Fic: Home and Hearth
May. 23rd, 2014 08:59 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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hpkinkfestTitle: Home and Hearth
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
gryvon
Prompt Number: 223
Kink Showcased: Alpha/Beta/Omega verse
Rating: NC-17
Pairing(s): Draco/Harry
Summary: Harry returns to Hogwarts after the war and sparks an interest in Alpha and teacher, Draco.
Warnings/Content Notes: Knotting
Word Count: 5k
The war is only five years behind him when Harry comes back to Hogwarts. It's different than he remembers. With so much of the castle destroyed in the battle, it has to be. They've tried to keep it the same but Harry can't help but look at halls and remember who died where. The scorch marks are gone and the crumbled walls repaired, but he can't stop seeing them where his brain remembers them. The events of that night are too deeply ingrained in his core.
"What can I do for you, Headmaster?" It feels weird addressing Professor McGonagall with the title he's used to reserving for Dumbledore. It's weirder still to see her sitting behind the desk that Dumbledore once occupied. The office is much the same, though neater now. The artifacts that Dumbledore had collected – handed down from headmaster to headmaster he supposes – are all neatly ordered and shelved, no doubt locked behind a strong series of protection spells to keep them out of wandering hands.
McGonagall folds her hands in front of her. She looks like the picture of prim and proper schoolteacher. That's all Harry's ever really known her as, but he supposes they're more like equals now that he's graduated. It will never feel that way, even if he did save the world. "I want you to come back to Hogwarts."
Harry frowns. He's already come back to Hogwarts once – here and now. He's somewhat reluctant to do so again. There are too many memories locked up in this place, good and bad. He's afraid he'll get lost in them "For what purpose?"
"I want you to teach."
Harry raises an eyebrow. His mouth falls half-open. "What?" The idea sounds absurd. She must be joking.
"The Defense Against the Dark Arts position is yours if you want it."
"What about Professor..." He struggles to recall the proper name. "Jameson, wasn't it?" He was a good fellow, if Harry recalled. A competent former Auror, though advanced in age enough to give Binns a run for his money.
"He only agreed to take on the position on a temporary basis. The limits of that temporary basis are currently being stretched."
Harry's frown deepens. He leans forward. This is a crazy idea. Beyond crazy. So crazy that he's actually considering it because when has he ever done the rational thing, but part of him – the part that always feels like he's being hunted, like he's a step away from being caught – worries that it's some kind of trap. His whole life has been a series of misfortunes that somehow turned out alright, from the Dursleys to Voldemort and the war, and living these past five years without that has been strange. There have been dangers, of course. There are still Death Eaters out for his head, but that's nothing new. Still, he can't help but wonder if there's an ulterior motive. "I barely graduated and that was a year late."
McGonagall levels her gaze at him, stern but kind. "And the extenuating circumstances that surrounded your graduation troubles are the exact same reasons why you're perfect for the job. You're a hero Harry. You defeated one of the greatest evils our world has ever known. I can't think of any better resume."
"I don't know how to teach."
"The former members of... what did you call it? Dumbledore's Army? They would disagree."
The whole situations feels unreal. What's even stranger is that he's actually considering it. "Why me?"
The look McGonagall gives him is entirely serious and one-hundred percent Alpha. The Omega in him automatically comes to attention. "Because I can think of no one better to hold the position."
"I'll think about it." He doesn't need to think about it. He already knows the decision he's going to make. There is only one option for him, really – take the job.
The past five years have taught him one thing – the outside world is no place for him, not anymore. He's a known Omega with both fame and fortune and every unattached Alpha out there has been throwing themselves at him, either trying to win him over or demand his submission. It's led to more than a few embarrassing situations and a few brawls, when all he really wants is an Alpha who sees him for who he is, not for his fame, and who he can settle down with and have a family with. He's tired of being alone but he has the feeling that's all he'll ever be.
The muggle world is even worse. He's an unknown there, but it's dangerous for him because stalkers and paparazzi will follow him into the muggle world and they aren't too keen on keeping the wizarding world a secret if it means getting the big scoop on his life. No job will take him, especially not with his condition. The muggle world isn't exactly equipped to handle Omegas. He can't be what he wants to be, what he was born to be outside of the wizarding world and he can't be himself inside the wizarding world.
He has no options and McGonagall knows that.
Harry moves in a week later. School doesn't start for a month still, giving him plenty of time to settle in and get used to the changes that five years of reconstruction have wrought. The dining hall is familiar as ever, at least, though some of the faces inside of it have changed drastically. Harry's steps falter as he looks up at the head table and meets the eyes of none other than Draco Malfoy. Draco is busy talking to Flitwick but he looks up a second after Harry's eyes fall on him. Their eyes catch across the hall and something inside of Harry sparks.
The fact that Draco is an unattached Alpha sits forefront in his mind, much like it had all through their years as students here, though the animosity that kept Harry from pursuing Draco and vice versa is gone and dead with the war. Unlike all the other Alphas Harry's had to deal with, Draco ignores him, turning back to speak with Flitwick and the unnoticed tension inside of Harry eases.
He has to fight down a blush. His steps falter. He forces himself to keep moving and looks away, shifting his gaze to McGonagall at the center of the table. For a second he pictures Dumbledore sitting there and the discord is jarring. Her eyes meet his and he wonders if she feels the same way about sitting there.
"Harry!" Hagrid's voice is booming. It brings an automatic smile to Harry's face, pushing his thoughts away from Draco.
Hagrid's arms wrap around him, filling Harry with the comfort of being around a stable Beta. He loves his Beta friends – Ron and Hermione and Ginny – because they keep him grounded. He would have gone crazy from isolation without them.
"Hi, Hagrid." His voice comes out breathy and thin until Hagrid releases him. "How are you?"
"Better now that you're coming back, Harry." Hagrid's booming voice carries through the hall. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry sees Draco's head turn their way for a second before turning back to Flitwick.
"Thanks, Hagrid. It's nice to be back."
There's only one open seat, between McGonagall and Draco, and Harry takes it with a bit of trepidation. It feels like sitting in the front row of the classroom, where the teacher can call out any inattention or misbehavior.
