Chapter Thirty of 'For Their Unconquerable Souls'- Recognition

[lomonaaeren]

Thank you again for all the reviews!

Chapter Thirty—Recognition

Draco sighed as he watched Harry, finally, beginning to stir towards wakefulness. His mother had told him not to be worried; the Healing Harry had performed was powerful in itself, and his wrestling with the Dark magic had made it more so. It was only expected that he would need a rest after something like that.

But the length of Harry’s rest had troubled Draco, and so had his mother’s insistence on staying with Lucius the entire time, as if she cared about her newest son less than her husband. It had been Draco who put a half-fainting Harry to bed and sat with him, beside him, his hand sometimes on Harry’s shoulder and sometimes feeling his heartbeat. He had carried that heartbeat through the darkness with him even whilst he drowsed.

But now Harry’s eyelids fluttered, and Draco could finally release some of his tension.

“It’s been ten hours now.”

Harry looked up at him, his eyes innocent and his hair indecent. Draco had to stifle the growl pushing through him. He could think of one other and far more pleasurable way to release tension, but he wasn’t sure that Harry would be ready for that yet.

“I’ve been asleep ten hours?” Harry tried to add something else, but a yawn cut him off. He stretched his arms above his head and then grimaced. A pain in his neck, Draco judged, from the way he was rolling it.

“Ten hours since you cured my father,” Draco corrected, though, in reality, Harry’s sleep had lasted almost the same length of time. “And he’s sitting up, eating, talking, and sleeping without ill effects.” He got up on his knees, so he could reach Harry’s neck better. “Drinking healing potions to ensure his skin doesn’t scar, though that, he does complain about. Here,” he added, as Harry shook himself. “Let me.”

He grabbed Harry’s shoulders and pressed both his thumbs at once into Harry’s neck. Harry arched like someone under the Cruciatus, but he had done that during the first massage Draco gave him, too. He continued pressing, and then Harry collapsed most beautifully under him and gave light little gasping breaths that drove Draco absolutely mad.

“You don’t make the potions sweet for him?” Harry murmured. “If you did that for me, surely you can do it for him.”

I’m amazed he knows enough about Potions to recognize that the ones I gave him tasted unusual. But Draco’s arousal was also fired by the fact that Harry had bothered to pay enough attention to recognize the sweetness in the first place. “No one deserves sweetness more than you do,” he said, in the voice that he usually used to seduce lovers. He leaned forwards, arching over Harry, grinding his erection against Harry’s arse as much as possible. He had gone quickly from half-hard to entirely so. “And I want to give it to you. Let me.”

“Yes,” sighed Harry.

Draco could not stop the triumph welling up within him. He had known this day would come; he had known Harry could not hold out against the combined efforts of his family and Draco’s own gifts. But he had not realized how dazzling and warmth the lust would feel as it crowded through him and joined the triumph, like the effect of lightning.

He nipped the back of Harry’s neck. “Roll over,” he demanded.

Harry began to. Draco could feel his emotions boiling, churning, and suspected they would overflow the moment he saw Harry’s eyes.

And then Rogers had Apparated into the room, and was announcing from the end of the bed, “Mistress Granger is wanting to speak to Master Harry through the fire.”

No, Draco thought. No.

“It can wait,” he said. I can’t, he thought but didn’t say aloud; he knew Rogers would disapprove of such things. He was sliding his hands under Harry’s robes, and there was nothing better than the touch of warm skin, or the way Harry kept starting as Draco glided his hands along his ribs, as if he were impressed by how good it felt in spite of himself. “So can that breakfast, for that matter,” he added, because he knew Rogers would be carrying breakfast. He bit Harry’s shoulder, and Harry moaned from the depths of his soul. Draco exulted again. No one else has ever made him feel like this. No one else will ever make him feel this way again. They won’t have the chance. He licked the outside of the bite, then mouthed it the way a Crup would mouth a dead Muggle. “Come back later, Rogers.”

