Archive of Our Own

As had become the standard on a Friday night after dealing with the bureaucracy of working in the DLME, Harry had made his way to The Lion and Badger to meet up with the usual crowd to unwind. 

Following the fall of Voldemort the so called ‘Golden Trio’ had gone back to Hogwarts to complete their final year along with a number of their other classmates whose last year had been interrupted by the minor inconvenience of a war. McGonagall, in all her genius, had decided that all returning ‘8th Year’ students would have a personal separate dorm, where students of all houses lived together. This had caused some tension amongst many of the returning students, what with the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, many of whom had lost family members in the Final Battle only a few months earlier expected to live in close quarters with the children of Death Easter’s and Voldemort sympathisers.

However, after the year had ended and the students had sat their exams, they group of misfit 8th years had become close, and had a better understanding of how traumatic the war had been for all involved. This newfound friendship had lead to some interesting developments in the years that followed, including Theo and Blaise joining forces with Hermione, Seamus and Hannah Abbott to start a law firm working on changing the laws around Creature Rights, the Muggle Studies curriculum and lobbying against the Ministry to reform decrees around Muggle-borns and Squibs amongst other things. Luna and Blaise had married shortly after she graduated- Harry wouldn’t forget that wedding anytime soon, and Dean and Theo had begun dating. 

It was clear to anyone paying attention that this group of students were going to be leading changes across Wizarding Britain beyond their involvement in the war, and the press always looked to them to see what the trends were in regards to Purebloods, Halfbloods and Muggle-borns. This had led to the group changing their pub of choice from the Three Broomsticks, to the lesser known Lion and Badger, owned by Susan Bones and Dennis Creevey, just off Diagon Alley on Chaffinch Lane. 

Harry made his way into the small pub and spotted the gang taking over the back half of the pub, with Ron, Dennis and Dean playing pool (badly), whilst Blaise, Hannah and Hermione were discussing work around a hightop together. 

He removed his leather jacket, which he had taken from Sirius’ wardrobe following moving into Grimmauld after the war, and ambled up to the bar to order a drink for himself when Ginny appeared next to him. 

“Hey Harry!” she said and hugged him. 

“Hi. How’s things?” 

As Ginny answered him he mused that this was another great reason for them to frequent a pub where they weren’t all followed, as that greeting alone would be enough to get them into the papers these days. He could see the headline now: WIZARDING BRITAIN'S FAVOURITE POWER COUPLE, BACK ON TOP? Although he loved Ginny dearly, and he knew they weren’t meant to be together, it was still hard to have the papers throw his failed relationship in his face. He’d always assumed they would be together forever, the same as his parents; they had met in school and were perfect for each other. Until they weren’t. 

It wasn’t long after they had finished their respective final years that they realised that although they loved each other, it was more of a familial love than romantic. But he would be lying to himself if he said it hadn’t left him a little bereft, he had never considered the possibility of a future with someone that wasn’t Ginny. He assumed he would date Ginny for a few years, get established within their careers, get married and start a family. It wasn’t as if there was a shortage of women throwing themselves at him thanks to his being ‘The Chosen One’, but he wasn't interested in being a story for someone to tell about sleeping with ‘The’ Harry Potter, he wanted to have a relationship, a proper relationship, with someone who liked him for him, not his past. This was a stark comparison to Ron, who when he and Hermione had decided to end their relationship after a few short months, had immediately jumped at the opportunity to be fawned over by any woman that showed him the smallest bit of attention. But Harry wasn’t interested in just sleeping with random women, he had assumed Ginny was it for him, and now he didn’t know what to do. 

His failed relationship with Ginny had been playing on his mind a lot recently, with the upcoming ‘wedding of the century’ he knew that the spotlight would be on him and his ‘lonely life’ once again. He had a plan of how to get around this … but so far he’d been too nervous to put it into action. He’d developed feelings for the one and only Pansy Parkinson over the years. It was stupid, but as they spent time in each other’s company, hung out in a big group together and actually got on quite well these days. It was out of left field, certainly, but she was the only person that he even remotely had an interest in, she was smart, funny, drop dead gorgeous, and she never treated him differently for just being him . But tonight was the night, the wedding was 2 weeks away, so if he didn’t ask her now, it wasn’t going to happen, and he would have to face the press on his own. 

Noticing the silence around him, he looked at Ginny who was looking at him as if expecting a reply. 

“Sorry Gin, I uhh.. It’s been a busy week at work. What did you say?” He could feel the colour rising on his cheeks. 

“That’s alright,” she laughed lightly, “I was just asking if you were planning on staying at the Burrow the night before the wedding? Mum asked me yesterday.”

He took a sip of his drink to give himself some time before answering. “Uhh, not sure yet, I may stay at Grimmauld and go straight from there, I imagine the Burrow will be pretty busy.” Ginny laughed, throwing her head back, her long hair flowing down her back. “But I did mean to tell Molly that if needed, I can have some people stay with me beforehand, just so it’s not so crowded.”

“Cool, I’ll let her know on Sunday at dinner. Will you be joining this week?” 

Harry had missed the last few Sunday dinners as he didn’t want to see Ginny and her new partner, Oliver Wood. It was hard enough knowing she was dating someone, but when he was still single, it was doubly difficult. He was really happy for her, turly, but it still hurt. 

“Possibly, I may have to work.” She seemed to accept the lie, but knowing her, she knew he wasn’t being fully truthful. He downed the last of his drink to give himself something to do and ordered another and one for Ginny. 

As the night went on he grabbed a seat at a table with Neville, Pansy, Blaise and Luna. The group were all chatting away merrily, and no one noticed how quiet Harry was, or so he thought, until Luna piped up mid conversation. 

“What’s on your mind Harry? You’re all purple” she scrunched her nose at this, “you’ve obviously got something you’re thinking hard about.” The group fell silent. 

“Ha, nothing Luna. Just work.” Harry replied quickly, hoping to sidestep the conversation. Leave it to Luna to know that he was trying to work out how to ask Pansy to go to the wedding with him. 

“It doesn’t seem like work.” She replied dreamily, squinting at him, as if trying to see literally 

 into his mind. Which, on second thought, he wouldn’t put past her. 

“Moonbeam, leave him alone, if he says it’s work, it’s work.” Blaise pulled her further into his side and kissed her on the head. He gave Harry a small nod that said ‘sorry about that’, causing Harry to smile. 

“Ohh, okay, he’s just very purple. It’s a little distracting.” 

Not knowing what to say to that, Harry shifted in his seat, accidentally bumping Pansy’s leg under the table. She turned to him, and raised her perfectly arched eyebrow at him. “You know, I’ve always thought Potter was more of a gold than purple, but I’m sure that’s just all the ‘Golden Trio’ shite”. Everyone at the table laughed, breaking the tension, and Harry gave her a small smile in thanks. 

After people started to leave for the night Harry realised this was it, he had to just ask her. Spotting Pansy across the room, putting on her cloak and talking to Draco and Hermione, he made his way over to them.

“.... Brilliant, thank you so much Pans, I know the dress will be perfect, it’s your own design! With your name on the order form. I doubt anyone would risk crossing you” Hermione laughed. 

“Hardly.” Pansy’s voice was harsh and disbelieving. “I’m sure the whole ‘Malfoy-Granger’ ‘wedding of the century’ thing will be enough to ensure that the suppliers will get the delivery to me promptly”. 

“I’m sure between the Granger name and the Parkinson name, no one would be stupid enough to cross you.” Harry said lightly. “Pansy, how are you getting home?”

“Uh, just walking down to the apparition point and then apparating, why?” she replied, clearly suspicious. 

“Ohh, I’ll walk you then, I don’t want you to be walking on your own.” He didn’t miss the look that Hermione and Mafoy shared. 

“You sure? I really don’t need you to walk me though.” Pansy looked at him, with an unreadable expression. 

“Go on Pan-”

“He’s right, it’ll be safer”. Malfoy cut Hermione off and nodded at them both. Leading Hermione to the floo, he said over his shoulder “We’ll see you both.” And before Hermione could open her mouth to respond, they were gone. 

“Well that was weird.” He said, staring at the empty floo. 

“Yeah, I wonder what that was about.” She looked at him. “So what’s going on then?”

“Nothing, come on, let's get you home.”

As they made their way down the street, Harry sparked a cigarette and very suddenly realised that he was much drunker than he thought, but then maybe it was liquid courage he needed. Then he stumbled on a cobblestone. Okay maybe he’d had one too many. 

Pansy stopped in the middle of the street, letting another group walk past them. 

“Okay, what’s going on? You’ve never asked to walk me home before, so spit it out” Pansy looks him up and down whilst crossing her arms. 

“I .. Uhh, I have a favour to ask you.” Pansy just raises an eyebrow at him in reply. 

“Spit it out Potter, I don’t have all night.” she looked at her nails, entirely disinterested in the conversation at hand. 

“Right, umm, so you know that Hermione and Malfoy’s wedding is coming up?” he started. 

“Yes Potter. I may have heard of the biggest event of this century once or twice. I’ve even heard that it may involve our best friends.” Her voice was dripping with sarcasm. 

“Yeah, of course. Well, I was umm” he shoved his hands in his jeans pockets and kicked the cobblestone with his trainer. 

“Look.” Looking up he looked straight into her dark whiskey brown eyes. “You know Ginny is now dating Wood, yeah? Well I was hoping to go to the wedding with a date, so that I wasn’t on my own, and so that the papers would leave me alone a bit …but I don’t have anyone I can ask. So would you agree to go with me?” Pausing to check that she hadn’t disapparated on the spot, he continued, “Like as my date. As friends, of course. I just don’t need all the questions and pitiful looks, I just, I’d really appreciate you doing this for me.”

The silence that settled was heavy, Pansy just kept staring at him, slowly narrowing her eyes. It was so quiet that the dogs barking and cats fighting in the surrounding streets could be heard. 

He looked down to his shoes, avoiding her glare, “sorry, forget I asked, I just-”

“What’s in it for me?” her voice was clear and crisp as she asked. 

“Uhh- What?” they locked eyes again, she cocked her head, seemingly in deep thought. 

“Why have you asked me specifically? What’s in it for me, Potter?” her voice went from sickly sweet to accusatory in a single sentence. Pansy obviously didn’t trust him. 

“Umm, I just -” he started to respond, but was almost immediately cut off. 

“Look. Come over mine tomorrow at about midday, and we can talk about this properly, during the daylight, not at half 2 in the morning and when you’re sober.” She said, effectively ending the conversation. “If you even remember this conversation, that is” she muttered to herself. 