"Different, isn't it?" Draco asks.
Harry blinks. He'd expected Draco to ignore him with the cool disregard that has marked most of their brief passings since the war. The discord between that and the polite tone of Draco's voice makes him miss the question. "What?"
Draco nods forward, towards the empty expanses of tables before them. "It's even weirder when the students are here. I keep thinking I should be at the Slytherin table."
Harry smiles. The feeling of it goes all the way to his toes. He's been so out of touch with wizarding society for the last few years that the attention of a real Alpha – one who's not trying to fawn or dominate him - makes him want to preen. "Yeah, I can imagine how weird that must be."
"You'll get used to it," McGonagall says from his other side. "It takes a few years but you'll grow into it."
The thought of sitting up at the Head Table long enough for it to grow normal strikes Harry as ridiculously absurd. He knows that's the plan, not just McGonagall's plan for him but his own plan for his future, rough as it is, but it still feels unreal.
Dinner appears before them and Harry and Draco both reach for the rolls at the same time. Their hands bump and they both draw back.
"Go ahead," Draco says at the same time as Harry says, "You first."
Draco does the strangest thing then - he laughs. Harry finds himself staring, automatically memorizing the image before it can flit away. "Omegas first," Draco says.
Harry offers a small smile before reaching forward for a roll. He'd almost forgotten what it was like being around proper Alphas with traditional manners bred into them.
"Thanks," he says, meaning more than the roll.
Draco smiles back, a look that's so unfamiliar to the Draco Harry is used to seeing. Maybe Harry isn't the only one who needs to be at Hogwarts to feel at home.
"How's Hogwarts?" Hermione asks. Her face wavers in the flames.
"Good. Classes haven't started yet. It's... peaceful. I didn't expect it to be."
"I can imagine. Are you settling in well?"
"Yes. I missed being around other wizards." He'd kept to himself as much as possible, only really associating with Hermione and the Weasleys. He'd been lonely, lonelier than he wanted to admit, especially lately. Hermione and Ron have started talking about having children and the envy that burns inside of him every time the topic comes up makes him feel uncomfortable and a little bit sick.
"And Draco?"
Harry blinks. "What?"
Hermione rolls her eyes so obviously that Harry can see it in the flickering flames. "I know he's teaching there. You had the biggest crush on him when we were in school, despite him being an utter prat. How is it now that you're older? Did you bury the hatchet?"
"There was no hatchet to bury, but..." He doesn't know what to say. There's nothing there, not yet, but he kind of wants there to be. Draco and Harry have history, the kind of history that means Draco will never worship him, will always tell him the blunt and honest truth. Those are the exact qualities that Harry wants in an Alpha and that combined with this new, softer side to Draco... well, Harry can't help but see the possibilities there.
"You still have a crush on him." Hermione doesn't even need to ask. She knows him too well.
Harry groans. "I shouldn't. I know it but I just... I can't..."
"He's a good looking Alpha. You're an Omega. It's all about hormones, Harry." It's more than hormones. Yes, maybe they had a large part in it – his biological clock started ticking long ago – but also it's just Draco.
"You're lucky you and Ron are Betas," he grouses.
She just laughs at him.
He receives a summons the week before his first heat at Hogwarts. It's not a stretch to figure out that that's what McGonagall wants to talk to him about, but he is a little surprised to find Draco waiting in the Headmaster's office as well.
"Harry," McGonagall says in way of greeting.
"Headmaster. Draco." He nods as he takes a seat.
McGonagall smiles. "I would ask that you call me Minerva, but I have a feeling you'll be just as reticent about it as Mister Malfoy has been."
Harry laughs. "Yeah. I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet. It feels too informal."
"Well, we'll work on that. Give it time." She pauses to sip at her tea. "I called you here to talk about your suppressants. I assume you have a supplier currently."
He blushes and nods. This is not the sort of conversation he wants to be having in front of Draco. It's not the sort of question he wants to have at all. He's still too new to the whole Omega thing to feel comfortable with it. It was never a thing growing up, he was too young. His first heat took him by surprise and if it weren't for Hermione's amazing encyclopedic knowledge, he probably would have gone crazy. "Hermione, actually." Draco raises an eyebrow next to him. "I didn't... I mean, muggles, they don't..."
"Muggles don't have Alphas and Omegas," McGonagall supplies for him. "Thus you were unprepared when the heats first took you."
His face is red when he nods. Draco is looking at him with an unreadable expression.
"Well, I thought it best to offer Mr. Malfoy's services while you are staying in the castle. You'll find his work top notch, with the added convenience of not having to leave the castle for them."
"Thank you," he says automatically. Part of him balks at having Draco prepare such a personal potion but he kindly tells that part of himself to shove it. Another part of him is glad for the excuse to maybe get to know this new Draco a little bit better. "That would be nice."
McGonagall nods. "I'll leave it to you two to determine an adequate brewing schedule." That was as much of a clear dismissal as they were going to get.
Harry stands and Draco follows him out of the office.
"How soon do you need the suppressants?" Draco asks when they are on the stairs.
"Soon," Harry says. "I'm due next week."
"Come by my chambers Friday evening after dinner. I'll have the ingredients ready by then."
"Where-"
"In the dungeon," Draco says before Harry could even finish asking. "Snape's old chambers."
Harry's stomach twists. He nods. His chambers were at least McGonagall's old rooms near the Gryffindor dorms. He can't imagine having the same quarters as someone who had died.
Before he can think of anything else to say, Draco turns and starts down the hall away from him. Harry's eyes follow him and he wants.
Friday evening comes both too soon and too late. He knows it is just his impending heat affecting him, but there was something about Draco's presence that sears him to the core. He wants, but he's reluctant to do anything about that want. There's too much history between them to make it uncomplicated.
"I just need a sample of your blood," Draco says, pulling Harry from his thoughts.
Harry nods and obediently holds his hand out over the boiling pot. He barely feels the pin prick his skin. Draco lets three drops fall into the pot before guiding Harry's hand away and healing the prick with a wave of his wand.