“Mistress Granger will be calling back and calling back,” Rogers said. “Rogers does not want to be making up excuses for Masters Harry and Draco fucking whilst there are still enemies abroad.”

Harry took a deep breath, then rolled over completely and took Draco’s wrists in his hands. He looked up into his face, but only briefly, as if the sight of the passion that Draco knew he was showing was too much for him. Glancing down again, he blushed and murmured, “Later.” Draco brushed his erection against Harry’s arse again. Harry shuddered, but said, “Think of how much better it will be when we have no distractions.”

That does sound better. But Draco knew that Harry often changed his mind when he had some time to get an emotional distance from a situation, so he slid his cock along Harry’s entrance again. Harry grunted as though the motion had been Draco actually sliding into him.

“So long as you promise,” Draco said. “I want this.”

Harry licked his lips, which he wouldn’t have done had he known how much that made Draco’s cock ache. But he was still half-coy, in the way he avoided Draco’s eyes and with the past remembrance of how he had rebuffed Draco’s advances hanging around him.

“I do promise,” he said. “And do you really think I want it less?”

“I don’t know.” Draco turned his voice coy too, and all but fluttered his eyelashes at Harry. “I know you didn’t seem enthusiastic at first, and then the few touches of eagerness I saw in your face were overwhelmed by concern for my father, to the point that I almost thought it was him you came to the Manor for.”

Harry spread his legs—just the sight made Draco’s hips twitch—and rolled to the side. Draco could see and feel the thick line of Harry’s erection against his robes now. “I came for both of you,” he said. “I just didn’t realize the truth at the time. Can you ever forgive me?”

“Forgiven,” said Draco. “With your promise to resume later.” He brushed the back of one finger against Harry’s groin and watched with delight as his eyes rolled back in his head. “So long as you only come for me in the future.”

And then he moved to the end of the bed and began choosing among the breakfast foods Rogers had brought. He saw no need to hurry to the fireplace simply for Granger’s sake.

Harry cleared his throat and moved up to kneel beside him, adjusting his position several times. It wasn’t really Draco’s fault that he needed to help balance Harry by brushing his wrists against his as they ate.

*

Draco followed Harry into the small library where Granger was waiting at the Floo, and stood behind him, and put an arm across his shoulders. Harry stiffened for a moment, then relaxed. Draco was glad that he had absorbed the silent message of the arm. You’re mine, and you’re as much mine in front of your friends as anywhere else.

Granger wore a smile that she didn’t drop, but her eyes did narrow at Draco as if she thought that he was trying to take advantage of someone helpless. She also barely nodded to him. Draco tolerated it. One did have low expectations of Mudbloods, after all, even if he was willing to put up with Granger because she was Harry’s friend.

“I have fairly solid proof about who cursed Mr. Malfoy,” said Granger. Harry shivered, for some reason. Draco leaned closer to him. “I finally found a witness who was more curious than the rest and less loyal to his family. He eavesdropped on a meeting between Burne-Jones and Neverlong. They were the ones who came up with the first ideas for the curse and chose Smythe as an appropriate dupe to cast it. He’ll require a payment from your vaults, Harry. Can you manage that?”

Draco didn’t even let Harry make the ridiculous answer to that he would probably try to make. “He’ll have whatever he wants from the Malfoy ones.”

“Good.” Granger reached behind her, found a Pensieve, and passed it through the fire. “He’s also agreed to confess under Veritaserum in a small setting with only a few people present, if that’s necessary,” Granger added.

“Hopefully it won’t be.” Harry handed the Pensieve to Draco. Draco cradled it and stared into it. Here was the secret of who had cursed his father. Here was the proof that would give them some idea of what sort of vengeance they should exact. Malfoys always liked to craft a vengeance that had the shape or shadow of the offense, if possible, the way he had decided on hunger potions for a Muggle family who had starved the wizarding child in their care.

“Thank you, Hermione. How can we repay you?” Harry said.

“Make sure that Burne-Jones, Neverlong, Foxe, and the rest are tried fairly,” Granger said, “not subjected to vigilante justice.”