And with that she disapparated on the spot. Leaving Harry on his own in Diagon Alley, unsure if their conversation had gone well or not. 

What the fuck was that? 

Pansy landed in her flat, and immediately dropped onto her sofa, head in her hands.

“FUCK” she shouted to the emptiness of the living room. 

What the fuck was that? Did he actually just ask her to go to the Granger-Malfoy wedding with him? As his date ?

Him. Harry Potter. Saviour of the Wizarding World. 

Her. Pansy Parkinson. Daughter of a Death Eater. 

What the fuck? 

Was it a date? Was it real? Was she drunk? She had had a few more drinks than normal. The stress of helping Hermione and Draco plan the wedding was getting to her. Maybe it hadn’t happened at all. 

Harry fucking Potter.

The next morning she awoke to sunlight streaming in from the curtains in her room, with an awful headache. Unsure if it was a hangover, or the 2 hours she had spent tossing and turning in bed trying to work out what the hell had happened between her and Harry at the end of the night. Regardless, a hangover potion wouldn’t hurt, and thankfully she always kept a stock of potions handy in the bathroom.

She downed a hangover potion and grabbed a Pepper-Up and started making coffee. And that’s when she heard a knock at the door. Casting a quick Tempus charm she realised it was 11:50am. 

“ Shit .”

She rushed to her room and grabbed a robe to wrap herself in before heading to the door. 

“Hey-oh” Harry’s smile disappeared as he looked down at her body and noticed she wasn’t dressed properly. “Sorry, you did say midday right?”

“Yeah, I did. I just, uhh, got up a bit late. Come in.” She stepped aside for him and closed the door behind them. “I’ve just made some coffee, so help yourself”. She pushed up on her toes to reach the mugs, when he came up behind her. Her breath caught in her throat at the feeling of his chest solid against her back. 

“Let me help.” His voice was low and rumbled in his chest, his breath hit her cheek as she turned her head to look at him. 

He grabbed two mugs, and stepped away from her and started fixing their coffee. 

“Uhh, fab. Right, I’m going to go and get dressed.” She wrapped her arms around her torso, trying to cover herself up as much as she could with the flimsy fabric. She felt flustered. The fuck was that?

“If you must” he grinned over at her, and she felt herself flush as she rushed off towards her bedroom. 

Quickly she chucked on a pair of black Muggle jeans and an old oversized jersey of Draco’s, before giving herself the once over in her mirror, noticing that her usually neat bob and blunt fringe looked like she’d been pulled through a bush backwards. She smoothed it down the best she could before heading back to the kitchen. 

Harry was sitting at the breakfast bar, looking around the room as she sat down opposite him with her coffee. Gods he looked good in her flat, rumpled white t-shirt, dark blue jeans … How did he look so put together? He was definitely drunk last night.

“So.” she looked at him. 

“So.” He replied.

“Do you remember last night?” She wanted to know if he remembered what he’d asked of her before she said anything that would embarrass herself. But then again, he was sat in her kitchen at exactly the time she told him to be here. 

“Yes, I do. Sorry about dropping this on you. But I just didn’t know how to ask you”. He finished honestly.

Okay, so he did remember. Okay, well that was a good start. 

“Look, I’m really happy for Gin, and I don’t want her back or anything like that. But the idea of going to my best friend's wedding, standing at the front as her Man of Honour, alongside my ex as her bridesmaid, whilst I’m there single and Gin is dating this big hot-shot international quidditch star….” he trailed off and let out a deep sigh that he seemed to have been holding. “The press constantly follow me around, they always have. I’m sure you remember the shit they pulled while we were at school.” Pansy cringed internally at this, knowing that she was actively involved in some of the crap he had to put up with back then. “And I don’t want them making a big deal of me being single for a few years, whilst all of my friends and family have moved on.”

“Okay, that makes more sense than the weird way you phrased it last night. So … what, you want me to go as your date?” That would be okay, she thought. She could do that, just going as his date, heading off some of the press that he would inevitably get, that made sense. They were friends after all, these were the kind of things friends did for each other. 

“Yes …. And no. I uhh, look, I know this is a huge favour for me to ask” he looked down at his coffee, running his fingers up and down the handle of the mug, and Pansy’s mind suddenly clouded with thoughts of his hands elsewhere…  “But, I was wondering if you would be open to … dating .. me …” He looked up at her, his bright green eyes looking at her with a pleading behind them. 

“You want to date me?” Pansy was breathless, this is not what she expected. Going to an event as his date, as a friend was one thing, but dating him was … that might just be too much. She felt a balloon of something akin to hope bubble in her chest.

“No, not really.” He rushed to explain himself. Pansy felt the balloon burst as quickly as it appeared. Well that shouldn’t have hurt as much as it did. “I just, would it be okay, to tell people we were dating, in a relationship, just for the few weeks leading up to the wedding? And then maybe a few after it as well? Just to head off the press and everything. I know this is a huge favour, and you obviously don’t have to do it, I just-”

“I’ll do it.” Pansy surprised both of them with her reply. Shit. Had she just agreed to this? 

“Really?” He looked at her with hope in his eyes, and she saw the immediate change in his posture as he breathed out in relief.

“Yes. I’ll do it. But we need to make some rules. Are we going to tell any of our friends the truth? Or are we going to try and con everyone? What about the evening of the wedding, or the events running up to it - are we going to attend everything as … What? Boyfriend and girlfriend?” she wrinkled her nose at the thought. 

“If you are okay with it, I’d prefer to keep it to just us. But I’m happy to tell Hermione and Malfoy, if that would be easier for you.” She nodded, that seemed sensible. “I think the less people that know that it isn’t real, the more likely it is that we will convince the press that it’s real and they’ll lay off me a bit.” 

She let out a puff of air, turning the idea over in her mind. “Okay, that’s alright. If we’re going to do this properly we need to be seen before the wedding.” He looked confused. “As a couple I mean, if you want the Prophet to believe this, we need to lay the groundwork for the relationship.”

“Ohh, yeah, that’s smart. It would seem a bit weird if we just turned up at the wedding.” Even that slight praise made her smile. 

“Slytherin - remember? And on that note, what’s in this for me exactly?” She hoped that some fake bravado would help with steadying her feelings. 

“Ha, yeah, of course you’d think about how to do this properly. Umm, well I was thinking that I could wear one of the designs from your new men's collection? I know the bride and groom will also be wearing Parkinson, but you know that the press will inevitably ask me. I know that’s not a lot, but it’s kind of all I can offer.” He looked at her sheepishly over his mug. 

“Hmm,” seeing the opportunity, Pansy thought she may as well ask, “how about you wear Parkinson at ALL of your events for the rest of the year?” She made her voice go all high pitched and sweet, “afterall, this is going to hurt my reputation, to be seen dating you.”

“Ohh, okay, Ms ‘Saviour of the Wizarding World Isn’t Good Enough For Me’” he laughed at her. “But that does seem fair, and it means that I don’t have to worry about what to wear to any of these bloody events.” he conceded. 

“And,” she perked up at the thought, “as an added benefit it’ll give me a legitimate reason other than ‘under no circumstances will I date them’, for me to turn down the awful men my mother keeps trying to set me up with.” 

Harry’s eyebrows knitted together, but he didn’t ask any further questions. 

“So, deal?” she puts her hand out to shake his. He took her hand in his, and her skin felt like it was on fire, how had she never noticed his hands were so big?  She pulled her hand back a little too quickly based on the look he gave her. “Okay, owl me later and we can go over the finer details of all of this.” 

“Cool, yeah, that sounds good.” he stood up and made his way to her front door. “I’ll see you later then. Thanks Pansy, I really appreciate it.”

“Don’t worry about it. Talk to you later.” She smiled at him as he made his way down her steps and smiled back at her. 

She closed the door and leaned back against the wall. Well fuck. What was she going to do? Shit.

Harry arrived back at Grimmauld and decided to write to Pansy straight away, just to make sure she was okay with the idea. She had agreed really very quickly, so he wanted to give her a chance to change her mind if she’d had any second thoughts. 

Pansy, 

Thank you for coffee this morning. I just wanted to check that you are absolutely on board with this idea before we go ahead with it?

If you are, let me know about any ground rules you have for this. 

Thank you again, as I’m aware that this is a massive favour.

H

—-------------------------

Potter, 

As I said this morning, I’m happy to help with this. It will be good for the new collection and launching the men's line to have you, Draco and a few of the others at the ‘wedding of the century’ wearing the designs.

In terms of rules, I’d suggest that we make a few appearances in places that we will be seen by the Prophet before the wedding. I’ll make sure I’m wearing items from my classics collection, so if they take photos, I’ll be getting good press. 

Pansy

—-----------------------

Pansy, 

I think that makes sense, shall we arrange to go to a restaurant next week to start the ball rolling? 

Also, how uhh, physical are you comfortable with us being?

Can I check what the story of us getting together will be?

H

—------------------------

Potter, 

Okay, shall we go to The Time Turner on Wednesday? I know you and Draco usually finish early on Wednesdays. It’s new and popular, so I’m sure there will be press around somewhere. It may be best for you to call, I doubt that they’ll say no to you getting a reservation at short notice. 

Our story is simple, our best friends are getting married, we spent more time together, we got to know each other and decided to give us a go. We don't have to make it complicated. 

And if we really want to sell this, we may have to give the press something to publish. Maybe we can have a simple goodbye kiss at the end of one of the dates? That should be more than enough to convince them. 

Pansy

—-----------------

Pansy, 

Okay, not a problem, it sounds like it should be good. I’ll book us a reservation for 7pm Wednesday, does that suit? 

That sounds sensible, best to not overcomplicate things. 

Okay, that is doable. Yeah, I think that would sell the press on it. 

H

—--------------------

Potter, 

7 is good. 

Any other rules you want to put in place? 

Pansy

—--------------------

Pansy, 

Nothing that I can think of, I’ll let you know if I think of anything. 

However there is something that I need to ask; I know we only agreed to this today, but how would you feel about joining me at the Weasley’s tomorrow for dinner? I just want to tell them before it’s in the papers. If you can’t come I’ll tell them on my own, but it may help to have you there. 

H

—-----------------------------

Potter,

Do you think that’s a good idea? Let’s be honest, it’s not as if I’d be welcome. 

Pansy

—-------------------------

Pansy,

You’ll be welcome to come as my girlfriend. And if anyone has a problem with it, I’ll make it clear that they can’t speak to my girlfriend like that. 

H

—----------------------------

Potter, 

Okay, I’ll come. Pick me up first? What time?

Pansy

—---------------

Pansy, 

I’ll pick you up at 2pm. See you tomorrow. 

