On The Wings of A Dragon

14. Truth

Harry had poured them both a glass of wine, and they were sitting in the lounge.  Dinner could wait, they needed to relax first.  Sipping it slowly, he closed his eyes and let out a moan at the taste.  "Fuck, this wine is perfect", said Harry.  Just like you, he wanted to add, but didn't.  Draco smiled at the win.  It was his favorite indeed.

"Yeah, it's um.....it's my favorite red", he answered, noticing how Harry had moaned and closed his eyes.  Christ, he needed to focus.

"Draco", said Harry.  "Thank you for coming tonight", he said.

"You make it sound like I may have wanted to change my mind", he answered.

"Did you? ", asked Harry.

Draco licked his lips and swallowed.  "Didn't you?" he asked back.

Harry smiled, shook his head, and said, "I asked first, but no.  I didn't want to change my mind".

"Well for the record, neither did I, and you are welcome", he said back.

"I made pasta, I wasn't sure if you..." he said nervously.

"I do", he said softly.  If he was honest with himself, he was actually quite hungry.  But this was not his house, and would wait for Harry to dictate when they ate.  But Harry must have read his mind, because he stood up, and said that they should make their way towards the dining room to go and eat.  Draco's stomach grumbled at those words.

Harry raised an eyebrow and smirked, "Hungry Draco?", he asked.

"Starving actually", he said following him to where the table was laid out for the two of them.  It was simple, with a white table cloth, and red overlays.  Dinner was a creamy beef pasta dish and a Greek salad.  The wine finished it off beautifully.  They dished up, and dug in, every few moments, Draco moaning at the different flavors that were invading his tongue and mouth.  

Harry had to look away every time he did that, because he didn't want his guest to think that he was a pervert, because yes, he was turned on.  He did however manage to make sure that their glasses stayed full.

"Harry", said Draco after a while.  "This is delicious.  Where did you learn to cook like this?", he asked.  Harry licked his lips and wondered if he could tell Draco anything.  Their friendship was just starting, and he had said in his letter that he wanted Draco to trust him, but didn't that work both ways.  He took a sip of wine while deciding, and then he told him the truth.  What exactly did he have to lose.

"You know I grew up with the Dursleys yeah?  Well in their house, I was expected to make all the meals, so I guess with the amount of practice that I've had, I've become quite good at it".

"Don't they know how to cook?  Who taught you how?  Did you at least take turns?  What else can you make?  Please tell me you know how to bake a cake?", spewed Draco, all of the questions leaving his mouth at once, because he wanted to take it all in.  He would demand that Harry at least show him how to prepare this particular meal, or at least give him the recipe.

Harry laughed at all the questions coming from the Slytherin.  Just his voice was calming, and he wanted to bathe in it.  Draco raised a well groomed brow as if to ask what the hell are you laughing at.  "You're adorable, when you forget to breathe", laughed Harry.

Draco blushed.

Harry stuttered, not meaning to make the man blush, but loving the sight of it.  "I'm sorry, I didn't.....", he said.

Draco waited for him to finish with his words, but Harry found that he couldn't.  The awkward silence between them was broken by the hero talking again.

"Thank you for the compliment.  To answer your questions, yes they know how to cook.  I taught myself, through slaps and beatings.  We never took turns, I was basically a house elf to them.  I can make many different dishes, and yes I can bake a mean cake Draco", he said, looking into the silver orbs.

"Slaps and beatings?", said Draco with a dry voice.  

Harry looked at him, and didn't want to ruin their evening, but he had started it, so the best thing to do would be to finish it.  "So many people thought that I had a royal life growing up.  This is not true.  I was treated like a slave, because the muggles who raised me, wanted nothing to do with me.  If I overstepped a boundary I received a beating.  If dinner was late or god forbid burnt, I received a beating.  I was only allowed out of my cupb....my room to do chores and use the bathroom", he said almost making the mistake of saying too much.  

"Cupboard.  You were going to say cupboard, weren't you?", choked Draco looking at Harry with sorrow in his eyes.  He had been such a prat to Harry, and now he finds out his whole life, he had been treated with disdain.  "Yes.  For the first eleven years of my life, my room was a cupboard under the stairs", he replied, not wanting to lie.

Draco stood up, put his hands in his hair and shouted, "Why would they do that to you?  Don't they know that you are a magical child.  What the fuck is wrong with them?".

Harry was blown away by Draco's anger, so he stood up as well.  "That's exactly why they did it.  Magic scares them.  The unknown scare muggles Draco, but thank you for your warm response", he said and sat back down.  Draco followed his movements, and waited for the flow of conversation to resume.

"I want to know everything about you Harry.  When you are done talking, I will tell you my story.  If that's okay", said Draco.  

Harry smiled and said all right.  They filled up their glasses, and Harry noticed that the bottle kept refilling itself.  Magical wine, who knew.  

Taking the bottle with, because they had finished eating, they went back to the lounge, and got comfortable.  Draco on the soft couch, with Harry on the floor, next to Draco's feet.

Harry took a deep breath and told Draco everything.  The horrors of growing up at 4 Privet Drive, and what he had to endure while living there.  The physical abuse he didn't understand, because he knew now that he had done nothing to deserve it, but the emotional abuse was in his mind, way worse.  How do you call a child that was supposed to be family a freak.  "I only found out my name was Harry much later Draco, and that's why I value it".  

A good for nothing nobody.  He had been conditioned to believe them, and when he told Draco about not being allowed to eat every day, Draco burst into tears, because that explained him knowing about starvation.