Draco sucked in his breath, but said nothing. It was not as though Granger would ever know, if he and his family chose to take revenge. He was more worried about Harry’s reaction.

And, of course, Harry reacted stupidly. “Of course I want them to have fair trials,” he said. “The last thing I want is suspicion to cling to my adopted family. And their families would probably be quite willing to turn in the Malfoys for hurting their loved ones, even if they disapproved or didn’t know about the original plan to curse Lucius.”

No, Harry. That’s not the way it works. We take our retaliation and guard ourselves against our enemies giving us any.

“You never finished listening to the Malfoy laws,” Draco said, and pressed his arm down on Harry’s shoulders. “One of them is vengeance. No one is allowed to get away with hurting a Malfoy.”

Harry gave a sigh, muttered something to Granger that Draco didn’t bother to pay attention to because he knew it couldn’t be important, and then turned around to face Draco. “Listen,” he said. He rubbed his cheek against Draco’s hand, which was sweet of him, but wouldn’t help to change Draco’s mind. “You let Emptyweed get away with only a headache, even though he could have told us about the conspirators earlier and even though he cast the headache curse on me.”

No, I didn’t. And now, if ever, he needs to understand the spell I cast, because otherwise he’ll think I’m softer than I am, and more amenable to persuasion by ideals I don’t share. Honesty, Mother said was necessary, and he must understand us as we understand him.

“You were paying too much attention to my words and not enough to my wand movements,” Draco said. “I cast a nonverbal spell that will give him a permanent headache, lasting the rest of his life. I thought it fit payment for the kind of low-grade, constant suffering he caused you.”

“You did what?” Granger shrieked. Draco had to admit that he liked the look of outrage on her face more than the expression taking over Harry’s. Hers was simple, and uncomplicated, and could be more easily fought.

So he did, raising an eyebrow at Granger. “It’s all right,” he said. “There’s no way he’ll trace it back to our family, since I Obliviated him. He’ll certainly never remember coming to the Manor.”

“It’s the fact that you did it at all,” Granger began, and Draco settled himself to enjoy, and then rebut, a very Gryffindor lecture.

And Harry stood up, so that he was between Granger and Draco, and cut them off from one another. Draco blinked and stared at Harry. Did he really think Draco needed protection from a Mudblood? Not that Harry would thank him for calling her what she was, of course.

“In the future,” Harry said, voice so quiet Draco had to lean forwards to hear him, “don’t do such things.”

Oh, Harry. You should really know better than to think that tactic will work with me, given what Emptyweed did to you.

“I have to protect you,” he said. It was a set of words too simple for the problem Harry represented, but Draco didn’t care. He needed to put this into simple words so that Harry would understand the differences between them in the first place. After all, no one could stop Harry from Healing, could they? So he ought to understand that no one could stop Draco from protecting his family.

Harry smiled. “I appreciate the impulse,” he said. Granger snorted, but Harry didn’t pay any attention to her, so it would have been undignified for Draco to do it in his place. “But it makes me uncomfortable when someone hurts others for my sake. Whether that hurt is physical, magical, financial, or otherwise,” he added, rushing on as Draco tried to open his mouth. “In self-defense or the heat of battle, it’s one thing, but I still tried to use non-fatal spells on the people who attacked me in hospital.”

And there are more enemies to repay. Why did I not think of that sooner?

“I’ll find them,” he told Harry, and made sure his voice was impressively deep, his face impressively angry. He didn’t want Harry to think his forgetfulness meant Draco cared about him any less. “And I’ll make them suffer.”

“But that’s exactly what I’m asking you not to do.” Harry lowered his voice even more and stared directly into Draco’s face, until Draco felt as if his eyes should cross. Harry smoothed his hands up and down his cheeks, and Draco had to fight not to close his eyes and sway into the motion. “Unless what I want doesn’t matter to you?”

Shock caused Draco to speak the obvious words before he thought about restraining himself. “You’re being manipulative.”

