Take me Home

Chap. 2 - KISSES IN THE MOONLIGHT

31st of July.

It was a hot summer day and Harry was lying by the lake, hiding himself from the sun under a very old, big and gnarled tree. So far, his sixteenth birthday was becoming the worst day of his life. His father hadn't even remembered it. Harry had barely seen him that day. It was like James was avoiding him on purpose. The only one who had greeted Harry was Hagrid with one of his famous birthday cakes.

He could understand why the professors hadn't said a word to him. A spy had discovered that the Dark Lord would try a massive attack on a Muggle village and they were running out of time trying to find out more about it. But what about his friends? They hadn't even sent him a card! It just wasn't like them to forget about his birthday.

With a sigh, he stared at the sky above him. Suddenly, Padfoot blocked his view and started licking him. Harry couldn't help but laugh.

"Padfoot! Stop it. It's kind of gross that my godfather licks my face!"

Padfoot barked as if he was trying to talk to Harry. Then he looked around and changed himself into Sirius Black.

"Happy birthday, Harry!" Sirius hugged his godson.

"Thanks, Sirius. You and Hagrid are the only ones who remembered."

"Hmm... I wouldn't be so sure if I were you. I have a present to you, but it's in the castle. Come on, let's go inside."

"What is it?"

"It's a surprise, of course."

Sirius changed into Padfoot again and Harry followed him to the castle. Finally, winding their way through the corridors of Hogwarts, Padfoot stopped next to a locked door and barked. Harry looked at him amused and opened the door. The room was completely dark and Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Padfoot, what..."

Immediately, the lights came on brightly and a choir of surprises was heard. Harry grinned widely at the scene. Ron and Hermione were there, each holding out a package to him. Dumbledore blew a very noisy whistle, Dobby was making the last arrangements on the chocolate cake and Remus held Harry tightly. Erin was the next, followed by a very peevish Snape. Harry didn't care about Snape's bad mood that was more than expected, or Peeves sudden annoying appearance. They'd thrown him a surprise party and he couldn't be happier. Even the whole Weasley family was there.

"Happy birthday, Harry!" the crowd yelled.

Harry had never received so many gifts and greetings in his life. The only thing that spoiled his day a little was his father's lack of emotion. James seemed even more out of place than Snape and Harry felt sad about that. But then he remembered that his father wasn't well, and that it would be too much to ask of him to just get back to living a normal life. His father loved him, even if he hadn't said it yet. It wasn't his fault, Harry muttered to himself. It was all Voldemort's fault.

"Oh, my God, Harry! I've missed you so much!" Hermione said for the third time.

Ron growled with jealousy and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Honestly, you would expect him to be over that," she commented to Harry. "Ron is such a drag..."

"Hey! I'm not! Besides, if I'm a drag, then why are you dating me?" Ron asked.

"There's this saying that goes: can't live with them, can't live without them. That's exactly my case. I do love you, but sometimes you're a real pain in the a..."

Ron put his hand on Hermione's lips to prevent her from saying the 'ass' word.

"It's not right for a lady to say such things, Hermione," he said, teasing her.

She pinched him. "Oh, please, don't start... I can say whatever I want. You're not the boss of me Ron, and we've long passed the phase of the feminine oppression. Women today can pretty much do or say anything they want and..." Hermione's speech was cut short by Ron's kiss. "You know, contrary to what people - or men for that matter - think, not everything can be solved with a kiss and..." another kiss was shared between them.

Harry rolled his eyes. He had missed that arguing between Ron and Hermione. His friends had only written to each other over that month. Now that they were dating, Mrs. Weasley had talked to Mrs. Granger and they thought it wasn't proper for Hermione to sleep over at the Burrow. Ron was disappointed by that decision and after much talking, he'd convinced them that there was nothing wrong with his girlfriend spending a few days at his house. She would sleep with Ginny. Problem solved. It hadn't been that easy though, but eventually Mrs. Weasley had agreed with the whole thing. After Harry's party, Hermione would go with the Weasleys to spend the rest of the summer at the Burrow.

"Are you sure you don't want to come, Harry? It'll be fun!" Ron asked.

"Sorry, Ron, but I have to stay. I'm having some extra-classes and besides, I don't want to leave my dad."