H

Walking up the steps to Pansy’s flat Harry tried to calm himself down. He knew that she would never date him really , so this was the best he would get. It was a few weeks of faking a relationship for the press, and then they would go back to being friends again. 

Taking a final deep breath he steeled himself and rapped the door. Of course she was wearing a beautiful tea dress and strappy sandals that knocked the wind out of him. 

“Hi,” he said dumbly. 

“Hi” she looked up at him, and frowned, “what’s wrong?” She looked down at herself, “is this not okay for dinner?”

“No, no, you look great.” He smiled, hoping he would put her at ease. 

“Oh, okay. Uhh, I picked up a bottle of the Parkinson's own red wine that we make from one of the Zabini wineries. I hope that’s okay?” She seemed genuinely nervous. He’d never seen her like this.

“You didn’t need to do that, no one really brings anything to Sunday dinners, it’s just family. But I’m sure Molly will appreciate it.” He hoped he sounded reassuring. 

“Cool, right then. Shall we?” She looked so unsure. 

“You’ll be fine Pansy, it’s just dinner. You know most everyone that will be there, and you’re friends with most of the Weasleys these days.” 

“That doesn't mean any of them will accept this Potter” she gestured between them. “Even the ones that actually like me aren’t going to be happy about this, and that’s before we even get to the parents.” She laughed, seemingly trying to sound confident.

“Firstly, I think you’re going to have to call me Harry for us to pull this off” he laughed a little and touched her arm, running his hand up and down in what he hoped would be a calming gesture “Secondly, as I said yesterday, if anyone has an issue with you as my girlfriend, than I’ll set them straight and make it clear that if they have an issue with you, they have an issue with me.” He hoped he sounded confident in what he was saying, he didn’t want her to feel unwelcome. 

“Right, of course. Harry. Uhh, that sounds so weird” She laughed, but the tension she was holding seemed to melt a little. 

“Shall we?” He offered her his arm. She nodded, grabbed the wine and her cardigan and took his arm. 

They landed just a short way down the lane from the Weasley home and Pansy was taken aback by quite how homely it looked. She’d always imagined it to be a tiny thing, messy and scruffy, and had used it as yet another thing to throw at the Weasleys when they were in school. But it actually seemed warm and inviting, especially in the late spring sunshine. 

“Okay, let’s do this” Potter sounded as if he was steeling himself. But he let go of her arm, and confidently took her hand in his and intertwined their fingers. 

They made their way down the lane, and she could feel her breathing getting quicker the closer they got to the door, behind which a group of people who would NOT be happy to see her stood. 

“You’ll be fine” he whispered to her, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. 

He stood in front of her slightly as they entered the open kitchen and dining space. There was a chorus of ‘hellos’ and ‘how are yous’ and then the room fell completely silent as she came into view. 

“Everyone, you know Pansy Parkinson? I thought it was time I properly introduced you to her as we’ve been dating for a little while now.” He placed his arm around her waist and pulled her into him slightly. 

“Hey Parks” the slightly shocked voice of Draco filtered across the room, from where he was sat with Hermione perched next to him in the adjacent living room. 

Ohh thank gods. She forgot that Draco attended these gatherings nowadays. Okay, well that would be better, at least there was another snake here to help her if needed. 

“Hey Pans” Hermione smiled over at her. 

Then she looked around the room to see the disbelieving expressions on the other Weasleys’ faces. Ginny just looked like she couldn't comprehend what was infront of her, the Weasel looked as if his head was going to explode and the Weasley matriarch looked furious . 

“Right, well, hi everyone. I’ve umm, brought some of our Parkinson's red, it’s our own blend, I hope it compliments the food.” She made her way over to the matriarch to hand it over, but she looked apocalyptic. So Mr Wealsey took it from her with a gentle “thank you very much, that’s incredibly kind of you.” 

At the strained silence that surrounded them, Harry started walking them towards Hermione and Draco in the living room. Seemingly some of the family took this as a hint, and chatter started breaking out amongst different groups in the house. 

“Well that was entertaining” Draco drawled, a smirk twitching at the edges of his lips, as they approached the couple.

“Hush you, do you not remember you coming for dinner here the first time. At least no curses were fired ..” Hermione trailed off.

Harry sat on an armchair, and before Pansy had a chance to sit on the arm, or move to sit next to Hermione she felt his hands on her hips pulling her down to sit on his lap. 

She let out a sharp laugh, “Pott- Harry! What are you doing?!” she shrieked. 

“Well, the cats out of the bag now Flower, so I can do this now, and you can’t yell at me” he wrapped one strong arm around her waist, holding her to him. 

Okay, it was going to be a LONG dinner if he was going to be acting like this. 

“So,” Hermione asked, implementing her bossiest tone, “why didn’t you tell us? When did this happen?”

Pansy opened her mouth to tell the curly haired Griffindor to mind her business, but Potter had already started answering. 

“We didn’t tell anyone because we wanted to make sure this was going somewhere before we told anyone. And that includes you two, we couldn’t just tell our best friends off the bat, especially when you are both so bloody protective of each of us.” Hermione rolled her eyes, “we’ve been dating for a few weeks now, and we wanted to go to the wedding together, so we thought it best to tell you all now.”

Draco stared directly at her, and she knew he was trying to use his Legilimency, but Pansy shook her head lightly, silently requesting that he not intrude. 

The couple in front of them were always going to be the hardest to convince. Draco had had his suspicions for a while that Pansy had deeper feelings for Potter than she would admit to, and had asked her a few times since he and Granger had begun dating whether he should try and set them up. But Pansy wouldn’t admit to him her feelings for Potter. What was the point? He would never agree to date her properly. She had tried to hand him over to the Dark Lord for Salazar's sakes. Not to mention she was a bloody Parkinson. No, it was better that no one knew about her feelings, and hopefully she could move on.

Dinner went pretty much the same, with her sat next to Draco and Hermione, close to one of the twins (she honestly wasn’t sure which), with Ginny and Oliver Wood on Harry’s other side. Some of the family pointedly refused to acknowledge her, and others were making it a point to include her in conversations. They were asked some questions about how they got together, when they’d started dating and why they hadn’t told anyone about it yet (which frankly Pansy didn’t think needed explaining after the less than warm welcome she had received). A few times she had been asked a thinly veiled insult in the form of a question, and Harry stepped in to answer for her, or Draco stepped in to defend her, obviously having experience with how to handle this family himself. When this happened and Pansy tensed, Potter obviously noticed, as he gently placed his hand on her thigh, giving it a light squeeze to help calm her a bit. She knew that his intention was only to allow her to relax, but it only helped to increase the butterflies in her stomach. He obviously didn’t know the effect he was having on her, but he was slowly driving her mad with his light and thoughtful touches. 

As dinner was coming to an end, she was grateful that Potter made an excuse for why they would need to leave early and not stay afterwards. She was waiting for him in the living room, having said her goodbyes to Draco and Hermione, who had demanded dinner at their house, just the four of them, when she heard it; the Weasley matriarch calling her a Death Eater. 

“Harry dear, you know we love you, but we must express our concern.” She heard Molly Weasley saying to him. 

“Leave me out of this Molly, let the boy make his own choices.” Mr Weasley said, in a tired tone.

Pansy made her way closer to the door as quietly as possible so she could hear the conversation better without being noticed. 

“Of course Arthur, he can make his own choices, but dating a Death Eater, I mean really Harry.” Her tone changed to a much softer lilt. “Dear, if you would like, we could introduce you to other young women who would be more suitable.”

“Stop.” Harry’s voice cut through the room. “I will not have you talking about Pansy like that. She is not, and was never a Death Eater. Yes, her father was in league with Voldemort, but so was Lucius, and you’ve accepted Draco.”

“Yes, but this is different Harry, you know you’ve always been like a son to us” Molly’s voice had a pleading tone to it now. 

“I know Molly, and you know that I have thought of you as family for years, but I care about Pansy, and have done for a long time. She is who I am choosing to be with.” Potter's voice dropped slightly, and Pansy had to strain to hear him. “You have no idea what she went through as a child and young adult, you don’t know what it was like at that school for them when the war was raging on. No one thought for a moment about the students living in Slytherin, living with Voldemort in their homes. They were children, just as we were. Pansy is a great woman, and I hope you can all accept her, as she will be a permanent part of my life.”

Suddenly, Pansy heard scraping chairs, and footsteps, and she quickly moved away from the door, and looked around the room, hoping Potter wouldn’t notice that she had been eavesdropping at the door. 

“Hey, ready to head home?” He was a little flushed from the argument, but seemed to be making the effort to appear calm and unruffled. 

“Yeah.” Pansy smiled up at him and took his hand when he offered it to her. They made their way hand in hand out of the Burrow and down the lane to apparate back to Pansy’s flat. 

As they landed, Harry began to move his hand away from her, but Pansy realised she didn’t want to let it go. She gave his hand a squeeze and offered him a small smile. “Do you want a drink before you leave?”

“Yeah, sure.” He followed her to the kitchen, and she went about making them a mug of tea each. 

Her mind was racing, she didn’t know what to think about the man sitting at her breakfast bar, what had made him say what he had said? Hearing him defend her against what was effectively his surrogate mother had, and she couldn't believe she was thinking this, warmed her heart. Did he mean any of what he had said to the Weasleys about her?

The following Wednesday Harry had changed quickly after finishing working on a case with Malfoy. Although they usually finished early on a Wednesday, they were preparing a big raid coming later that week, and had been strategizing in one of the conference rooms when he realised the time and that he was going to be late for his ‘date’ with Pansy. 

The last three days in work had been an exercise in interrogation techniques on both sides of the table for Harry and Malfoy. He’d expected it of course, he was never going to be able to announce that he was dating Malfoy's best friend and think that he’d get away with no questioning, but what surprised him was less that Malfoy didn’t believe that it was real, and more that he seemed concerned that Harry was messing her around, that he wouldn’t take care of her and that he would somehow hurt her. 

It had taken hours of conversation and explaining that he really did care for her and that though it was early days that he had no intention of hurting her. 

He’d have to make sure when this deal came to an end, that Pansy told Malfoy that it was her idea to call it quits and not his. 

As he stood, leaning against the wall of the closed shop next to The Time Turner, smoking a cigarette and waiting for Pansy, he spotted a reporter who was known for working with Skeeter across the road. Well at least their plan of making their relationship public would work. 

A small ‘pop’ announced the arrival of Pansy, he looked over to see her standing, wearing a dress of deep purple, which hugged her curves. He realised belatedly that he shouldn’t be gawking at her in such a way, but then realised that if he was ever going to have the chance to do so, it was now. 