“Then I fit right into this family, don’t I?” Harry asked, and smiled.

Draco bit his lip. He wrestled for a moment with the odd idea that Harry would prefer a display of affection that involved justice instead of vengeance, and then he remembered the problem with that, even if Draco could possibly agree.

He folded his arms and said, “They also hurt my father. And if you think Father and Mother will be content to let our enemies go unpunished for doing that, then you have not learned anything about them at all.”

“I’ll speak with them,” said Harry. Draco blinked at the implacable tone in his voice. And he really thinks he can convince them? He does have a good opinion of himself, doesn’t he? “For now, there’s something I need to say to Hermione. Why don’t you go see Lucius and Narcissa and prepare them for our talk? You can even tell them exactly what you want to say and make up a secret strategy to use against me. You won’t find me so easy to convince.”

Draco walked towards the door of the library, because remaining to wrestle with Harry on the issue was not something he wished to do in front of Granger, and because he had healing potions to brew for Lucius. He did pause with his hand on the door and look back, but Harry was still gazing at him calmly, as much to say that he preserved the ridiculous idea about conquering Draco and Draco’s parents.

Draco shut the door behind him at last, and went to speak to Lucius and Narcissa. They would have to be strong, yes, but they would also have to be gentle, so that their attempt to show Harry the truth did not drive him away as Draco’s attempt to show him the truth about the necessity of staying in the house had.

*

By the time Harry opened the door and entered Lucius’s rooms, Draco was calm again. His parents knew the code of the Malfoys better than he did; they had lived by the laws for so many years that those laws were part of their bones. They would present arguments Harry could not ignore without rupturing the bonds between his family and him, which Draco no longer believed possible.

“If you will, Lucius,” Narcissa murmured, as Harry shut the door and leaned against it.

“The fourteenth law of the Malfoys,” said Lucius, in judicious tones that made Draco intolerably proud of his father, “calls for the protection of the family. No insult shall be suffered when it can be avenged. The authorities at any time are unlikely to do much for us. We must dispense our own justice, our own mercy, and our own punishment, as we must reward our best friends in secret if we would keep any allies at all. You shall remember this, and carefully contrive subtle and suitable punishments for those who hurt us, that others may fear and hesitate to harm a Malfoy again.”

There, Draco thought. Harry is many things, but he’s not eloquent. He won’t be able to match that.

From Harry’s next words, it seemed he didn’t intend to try. “Well,” he said, “that doesn’t make much sense.”

Draco wasn’t too busy staring at Harry in astonishment to miss the subtle twitch of his mother’s lips. He wondered what in the world she was thinking. This was not amusing, and from the way Lucius spoke, he was firmly on Draco’s side.

“And why not?” Lucius asked. “I must admit it sounds very attractive to me, having endured the pain that I did.” He ran a hand over the fading scars on the side of his cheek. Draco scanned them with a professional eye, and then gave a small nod of relief. The healing potions had not had time to complete their work yet, but their progress so far told Draco that in the end they would leave his father as he had been before the attack. That was well. There enemies could not be allowed to mark them.

“It wants you to punish people in secret, and yet do it in such a way that everyone will fear you?” Harry snorted rudely.

Draco relaxed. That’s not a contradiction, and it’s not an argument.

“The ones who matter will know,” Lucius said gravely. “In this case, the members of the Burne-Jones and Neverlong families who were not involved in the plot against me, and any Death Eaters or ‘victims’ of mine who might have declined to avenge themselves this way. They will know the risk is not worth it.” His hands twitched on the covers. Draco wondered what curses were running through his mind right now; he hadn’t taken a chance to consult with his parents on what suitable revenge would be, so much as on the difficulty of taking revenge at all that Harry’s “code” presented.

“You have enemies who were clever and brutal enough to devise this curse and cast it on you in the first place, through a dupe who, I’m sure, had no idea what he was doing,” Harry said.