"Too bad, Harry, but I understand. I'll have to put up with Hermione then. She doesn't even like to play Quidditch..." Ron pretended to complain about her and she slapped his arm. "Ouch. I was only joking, pumpkin juice."

"Don't call me that! It's degrading! And I'll play Quidditch with you if you want to."

"You don't even know how to mount a broom, Herm. Last time you tried it was such a disaster."

Hermione made a face and Ron kissed her tenderly.

"I love your clumsy way with a broom," Ron whispered to her.

"Brooms were always an instrument of oppression for women and..."

Hermione kept talking and Ron kept rolling his eyes and constantly kissing her. All that kissing and cuddling made him remember about Draco. Harry missed Draco so much that it ached. He wished he could go to Malfoy Manor, just to see what was going on there, but it was too risky. Even Dobby didn't want to risk it. Dobby had refused to help Harry the last time he'd gone to the Manor saying that it was way too dangerous. Harry hadn't listened to the warnings, as usual. But that was before. He didn't even know if Draco was at the Manor.

"Hey, Harry, my man!" George patted Harry on the back. "Did you like our prankster's kit? We've made it especially for you, right Fred?"

"Oh, yes. It's our best work, Harry. I suggest that you try it when classes get started again."

"It's great, thanks." Harry smiled.

"You know, thanks to you we'll be able to open our shop." George said. "That money you gave us will help us a lot, Harry."

"We've already rented a place at Hogsmeade. You must visit us when it's done."

"And we promise that we'll pay every galleon back to you, Harry."

"No, honestly, you don't have to. That money was a gift." Harry's face reddened. "What's the name of the shop?"

"What do you think? It'll be called Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes!" Fred said out loud.

They laughed hard as they remembered that that was the name Mrs. Weasley have given them when she had found out about their jokes and tricks.

"No, seriously, tell me the real name." Harry said after he regained his breath.

Fred and George looked at him stunned and said at the same time, "That is the real name."

"Oh. Well, it's good! Really...," Harry tried to fix it.

"No, it's not," Fred said.

"You didn't like it," George replied.

"I thought it was a good name. You know, like a personal joke..."

"Yeah, so did I..."

"You'll have to think of something else, George."

"Hey, guys, that name is fine."

But they weren't listening to Harry anymore. They were too busy with their own discussion about the new name of their joke shop. While everyone in the room kept talking and laughing, Harry took the opportunity to sneak out. He didn't go too far though.

"Hey, Harry, wait!"

Harry turned around and saw Ginny Weasley walking towards him. He hadn't paid much attention to her the previous year, but now that he was actually looking at her, he realised how beautiful she was. Her long red hair was shining brightly under the sun and her body had developed too. His eyes went straight to her breasts, even though he tried hard not to do that. He looked at her eyes and they were sparkling with innocence and happiness. Happiness to be with him.

He shook his head and commanded himself to stop looking at her as if he was interested. He wasn't. He loved Draco, for Merlin's sake. What was he thinking? Damn testosterone!

"Hi, Ginny."

"Hi." Her face was as red as the colour of her hair. She looked adorable like that. "Are you enjoying your party?"

"Yes, it's great. I've never had a surprise party before. I've never had a party, actually."

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that."

"Don't worry about it. That doesn't bother me anymore."

While they talked, James watched them through the open window with sad but also happy eyes. He felt twinges of dejavu as he watched the scene. He and Lily stood in that same spot one day and it was also the place where they had shared their fist kiss.

"Lovely scene isn't it?" said Severus bitterly. "How curious it is that the past has the annoying habit of repeating itself over and over again. Ginny Weasley is not like Lily though. Hermione Granger is more like her. The Weasley girl is too innocent. Lily was never innocent."

James clutched his fists. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Severus grimaced. "Oh, but I do know, James. We both know that she wasn't innocent at all."

"Shut up! You knew nothing about her!"

"I knew everything about her! Or did you forget that she was a Death Eater as well?"

James didn't think twice before going for Severus' throat. Both men rolled on the floor punching and kicking each other like they were still on their sixth year at Hogwarts. When Remus saw that, he instantly remembered the past. That scene had been very common in the corridors of the castle in the past.