“Hey you.” He smiled as she stopped next to him, and bent his head to drop a light peck to her cheek. 

“Come on, Potter, if you want to sell it.” She had a glint in her eye and a smirk pulling on her lips as she grabbed his collar and pulled him down to her and kissed him deeply. 

And fuck, this was a bad idea. How had he thought he could get away with putting himself in a situation where he was ‘dating’ the only woman he had had any interest in in years? Especially when he knew she was just playing the game, a Slytherin to the core, using the situation to gain attention for her clothing line. Did she not feel anything when they kissed? He felt like his lips were going to explode. He grabbed her hip to steady himself, the velvety feel of her dress a stark contrast to the fight waging between their lips. 

She pulled away, her eyes fluttered open to look up at him and her eyebrow quirked as she took a breath. Her lips were slightly swollen, but other than that, she looked like the normal put together Pansy Parkinson. 

“Fuck, Pans” He breathed at her. 

“Yes Potter?” she smiled with a devilish grin. “That should convince them.” She cocked her head towards the photographer who was stumbling over himself to check he had got the money shot. “Shall we?” She offered him her arm, which he took and they made their way into the restaurant. 

As Pansy had suggested, the moment he mentioned his name the head chef had been on the phone offering them a private booth, and ensuring that the food would be the best he had tasted. He hated that he always received this treatment from people, just because of choices that had been out of his control, but in this circumstance, it had really worked in his favour. They received excellent service all night, and had dined on the most exquisite food and wine. 

During the course of the evening they discussed Pansy’s hopes for the Parkinson brand, and her wishes to open boutiques in France, Italy and Switzerland in the coming years, they laughed over ludicrous situations Harry, Draco and their colleagues had found themselves in during the course of working for the DLME and of course talked about the upcoming wedding between their best friends. 

As the night came to an end, they decided to share their deserts of tiramisu and Eton mess. They finished, both scraping the plates, exclaiming that it is the best dessert that they’d ever had. 

They made their way out to the street, the cool spring night air refreshing on their skin after being indoors. 

“Do you fancy coming to mine for a nightcap before you head home?” he knew it was a bad idea before he even asked, but he really did want her to say yes. 

“I’m not sure if that’s a good idea, Potter.” She clasped her hands in front of her and stepped a little closer. “I think I should go home, and so should you, and I’ll see you on Friday at the pub?”

“If you say so my dear. Let me walk you back?”

“I can apparate, but thank you.” She stepped a little closer, and he could smell her perfume, and see the red tint on her lips from the wine. “Thank you for dinner.” She stepped up onto her toes and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. 

Harry placed his hand to cup her cheek and kissed her as deeply as he could. He hoped that she could tell from this kiss that this was all he wanted. This was a perfect evening for him. 

She stepped back, turned her face to kiss his palm still resting on her cheek, and she apparated away. 

Pansy floated through the next two days, her mind kept sneaking back to her dinner with Harry. She tried to focus on work and ensuring all of the final preparations were completed for the wedding next week, but all she could think about was the toe curling, heart stopping kisses she had shared with Harry bloody Potter. 

At the end of the work day on Friday, she spent longer than normal reapplying her makeup and hair charms, and may have changed her outfit choice twice. She decided to go for highwaisted Muggle jeans that Ganger had convinced her to buy and a sheer blouse. To be fair to the Muggle fashion designers, these jeans did make her ass look incredible. Not that she was dressing to impress anyone in particular, of course not. That would be silly. 

She locked up her shop and set all of the wards, including double checking them, when she heard a light cough behind her. And there he was, the wizard she couldn’t stop thinking about, leaning against the opposite shop front, head leaned back, hair sticking up at every angle, taking a long draw from a Muggle cigarette. And .. was he wearing a leather jacket? Good Godric, how was she supposed to get through this evening exactly? 

“Hey” he smiled at her, as he pushed himself off the wall to make his way over to her. He flicked his cigarette end and it ‘popped’ and disappeared before it hit the floor. “Good day?”

“Uhh, yeah, I was just making some final alterations to Hermione’s dress, and of course Blaise and Luna have decided to have custom pieces made, so I’ve been working on those too.” 

“Sounds busy” he said as he approached her. “Ready to face the rest of the gang as ‘THE NEW POWER COUPLE OF WIZARDING BRITAIN’?” He grimaced a little as he repeated yesterday morning's Prophet headline. 

“Ohh, I much preferred Skeeters, ‘POTTER IMPERIUSED?’ article myself. It painted me in a delightful light as the daughter of a Death Eater and Unforgivable user.” She rolled her eyes, trying to make light of the slanderous article. 

“Don’t let that old bag get to you. Anything she says about us can’t be worse than the drivel she’s written about me as a teen, or about Hermione and Malfoy.”

“I know, it’s just … I’ll never be able to shake my father's past, or what I had to do to survive as a teenager. You know?” He nodded solemnly. “It’s just so shit that people who were able to hide away from what was going on now act as if any of us really had a choice.”

“Okay, I’ll let you in on a secret.” Harry stepped into her space, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, eyes on hers, “you aren’t the only one who used Unforgivables during the war. I used each of them, when needed. The best was Crucioing one of the Carrows for spitting in Minerva’s face though. I just … I saw red, and it just happened.” Pansy felt her jaw drop at the revelation. She had assumed that Saint Potter had never lowered himself to the Unforgivables. He shrugged at her, his hand resting on her neck, thumb running against her jaw. “It was a war, Pans, we all did what we had to do.”

She nodded, and smiled at him. Leaning down, he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, took her hand, and they made their way down Diagon towards Chaffinch Lane and The Lion and Badger. 

They walked in and Harry ordered for them at the bar, getting himself a Firewhiskey and her a martini. 

“Well, if it isn’t London's hottest new couple” Theo crooned from over the table as they approached. 

“Shut it Nott” Pansy warned, she didn’t want to start the night with an interrogation of their relationship. She just wanted to … enjoy it. Like it was real. 

He lifted his hands placatingly, “No offence meant, that was a hell of a kiss in the papers, that’s all.” He winked at her and she internally listed all of the ways she could curse him if he kept talking. 

“Well I think it’s great” Granger's voice announced her arrival at the table. She scooted past Harry to sit next to Luna. “I think it’s a testament to how far we have come that people on opposite sides of the war can find common ground and come together.”

“Well someone is feeling very loved up” Theo burst into fits of laughter, joined by Susan and Blaise. 

“Yes. I am” Hermione out on her strongest know-it-all look, “I love Draco, and I think it’s wonderful that around this bar there are so many people that have come together despite the odds that were set against us as children.” She crossed her arms, looking put out at their friends laughing at her.

Harry settled his hand at Pansy’s lower back and was stroking his thumb along her spine. The movement stirred Pansy enough to just get the conversation over with. 

“Right. Yes, Harry and I are dating. We have been dating in secret for a few weeks. We have decided to let you lot know now because we’re happy. No he isn’t Imperiused. No I’m not dating him because he’s Harry fucking Potter. Yes we will be going to the wedding together. No, we won’t be answering any stupid questions.” She listed each point off clearly and efficiently, and made a point to stare at Ginny when highlighting she wasn’t dating him because of who he was. 

Theo snorted, “As if you would be stupid enough to Imperius Potter. You’re a snake for Merlin’s sake, you’re smarter than that.” 

“Correct.” Pansy replied simply. She backed lightly into Harry’s hand and felt him tighten his hold on her. 

“And all I’ll say is Pansy is lovely, and I’d appreciate you all allowing us to enjoy being together and not say anything you will regret.” Harry also pointedly looked in Ginny’s direction as he said this. 

The group slowly started making conversations about anything that wasn’t Hermione’s outburst or Harry and Pansy’s relationship. 

After a few drinks Pansy excused herself to the toilet, and bumped into Luna on the way back to the group. 

“Ohh hi Luna, you okay?” Pansy asked. Although she wasn’t the witch’s biggest fan, she made Blaise incredibly happy, and that’s all that mattered. 

“Hi Pansy, I’m doing wonderfully, thank you. I’m very much looking forward to seeing the robes you have made for me for Hermione’s wedding.” Luna spoke in her typical far away voice. 

“They’re looking great, I was actually working on it before I closed up to head over here. Blaise said he’d come over to pick up both of your robes on Monday.” Pansy knew she'd done a great job on the younger witch’s robes, so she wasn’t particularly worried. 

“Yes, he had said he would pick them up then.” Then Luna continued to stare at Pansy and the air around her. 

“Well, okay then Luna, I’ll see you later.” 

“Ohh okay. Just so you know, Harry isn’t purple anymore. You’re both very pink this evening.” she smiled serenely and with that, she left Pansy on her own. 

What an odd odd witch.

They both enjoyed a couple of drinks with their friends, Theo made a few snide comments and Hermione had spent the better part of the evening wanting to know more about their relationship. Draco luckily enough was able to stop her. 

Soon enough most of the group was sloshed beyond reason as Draco brought up funny stories of when the “Golden Trio” went to school. Hermione casually mentioned how she had brewed polyjuice potion in second year, as to trick Draco into thinking that Ron and Harry were Crabbe and Goyle. Harry knew where this was going and was about to mention how Hermione had gotten turned into a cat but she had screeched that he would regret it if he finished the story. His stomach hurt from the laughter that followed.

Harry took Pansy’s hand as they walked out of the pub and down the street to the apparition point. They were both far more sober than they had been standing here a week ago. He’d had a lovely evening next to Pansy, holding her hand, or wrapping an arm around her shoulder, having her laugh at his jokes and touch him when they were chatting, and now he didn’t want the evening to end. 

This agreement had been harder than he expected to pull off, because it was easy . It was so easy to fall into a familiar closeness with Pansy, it hadn’t felt weird to be out with her and their friends, with her as his girlfriend. Going for dinner with her earlier in the week had been easy, they had eaten, laughed, talked about life, and it was all too comfortable. He was starting to regret asking her to help him with this as he didn’t want to lose their newfound connection in a few short weeks. 

“Thanks for walking me, you didn’t have to though, I’m more than capable of doing it on my own.” Pansy said as they slowed their pace. 

“I know you are, but I wanted to. And besides, I wanted to spend a little more time with you.” he gave her a genuine smile. 

She squeezed his hand, “If I’m honest Potter, same. I don’t want the evening to end. I’ve had a really lovely evening, everyone was much nicer than I thought they would be about us, I was expecting more backlash from the Lions. We only really had a few shitty remarks from the Snakes, but I expect that crap from Theo.” She rolled her eyes at her friend. 