He was still calm, still determined, from the look in his eyes and the lazy position of his body. Draco found it simultaneously attractive and disturbing. He wanted to add his voice to the conversation, but he had tried to persuade Harry before and got nowhere. It was best to leave this contest up to his father.

“Smythe did not, no.” Lucius smiled. “We have looked through the memories in the Pensieve.”

Draco relaxed. Yes, that was another advantage he had forgotten; Narcissa, ever practical, had insisted on examining the memories in Granger’s Pensieve before they began to discuss what they should do about Harry. And Harry had not seen them, so he had no idea what the evidence was.

“They are few and the explanation straightforward,” Lucius continued. “When they had put the curse together, which took many tries, according to our informant, they had to work extensively with Smythe to be sure that he would cast it correctly and scatter his saliva with the dreambane on me at the same time. Many of the minor spells were linked together not so much to cause me to suffer as to baffle any attempts at healing.”

“And the families of people like that are the ones you want to enrage,” Harry said flatly.

*

There were times when Narcissa knew which way a conversation or a contest would work out. It was no intuition she could control; if she could have, then she might have prevented Lucius from some rather egregious mistakes in her time. But it came and went like sunlight through trees.

It flashed now. She knew Harry was going to win this struggle, and that contented her, despite her desire, hotter than ever inside her, to see those who had hurt Lucius suffer. Besides her loyalty to her husband and her loyalty to her son, there was also her loyalty to reality, which had made her seek help for Draco when he was assigned a task beyond his strength, and accept that she should lie to the Dark Lord when she realized Harry was still alive in the Forbidden Forest, because someone who could survive the Killing Curse twice would win the war. If two of the loyalties were in agreement, then she could stand against the third one without feeling divided.

“This time, we shall be prepared for them. And it’s at least possible that they won’t seek revenge.” Lucius said that with a hidden tremor in his words, though Narcissa doubted Harry noticed. Someone had to know him well to notice such things.

“Do you believe they won’t?” Harry asked quickly.

Or perhaps he did, Narcissa thought, and opened her eyes in time to see her husband shake his head.

“Then I think this is stupid,” Harry said. “You risk drawing down danger on yourselves when you’re still vulnerable—”

Narcissa looked at him.

“We risk drawing down danger on ourselves,” Harry corrected himself. Narcissa gave him a small smile, and Harry half-ducked his head, a smile of shy pleasure touching the corners of his lips. “If we let the Aurors take charge of this, those families will blame the Ministry and not us. There’s no risk of getting in trouble with the Aurors for our revenge, either. We buy time for Lucius to recover, because the remaining enemies won’t move whilst the Prophet’s attention is on us, will they?”

“No,” said Draco, in a faint voice. “They have similar laws about the lack of wisdom in drawing publicity to their vengeance.” Glancing at her son in turn, Narcissa saw him looking overwhelmed, as if he might faint at any moment. She frowned thoughtfully. She would have to find out whether Draco might have any trace of her innate gift of intuition in him, or whether it could be taught. Then he would not be thrown so far off-balance by the mere reversal of a contest.

“Well, then.” Harry made a motion as if he were brushing invisible dust off his hands. “There’s one more advantage. If this is the fourteenth law of the Malfoys, it stands to reason that it’s fairly far down the list, and the others are more important. I think we have a better chance of survival if we live through our revenge vicariously.”

Draco muttered, “Granger must have taught you that word.”

Narcissa glanced at him sidelong again. It was ill-bred of him to act so petty when Harry had pulled a rather elegant reversal, combating Malfoy laws with Malfoy laws, which should be respected.

“And you can go on showing me how to settle into the family. My comfort and safety, in this case, is more important than revenge.” Harry looked at Draco with a light in his eyes that reassured Narcissa, at last, that the love her son had given was more than fully returned.