He and Sirius immediately separated them. James looked murderous and so did Severus. Everyone in the room was shocked by the scene. Erin stared at her husband disappointedly and she left the room without waiting for her husband. Severus, already regretting the whole thing, went after her to apologise for his childish behaviour.

"You shouldn't let him get under your skin like that!" Remus said to James.

"You're hurt, James," Sirius pointed out.

"Well, I'm here so I might as well have a look at it." said Madam Pomfrey with a disagreeable face.

James' eyes fell upon Harry, who was staring at him intently. He began to perspire. He wished Harry hadn't heard what Snape had said about Lily. Harry shouldn't know about that, ever. He would do anything to protect Harry from the truth.

"What happened?" Harry asked his father.

"Nothing, Harry," James sounded harsh even though he didn't intend to.

"Nothing? What was that all about? Why did you fight?"

"Why do you think, Harry?" Sirius said, "You know how nasty and cruel Snape can be. Your father was only defending himself."

"Yeah, but... He's been acting so nice lately. Why the sudden...?"

"Nice? NICE?" James snapped. "There's nothing nice about that man, Harry! He's an evil bastard who thinks he's better than everyone else in the world. I noticed that you and he are very close. As your father, I forbid you to speak to him! I don't want you alone with him!"

"What?" Harry stared at his father as if he was facing a lunatic.

"You heard me! I want to be next to you when you meet him! I don't want you to be alone with him."

"No, I won't do that. It's insane."

"He's a Death Eater, Harry!" James yelled.

"He was! He's not anymore! He's on our side now."

Harry couldn't believe that he was defending Snape of all people, but he couldn't help it. He was tired of his father's weird behaviour, even if there was a motive to that. He knew he wasn't being rational but it was his birthday; his father hadn't said a word to him so far and now he felt like he had the right to tell Harry what to do.

"You'll do what I tell you, Harry!" James caught Harry's arms and squeezed.

Everybody felt even more shocked by that.

"JAMES!" Dumbledore's voice boomed through the room like thunder.

Immediately, James let go of Harry and blinked. He stared at the people around him as if seeing them for the first time. He looked so lost that everyone in the room felt pity for his confused state of mind. Everyone but Harry.

"You can't tell me what to do. And you won't," shouted Harry before running out of the room.

Sirius stared at James with a sad expression. James didn't react to Harry's outburst. He couldn't. He had hurt his son for the second time. Why did he do that? It wasn't like him to be violent. His head hurt, too, and he just wished he could go back to his hospital bed.

"Sirius, Remus, help James to go back to the infirmary. Poppy, please go with them," Dumbledore ordered. "I don't think James is feeling well."

"Sir, let me go after Harry first," Sirius asked.

"I think Harry needs to be alone for a while," Dumbledore stated. "But I won't make any objections if Miss Granger and Mr. Weasley decide to find him. I'm sure Harry needs someone his own age to comfort him right now. Later, Sirius, you can go talk to him."

Hermione and Ron left the room in search of Harry and Sirius and Remus led a very confused James to the Hospital Wing.

-------------

Later that day, Sirius looked for Harry everywhere but didn't find him. He was worried about him but Hermione and Ron had said that Harry was fine - as fine as he could be - and he wanted to be left alone for a while. With that in mind, he went looking for Remus at his office. James was sleeping peacefully in the Hospital Wing and that was the first opportunity he had had to actually talk to Remus alone.

"Remus," he called, knocking on the office's door.

"Come on in, Sirius. The door is not locked."

Sirius turned the doorknob and entered the dark room lit by candlelight. His friend was sitting at his table, reading a book quietly. He smiled. Remus'd always liked to read. He'd made fun of it in the past and for that he regretted. His relationship with Remus ever since he'd escaped from Azkaban was tenuous at best. Sirius never knew what to say to him. Remus always looked distant and cold, even though his eyes told Sirius the opposite. It was a very sad thought but the fact was that Sirius didn't know his friend as he once did.

"What are you reading?" Sirius asked, uneasy.

Remus didn't look up. He was too busy trying to hide his shaking hands and his anxiety at having Sirius so close to him after so long. No one knew about it, but Remus had been in love with Sirius from a very young age. After Sirius' imprisonment, he thought he had forgotten all about it, but when he saw him again at the Shack, he realised that he hadn't got over that feeling yet. It was a feeling that consumed his soul. And the worst part was that he couldn't do anything about it because Sirius loved Narcissa Malfoy and she had given up everything to be with him. Besides, Sirius had never swung that way.