Fuck it, if he didn’t ask, he never would. “Shall we go back to my place? We can have another drink and just, I don’t know, hang out for a while?” 

She was clearly taken aback by him asking, “Uhh, yeah, that would be great.” She smiled at him. 

He wrapped his arms around her, which was unnecessary, but he wanted to ensure she landed on the top step of Grimmauld Place with him, so she didn’t get hurt as they popped away from Diagon Alley, and arrived outside Grimmauld. 

“Wow, that was a close land” she went to take a step back away from him, but he gripped her waist. 

“Careful, stay on the top step. The house is protected by a load of wards, curses and charms, so if you step down, the house will disappear.” She looked shocked by this for a second, before raising her eyebrow.

“Of course your house has more protection than the bloody Ministry.” She guffawed. 

He opened the door, and led her down the hallway, and upstairs to one of the sitting rooms. “Well, technically I didn’t put all of these protections up, it was my Godfather's house, so it was the Blacks that put all the protections up. If I’m honest, we don’t even know how to get rid of most of them.” 

They entered the main sitting room on the second floor, which Harry had cleared and redecorated shortly after the war. He had worked hard alongside some colleagues from the DLME and The Order to try and clear as much of the old Black ancestral home as they could to ensure it would be safe to live in. Following their escape after breaking into the Ministry, the house had been raided by Death Eaters, and they had to be careful as there had been some additional traps laid, in case they were to come back. 

This was one of Harry’s favourite rooms in the house now, decorated to look like a cross between the Gryffindor common room and the living room of the Burrow, it was cosy despite its pureblood grandeur. Layered with deep scarlet curtains, he had some photos of his family, and the old Order members enlarged and hung on the wall. In pride of place above the fireplace was his favourite possession; an oil painting of his parents, Lupin and Sirius that Hermione and Draco had had commissioned two Christmases. Draco informed him that had they been alive, his parents would have had one by their age due to the Pureblood traditions. Regardless of the traditions surrounding it, Harry loved it; being able to look up at his parents and two of their best friends always made him feel better if he’d had a long day at work. 

“Well,” said Pansy, perching herself on one of the sofas next to the fire, “this isn’t what I expected. Not a single newspaper clipping or poster of ‘The Boy Who Saved Us All’ in sight!”

“Ohh god, can you imagine?” He chuckled, then caught sight of her, “wait, you know I don’t like all that shit right? I can’t think of anything worse!”

And that’s when she fell back onto the sofa laughing. “No, no, I do know” she said in between bursts of laughter, “but it was worth saying it to see your face!” 

“Ohh that was horrible! I thought you were serious there for a second!” He made his way over to the sofa she was still giggling on, and handed her a glass of Muggle dark rum. 

“Thanks.” She calmed her laughter and looked at him and smiled as she took a sip of her drink. “So you own this place then?”

“Yeah, Sirius left it to me in his will. So when he died during The Battle in the Department of Mysteries, it passed to me.”

“Sirius Black? As in Narcissa’s cousin?” Pansy seemed genuinely shocked. 

“Yeah” Harry leaned back on the arm of the sofa so that he was facing her, and he laid a hand on her thigh. “Didn’t you know Sirius Black was my Godfather? He was best friends with my parents” He pointed to their portrait above the roaring fire warming their skin, “That’s him with Remus and my parents. He was heir to this house, and when he died he left it to me. It was hard work making it a habitable home, mind. Unsurprisingly coming from a family like his, it was full of things that kept trying to kill me. The whole place was full of awful dark magic, but then all of the Blacks except Sirius were big blood purists.” He chuckled at himself, but Pansy had stilled under his hand. 

Harry frowned at her, and then saw her hand, index finger tapping on the tumbler he’d handed her, where the Parkinson family signet ring sat. 

“Shit Pans,” he shifted closer to her, “I didn’t mean that. Well I did, Sirius’ family were awful to him, and really not nice people. But I didn’t mean you, I didn’t mean your family.”

Get a grip Pansy. You know he’s fucking right. You’re a Parkinson. Your father was a Death Eater, you don’t know how many people were murdered at his hand. 

She physically shook her head to clear her thoughts. “No, you’re right. Exactly like my family. The Parkinson Estate has a dungeon for prisons, just like the Malfoy Manor. Which you’d know all about.” She chuckled darkly, shifting away from him. “There are all sorts of anti-Muggle curses on the property, and countless anti-Muggle-born artefacts around the place. Or at least there were, they were mostly cleared out in the Ministry raids after the war.” Her words were coming quicker and quicker, matching her escalating heart rate. 

She felt the sofa dip, as Harry moved himself closer to her, closing the space she had put between them, and placed both of his hands over hers, around her glass. “Pans, I’m sorry,. I didn’t mean to compare you to them. I know you aren’t like them.” 

She shook his hands off “Come on Potter. We both know that isn’t true. I did …. I did awful things during the war-”

“You had to Pansy. You had to survive. You didn’t have a choice.” Harry cut her off, his voice was firm. Strong enough that she almost believed him. 

“No Harry. I’m just like them!” She was yelling, how was she yelling? “Just like the people who built this house to ward off people like you. Half-bloods. People who are seen as lesser, people like your best friend, your mother. I’m just like them. That’s how I was fucking brought up. That’s what I was taught.”

“No. Pansy, that’s not who you are.” He was calm, his voice hadn’t risen at all. He got off the sofa and kneeled on the floor in front of her, hands back on her thighs, grounding her to the sofa. 

“Harry, I tortured people. Children. First years.” She felt the tears rolling down her cheeks hot and fast. “Yeah, ‘I had to’ or whatever you’re going to say, but I did it. I’m not like your friends who got tortured instead of doing it. My father expected me to fall in line, I …. I did those things.” She sobbed, a loud thing bursting from her chest. And her head fell to her hands, she didn’t want him to see her like this. She needed to leave.

His hands were on her cheeks, lifting her head up, forcing her to look into his eyes. “Pansy, stop. You are not your father. Do you hear me? You are more than your family and your surname. It means nothing. Yes, you did things, awful things in the war. But awful things were done to you as well. This is not who you are now . That’s what I care about, the you now.” He was almost whispering to her, his hands gripping the sides of her face, trying to will his beliefs into her. 

“I… I tried to hand you over to them. How can you say that about me... how can you believe that when I almost got you killed?” She closed her eyes, unable to look into those pools of emerald green, swimming with the belief that she was a better person than she was. 

“Is that what this is about? Pans, I forgive you. I forgave you for that a long time ago.” He let out a puff of air, and ran a thumb over her cheek, wiping away the tears. “You did what we were all doing, trying to save our families and friends. I could never hate you for that.”

Fuck.

She opened her eyes to see Harry fucking Potter kneeling in front of her, promising her that he didn’t blame her for almost getting him killed. Literally trying to hand him over to the Dark Lord. 

“I … I almost got you killed. I’m so fucking sorry. I’m so sorry Harry. I didn’t … I was just brought up believing that shit.” The tears had stopped, but her voice was so small. “It was all so wrong. I know that. I have known that for a long time.” 

Harry leaned into her and kissed her softly on the forehead, hovering there, and moving one of his hands to cup the back of her head. He moved back slightly, and she looked up into his eyes, and saw no hate or malice, just kindness. 

He slowly leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers, holding her softly and caressing her cheek. This was nothing like the kiss at their date, there were no roaming hands, or little nibbles, this was just pure. She moved herself closer to him, and knotted one of her hands into his hair, kissing him deeper. Gods she wanted this. She wanted this so badly. 

But fuck this was Harry. 

Pushing him back and away from her she blurted, “You don’t want this.”

“What?” His brown pulled together entirely confused. 

“You don’t want this, want me. Not really. There are no cameras here for you to be caught by Potter…. You don’t want this.” She needed to leave. She was in far over her head, and she could feel herself getting pulled deeper and deeper into the abyss. 

“You have no idea Pansy. No idea what I want. How much I want this.” He paused, moving his hands as if to reach out to her, “No idea how much you drive me mad.” He signed, and his body sagged backwards away from her. “You’re in my head, Pans, you’re there. All the fucking time, and I can’t get you out.” His voice lowered, so she barely caught him saying, “you have no idea what I want.” 

She closed her eyes once more, taking in a rattling breath to calm herself. She shouldn’t have come to his house. She shouldn’t have let herself think this was a good idea. 

“I’m sorry Potter. I need to go.” She made to get up from the sofa, but he placed his hands on her hips to stop her. 

“No, you can’t go, Pans.” 

She opened her mouth to argue, but he stopped her. 

“If you leave, you will break my heart, Pansy. Please stay.” 

“Harry, please I need to leave.” She stood up and stepped around him, making her way to the door, looking back to see him still kneeling on the floor in front of the sofa.

Harry spent the rest of the weekend hiding in his house, not answering any floo calls or owls, and shut the floo off altogether on Sunday so no one would come looking for him when he didn’t go to Sunday dinner at the Burrow. He slogged through work as the week began and tried to avoid most of their friends, as he didn’t know what to say to any of them. Had Pansy broken up with him? Were they still together? Well, fake together, but still. He didn’t want to confront any of them and come face to face with the real possibility that he had lost Pansy. 

Then on Wednesday afternoon, whilst hiding in his office completing paperwork a memo from Draco flew in informing Harry that he would be joining him and Hermione at their house for dinner that evening. He could tell it was a summons and not a request, so after he finished his work for the day he flooed directly to the Granger-Malfoy estate. 

He was greeted by Hermione who was awaiting him at the floo, “Hey Harry, how are you?” She pulled him into a hug and led the way into the dining room. 

“Uh, I’m good thanks, long day.” He followed her through to the bright and airy dining room, where Draco was already seated. 

He removed his leather jacket, and sat opposite Draco who was pouring the drinks. 

Hermione served them a simple fish pie that she had made earlier in the day. They had polite conversation over a bottle of wine, talking mostly about the wedding and each infinitesimal detail that Hermione was worrying about. 

After they had all cleared their plates, Hermione looked at Draco and gave a small nod that she clearly expected Harry to miss. 

“Ohh, I’ve just remembered, I need to go and talk to Narcissa about the, uhh, floral arrangements! You wouldn’t believe the nightmare we have had with importing the roses.” 

God she was an awful liar. She never had improved at it over the years. 

Hermione stood, walked over to Draco and gave him a kiss before leaving them alone. 

Once Hermione’s footsteps had faded from earshot, he turned pointedly to Draco and cleared his throat. “Your mother is famous for her rose garden. She didn’t even try with that one.” 