“I agree with Harry,” Narcissa said, because it was time for her intervention. “You know that I’ve disagreed with drawn-out revenge from the beginning, Lucius.” Her husband’s nostrils flared. Narcissa did not care. What she said was the truth; she had favored something sharp, a swift curse that would descend and then leave again without giving Burne-Jones and Neverlong a chance to guess where it came from. “I don’t want you to make the same mistake that Neverlong and Burne-Jones did by giving you time to get treatment and figure out who was behind the attack. And as we can think of nothing that would be sharp, sufficiently painful, and yet undetectable, turning the matter over to the Aurors is the best course.”

“There may be something yet,” said Lucius. “There are several books of Dark curses in the library that I haven’t looked through in years.”

Narcissa knew the observation was addressed more to her than it was to Harry. She turned enough so that Lucius could see her smile fully, and he faltered.

“And I was helpless during most of this,” Draco said, his cheeks flushed. “I want to do something.”

And that one is addressed to Harry, Narcissa thought. Luckily, Harry had a response.

“Helping Lucius recover with your potion wasn’t enough?” Harry asked.

“I want to hurt someone. That’s different from healing.”

Harry simply narrowed his eyes, as if to say that he didn’t think any response to that was possible, and faced Narcissa. “Of all the people in this room,” he said, “you and I are most likely to get our wish.”

He prepared something before he entered the room, Narcissa thought, her eyebrows rising but her heart filled with pride. Oh, I knew he had learned the lessons of being a Malfoy well.

Lucius spoke in a cold voice that Narcissa knew was his attempt to recover control of the situation. She disapproved. Like Draco, he should learn to recognize when he had been defeated and accept that gracefully. “Malfoys owe loyalty to the first of their name, Harry. You will tell me what you have done at once.”

Harry faced Lucius slowly, drawing out the tension. Narcissa had to think hard about Bellatrix’s madness to keep from smiling.

“My friend Hermione Granger, who works in the Ministry and discovered most of this information for us, has already alerted the Aurors. If all went as scheduled—” he made an elaborate show of drawing out a golden watch from his robe pocket “—then all the conspirators will have been arrested by now.”

“I knew you wanted to stay behind with Granger for a reason!” Draco exclaimed in fury. Narcissa sent him another frown he did not pay attention to. He is showing his emotions far, far too openly.

“As you told me,” said Harry, putting away the watch and smiling at Draco, “I’m a Malfoy in more ways than one.”

Lucius spoke in a gentle tone. “We can strike at them as easily when they are in Auror custody as we can when they are free. It’s a noble effort, Harry, but shall only fail.”

I am glad he recognizes it is a noble effort, at least, Narcissa thought tartly. She was rather irritated with her husband, who seemed to have no loyalty to reality at all.

“No, you can’t,” said Harry. “The Aurors aren’t always competent, that’s true, but they’ve been much better at holding criminals since Kingsley Shacklebolt became Minister. And you’ll still need a regular dose of healing potions for several weeks, which means you won’t be away from the house for any length of time.”

Never upset your mediwizard, Narcissa thought. That was a rule I did think you knew, Lucius.

“Besides which,” Narcissa said then, “I agree with Harry. No vengeance is worth the possible loss of life and prestige that we would incur.”

Lucius glared at her. Narcissa did not care, because she needed no intuition to tell her that she would win this contest. She was more concerned with the way Draco and Harry faced each other at the moment. It was possible that the love blossoming between them could be destroyed, at this early stage.

*

Draco could feel his fury running through him like a river of quicksilver, but at the moment, it was no longer his most prominent emotion. He was confused, and irritated at how much, once again, he appeared to have underestimated Harry.

“You’re quite determined not to allow me my vengeance, are you?” he asked.

“Quite,” Harry said. At least he looked vaguely apprehensive.

“I’m not bound to the house by my father’s limitations,” said Draco. “Or by my mother’s opposition.” Narcissa slewed a glance sideways at him, but Draco could ignore that one as he’d ignored the others she had given him in the last few minutes. “You’ll have a task to keep me here.”

“I would prefer to think that you’re a responsible adult who knows when he’s been outmaneuvered, and—” Harry began, his teeth gritted.

