose
G, 18331 words
Summary: Harry and Draco are living a fairly normal life with a fairly normal relationship, except for the part where it’s, well, secret.
At Your Service by Faithwood ( @faith2wood )
NC-17, 95752 words
Summary: Hogwarts students are in danger; Harry is determined to save them all. There’s only one thing he knows for certain: Draco Malfoy is somehow involved.
“The Swaggering Plimpies (or This One Time, At Quidditch Camp…)” by RurouniHime
NC-17, 29576 words
Summary: Draco has an idea, and Harry’s just the one to help him.
“Twixt Naught and Never” by @emmagrant01
NC-17, 20408 words
Summary: A decade after the defeat of Voldemort, Draco Malfoy works in the Misuse of Potions department of the Ministry of Magic and is assigned to investigate a London pub suspected of being involved in illegal potions trade. To his surprise, the pub is owned by none other than Harry Potter.
Left My Heart by emmagrant01
NC17, 85031 words
Summary: Auror Draco Malfoy has disappeared, and Harry Potter has been sent to San Francisco to find him. (Post-Hogwarts, set in February, 2004. Written before Half-Blood Prince was released.)
The following fics aren’t really “coming out” stories, but I think that the theme of lgbtqia+ pride makes them relevant to this ask:
“Pride” by @writcraft
NC-17, 9051 words
Summary: Harry and Draco form an unlikely friendship after the war. Even as the friendship becomes more, Draco is quick to push Harry away before they become too deeply involved. As Harry fights to save an iconic wizarding pub and gay safe-haven from being closed down, circumstances force Draco to confront his true feelings head on.
“Solidarity” by leontina @asexualsiriusblack
NC-17, 16661 words
Summary: Six years after the war, Harry runs into Draco again who Harry learns is an LGBTQ+ activist. Harry decides to join him in campaigning when a proposition to legalise same-sex marriage is put to a public vote.