“Well, you know our Hermione. She can’t be brilliant at everything now can she?” Draco replied, with a small smile he reserved for his fiancée. “Firewhiskey?”

“Uhh, Sure. I assume I’m going to need it?” 

Draco made a noncommittal noise, walking over to their bar and fixed them each a large tumbler of Firewhiskey. When he sat back down he levelled Harry with a raised eyebrow. 

“Right then. Cut the shit Potter. What the fuck happened with Pansy?”

Shit.

“I don’t know what you mean.” He decided to go for feigned ignorance of the issue. 

“Ohh fuck off Potter. You’ve been avoiding me and Hermione all week. Pansy won’t talk to either of us, unless it’s about the wedding. So what happened ?” Draco’s voice was clear and crisp. To the point. 

“Uhh-” Harry replied dumbly, trying to work out what to say.

“Potter, I swear to Merlin if you’ve hurt her-” Draco’s voice didn’t raise, but you could hear that he was not going to take a lie. His grip on the crystal glass said as much.

“No! Obviously not!” His eyebrows shot up as he shook his head vigorously. 

“ Obviously ? With both of you avoiding us, and not talking? Less than a week after you announce that you are dating? Fuck off! What happened?”

“I love her! Alright? Fuck. I … Shit.” Harry went quiet, and downed his remaining whiskey in one go, a burn settling in his stomach. “Fill this up?”

“Uh, sure.” Draco replied dumbly. “I think I’ll just grab the bottle”. And with a flick of his wrist a whole bottle of Ogdens appeared on the table, and their glasses refilled themselves. 

“I … Shit. I think I’ve fucked it up mate. I … We weren’t dating. I …” Harry’s voice cracked. “I asked her to fake a relationship with me. For the papers. With Ginny dating Wood, and you and Mione getting married, I didn’t want to go to the wedding on my own, and I just … she’s the only person I wanted to go with. So, I asked her. It took a bit of convincing, but she agreed.” He took another swig of the whiskey and ran his hands through his hair. “But then she kissed me, and I couldn’t pretend. I’ve wanted her, only her for such a long time, and now she was holding my hand, standing by my side, laughing at my jokes, going on dates with me … and it felt real. So fucking real. But she …” 

Draco laughed lightly before it turned into a full belly laugh. “Mate you have no idea do you? I can laugh about this now but I was Pansy. I felt what she felt.” He set his drink down. “Potter, do you know how long it took for me to believe any of the words Hermione spoke to me? I thought I was damaged goods after the war. I was a complete bastard as a child, to you and everyone around me, and especially her, yet she saw something deep inside me to love.“ Draco looked away from Harry for a moment to collect himself. 

“You have no idea what it’s like to be brought up in a house full of hate. Having it drilled into you for years, to think you were superior. Then to realise that everything you’ve been taught by the people who you respect and love the most is absolute shite. That the woman you love more than anything in the world, you personally treated like she was beneath you, like she meant nothing. I grovelled at her feet for forgiveness, I wasn’t worthy of her.”

“Hermione forgave you years ago, she knows that you were manipulated as much as I was in the war. You were made to do awful things, Malfoy. We all know that.”

Draco slammed his glass on the table, amber liquid sloshing over the rim. “She was tortured on my drawing room floor, and I did nothing ! I just stood there.” His voice had risen sharply as he tried to get his point across. “Do you have any idea how hard it is to know that I did fucking nothing to help her. I was in love with her Potter.. For years . And I stood there….” Draco trailed off, breathing deeply to calm himself down. “And Pansy she…” He had to take a gulp of air as his chest felt tight. “She gave you up in a moment of weakness. That kind of guilt just doesn’t go away.”

The silence filled the room between them, the only noise the bottle of Ogden’s refilling their glasses periodically. 

Harry’s voice came out quieter than he’d expected when he finally broke the silence. “She broke down Malfoy. I made a comment about Sirius and his family and she just … I made her cry, because she thought I blamed her for all of that stuff. I know she would never do anything like that now.” Pausing to take another mouthful of Firewhiskey, he continued “We’ve all been through so much, but she just assumed that I would hate her. How could I still hate her?” Harry finally asked the question he’d been thinking about since Friday evening. Did Pansy really think he hated her?

“Come on. She literally tried to have you killed to save herself and her family. You have to understand how fucking hard it is to have done that to someone you care about right?” Draco fixed him with a look that Harry couldn’t quite place, one of complete understanding, and a want to be understood. 

“I just. I don’t know how to show her that I forgave her for all that shit years ago. I understand, we all did things in the war that we wish we hadn’t done. But, we were all so young and scared. I understand.” He was pleading with Draco to understand. 

“You can say the words all you want but until Pansy lets herself feel those words and lets you truly show her that it's all okay now? You're going to have to fight for her.” Draco shrugged his shoulders. “Believe me, you don’t see the way she looks at you. I think you’d be surprised at what she feels for you if she could let herself tell you.” He said kindly. “Just try and talk to her, yeah?”

Thursday rolled around and Pansy was miserable. She’d locked herself in her shop all week working on getting all of the robes and gowns ready for the wedding on Saturday. She had always planned to close the shop for the week to allow herself uninterrupted time working on finalising everything, and she was never more grateful to her past self for her forward thinking. She had managed to avoid Harry since the events of Friday evening. 

She didn’t know what to think or what to say. She shouldn’t have accepted his offer to go to his house. What was that stupid Muggle phrase Granger always said? Fly too close to the sun and you’ll get burnt? Something like that anyway. 

Agreeing to this charade was a mistake. She should have known she couldn’t pretend to date the only person she had wanted to date in years. But she couldn’t have him, and she was torturing herself by allowing herself to be close to him. How could she have allowed herself to feel for Harry? She must have just been caught up with what it would have been like to be with him. She couldn’t let it happen again, her reputation would ruin him.

The floo roared to life and Hermione stepped out in Muggle jeans and a jumper and looked around for Pansy. 

“I’m back here!” She called, finishing up the last few customisations to Narcissa’s gown. 

“Hey Pans, ohh wow! This looks amazing.” 

“I know, other than your dress it may be one of the most beautiful things I have ever made.” Pansy said proudly. “So, are you ready for your final fitting?”

“I’m so excited, I can’t wait to see it now you’ve added the flowers to it, I think it’ll be amazing.”

Granger had been a difficult bride to work with for Pansy. She had an idea of what she wanted, but it was all based on Muggle references, which Pansy hadn’t worked with before. What they had ended up with was a beautiful off-white dress, with a small train with wild flowers charmed to look like they were cascading down the dress as she moved, and an off the shoulder neckline, that was far too revealing for Narcissa’s liking, but Molly Weasley had adored. 

“Right, go into the room in the back and change into your dress and I’ll be in soon.” 

Hermione nodded, and left her to finish the last section of Narcissa’s dress. When Pansy joined her she was greeted by Hermione staring at her dress almost in tears. 

“It’s beautiful Pansy. This is exactly what I wanted. Thank you.” 

Pansy stood a little ways behind her, watching as the petite witch looked at herself in the mirror, glowing with happiness at one of Pansy’s creations. 

“So how are things with you and Harry?” The question broke Pansy from her thoughts.

“Fine.” They weren’t, but Granger didn’t need to know that. She was still conflicted and trying to sort through years worth of feelings.

“Ohh good. Good.” She twirled in her dress, looking in the mirror at herself. Pansy really did think she was the most beautiful bride. 

“I never thought this day would come, you know?” She looked at Pansy over her shoulder. “I never thought he would let me in. He held onto so much guilt about the war and about his actions, towards me in particular. I never thought we would get to this point where he truly believes that I hold nothing against him, that it is us against the world.”

Pansy hummed noncommittally. How had they got here? Pansy remembered, and was nauseated at the things she used to say to Granger at school, and nothing she said was even half as bad as what Draco would say to her on a daily basis. 

“He still has nightmares, you know? Wakes up in the middle of the night screaming my name, trying to save me from his aunt. And every time he wakes up I have to remind him that he’s okay. I have to tell him that his aunt is dead and I am safe… Sometimes I catch him outside the cottage checking the wards and mumbling to himself.”

Pansy remembered those late nights where she would wake up screaming as if she still heard the Dark Lord’s voice in her head telling her to give up Harry Potter. She didn’t want to die, didn’t want her parents to die. How, for hours after the nightmares, each night she would just lay there, cured into a ball, and sob. 

In a voice she hadn’t heard since she was a child Pansy asked, “How did you forgive him?”

“Ohh Pans, there wasn’t anything to forgive. We were all children. I love the man he became. I love the man that holds me when I have my nightmares, the man who will take my name alongside his when we marry, the man who will stand up for what he believes because he never had that chance as a child.” Hermione let out a small sigh and moved to sit on a velvet sofa next to the window. “Pansy, you know when Harry and I were on the run?” 

Pansy nodded and joined her on the sofa. 

“Well, there were times where we just wanted to get out. Leave the country, and leave the adults to deal with the mess. We were barely of age, and we both felt that we were the only ones who could stop Voldemort. But we talked, sometimes, late at night, when it was dark enough that we couldn’t see each others faces, where we talked of running. Changing our names and living somewhere else, as Muggles, or in hiding, but away from this all.” Hermione placed her hand on Pansy’s and gave it a light squeeze. 

“But every morning when the sun would come up and we’d pack up to move to the next location and worked out how we would survive another day, we both knew we needed to stay and fight. That everyone was relying on us. That if we didn’t do this, all of our friends, family, The Order, all of the students and masses of Muggles would be slaughtered. When we talked about that I would think of Draco, and you and all of the other Slytherins, and Harry always said that really none of you stood a chance.”

Pansy looked up, confused at what Hermione was trying to say. 

Hermione smiled, obviously aware at Pansy’s confusion. “Muggles aren’t all bad, but the ones he lived with were. He grew up in a household where no one loved him, no one looked out for him, no one protected him. And he saw that in Lucius and Draco, what he saw in other Purebloods in your house. He saw that none of you had a choice in what you were being made to do. He knew he needed to save you as well.” 

Pansy couldn’t speak. She seemed to be stunned into silence at Hermione’s words. She understood what she had meant. Pureblood families often were not born out of love but a need to protect bloodlines. To keep things pure. The thought of Harry wanting to save them no matter how they acted towards him or anyone else? Because he saw them as otherwise innocent children, like he had been, but who had been indoctrinated by their upbringing. That just… Her heart hurt in ways she had never felt before.

“Umm,” Pansy cleared her throat, “he umm, kissed me. On Friday.” She allowed herself the smallest smile. “I’d gotten upset about my past and family, and he told me that he could never hate me for what I had done, that I was working to protect those that I cared about. And he kissed me, even though I had been crying, and Gods I made a fool of myself.” 