"Thank you," Harry says. He steps away from the kitchen table to move into the open living room. He's never had a reason to be in Snape's chambers but he can easily imagine the professor still living here. The atmosphere of the rooms Harry has seen so far is entirely Slytherin, all dark shadows and decorated in green and silver. He wonders which parts of the decor came with the rooms and which are Draco's own touches.
"You were raised by muggles, right?"
Harry blinks and turns back to the kitchen where Draco is brewing. "You know that."
Draco frowns. "Yes, but... what was it like, being an Omega in the midst of all those Betas?"
Harry shrugs. "I didn't know. Not until later. Then it was just another thing that set me apart, another thing that made me a freak, another reason for them to hate me. I didn't say anything. I was afraid that..." Harry shuts his mouth with a snap. He hadn't meant to say so much. He'd forgotten for a moment that this is Draco he's talking to.
Draco raises an eyebrow as he stirs the potion. He doesn't look concerned, just curious. "Afraid of what?"
Harry opens his mouth. What could he say? He's already spilled part of the truth. What harm would more honesty do? "My uncle. When... when he found out about the wizard part of me, he freaked out. I hadn't thought it could get worse than being locked in a cabinet and treated like a slave but he went mental when my Hogwarts letters started coming in."
Draco's eyes widen, something like real emotion breaking through his polite mask. "You were locked in a cabinet?"
Harry shrugs. "I didn't have a very good childhood."
"Yes, but surely Dumbledore would have-"
"It was the only place I was safe. Until it wasn't. It got better, once I got older and Sirius threatened them if they didn't treat me right." He still gets a pang of guilt in his chest any time he says Sirius's name.
Draco extinguishes the flames under the pot and starts pulling out seven glass bottles, one for each day of heat week. "So you didn't tell them about being an Omega."
Harry shakes his head. "They wouldn't have understood. Being a wizard was bad enough, but..." He remembers how terrified he'd been when it was explained to him. Not only was he a wizard but he was some kind of freak that could get pregnant. "I honestly thought my uncle would kill me and bury my body somewhere it would never be found if he knew." Draco's eyes go full-blown wide and Harry raises his hands. "He wouldn't. At least I don't think. But, no, I never told him. I was enough of a freak to him as it was."
Draco shakes his head but says nothing as he pours the potion into the bottles and then packs them away in a padded case. Harry reaches for the case. Their hands meet. Draco doesn't let go.
"I'm sorry for being such a prick to you when we were kids," Draco says out of the blue. "You didn't need me being an ass on top of what you were already going through."
Harry smiles. "I was an ass right back, but thank you. You're forgiven as long as I am."
"I owe you, Harry," Draco says, his expression suddenly serious. "I'd be dead or worse if it weren't for you. There's nothing for me to forgive."
Harry doesn't know what to say to that so he just nods. Draco turns to clean up his lab and Harry decides that is as good a point as any to leave.
The fall semester comes and goes without any surprises. Harry finds himself adjusting surprisingly well to teaching, though he is never going to get used to the awestruck way that the students all look at him, even the seventh years. The awe actually comes in handy because it means that his students, even the Slytherin, hang on his every word out of respect. He doesn't have to deal with inattention or misbehavior like the other teachers do - and he hears plenty about the misbehaving students from Draco at dinner, and then after dinner as their conversation starts to carry over into drinks in Draco's chambers, first once and then progressing until it's a twice weekly affair that grows more frequent as time goes on.
With the students gone for winter break, there is less work-related to talk about but Harry still finds reason to follow Draco back to his rooms after dinner is served. Draco pours them both a cup of tea – black with two sugars for Harry, straight black for Draco.
"I got you something," Draco says out of the blue. "For Christmas."
"What?"
Draco sets both cups on the coffee table in front of Harry and then moves past the couches to pick up a green-wrapped box off of the fireplace mantle. Draco takes a seat near Harry on the couch. He places the box between them on the table. Harry hesitates for a fraction of a second before reaching forward. His hands tremble. He's not sure why, except that he knows this is something big. It shouldn't be. It's just a present, but it feels larger than that.
A gift from an Alpha to an Omega is never meaningless.
"I never had a Christmas present until I came to Hogwarts," he says, not sure why but the words just slip from his lips. Draco puts a hand on Harry's knee. Harry can feel the heat of the touch all the way up his leg.
He slides the lid off the box and pulls out a snowglobe. Hogwarts is depicted inside. The lights in the windows flicker like they are alive and snow falls in a light shower without needing to shake the globe. Magic is a wondrous thing and sometimes, like now, Harry is just awestruck at what it can do.
"It's beautiful."
Harry turns to find Draco watching him. Their faces are too close so it's easy to just lean forward, to close the distance between them. Their lips meet. Sparks course over Harry's skin, tingling down his lips, bringing color to his cheeks and an erratic beat to his heart.
"Harry," Draco murmurs, his lips brushing against Harry's as he speaks.
Their lips touch again, hesitant at first and then growing stronger. Harry moans, the sound muffled by Draco's lips. He wants more but for now he's willing to wait. This is enough.
For now.
Hermione catches him alone at the tail end of the Weasley family Christmas celebration. They're briefly alone in the house but there's never any guarantee how long that will last.
"You seem in good spirits," Hermione says.
"I am," Harry agrees and he means it. He's been in good spirits since his first kiss with Draco. They've had a few more since then, but it doesn't feel like enough. He's ready to go further but he's not sure if Draco is.
"Things with Draco going well?"
Harry nods. He hesitates a moment before asking the question that's been on his mind for weeks. "When did you know that you were ready to have kids with Ron?"
Hermione raises an eyebrow and smiles. "Kids, Harry?"
He blushes and scuffs his toes on the carpet. "I want a family."
"You want a family with Draco?"
Harry nods.
Hermione looks away, staring into the middling distance. "I can't pinpoint an exact day. It was just like I knew. I started looking at the moms on the street with their kids and I thought, 'I want that. I want my own.'"
"I want that."
Hermione's hand settles on top of Harry's and squeezes.
The door slams open then and Ron bursts in. "There you are. Mum's looking for you, Harry."
"I'll be right there."
Ron disappears just as quickly as he'd appeared. Harry offers Hermione a smile and stands. Hermione catches him by the sleeve before he can go. "You'll make a good parent, Harry."