"Nothing important."

Sirius crossed his arms and made a face. "Really? Then why don't you shut it and talk to me?"

Remus did exactly that and his eyes came across Sirius's. "What do you want?"

"I thought we were past the awkwardness, Remus."

Remus sighed, "We did. In a way. But there is still... issues... between us."

"What issues?"

"You never told me why you switched the secret keeper position with Pettigrew. Why was that?"

Sirius looked down. "Why do we have to talk about such painful subjects?"

"Because only then we'll be able to move on, Sirius. But I know why you didn't tell me."

"Then why did you ask me?"

"I want you to tell me why, Sirius. Because then I want you to ask for my forgiveness," Remus said harshly. "You thought I was the traitor, didn't you? You hadn't said anything to James or Lily, but I knew you suspected me."

"What did you expect? You suspected me, too! I knew you did because after our graduation you started to look at me in a way that made me uncomfortable. You watched me very carefully like you expected me to do something stupid. After a while, you started to act weird, too. You never talked to me, you were always making excuses not to meet me."

"There was a reason for that, Sirius, but not the reason you thought."

"What was the reason then?"

"It doesn't matter anymore. We ruined our lives with our distrust for each other. And we thought we would be best friends for life. What a joke," Remus said bitterly. "But I don't... hate you. Not at all. I do care for you, Sirius, in spite of everything."

"So do I, Remus. I love you. You know that, don't you?" Sirius got closer to Remus, whose eyes flickered, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry for suspecting you in the past. That was a very crazy time for all of us. Voldemort got what he wanted. He made us all mad and unhappy. But this time things will be different, Remus. We'll fight against him together. And we'll save James in the process. We owe that to him."

Remus smiled weakly. "Sure. You can count on me."

Sirius smiled and hugged him tightly. "I'm really sorry."

"I know."

Remus shut his eyes tightly to prevent the tears from falling. The werewolf in him breathed in Sirius' scent and almost growled in satisfaction. Both the werewolf and Remus had missed that scent. Remus pulled back before he lost control of his will.

"I'm going back to the Hospital now," Sirius said. "Want to join me?"

"No. I have to look for an answer for James' illness."

"We all know the name of his illness. Voldemort and his damn wand!" Sirius said, enraged.

"Yes, but maybe there's a spell that will allow us to claim the missing part of James' soul."

"Do you need my help to look for it?"

"No, stay with James. I think he'll need someone to talk to when he awakes."

"Alright. We can talk later then."

With one last glance, Sirius opened the door to leave the room but Remus stopped him.

"Sirius? How is Narcissa?"

"Oh, she's fine. Sad, but fine. She's talking to a few allies for the Order. Actually, I forgot to tell Harry something that I found out about Draco..." Sirius muttered to himself. "His birthday is today, same day as Harry's. Isn't that weird?"

"You mean, Draco Malfoy?" Remus asked with curiosity.

"Yes... I guess Harry has to tell you himself, Remus."

"About what?"

"They like each other, Remus."

Remus opened his eyes wide. "You mean... like like... as..."

"As in a couple."

"Merlin!"

"It's quite a shock but after a while you get used to it," Sirius joked. "You should talk to him."

"Because I'm a queer?" Remus asked bitterly.

"No, because he likes you and he respects you. I don't have a problem with your sexuality, Remus. I never had."

"I know."

"By the way, do you have someone?"

"No," Remus answered quickly. "I've never had the time. It's complicated. I'm also a werewolf."

"You'll find someone, I'm sure of it."

"I don't really want to find anyone."

"You should. I'm very happy with Narcissa," Sirius winked before leaving.

Remus sat down on his chair again and sighed. It would be one hell of a year, he could feel it. He was glad that Narcissa wasn't there because he didn't think he would be able to watch them together. He needed to put an end to that feeling. Sirius didn't love him. Not in the same way as he loved Sirius. He had to forget...

"Hey, I brought your potion," Erin said, entering his office.

"Thanks Erin. How's the greasy bastard?"

She smiled. "He's fine. I left him in our bedroom facing the wall. He'll think twice before behaving like that again."