“I can’t imagine Pansy Parkinson making a fool of herself.” Hermione bumped her with her shoulder, making her laugh. “I think you should talk to him. Actually talk to him. About all of it. I think you’d be surprised to hear what he truly has to say, if you allow yourself to hear it.” 

The feeling washed over Harry like an ocean wave. The moment that Hermione and Malfoy's marriage was sealed with the marriage bond he felt the warmth of their love swell and wash over everyone in attendance. It was overwhelming. 

Hermione and Malfoy leaned in to kiss each other and that’s when he locked eyes with Pansy for the fourth time so far that day. She stood, mirroring him on Malfoy’s right, eyes bright with unshed tears watching their best friends profess their love to each other. She smiled at him, radiating with happiness, which he returned in kind. 

The newlyweds turned to face their witnesses, looking as though they would both burst with happiness, and walked back towards Malfoy Manor hand in hand. Harry walked up to Pansy and offered her his arm, and they led the bridal party down the aisle, following in the steps of the newlyweds. 

Before the party would meet for the reception they had to pose for cheesy photographs. Hermione had wanted both Muggle and Wizarding photos, so that her parents would be able to have photos of her wedding. 

Fixing his tie he shuffled his feet waiting for his turn to stand and smile, but he couldn’t help but look at all the other people in the wedding party. Pansy had done such a great job with everyone's outfits. Even he had to admit his suit was made to be comfortable, and yet was by far the most stylish item he owned. 

After photos Draco and Hermione snuck away for a quiet moment as the rest of the bridal party made their way into the reception. Pansy was quick to peck him on the cheek before waving to some other people. Had she realised what she had done? She barely touched him all week and yet she had just kissed him. Harry stood stunned for a moment before making his way to the bar.

He chatted with a few other people for a while but he was too distracted by the weight in his chest. He kept stealing glances at Pansy sitting with her close friends from Slytherin.

Fuck it, he needed to talk to her. Spotting her sat on a table with a few of their friends he made his way across the ballroom to her. She was dressed in a simple evening dress of deep emerald green, which flowed over her curves, and plunged deep at the back. As he approached the table, she turned to him, champagne flute in hand, laughing at something Theo had just said, a light flush on her cheeks. 

“Come and dance with me?” Ha asked, faking some sort of bravado. 

She arched a brow and cocked her head to the side. “Go on then.” And she took his hand, leaving her drink at the table with their friends. 

He lead her to the dancefloor, where a number of guests were dancing in circles with their partners. He placed a hand on her waist and the other on the bare skin of her back, looking down into those deep dark eyes, he felt lost for words, how could he tell her that he didn’t want to pretend? That he wanted her to be his. Actually his. 

She broke eye contact, and looked over his shoulder, “I, uhh, I’m sorry, about walking out on you last week. I shouldn’t have left you like that.”

“No, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have been so careless with what I said. I really didn’t mean to suggest you were like them.” 

“I know, but it’s true. That’s my past, my family, my childhood. Exactly the same as your Godfather, but I wasn’t brave enough to make the right choices.”

“Pans-” as he went to try and say all the things he’d wanted to say to her for days, the song came to and end, and everyone stopped dancing to applaud the sting quartet. 

“Do you mind if we get out of here a sec?” Pansy asked, but before he could answer she took his hand and was leading them from the dancefloor, and towards the archway leading to the drawing room, which looked out over the Malfoy gardens. 

“Ohh hello!”

They were stopped in their tracks by Blaise and Luna, who were also just heading off the dancefloor. They were both dressed in robes of bronze with small sparking diamonds scattered across Lunas bodice and Blaise’s cuffs.

“Hi Luna, are you having fun?” Harry asked, wrapping an arm around Pansy’s waist, eliciting a small gasp from the dark haired witch. 

“Ohh yes, I love dancing, and this dumpling is the best dancer.” She hugged herself further into Blaise’s arms, and he just chuckled at his wife. “You both look very happy. You’re both so bright that it’s difficult to look at you, you’re so golden. That’s great though, I’m very pleased for you.” 

“What?” Pansy asked, looking lost in the conversation. 

“You two. You are surrounded by a golden light.” She replied simply.

Harry and Pansy shared a confused look.

Blaise chuckled lightly, “how about we go and get a drink moonbeam, and leave these two to whatever they were doing?” 

“Okay, we’ll see you later.” They both made their way to the bar as Harry overheard Luna state, “They are very Golden dumpling, it’s dazzling actually. Between them and the intense silver coming from Hermione and Draco, I’m surprised anyone can focus on the party.”

“Does she ever say anything normal?” Pansy asked. 

“Honestly, no? But she’s nothing if not truly herself.” Harry smiled as they watched them walk to the bar. 

Pansy wiggled her way out of his hold on her, grabbed his hand and began walking out of the ballroom, not stopping for anyone who tried to start up a conversation with them. She needed to talk to him, and everyone here was just making pointless conversations with them. She made her way through the drawing room, out to the hall and up the stairs, she didn’t know where she was going, but she needed to find somewhere that they could talk. 

Before she realised it, her hand was on the door to her old bedroom that Naricssa had made up for her when she stayed at the Malfoys when she was younger. She pushed the door, and was surprised to see it was almost exactly as she remembered it, decorated in shades of lilac and blue. The french windows opened up onto a private balcony that looked over the west side of the gardens, and the forest on the far northwest of the property. 

She released Harry’s hand, and walked over to the doors to open them. She needed air, she didn’t know how to say what she wanted to say. 

It was dark outside now, but jars of magical bluebell flames had been charmed to float around the grounds, creating an enchanted garden effect. It looked so beautiful out there, as if it had been untouched by the cruelties that had happened at this property, it made her feel like she could forget that the war had happened, that the group of people in this building hadn't seen atrocities. 

“Are you alright Pans?” She hadn’t realised she’d gone still, staring out at the grounds, and had left Harry stood in the doorway of her old bedroom where she would come to escape the realities of the world. 

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just thinking about how beautiful it is out there.” 

Harry walked over to join her and stood on the precipice of the room, overlooking the balcony. “It really is beautiful. It’s been a wonderful day, I’m so happy for them.” 

Pansy stepped out onto the balcony, and turned to look back into her room. “This is where I used to come and stay in the summers, and when I wanted to get away from my family. I’d come to the Malfoys' and stay in this room, for weeks at a time. And Narcissa was always happy to have me stay here. This has always been a safe space for me.” She looked at him, as he came to stand in front of her, placing his hands on her arms, the warmth of his skin feeling like it was melting away the last reservations she had about telling him everything. 

“I’m sorry about last week Harry. I didn’t mean to break down in your house. I just …”

“It’s okay Pansy, you have nothing to apologise for. I was tactless, I should have thought before I said something so … flippant.” 

“No,” she shook her head, lifting her hand to ghost her touch across his jaw. “I .. I’ve never been enough Harry. I should have been a boy, a true heir. But I wasn’t. And my parents expected so much from me, I was always playing catch up. Never enough. I did what I had to during the war, and it damn near killed me.” She let out a puff of air, and stood straight, to look into his eyes, to try and express her sincerity. “Then the war was over, and it still feels like I’ll never be enough. I’ll never outlive my name and I’ll always be living in the shadow of the views that my parents pushed onto me, and the awful decisions I made as a teenager.”

Harry’s hands had moved to her waist, grounding her to the world as she laid herself out before him. “Pans-”

“No, let me get this out Harry, please. I did awful things. Things that put lives at risk, yours specifically. And I will never forgive myself for behaving the way I did back then.” 

Harry was running his hand up and down her side, listening to what she was saying, allowing her the space to say what she needed. So she took a deep breath and said it. 

“And now, I still feel like I’m not enough. I don’t think I will ever be enough. Enough for a partner. Enough for you. I’m not good enough Harry, I’m not a good person. I’m damaged goods. But I …” 

Whatever followed she never voiced, as Harry’s lips crashed down to hers, his grip tightening and pulling her towards him. And it was hard and hot and passionate and Pansy wanted this. She wanted this so much that she didn’t know how to tell him, so she kissed him back, trying to show him that she was here, and would do anything she could to prove she was a changed person to the bitch that he knew in school.

Harry pulled his head back, taking a deep breath, stroking his hand down her spine, causing gooseflesh to raise in its path. 

“Pansy, you are enough. You always have been. You were told you weren’t but you were. You are.” She tried to interrupt him, but he wasn't having it, “No shut up, let me talk. You have done nothing that I need to forgive you for. You were a product of the environment you were brought up in. You were put in a fucking awful situation, and didn’t have a way to get out. No one ever looked at the students in Slytherin and tried to help you. And that’s on the adults, the teachers, the Order, no one considered what you were all going through.” 

She couldn’t listen to him any more, so she pushed up onto her toes to kiss him, threading her fingers into his hair, pulling him towards her. He let out a small moan at the tug of his hair, opening his mouth a little, so Pansy took her opportunity to dart her tongue out and explore his mouth. 

But he pulled back again. “No Pans, let me say this, please. I like you Pansy, a lot. You’re the brightest woman in any room. I’ve wanted to ask you out for the longest time, but I never thought you would be interested in me. I’m a tosser, who has far too much attention on him. But you dazzle me.” 

“Harry, do you really think I would have agreed to this harebrained scheme if I didn’t like you? If I didn’t want to grab this opportunity with both hands, and wring it for every drop of your affection that I could?” 

“What” he breathed. 

“Harry, I’ve wanted you for a really long time. But I’m a Parkinson for Salazar's sake, why would you be interested in a woman who bullied you for most of your childhood? Who tried to give you up to the Dark Lord, I essentially signed your death warrant, Harry.” 

“Pansy, shut the fuck up. I don’t blame you for any of that, we were just kids. But stop.” He stepped away from her, backing away, towards the open doorway. “Are you saying that you’ve wanted this too?” he gestured back and forth between them. 

“Yes” She breathed heavily. Her heart pounding in her chest.

“Ohh god, we’re so fucking stupid.” Harry let out a lugh, shaking his head in disbelief.

And with that he was on her, lips locked with hers, and picking her up, pushing her up his body so she could wrap her legs around his waist. 

Fuck, they were so stupid. Why did he do this to himself? He could have had her so much sooner than this. How long had he craved her in this way? He surely wasn’t going to waste his time now he had her. He wanted to devour her. 

“Pansy, fuck” he panted and groaned between bruising kisses. 