"Thanks."
"Something's wrong," Draco says between one kiss and the next.
Harry blinks. He'd been enjoying their usual make-out session, a replacement to their after dinner drinks. He leans up on his elbows. Draco is lying next to him on the couch, bracketing Harry against the back of the couch. It's snug, but he likes it.
"Aren't you going to tell me?" Draco says, his face stretched into a frown reminiscent of the old days.
"Tell you what?"
"Tell me what's bothering you."
Harry shakes his head. "There's nothing bothering me. I was enjoying this." Harry brushes his hand over Draco's cheek. "I really like spending time with you."
Draco pulls back further until he's sitting up, his back to Harry. He turns until he's able to look at Harry. "There's something bothering you. Something you're preoccupied with. I can tell."
Harry bites his lip. He looks away. "It's... it's stupid."
Draco's hand covers Harry's. "Tell me."
Harry looks down. "I want to start a family."
"Oh."
Harry risks a glance up. He needs to see the expression on Draco's face. "With you."
Draco's eyes widen in surprise. "Oh." He doesn't look displeased.
Harry looks down again. "Like I said, it's stupid."
"It's not stupid." Draco's hand slips under his chin, tilting Harry's face back up so that Draco can capture his lips in another kiss. "Are you sure that's what you want?"
Harry nods.
"Then let's start a family."
They have a small ceremony in the Weasleys' backyard. Narcissa is the only one from Draco's side who attends so the professors from Hogwarts fill in the rest of the space. Molly welcomes Draco without the slightest hesitation, though the rest of the Weasleys will take a bit longer to get used to the idea, Ron especially. Hermione can't stop grinning at him.
Harry has never been happier. He has a silver ring on his finger and Draco's hand in his.
It's all he's ever wanted.
They wait until summer break for Harry to go off of his suppressants. It's been years since he's felt a full heat. He's forgotten what it feels like – the warmth of his skin, the unbearable feeling of clothes on his body and the need to take them off, the drive to find an Alpha, his Alpha and mate, mate, mate.
Thankfully he doesn't have to worry about any of that. They're prepared. His heats are regular so they can time it right. Harry has his clothes off before he can even start to feel the heat. Their bed – and it still feels weird to call the apartment in the dungeons theirs and not Draco's – is large and the sheets cool.
"Draco!"
Draco is in the shower but he steps out, naked and dripping wet at Harry's shout. All Harry has to do is pant and spread his legs and Draco is there, kissing his way up Harry's chest until he reaches Harry's neck. Draco's lips suck on the skin there, making Harry's moans echo through the chamber.
"Draco." Harry's hands rub over wet flesh. He spreads his legs wider and hooks a leg over Draco's hips. "Now. Now, please."
Draco's fingers push inside, sliding easily in the slick that Harry's body has provided. It's not just his mind that's ready to try for a baby but his body as well.
"Draco." Harry pushes into Draco's fingers, fucking himself on Draco's hand. It's not what he wants but right now he'll take whatever Draco will give him. "Please."
"Wow," Draco says, "I don't think I've ever seen you this worked up."
Harry groans. "Heat."
Draco chuckles. "We're going to have to do this again. God, you're beautiful like this. So desperate. So needy."
Harry whimpers. He needs, so badly. His hands clench on Draco's arms. He can't stop rocking his body, sliding against the sheets in a desperate need for more, more, more. Draco's fingers aren't enough.
"Do you want more?"
"Please."
It only takes Draco a second to line up and slide inside. Harry shouts and grips Draco's arms hard as they start fucking in earnest.
"Please," Harry chants. "Please. Please. Please."
Their first time had been slow and sweet, savoring every moment. This is nothing like that. Harry is a wanton creature, writhing on the sheets like a wild thing uncontained. He needs Draco inside of him like he needs air. The feeling of Draco sliding inside of him, pounding in and out, hard and fast, is wonderful, stupendous, but it's not enough.
He needs to be full. He needs to be bred.
"Draco. Knot me."
"Are you sure? I've never..."
"Please..."
Draco rolls his hips and then he's growing, his flesh building up inside of Harry until they're stuck together, fused tight by the catch of skin on skin. Then Draco's coming, releasing into Harry in hot, thick streams that keep going long past when Draco is normally spent.
"Ah!" Harry shivers and then he's coming too. He can picture Draco's seed filling him and he hopes that it finds a home inside of him.
They stay twined together in bed, joined hip to hip, until Draco's knot recedes enough for them to part. Even then, they don't go far.
Draco's hand settles on Harry's stomach, rubbing soothing circles into his skin. "We're going to have a baby." It sounds like a promise.
Harry grins and leans up to kiss Draco. They're going to have a baby.
Harry's a wound-up ball of nerves the entire month between one heat and the next. He's anticipating it, desperate for the chance to try again and again until they get it right, until there's a new life growing inside of him.
It turns out he had nothing to wait for. His next heat never comes and when Harry wakes up the morning his heat is supposed to happen and finds nothing, no overwhelming urge to mount Draco's cock and ride him to completion – well, no more than normal – Harry has to wake up Draco because his hands are too shaky to perform the spell he needs. Draco's hands shake a little too, but he manages the proper motions. The tip of his wand touches Harry's stomach and comes away pink.
Tears flood Harry's eyes. Draco pulls him into a crushing embrace, a smile splitting his face wide open. They're going to have a baby girl.
The news spreads through the castle like wildfire. Harry has to talk to Hermione immediately through the floo, but she's at least already awake because it's Hermione and she never sleeps in. Draco announces the news at breakfast because Harry's too choked up to speak. Hagrid nearly crushes him. There's several rounds of hugs and handshakes and back-slaps from all the assembled teachers. Molly comes bursting in halfway through with a shout of "Oh, Harry," and throws her arms wide to embrace him.
Somehow the newspapers pick it up and before the day is out everyone in the wizarding world has heard the news. He doesn't care because he's pregnant with Draco's baby and it's the best thing ever.