"I'm sure he will, having you to lecture him," Remus grinned at the thought of Snape staring at the wall like a child.

"His manners have improved a lot, whether you believe it or not. He's being very nice to Harry."

"Maybe he's doing it just to spite James," Remus suggested.

"No, I don't think so, even though he likes to spite James. But he really likes Harry in his own way. And now that he's going to be a father, his heart is starting to soften," Erin smiled sweetly, placing a hand on her stomach. "It's going to be a boy."

"Really? Does he know?"

She shook her head. "Not yet, but I know he'll be delighted to hear about it."

Remus laughed. "I'll just bet he will. You know, I'm here just because you ask me to be, Erin. I hope you know what you're doing."

"You're not dangerous, Remus."

He raised an eyebrow. "I am. We've been through this before."

"Not as long as you take the potion."

"It's still a risk. Like when I was..."

She shushed him. "It's settled already. I'll make sure you take the potion."

"If you say so..."

"You should tell him how you feel, Remus," Erin said all of a sudden.

"Tell what to whom?"

"Tell Sirius that you love him."

Remus almost fell out of the chair. "NO! Never! How do you know anyway?"

"I'm a seer. I know stuff from time to time. The baby is making me more sensitive than usual."

"I can't tell Sirius, Erin. He's in love with Narcissa."

"I know. But still... The future is very vague, Remus. It hasn't been written yet in spite of what some people think. Maybe you won't be with him, maybe you will. I see someone in your life, but not as clear as I would like to. I don't know if this person will be good to you, so be careful, all right?" she said with a weird tone of voice, her eyes flickering. After a few seconds, she smiled again. "Now I need to take a nap. I'm so tired. Have you hear from Harry? Is he ok?"

"Yes. Hermione and Ron said he was all right."

"That's good to know. He's such a sweet boy."

After she was gone, Remus spent the rest of the day with his mind on the mysterious person that was destined to cross his way, for better or worse.

-----------

"AHHHHH!"

Draco landed on the kitchen floor of Hogwarts, his face and clothes full of dust. Immediately, he was surrounded by house-elves, all of them looking at him with curiosity. It wasn't every day that someone popped out of the fireplace. Actually, there were only a few people who used that fireplace to travel by floo powder and Draco had never been one of them.

In a very bad mood, Draco stood up and tried to dust off his clothes.

"God! I hate that crummy way of travelling! I can't wait to get my license so I can Apparate."

Then he remembered that no one could Apparate onto the grounds of Hogwarts, and he felt really stupid for it. One of the house-elves leaned forward to help him clean his clothes, and soon at least four of them were doing the same thing. Draco counted to ten and closed his eyes. To go back home he would make sure to use a port-key instead of floo powder. Someone would have to help him with that.

"MALFOY, SIR!" said a squeaky voice.

Draco opened his eyes and looked around. "Dobby?"

"Yes, it's me, sir. What're you doing here?" Dobby asked, standing in front of him.

"I came here to see Harry."

"Oh, you came for his birthday. How thoughtful of you, sir."

"His birthday? Today is his birthday?"

Draco couldn't believe it. Harry's birthday was on the same day as his! What a coincidence!

"Yes, there was a surprise party, but it's over now. Mr. Potter had a nervous break down." Then the small creature started to squeak and bang his head on the wall. "Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby!"

Draco made him stop it. In the past, he used to find those scenes funny, but now he realised it was just cruel. How could he enjoy them before?

"Don't do that, Dobby. You're not in my house anymore!"

Dobby put his hand on his head while the world gained focus again, he said, "Oh, right. I forget about that sometimes. Freedom is such a new thing for me. I'm still learning how to be free, sir. It's stupid, I know but..."

"It's all right, Dobby." Draco said gently, taking himself by surprise. "What I want to know is what happened to Harry. You said he suffered a nervous break down. Is it true? Could you lead me to him?" Draco said anxiously.

"No, sir, not Harry Potter. Harry Potter is fine. James Potter is the one who is ill."

"Oh."

Draco should have known that the problem was with James. After all, his father had told him about his conversation with Voldemort.

"Is James better now?"

"Yes, sir. He's at the Hospital Wing. He's asleep."

"Good. And Harry? Where is he?"