“I’m a responsible adult who knows a sound bargain when he hears one,” Draco said. He let a smile go, which made Harry eye him nervously. Good. “I want you to agree to study for your Potions exam again, and to let me help you.”

Harry gaped at him, as well he might. Draco didn’t care. This was the one thing he had been able to think of that might enable him to get something he wanted and also to overturn Harry’s triumph, so Harry wasn’t completely in control of their relationship.

Harry shook his head. “I’d agree if I thought that would do any good,” he said. “They only let me sit my NEWTS a second time because I’m Harry Potter. And I did as badly the second time as the first. No becoming a Healer without an Outstanding on both the theory and the practical portions.” His voice turned scalding and bitter for a moment. “Your offer’s generous, but you can’t help me.”

What?

“The NEWTS are offered as many times as needed to anyone in a particular profession,” Draco pointed out, “who’s already shown several years of proficient practice in that profession. No, they won’t give it over and over again to lazy students who haven’t chosen a job. But they will give it to you.” He felt pity touch him like cold fingers as he looked at Harry. “You never looked again once you failed the second time, did you?”

Harry blushed.

“And I don’t know if I’m so generous,” Draco mused, “when I’ll drive you harder than Snape ever did.” He felt his face twist. He couldn’t help it. Snape’s death had been a torment and a waste, of talent and time and grief. Draco still didn’t know why Snape had given so much of his loyalty to Dumbledore, and he doubted that he ever would know, but he had not acted as he should have.

“I never had a problem with the amount of work involved,” said Harry. “It was Snape’s teaching method I objected to.”

Of course it was. “It’s settled, then.” Draco smiled. “You’ll let me teach you Potions, and in return I won’t seek vengeance. Shall we aim for a date of October in which to take the NEWTS?”

“I wouldn’t want to inconvenience—”

That is a disguise for cowardice. “That would be most convenient for me,” Draco said.

That made Harry bend, as Draco knew it would. He reached out and ran a lazy hand up Harry’s arm. Harry looked at him as if he couldn’t decide whether to be grateful or to hit Draco.

So long as he does not think he can trample over me, Draco thought, I may even admire what he did today.

Eventually.

It had not escaped him that giving up vengeance meant giving up vengeance on Harry’s Muggle family, too.

But something must be done.

Chapter 31.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

I loved the passion, maneuvering and Malfoy slyness woven through all of those scenes, and Narcissa's stronger recognition of reality than that of her husband and son, etc.! I could, however, have wished that Harry was able to continue to bask in his hard-won triumph over the Fourteenth Rule of the Malfoy Family for longer, even though Draco's bargain was for the best (and appeared in the first telling of the plot) ;-) Very enjoyable!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Draco has a problem with power dynamics. If they don't favor him, then he has to make sure they do as soon as possible. Whether this is always a good or productive thing is left as an exercise for the reader.

[fauxpersonae007.livejournal.com]

I still absolutely adore that 'You’re being manipulative.' scene. Love Narcissa and Harry's little moment of getting exactly what they wanted. Such a great fic.

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[firedraygon97.livejournal.com]

Very nice how you incorporated some DH facts into Narcissa's POV. Her loyalty to reality is great for such a traditional family. I can see it now, how the Malfoys became involved with Voldemort -- Narcissa was out of the country vacationing, haha.

I'm looking forward to how Draco plans on holding back from destroying the Dursleys. Nice work.

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you! And that is probably exactly what led Lucius to make the stupid decision to become a Death Eater.

[delamna.livejournal.com]

It's all very well for him to trample over Harry, but Merlin forbid Harry do it back? I'm annoyed at him.

Poor Lucius, he had the lowest opinion of Harry of the Malfoy three and here Harry is, blithely calling him a twit and then dismissing Malfoy Laws.

And hooray for Narcissa, finding someone who can fight like she can when he really really needs to!

*passes some respect all 'round*

And hee! re: Rogers. Always. :)

I know what comes next! *looks forward to it*

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Draco has a Problem: if someone doesn't continually fight back, that must mean they don't really care who has the power in the relationship. Because he doesn't get tired of figuring out and working out the dynamics himself, he doesn't really believe other people can.

