“Not this time,” Drao said, holding him on this dingy kithen fl he is tellih. “It’s over.”
& that so many times.” Harry was breaking underh his hands, his , aime sine Harry had knowired, tired and young and small. “So mahink it’s do I’ve won, that we a and be safe ao hurt ahen I turhere’s just ao fight. I am shting.”
&.” Drao was almost iime, don’t fight. Let someo, ahis isn’t your job anymore, Harry!”
“Then who’s going t was ragged, his eyes blurred with tears. “It’s only ever beehis fight, it’s all I’ve ever known, and if it’s go’s really, really good—what am I thehe word out. “Nothing. You an’t be a hero when there are no bad guys to fight.”
“You doo be anything. You doo be a hero. You just have to be Harry.” Drao had told him this before, had spent nights sitting with his bak to the head board and Harry’s head in his p, trying to o it was okay to take this time to fi it was alright if he spe of his life doing nothing but trying to make himself happy, really, after all he had given a. “That’s enough for me.”
Why an’t it be enough for you, he thinks, but then Harry is heaving i shudderih and shaking out his hair, straightening bak up with a watery smile. “This is stupid,” he says, waving his hands around at the mess around them, perhaps talking about his break dowalking about his life in general. “I’m just tired.”
&’s go to bed.” Drao stands up and towels fall down around him as he moves, holding out a hand to Harry.
Harry stares up at him. “But you said—the towels?”
“Bed, Harry.” He waves his hand at him agaihings will look better in the m.”
Drao keeps ln that another break dowhe way, but for all is a was like Harry does he had said o of the napkins. Atually, he seems to go out of his way to avoid it, throwihe wedding pnning with a feroity to rival Mrs. Weasley. It’s ihat even Luna noties.
“It is very o do this. He always was suh a nie friehing Harry help Gis with a determined look on his fae, ughing when she demands him to rehek it all for a third time, just i I didhat he arties.”
“To be fair, it isn’t a party.” If Drao was going to onfide in anybody about the oion, it would be Lu feel right about it. “It’s a wedding.”
“Is there muh differene?” Luna didhat bothered by the idea of the impending date, eeks away, seeih wa done before she headed bak to Hogwarts in the fall for a repeat of her fiehnially, she had graduated, but MGonagall had dered the optio years avaible for ahought that the st year or two of their eduation was unsatisfatory for their needs. Unlike Ginny, who was beomii with eah day, Luna simply stated what she wahen stuk with it, and Ginny iably agreed. “The lean up for both is extremely messy.”
Drao opened his mue, and the, beause really, sometimes oioy thao do with.
“inny waved him over, and he ame, dreadihat he and Hermione would be assigh. Drao’s sort of a bridesmaid, though he’s hoping that Lu demand that he wears a dress. “What do you think of the new olor sheme? Lu.”
It ink, barish shades, and both would sh terribly with Ginny’s hair. Aross the room from them, Fleur was looking very ross, beause she had been trying to pawhe previously ruined and now repaired deorations that would have beehe end of her own weddiion, had it errupted by the death eater take over of the ministry, and Luna had said that she would hing so shiny at her owhat it would attrat too many magial bugs that he room had heard of before.
“Don’t worry.” He ould feel a head ahe swelling up behind his temples. No doerately in need of a projet, but he thinks he ould have found an easier oalk to her.”
& home te, after the olor sheme had made its fio olors that were less painful to the eyes, after they had oo make an appoi to be fitted for an atual wedding dress, and after Ginny had piked a ake and harged Drao with the task of goi. And God help you if there’s a sied rose out of pe, she had said, whih was muh less frighteni have fouhs ago but still worrisome.
“Merlin, an you believe all that?” Harry was yanking his jumper up over his head while walkiime, aumbled over the kithen hair that he had left pushed out ihat m, then walking o. “Bloody hell, there’s so muh, and haions, lord, I’ll be stuffing all those into envelopes for hours while you write them, won’t I?” His head pops into sight again and he smiles. “Good thing I like you so muh.”
Drao is hits him at that mome as he’s looking at him, it ours to him that he really had meant what he had said the ht. This, even if Harry really had m a hero, w