"I don't know, sir."

"Dammit!" Draco cursed under his breath. "I want to go to his room and wait for him. Can you help me with that?"

"Yes, but there's a problem."

"What problem exactly?"

"The Headmaster asked us to keep an eye on that fireplace, sir, and let him know if someone comes out of it. I'm sorry to say, sir, but you'll have to come with me to see the Headmaster first."

Draco raked a hand through his hair. "All right. I suppose I have to. But afterwards, could I take a shower? I stink. And all of this dust... Ugh. I need a bath urgently. I can't meet Harry like this! I have a reputation to maintain."

"Ok, sir. But first, I'll lead you to the Headmaster's office."

--------------

The conversation with the Headmaster wasn't as brief as Draco thought it would be, mainly because Dumbledore wanted to know what was happening with Lucius and Voldemort. Not only that, but he had shown particular interest in the concentration camp for Muggles.

"That's not good, my boy. Not good at all." Dumbledore said, smoothing out his long white beard.

Dumbledore had also told Draco that the kitchen's fireplace had been used by one person only, many years ago. That person had been Lucius Malfoy. At first, Lucius had helped them fight Voldemort, but not for long. When Archibald Malfoy had made up his mind to join Voldemort, Lucius had become a dangerous Death Eater.

"Your father was never a killer, even though he didn't mind if people were dying. I saw the look in his eyes after the Chamber of Secrets was closed again and back then I hadn't thought that his soul was worth saving. But now... Maybe..." Dumbledore stared deep into Draco's eyes. "What he did is very curious. He sent you here to talk to me and to see Harry Potter. He let you come so you could warn us about Voldemort's plans. What does it tell you, Draco?"

"That his soul is worth saving."

"Really? Are you sure?"

Draco looked upset. "Of course I'm sure! He wants to get out but he's afraid of Voldemort."

"I don't know, Draco. Maybe yes, maybe no. You're his son though, and you know him better than any of us. Just be careful about your father, Draco. I think Lucius is confused, especially now that James is here."

Draco's eyes opened up widely. "Did you know about them?"

"Yes, there's hardly anything I don't know about in this school. I hope that Lucius will regain his kindness. Oh, yes," he said with a smile at Draco's surprised face. "Once upon a time, Lucius was a kind boy. Life wasn't very good to him though."

"What happened? Why did he turn to Voldemort's side? Is it something to do with James?"

"Mainly, yes. He couldn't stand the fact that James was going to marry Lily. And it didn't help that James treated your father harshly. It wasn't James' fault though, Draco. They were two headstrong kids who didn't know what to do with their lives. James was scared about the whole thing, and he loved Lily very much. Your father was also engaged to be married to Narcissa... And James didn't trust Lucius. The odds were against them. Fate was against them and they didn't handle it well. But that won't happen with you and Harry."

"I hope so."

"Oh, but it won't. You both know what you want. Your father and James didn't."

"So basically, there was a big misunderstanding between them."

"Yes, you could put it that way."

Draco sunk down onto the armchair. "I have the feeling that my father is still in love with James."

"That could be good. And then again, that could be really bad. Just be careful, young Malfoy. Now you can go see Harry. The password for the Gryffindor common room is Brave Heart*. Such a wonderful muggle movie!" Dumbledore announced with a grin.

-------------

Draco finally made his way into the Gryffindor common room at exactly 7pm. He took the time to take a very long shower and now that he was looking good just like he'd intended to before the floo powder and the damn fireplace ruined his good appearance.

As he went through the portrait of the Fat Lady, he was awe-struck by the view. The common room was different and much more enchanting than the Slytherin common room. For one thing, it was warm. For another, it didn't look like a lonely cave but rather a loving grandmother's living room. It was cozy and it seemed to invite you to take a nap on the fluffy couch by the fireplace. No wonder Harry liked that place so much.

He followed Dobby's directions and entered Harry's room. It was empty but he could see traces of Harry everywhere. A wet towel carelessly tossed on the floor; a portrait with all the three Musketeers laughing and waving in the picture; a vial of Harry's favourite cologne; a Quidditch guide on top of Hogwarts, A History and a big poster of the England Quidditch team zooming up and down.