Author:
gryvonPrompt Number: 223
Kink Showcased: Alpha/Beta/Omega verse
Rating: NC-17
Pairing(s): Draco/Harry
Summary: Harry returns to Hogwarts after the war and sparks an interest in Alpha and teacher, Draco.
Warnings/Content Notes: Knotting
Word Count: 5k
The war is only five years behind him when Harry comes back to Hogwarts. It's different than he remembers. With so much of the castle destroyed in the battle, it has to be. They've tried to keep it the same but Harry can't help but look at halls and remember who died where. The scorch marks are gone and the crumbled walls repaired, but he can't stop seeing them where his brain remembers them. The events of that night are too deeply ingrained in his core.
"What can I do for you, Headmaster?" It feels weird addressing Professor McGonagall with the title he's used to reserving for Dumbledore. It's weirder still to see her sitting behind the desk that Dumbledore once occupied. The office is much the same, though neater now. The artifacts that Dumbledore had collected – handed down from headmaster to headmaster he supposes – are all neatly ordered and shelved, no doubt locked behind a strong series of protection spells to keep them out of wandering hands.
McGonagall folds her hands in front of her. She looks like the picture of prim and proper schoolteacher. That's all Harry's ever really known her as, but he supposes they're more like equals now that he's graduated. It will never feel that way, even if he did save the world. "I want you to come back to Hogwarts."
Harry frowns. He's already come back to Hogwarts once – here and now. He's somewhat reluctant to do so again. There are too many memories locked up in this place, good and bad. He's afraid he'll get lost in them "For what purpose?"
"I want you to teach."
Harry raises an eyebrow. His mouth falls half-open. "What?" The idea sounds absurd. She must be joking.
"The Defense Against the Dark Arts position is yours if you want it."
"What about Professor..." He struggles to recall the proper name. "Jameson, wasn't it?" He was a good fellow, if Harry recalled. A competent former Auror, though advanced in age enough to give Binns a run for his money.
"He only agreed to take on the position on a temporary basis. The limits of that temporary basis are currently being stretched."
Harry's frown deepens. He leans forward. This is a crazy idea. Beyond crazy. So crazy that he's actually considering it because when has he ever done the rational thing, but part of him – the part that always feels like he's being hunted, like he's a step away from being caught – worries that it's some kind of trap. His whole life has been a series of misfortunes that somehow turned out alright, from the Dursleys to Voldemort and the war, and living these past five years without that has been strange. There have been dangers, of course. There are still Death Eaters out for his head, but that's nothing new. Still, he can't help but wonder if there's an ulterior motive. "I barely graduated and that was a year late."
McGonagall levels her gaze at him, stern but kind. "And the extenuating circumstances that surrounded your graduation troubles are the exact same reasons why you're perfect for the job. You're a hero Harry. You defeated one of the greatest evils our world has ever known. I can't think of any better resume."
"I don't know how to teach."
"The former members of... what did you call it? Dumbledore's Army? They would disagree."
The whole situations feels unreal. What's even stranger is that he's actually considering it. "Why me?"
The look McGonagall gives him is entirely serious and one-hundred percent Alpha. The Omega in him automatically comes to attention. "Because I can think of no one better to hold the position."
"I'll think about it." He doesn't need to think about it. He already knows the decision he's going to make. There is only one option for him, really – take the job.
The past five years have taught him one thing – the outside world is no place for him, not anymore. He's a known Omega with both fame and fortune and every unattached Alpha out there has been throwing themselves at him, either trying to win him over or demand his submission. It's led to more than a few embarrassing situations and a few brawls, when all he really wants is an Alpha who sees him for who he is, not for his fame, and who he can settle down with and have a family with. He's tired of being alone but he has the feeling that's all he'll ever be.
The muggle world is even worse. He's an unknown there, but it's dangerous for him because stalkers and paparazzi will follow him into the muggle world and they aren't too keen on keeping the wizarding world a secret if it means getting the big scoop on his life. No job will take him, especially not with his condition. The muggle world isn't exactly equipped to handle Omegas. He can't be what he wants to be, what he was born to be outside of the wizarding world and he can't be himself inside the wizarding world.
He has no options and McGonagall knows that.
Harry moves in a week later. School doesn't start for a month still, giving him plenty of time to settle in and get used to the changes that five years of reconstruction have wrought. The dining hall is familiar as ever, at least, though some of the faces inside of it have changed drastically. Harry's steps falter as he looks up at the head table and meets the eyes of none other than Draco Malfoy. Draco is busy talking to Flitwick but he looks up a second after Harry's eyes fall on him. Their eyes catch across the hall and something inside of Harry sparks.
The fact that Draco is an unattached Alpha sits forefront in his mind, much like it had all through their years as students here, though the animosity that kept Harry from pursuing Draco and vice versa is gone and dead with the war. Unlike all the other Alphas Harry's had to deal with, Draco ignores him, turning back to speak with Flitwick and the unnoticed tension inside of Harry eases.
He has to fight down a blush. His steps falter. He forces himself to keep moving and looks away, shifting his gaze to McGonagall at the center of the table. For a second he pictures Dumbledore sitting there and the discord is jarring. Her eyes meet his and he wonders if she feels the same way about sitting there.
"Harry!" Hagrid's voice is booming. It brings an automatic smile to Harry's face, pushing his thoughts away from Draco.
Hagrid's arms wrap around him, filling Harry with the comfort of being around a stable Beta. He loves his Beta friends – Ron and Hermione and Ginny – because they keep him grounded. He would have gone crazy from isolation without them.
"Hi, Hagrid." His voice comes out breathy and thin until Hagrid releases him. "How are you?"
"Better now that you're coming back, Harry." Hagrid's booming voice carries through the hall. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry sees Draco's head turn their way for a second before turning back to Flitwick.
"Thanks, Hagrid. It's nice to be back."
There's only one open seat, between McGonagall and Draco, and Harry takes it with a bit of trepidation. It feels like sitting in the front row of the classroom, where the teacher can call out any inattention or misbehavior.
"Different, isn't it?" Draco asks.
Harry blinks. He'd expected Draco to ignore him with the cool disregard that has marked most of their brief passings since the war. The discord between that and the polite tone of Draco's voice makes him miss the question. "What?"