Pansy’s hands were knotted in his thick hair, pulling just enough to make him hiss at her, Merlin she was driving him mad. Her smooth legs were wrapped around his waist tightly, her dress bunched up around the top of her thighs, exposing the garter on her leg. A golden ouroboros wrapped tightly around the sweet flesh of her thigh. He needed her now. He needed to feel the warmth of her skin on his. He wouldn't be gentle, next time maybe but he had waited too long to have her.

Harry turned around and walked them back into the bedroom, and lowered her from his waist, trapping her against the bed, once the back of her knees hit the mattress he pushed her down onto it, lips still locked in a fierce fight for dominance. He could feel his trousers straining against his cock, as it was begging to be released. 

As he stood to remove his shirt, Pansy raised her hips as a whimper escaped her lips at the loss of contact. He unbuttoned his dress shirt, throwing it aside, and looming over Pansy on the bed, she raked her nails down his chest and he hissed at the feel of her nails scraping against his skin. 

He pushed her up the bed and placed his hands on either side of her head, caging her below him, looking down into those eyes that could stop his heart. Her hands were in his hair again, pulling him closer to her, entwining them together. One of her legs hooked behind his hips dragging him closer.

Gods he needed to taste her, he pushed her off the bed, lifted her up with him, and started ripping her dress, he didn't care if it ended up tattered on the floor. 

“Here” she breathed, and grabbed her wand, vanishing her clothes in one flick of her wrist. Harry had simply forgotten about magic as he was too entranced by the woman trapped below him. 

There she was, laying under him, in a black, lacy, barely there set of lingerie. Her porcelain skin looked even paler against the darkness of her lingerie. She had a few scars over her torso that he hadn’t known were there, but they just added to the beautiful shape of her body, the swell of her breasts, and the curve of her waist. She was breathtaking. Would she let him lick or kiss every inch of her scars? 

“Fuck I love magic” Harry laughed as he looked over her, lust filled eyes, as they roamed her body for the first time. He had gotten tasteful glimpses of it before, but now? He couldn’t find the words to describe her.

“Harry, please” she squirmed under his intense gaze.

“No Pans, I’m remembering this, I’ve wanted this for so fucking long, I’m not going to rush my chance of enjoying looking at you like this.”

He dropped to his knees at the end of the bed, and ran his hands down her thighs, enjoying the soft feel of her skin. Then suddenly, he gripped them tight and pulled her down the bed towards him. She let out a small yelp of surprise as he gripped her ass, and dug his fingers into the soft flesh, running his fingers under the seam of her underwear. He placed a large, open mouthed kiss onto her core, over her lacy underwear and she keened, lifting up to meet his lips. He ran his tongue up and down in a long, slow arc. 

Pansy was whimpering for him to “please, please take her underwear off and fuck her”, but he wouldn't do it yet. He pulled them aside, and immediately began lapping at her dripping core. 

“Fuck, Harry, please.” Pansy keened at him.

“No, not yet, I’m not done tasting you yet.” Harry pulled away from her sweet cunt as he spoke to her.

He wrapped his arms around her hips, pulling her tighter to his mouth as he plunged his tongue inside her, and it was heaven, she tasted so sweet that he could have died there and been happy. Releasing her slightly to bring a hand to her entrance he began sucking her clit as he eased two fingers inside her.

“Harry, fuck. Please, I need you.” Her hands fisted in the sheets above her. Her mouth opened as her pleasure built.

“No Pansy. You are coming for me before I fuck you.” 

She could only whimper in response. Harry looked up to her to see her left hand move to tease at one of her nipples, as her other hand move to pull at her hair, making her back arch, the sight was erotic as hell, and he began pumping his fingers into her faster, curling them to hit that spot he hoped he could reach, swirling his tongue over her clit over and over. Harry could feel her clenching around his fingers, her walls grasping at any friction she could get from him.

“Fuck, fuck. Ohh Gods.” She shattered around his fingers, whimpering and pulling at her nipple, as he continued working his fingers in and out of her, helping her ride her orgasm through. 

As she came down she looked up at him and with lust filled eyes and panted, “Harry, please fuck me.” He couldn’t help it, he lifted his fingers up to his mouth for another taste as he looked into her eyes.

“You should have asked” he grinned. He stood up from his position at the end of the bed and pulled her up to him. He kissed her with everything he had and she could taste herself on his tongue, then suddenly he roughly turned her around and threw her onto the bed. 

Suddenly she was face down on the bed, with Harry pulling her hips up to meet his. He rubbed his still-covered cock against her ass. 

“Do you feel what you do to me, Pans? You drive me fucking crazy.”

“Harry, I swear to all of the Gods if you don’t fuck me right now…” She groaned at him. 

He laughed, and she felt his trousers disappear, did he just use non-verbal and wandless magic in the middle of fucking her?!

He ran his palm over her ass, whilst rubbing his rock hard cock against her wet folds, suddenly she felt his palm lift and come down hard on her ass. 

“Fuck!” she screamed, not expecting the spank. The burn felt too good to ignore.

“Underwear on or off?” 

“What?”

Smack, his hand came down on her other side this time. 

“Ahh. Fuck, keep them on I don’t care anymore. Please Harry, fuck me now.”

“If you insist.”

He ran his hand down the seam of her underwear, over the raise of her ass, and once more he pulled them aside. He ran the head of his weeping cock over her entrance. He entered her slowly, feeling every inch of him, as he eased himself into her. 

“Godric, fuck.” 

As she felt his hips touch hers, and she knew he was fully inside her, she twisted her body to the side so that she could look at him. And Merlin if it wasn’t a sight to see Harry grasping her hips, looking like he was floating.

“You okay, Pans?” He breathed, voice straining with effort to be steady. 

“Absolutely” she replied and rolled her hips in response. 

“Fuck! Right. If that’s how you want to play it”, he let go of one of her hips and grabbed her hair, pulling her up onto her knees so she had to grab his thighs for stability. He dug his fingers into her hip as he thrust into her. He used his pent up frustrations to set the brutal pace but her moaning only spurned him further. He couldn’t get enough of her. 

He kept a tight grip on her hair making sure her back was pressed against his chest. She could feel him panting as he kept his vicious strokes inside her. She had never been fucked like this before . 

Whispering into her ear, he said “You’re going to come for me again Pansy, and this time I want you to scream my name.” His voice strangled and raspy. He cock felt like it was tightly wrapped in her cunt. He could feel her pulse against him.

And she did cum. Harder than before.

“Harry, fuck, shit. Harry. Ohh Godric. Ahh.” She would have collapsed forward onto the bed if it wasn’t for Harry’s quick reflexes, moving to grab her around the waist to ensure she remained steady. 

She felt like all of her nerve endings were on fire, like she couldn’t possibly feel any more than she was feeling right now. She whimpered as she felt him pull out of her still hard.

“Fuck Harry” she laughed, “that was … fucking hell.”

“You okay?” He stroked her abdomen with one hand and he let her down onto the bed. 

“Yeah, give me a second to catch my breath,” she turned onto her back, arms covering her face as she giggled, “Harry, where the fuck have you been hiding that side of you?” 

“You just haven’t seen it before, I guess” he rubbed the back of his neck, grinning at her. 

“Right, come here.” She demanded, and moved him to the centre of the bed. She perched over him, scraping her nails up and down his chest and abdomen. He was covered in scars, she had seen the ones on his arms before, but she’d never seen the patchwork that was his torso, covered in scar tissue patterning all over his shoulders, abdomen and down to his legs. 

She leaned down and kissed his scars, following a large one that bisected his upper body, starting at one of his clavicles and followed it down to his abdomen, tracing the ridges of the scar with her lips and tongue. 

“Pans-” he started to try and stop her. He didn’t need to finish, he got such a rush knowing that he got her off twice.

“Shut it, I don’t give a fuck about these, you know that?” Before he could answer she took hold of his shaft, and swirled her tongue around the head. Lightly kissing the top of it before locking eyes with him, as his eyes shut and his head lolled back in bliss. 

She adjusted herself as licked him from base to tip, and back again. She took his length into her mouth, hollowing her cheeks and started sucking him up and down. 

“Fuck Pans, oh my god” Harry’s voice was raspy. 

Pansy could taste herself on him, which turned her on far more than it ought to have, and she doubled her efforts working up and down his length, her hand pumping at his base. Harry wrapped her hair around one of his fists and held her head as she sucked his cock, like it would be her last chance to do so. She could feel him tensing underneath her, so she lowered herself all the way down so her nose touched his abdomen, and she could feel him twitching in her throat. 

“Fucking hell. Pansy! Fuck!” Harry shouted as he emptied himself into her throat. 

She lifted her head back to lock eyes with him as she swallowed him down. 

“Merlin Pansy. You - fuck!” Harry struggled to talk as he caught his breath, chest raising and lowering rapidly. 

She moved herself up the bed, and Harry wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to his chest. He buried his face into her hair, and she could feel his heart hammering in his chest. 

They laid there in silence for a while, just holding each other and enjoying the time they had spent together. 

Finally, Harry broke the silence. “So, we are dating now right? For real this time?”

Pansy felt a bubble of laughter escape her so quickly she hadn’t expected it. She laughed and laughed, so much that he moved her in his arms so that he could look at her face. “Yes Potter. I think we can safely agree that we are dating for real this time.” 

He leaned in and kissed her, slowly and passionately. 

“Good. I think we’ll make a great couple, you know.” He smiled, wrapping her back into his chest. 

After a few short minutes, they heard a knock at the door, and began scrambling to get a quilt to cover them up as the door opened a crack. 

“When you both are ready, we’ve all been waiting for you two to do your speeches.” Draco’s voice floated through the gap, trying to stifle his laughter. 

“Yeah, come on. I’m sure everyone will be happy to hear you’re actually dating now.” Hermione's voice was full of mirth as she and her new husband burst into laughter and shut the door behind them. 

They looked at each other and weren't able to stop themselves from bursting into fits of belly laughter. 

“Well, the cats out of the bag I guess” Harry stated as he started calming down from the laughter. 

“What cat is in a bag?” Pansy’s giggles started up again at hearing the common Muggle phrase. 

“Don’t worry, come on, we had best get dressed.” Harry got up from the bed and offered her a hand up. 

They started putting their clothes back on as they were scattered around the room, it took much longer than it usually would have as they kept stopping to start kissing again. Until Pansy went to adjust her underwear back to rights when he stopped her. 

“Give them to me.” It was a demand. A clear one that confused her for a moment. 

“I want you to know all night that I have them in my pocket. Plus, when I fuck you again this evening, I want no barrier stopping me from getting where I want to be.”

Gods they were going to ruin each other in the most delicious way.