He took a deep breath and sensed Harry's smell in the air, flooding his lungs with tenderness but also lust. He'd missed Harry so much. He hoped he wouldn't take too long to coming back to his room.

-------------

It was 10pm when Harry finally went back to his room. Hermione, Ron and all the other guests had long left the castle and weirdly enough, he was actually glad for it. He was in a bad mood and he wanted to be alone. But that could be difficult as he saw someone's silhouette lying on his bed. He got closer to it and grinned widely as he saw who it was.

Draco, his Draco, was sleeping on his bed as if he was a Birthday present - the best of them all. He wondered if he was dreaming or being delusional. Maybe Draco wasn't there at all; he was only an illusion created by Harry's intense desire of seeing him. Just to make sure that he wasn't losing his mind, he poked Draco on the shoulder and nothing happened. Draco didn't move but he didn't disappear either, which was a good sign.

Kneeling beside his bed, Harry stroked a lock of Draco's hair, which seemed longer than before and even whiter. To Harry, he looked absolutely beautiful and almost ethereal. Very carefully, he kissed his boyfriend's lips once, twice, until Draco started to reciprocate the kiss. Slowly, Draco opened his eyes and smiled.

"Am I dreaming?" he asked in a whisper. "Because if I am, please don't let anyone wake me up."

"I was about to ask you the same thing." Harry and Draco exchanged an Eskimo kiss. "Hi."

"Hi, boy wonder. I missed you." Draco pulled Harry to the bed and hugged him tightly.

"Hey, take it easy or you're going to suffocate me," Harry joked.

"Oh, sorry." Draco pulled back just a little and grinned. "God, it's so great to see you. Did you miss me?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I've missed you! In fact, I've tried to reach you with the daydream spell so many times that I've even lost count! What happened to you? Why did you shut me out, Draco? Where were you? And how come you're here?"

"Easy, tiger. One question at a time. And honestly, Harry, I don't want to talk about bad things right now. I just want to enjoy the moment. Carpe Diem**, you know? Let's just make out. I promise I'll tell you all that have happened to me ever since I went home."

"Hmm... I don't know..."

"Oh, come on!" Draco kissed him. "Please?"

"Did you... are you... did you receive the Dark Mark?" Harry asked with difficulty.

Draco stared deeply into his eyes and shook his head. "No, Harry, I didn't. Please, don't ask me any more questions. Just for now. I don't want to ruin this moment."

Harry sighed. "Alright. But at least tell me how you got here."

"My father helped me."

"WHAT? Lucifer himself helped you to come visit me? Or did he have a darker motivation?"

"No, and don't call him Lucifer! He was actually nice to me. And he let me come here."

"It's hard to believe, Draco. Nice isn't a word to describe your father."

"He was nice, believe it or not. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that he knows about your father."

Harry went white. "What?"

"He knows, Harry. And so does Voldemort," Draco said carefully.

Harry tried to free himself from Draco's arms to run after Dumbledore but Draco held him firmly.

"I've already told Dumbledore. He'll warn your godfather and the others. You don't have to worry, Harry. Your father is not in danger. Yet. The fact was that my father allowed me here so I could let Dumbledore know that James is in grave danger! I believe that my father still cares for yours. He does, Harry, but in his own way."

"I don't know, Draco."

"Let's not talk about it now. Your father is perfectly all right and..."

"He's not, Draco."

Then Harry told him about the connection between James' soul and Voldemort's wand.

"Basically, everything leads to that damn wand! If only we could destroy it," Harry said, frustrated.

Draco stroked Harry's face tenderly and sighed in defeat. "I'm so sorry, love. And I thought that our lives couldn't be more complicated... I guess I should tell you what's happened to me. Then we can obsess about it and move on to more important things. Like a good snog."

Draco's narrative was long and Harry paid attention to every little detail. He didn't like knowing that Draco was training to be a Death Eater; it didn't matter how many times Draco assured him that he would not become one. He also didn't like knowing that Draco hadn't officially broken up with Pansy and they argued about it endlessly.

"I'll let her know, Harry, but I can't do it yet."

"As long as you don't have to play her fiancé anymore..." Harry scowled.

"I have to be careful. For one thing, Voldemort is her grandfather - even though sometimes I can't believe it. For another, she's a vindictive bitch. I can't risk it, Harry. Not now. I still have to play by the rules although I don't like them. But so far I'm doing fine. I've learned to do magic without the help of my wand," he bragged.