Draco nods forward, towards the empty expanses of tables before them. "It's even weirder when the students are here. I keep thinking I should be at the Slytherin table."
Harry smiles. The feeling of it goes all the way to his toes. He's been so out of touch with wizarding society for the last few years that the attention of a real Alpha – one who's not trying to fawn or dominate him - makes him want to preen. "Yeah, I can imagine how weird that must be."
"You'll get used to it," McGonagall says from his other side. "It takes a few years but you'll grow into it."
The thought of sitting up at the Head Table long enough for it to grow normal strikes Harry as ridiculously absurd. He knows that's the plan, not just McGonagall's plan for him but his own plan for his future, rough as it is, but it still feels unreal.
Dinner appears before them and Harry and Draco both reach for the rolls at the same time. Their hands bump and they both draw back.
"Go ahead," Draco says at the same time as Harry says, "You first."
Draco does the strangest thing then - he laughs. Harry finds himself staring, automatically memorizing the image before it can flit away. "Omegas first," Draco says.
Harry offers a small smile before reaching forward for a roll. He'd almost forgotten what it was like being around proper Alphas with traditional manners bred into them.
"Thanks," he says, meaning more than the roll.
Draco smiles back, a look that's so unfamiliar to the Draco Harry is used to seeing. Maybe Harry isn't the only one who needs to be at Hogwarts to feel at home.
"How's Hogwarts?" Hermione asks. Her face wavers in the flames.
"Good. Classes haven't started yet. It's... peaceful. I didn't expect it to be."
"I can imagine. Are you settling in well?"
"Yes. I missed being around other wizards." He'd kept to himself as much as possible, only really associating with Hermione and the Weasleys. He'd been lonely, lonelier than he wanted to admit, especially lately. Hermione and Ron have started talking about having children and the envy that burns inside of him every time the topic comes up makes him feel uncomfortable and a little bit sick.
"And Draco?"
Harry blinks. "What?"
Hermione rolls her eyes so obviously that Harry can see it in the flickering flames. "I know he's teaching there. You had the biggest crush on him when we were in school, despite him being an utter prat. How is it now that you're older? Did you bury the hatchet?"
"There was no hatchet to bury, but..." He doesn't know what to say. There's nothing there, not yet, but he kind of wants there to be. Draco and Harry have history, the kind of history that means Draco will never worship him, will always tell him the blunt and honest truth. Those are the exact qualities that Harry wants in an Alpha and that combined with this new, softer side to Draco... well, Harry can't help but see the possibilities there.
"You still have a crush on him." Hermione doesn't even need to ask. She knows him too well.
Harry groans. "I shouldn't. I know it but I just... I can't..."
"He's a good looking Alpha. You're an Omega. It's all about hormones, Harry." It's more than hormones. Yes, maybe they had a large part in it – his biological clock started ticking long ago – but also it's just Draco.
"You're lucky you and Ron are Betas," he grouses.
She just laughs at him.
He receives a summons the week before his first heat at Hogwarts. It's not a stretch to figure out that that's what McGonagall wants to talk to him about, but he is a little surprised to find Draco waiting in the Headmaster's office as well.
"Harry," McGonagall says in way of greeting.
"Headmaster. Draco." He nods as he takes a seat.
McGonagall smiles. "I would ask that you call me Minerva, but I have a feeling you'll be just as reticent about it as Mister Malfoy has been."
Harry laughs. "Yeah. I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet. It feels too informal."
"Well, we'll work on that. Give it time." She pauses to sip at her tea. "I called you here to talk about your suppressants. I assume you have a supplier currently."
He blushes and nods. This is not the sort of conversation he wants to be having in front of Draco. It's not the sort of question he wants to have at all. He's still too new to the whole Omega thing to feel comfortable with it. It was never a thing growing up, he was too young. His first heat took him by surprise and if it weren't for Hermione's amazing encyclopedic knowledge, he probably would have gone crazy. "Hermione, actually." Draco raises an eyebrow next to him. "I didn't... I mean, muggles, they don't..."
"Muggles don't have Alphas and Omegas," McGonagall supplies for him. "Thus you were unprepared when the heats first took you."
His face is red when he nods. Draco is looking at him with an unreadable expression.
"Well, I thought it best to offer Mr. Malfoy's services while you are staying in the castle. You'll find his work top notch, with the added convenience of not having to leave the castle for them."
"Thank you," he says automatically. Part of him balks at having Draco prepare such a personal potion but he kindly tells that part of himself to shove it. Another part of him is glad for the excuse to maybe get to know this new Draco a little bit better. "That would be nice."
McGonagall nods. "I'll leave it to you two to determine an adequate brewing schedule." That was as much of a clear dismissal as they were going to get.
Harry stands and Draco follows him out of the office.
"How soon do you need the suppressants?" Draco asks when they are on the stairs.
"Soon," Harry says. "I'm due next week."
"Come by my chambers Friday evening after dinner. I'll have the ingredients ready by then."
"Where-"
"In the dungeon," Draco says before Harry could even finish asking. "Snape's old chambers."
Harry's stomach twists. He nods. His chambers were at least McGonagall's old rooms near the Gryffindor dorms. He can't imagine having the same quarters as someone who had died.
Before he can think of anything else to say, Draco turns and starts down the hall away from him. Harry's eyes follow him and he wants.
Friday evening comes both too soon and too late. He knows it is just his impending heat affecting him, but there was something about Draco's presence that sears him to the core. He wants, but he's reluctant to do anything about that want. There's too much history between them to make it uncomplicated.
"I just need a sample of your blood," Draco says, pulling Harry from his thoughts.
Harry nods and obediently holds his hand out over the boiling pot. He barely feels the pin prick his skin. Draco lets three drops fall into the pot before guiding Harry's hand away and healing the prick with a wave of his wand.
"Thank you," Harry says. He steps away from the kitchen table to move into the open living room. He's never had a reason to be in Snape's chambers but he can easily imagine the professor still living here. The atmosphere of the rooms Harry has seen so far is entirely Slytherin, all dark shadows and decorated in green and silver. He wonders which parts of the decor came with the rooms and which are Draco's own touches.