When he manages to separate his personal feelings from the situation, Lucius will acknowledge that Harry was right. If he beat him, he must be right. It's a Malfoy way of thinking.

Thank you!

[cassie-black12.livejournal.com]

Yet again, Rogers is the star of the chapter. I just love this line:

“Rogers does not want to be making up excuses for Masters Harry and Draco fucking whilst there are still enemies abroad.”

I loved how Harry showed his affection for Draco, even in front of Hermione.

Draco and Lucius don't stand a chance now. Harry and Narcissa are a formidable team!!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Harry actually put less priority on where he showed his affection than Draco did. Of course he would show it in front of Hermione; he would show it in front of anyone.

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

Oh freaking hell!!! Awesome chapter.

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[quill-lumos.livejournal.com]

Out manoeuvering Malfoys eh? You go Harry! I like the way that Narcissa backs Harry in this chapter and I agree with the commenter who wished that Harry could have had a little more time basking in his accomplishment. I do like Draco in this chapter, but he's still being a total bigot. *slaps him across the back of the head with a wooden spoon.*

Lucie x

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I suppose the best one can say is that Draco is not openly expressing his bigotry in front of Harry. But yeah, he's not stellar here. *slaps him too* He's still caught in the trap of thinking that if he changes his beliefs instead of Harry changing his, it's admitting defeat somehow.

[tray-la-la.livejournal.com]

i love harry playing the malfoy's game to achieve his ends, and he and narcissa teaming up against lucius! and the scene in the bedroom before rogers interrupted was omgsohot!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Draco is still mad that Rogers interrupted. :)

[salviag.livejournal.com]

This was so beautiful from the Malfoy perspective! I did want to see a bit of this through Lucius' eyes...but it was lovely!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I considered having Lucius's perspective, but his reading of the situation isn't as subtle as Narcissa's or Draco's.

[star-faerie.livejournal.com]

*applaudes Harry* That was brilliantly done!

Narcissa was, once again, love. She sure does know her boys.

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I think Draco would learn more if he would pay attention to his mother as a teacher, instead of a competitor for power.

[valkyrie17.livejournal.com]

Loved Harry out-manouevering the Malfoys:)

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[duchessa.livejournal.com]

oh YES. The scene was very sweet indeed. Draco's a really sore loser. I kinda want to know what Lucius thought of the whole exchange (though it's obvious he took it rather badly). Narcissa has cemented her position as the coolest malfoy ever. i hope she and harry get to team up (and win) against Lucius and Draco in the future. I like how they care about what each other think (Draco and Lucius is a tad too dismissive sometimes).
Can't wait to see what Draco decide to do with the Dursleys (and if he ever finds out about the cupboard) .

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Draco is indeed a sore loser. Harry would be a little startled if he knew how much.

Lucius will lick his wounds and in the end convince himself that he won because it means the Malfoys get to keep Harry.

Narcissa and Harry will have plenty of chances in the future to try and rule the family! They can each teach each other new tactics.

You'll hear something about Draco and the Dursleys in either the next chapter or the one after that.

[nimue-8.livejournal.com]

That scene is even better from the Malfoys point of view! Delightful!

Mind you, an evil part of me wants Draco to continue his research and revenge plot against the Dursleys!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I know the feeling, but I think you might like what he does instead even more.

[kawanale.livejournal.com]

ah, ah, ah, the malfoy laws. hehe.

*cackles and throws sparkly glitter in the air*

[yanagi-wa.livejournal.com]

Oh, I love it that Harry out Malfoy-ed a Malfoy. Great stuff. If Harry's going to study for his NEWTS again, is Lucius going to help him study too? Thanks for such a great chapter.

[fbf.livejournal.com]

*rolls around in this chapter* oh this so makes me happy. I only wonder if we will get a Lucius POV for after this scene. I couldn't imagine doing all three POVs for this scene, that would have hurt my brain.

YAY!