Harry shrugged. "That's not much. I can do it, too."

"Hmm... Now I'm depressed. I thought that I'd finally learned something that you hadn't. What a disappointment..." Draco teased. "Well, you have to be the special one all the time... That's one of the hero's trademarks. A hero should always know how to do everything perfectly."

"Shut up!" Harry pinched him. "I'm not perfect. There are a lot of things that I can't do."

"Like what?" Draco asked, amused.

"Like... like... potions! I suck at it and you know it. But you're good in that department."

"You're right. You really suck at potions. And I'm really, really good at it," Draco boasted.

"Arrogant prick."

"But you love me even so."

"I do."

They kissed, this time with more intensity until they were both out of breath and dazzled.

"Happy birthday, Harry."

Harry stared at him delighted. "You know about that? I never told you the day of my birthday. Did Dobby tell you about it?"

"Yes, he did. If I had known sooner, I'd have brought you a present."

"You're the best present I've gotten today."

Draco flushed and smiled shyly.

"You look so adorable when you blush," Harry commented with a grin.

"No, I don't! I do NOT blush, Potter. That's a girl thing and I'm definitely not one."

"Tell me about it." Harry kissed Draco's lips and then his neck. His hands went down to caress him more intimately and Draco moaned. "I've missed you, Drake. Don't shut me out again. I hate to be left in the dark."

"I know, Harry, but it was necessary."

"Are you here to stay for the night?"

"Yes."

"All night?"

Draco nodded. "Do you want to hear something very weird, Harry? Today is my birthday, too."

"You're kidding!"

"I'm certainly not! Today is my birthday!"

"Oh, my God! Happy birthday!" Harry brushed their lips together. "That's such a coincidence!"

"Tell me about it," Draco teased, biting Harry's lower lip and kissing it. "Have you heard from my mother?"

"Yes, she's fine. She didn't come with Sirius today but he's here. If you want to talk to him later..."

"Maybe. I'm glad that she's all right." Draco seemed thoughtful for a moment. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Why didn't you use the same fireplace I did to get to my house last semester?"

"I didn't know about it, Drake. I asked for Dobby's help but he refused saying that it was too dangerous for me to go to your house. That was why I had to ask Zabini, the slimy git, to point me in the right direction. I wonder why Dumbledore also didn't tell me about that fireplace."

"It's weird."

"Definitely. And it's even weirder that you father has never used that fireplace! I mean, think about what he could do with it!"

"See? That's proof in his favour! He's not that bad."

"That can be put to discussion, but not now. Now I want to take off all of your clothes and make love to you."

"Sounds good to me."

And so they did.

Harry took off Draco's clothes very slowly, savouring with his mouth and his eyes all of Draco. He gasped as he saw some wounds in Draco's back, but the blond assured him that they would heal and didn't hurt. Harry kissed them one by one as if in his kiss alone lay the power to heal the red marks.

Draco reciprocated the gesture by placing soft kisses on the sensitive parts of Harry's body, making him go wild.

"You're so beautiful, Harry. Your eyes are even more intense than before. Is that good or bad?"

Harry didn't have an answer to that question so he captured Draco's lips with his.

"I've dreamt about this moment for an entire month," Harry whispered against Draco's lips. "You and I, here, together again."

"So have I, Harry."

Harry smiled, enrapturing Draco completely.

"Do you hear that, Harry?" Draco said between their kisses.

"What?"

"Music."

Harry frowned, not really hearing anything, but then he heard a very delicate sound coming from outside of his window.

"What's it saying?" Harry asked.

"Something about kisses in the moonlight." Then, to Harry's amusement and delight, Draco sang it. "Oh, kisses in the moonlight, sugar, that would make this night complete; there have got to be; oh, kisses in the moonlight, sugar, fly away with me...***"

"Sounds very romantic."

"Fly away with me, Harry."

And Harry did.

They laughed, teased and loved each other all through the night. That night became one of the best anniversaries of their lives. For years to come, Draco would still remember it, especially when life seemed to become unbearable. He'd always remember that night, that magical night when they completed each other perfectly with passionate touches. He'd always remember those sweet kisses in the moonlight.