"You were raised by muggles, right?"
Harry blinks and turns back to the kitchen where Draco is brewing. "You know that."
Draco frowns. "Yes, but... what was it like, being an Omega in the midst of all those Betas?"
Harry shrugs. "I didn't know. Not until later. Then it was just another thing that set me apart, another thing that made me a freak, another reason for them to hate me. I didn't say anything. I was afraid that..." Harry shuts his mouth with a snap. He hadn't meant to say so much. He'd forgotten for a moment that this is Draco he's talking to.
Draco raises an eyebrow as he stirs the potion. He doesn't look concerned, just curious. "Afraid of what?"
Harry opens his mouth. What could he say? He's already spilled part of the truth. What harm would more honesty do? "My uncle. When... when he found out about the wizard part of me, he freaked out. I hadn't thought it could get worse than being locked in a cabinet and treated like a slave but he went mental when my Hogwarts letters started coming in."
Draco's eyes widen, something like real emotion breaking through his polite mask. "You were locked in a cabinet?"
Harry shrugs. "I didn't have a very good childhood."
"Yes, but surely Dumbledore would have-"
"It was the only place I was safe. Until it wasn't. It got better, once I got older and Sirius threatened them if they didn't treat me right." He still gets a pang of guilt in his chest any time he says Sirius's name.
Draco extinguishes the flames under the pot and starts pulling out seven glass bottles, one for each day of heat week. "So you didn't tell them about being an Omega."
Harry shakes his head. "They wouldn't have understood. Being a wizard was bad enough, but..." He remembers how terrified he'd been when it was explained to him. Not only was he a wizard but he was some kind of freak that could get pregnant. "I honestly thought my uncle would kill me and bury my body somewhere it would never be found if he knew." Draco's eyes go full-blown wide and Harry raises his hands. "He wouldn't. At least I don't think. But, no, I never told him. I was enough of a freak to him as it was."
Draco shakes his head but says nothing as he pours the potion into the bottles and then packs them away in a padded case. Harry reaches for the case. Their hands meet. Draco doesn't let go.
"I'm sorry for being such a prick to you when we were kids," Draco says out of the blue. "You didn't need me being an ass on top of what you were already going through."
Harry smiles. "I was an ass right back, but thank you. You're forgiven as long as I am."
"I owe you, Harry," Draco says, his expression suddenly serious. "I'd be dead or worse if it weren't for you. There's nothing for me to forgive."
Harry doesn't know what to say to that so he just nods. Draco turns to clean up his lab and Harry decides that is as good a point as any to leave.
The fall semester comes and goes without any surprises. Harry finds himself adjusting surprisingly well to teaching, though he is never going to get used to the awestruck way that the students all look at him, even the seventh years. The awe actually comes in handy because it means that his students, even the Slytherin, hang on his every word out of respect. He doesn't have to deal with inattention or misbehavior like the other teachers do - and he hears plenty about the misbehaving students from Draco at dinner, and then after dinner as their conversation starts to carry over into drinks in Draco's chambers, first once and then progressing until it's a twice weekly affair that grows more frequent as time goes on.
With the students gone for winter break, there is less work-related to talk about but Harry still finds reason to follow Draco back to his rooms after dinner is served. Draco pours them both a cup of tea – black with two sugars for Harry, straight black for Draco.
"I got you something," Draco says out of the blue. "For Christmas."
"What?"
Draco sets both cups on the coffee table in front of Harry and then moves past the couches to pick up a green-wrapped box off of the fireplace mantle. Draco takes a seat near Harry on the couch. He places the box between them on the table. Harry hesitates for a fraction of a second before reaching forward. His hands tremble. He's not sure why, except that he knows this is something big. It shouldn't be. It's just a present, but it feels larger than that.
A gift from an Alpha to an Omega is never meaningless.
"I never had a Christmas present until I came to Hogwarts," he says, not sure why but the words just slip from his lips. Draco puts a hand on Harry's knee. Harry can feel the heat of the touch all the way up his leg.
He slides the lid off the box and pulls out a snowglobe. Hogwarts is depicted inside. The lights in the windows flicker like they are alive and snow falls in a light shower without needing to shake the globe. Magic is a wondrous thing and sometimes, like now, Harry is just awestruck at what it can do.
"It's beautiful."
Harry turns to find Draco watching him. Their faces are too close so it's easy to just lean forward, to close the distance between them. Their lips meet. Sparks course over Harry's skin, tingling down his lips, bringing color to his cheeks and an erratic beat to his heart.
"Harry," Draco murmurs, his lips brushing against Harry's as he speaks.
Their lips touch again, hesitant at first and then growing stronger. Harry moans, the sound muffled by Draco's lips. He wants more but for now he's willing to wait. This is enough.
For now.
Hermione catches him alone at the tail end of the Weasley family Christmas celebration. They're briefly alone in the house but there's never any guarantee how long that will last.
"You seem in good spirits," Hermione says.
"I am," Harry agrees and he means it. He's been in good spirits since his first kiss with Draco. They've had a few more since then, but it doesn't feel like enough. He's ready to go further but he's not sure if Draco is.
"Things with Draco going well?"
Harry nods. He hesitates a moment before asking the question that's been on his mind for weeks. "When did you know that you were ready to have kids with Ron?"
Hermione raises an eyebrow and smiles. "Kids, Harry?"
He blushes and scuffs his toes on the carpet. "I want a family."
"You want a family with Draco?"
Harry nods.
Hermione looks away, staring into the middling distance. "I can't pinpoint an exact day. It was just like I knew. I started looking at the moms on the street with their kids and I thought, 'I want that. I want my own.'"
"I want that."
Hermione's hand settles on top of Harry's and squeezes.
The door slams open then and Ron bursts in. "There you are. Mum's looking for you, Harry."
"I'll be right there."
Ron disappears just as quickly as he'd appeared. Harry offers Hermione a smile and stands. Hermione catches him by the sleeve before he can go. "You'll make a good parent, Harry."
"Thanks."
"Something's wrong," Draco says between one kiss and the next.
Harry blinks. He'd been enjoying their usual make-out session, a replacement to their after dinner drinks. He leans up on his elbows. Draco is lying next to him on the couch, bracketing Harry against the back of the couch. It's snug, but he likes it.
"Aren't you going to tell me?" Draco says, his face stretched into a frown reminiscent of the old days.
"Tell you what?"
"Tell me what's bothering you."
Harry shakes his head. "There's nothing bothering me. I was enjoying this." Harry brushes his hand over Draco's cheek. "I really like spending time with you."
Draco pulls back further until he's sitting up, his back to Harry. He turns until he's able to look at Harry. "There's something bothering you. Something you're preoccupied with. I can tell."
Harry bites his lip. He looks away. "It's... it's stupid."
Draco's hand covers Harry's. "Tell me."
Harry looks down. "I want to start a family."
"Oh."
Harry risks a glance up. He needs to see the expression on Draco's face. "With you."
Draco's eyes widen in surprise. "Oh." He doesn't look displeased.
Harry looks down again. "Like I said, it's stupid."
"It's not stupid." Draco's hand slips under his chin, tilting Harry's face back up so that Draco can capture his lips in another kiss. "Are you sure that's what you want?"
Harry nods.
"Then let's start a family."
They have a small ceremony in the Weasleys' backyard. Narcissa is the only one from Draco's side who attends so the professors from Hogwarts fill in the rest of the space. Molly welcomes Draco without the slightest hesitation, though the rest of the Weasleys will take a bit longer to get used to the idea, Ron especially. Hermione can't stop grinning at him.
Harry has never been happier. He has a silver ring on his finger and Draco's hand in his.
It's all he's ever wanted.
They wait until summer break for Harry to go off of his suppressants. It's been years since he's felt a full heat. He's forgotten what it feels like – the warmth of his skin, the unbearable feeling of clothes on his body and the need to take them off, the drive to find an Alpha, his Alpha and mate, mate, mate.
Thankfully he doesn't have to worry about any of that. They're prepared. His heats are regular so they can time it right. Harry has his clothes off before he can even start to feel the heat. Their bed – and it still feels weird to call the apartment in the dungeons theirs and not Draco's – is large and the sheets cool.
"Draco!"
Draco is in the shower but he steps out, naked and dripping wet at Harry's shout. All Harry has to do is pant and spread his legs and Draco is there, kissing his way up Harry's chest until he reaches Harry's neck. Draco's lips suck on the skin there, making Harry's moans echo through the chamber.
"Draco." Harry's hands rub over wet flesh. He spreads his legs wider and hooks a leg over Draco's hips. "Now. Now, please."
Draco's fingers push inside, sliding easily in the slick that Harry's body has provided. It's not just his mind that's ready to try for a baby but his body as well.
"Draco." Harry pushes into Draco's fingers, fucking himself on Draco's hand. It's not what he wants but right now he'll take whatever Draco will give him. "Please."
"Wow," Draco says, "I don't think I've ever seen you this worked up."
Harry groans. "Heat."
Draco chuckles. "We're going to have to do this again. God, you're beautiful like this. So desperate. So needy."
Harry whimpers. He needs, so badly. His hands clench on Draco's arms. He can't stop rocking his body, sliding against the sheets in a desperate need for more, more, more. Draco's fingers aren't enough.
"Do you want more?"
"Please."
It only takes Draco a second to line up and slide inside. Harry shouts and grips Draco's arms hard as they start fucking in earnest.
"Please," Harry chants. "Please. Please. Please."
Their first time had been slow and sweet, savoring every moment. This is nothing like that. Harry is a wanton creature, writhing on the sheets like a wild thing uncontained. He needs Draco inside of him like he needs air. The feeling of Draco sliding inside of him, pounding in and out, hard and fast, is wonderful, stupendous, but it's not enough.
He needs to be full. He needs to be bred.
"Draco. Knot me."
"Are you sure? I've never..."
"Please..."
Draco rolls his hips and then he's growing, his flesh building up inside of Harry until they're stuck together, fused tight by the catch of skin on skin. Then Draco's coming, releasing into Harry in hot, thick streams that keep going long past when Draco is normally spent.
"Ah!" Harry shivers and then he's coming too. He can picture Draco's seed filling him and he hopes that it finds a home inside of him.
They stay twined together in bed, joined hip to hip, until Draco's knot recedes enough for them to part. Even then, they don't go far.
Draco's hand settles on Harry's stomach, rubbing soothing circles into his skin. "We're going to have a baby." It sounds like a promise.
Harry grins and leans up to kiss Draco. They're going to have a baby.
Harry's a wound-up ball of nerves the entire month between one heat and the next. He's anticipating it, desperate for the chance to try again and again until they get it right, until there's a new life growing inside of him.
It turns out he had nothing to wait for. His next heat never comes and when Harry wakes up the morning his heat is supposed to happen and finds nothing, no overwhelming urge to mount Draco's cock and ride him to completion – well, no more than normal – Harry has to wake up Draco because his hands are too shaky to perform the spell he needs. Draco's hands shake a little too, but he manages the proper motions. The tip of his wand touches Harry's stomach and comes away pink.
Tears flood Harry's eyes. Draco pulls him into a crushing embrace, a smile splitting his face wide open. They're going to have a baby girl.
The news spreads through the castle like wildfire. Harry has to talk to Hermione immediately through the floo, but she's at least already awake because it's Hermione and she never sleeps in. Draco announces the news at breakfast because Harry's too choked up to speak. Hagrid nearly crushes him. There's several rounds of hugs and handshakes and back-slaps from all the assembled teachers. Molly comes bursting in halfway through with a shout of "Oh, Harry," and throws her arms wide to embrace him.
Somehow the newspapers pick it up and before the day is out everyone in the wizarding world has heard the news. He doesn't care because he's pregnant with Draco's baby and it's the best thing ever.
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Date: 2014-05-24 01:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-24 03:28 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-24 10:47 am (UTC)There is such a lack of good omegaverse fic in HP and your story makes me hope that this might change :)
Love Draco's manners!
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Date: 2014-05-24 12:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-25 02:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-25 06:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-27 11:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-05-29 09:45 am (UTC)