InsaneJournal

FIC: Defining a Life
Title: Defining a Life
Author: lotrwariorgodss
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Rating: soft R
Warnings: implied rape (not between H&D), possible serious illness, language
Word Count: ~5300
Disclaimer: The boys aren't mine, they're JKR's. I'm doing this solely for the fun of it…which sounds a little mad, but is the truth.
Summary: Six months have passed since Draco became a rape victim, and to him that only means one thing. Flangst




"I'm not going."

Harry sighed and let his head fall against the bathroom door with a thud. "Draco, please. We've spent the last week arguing about this, the least you could do is go so we won't have fought for nothing."

Silence.

"Come on, Draco, it's the last one! After this you'll never have to go again."

A scoff from behind the door. "Right. Because I'll be dead."

Harry glared at the wood in front of him. "That's not what I meant and you know it. Now stop being such a git and come out."

"No."

Harry ground his teeth together and forced his near-exploding temper back down into the pit of his stomach. It was time to be a Slytherin. "Draco, if you come out of the bathroom I'll give you so good a blowjob that your brains will melt."

"No."

Right, no sex. Okay, try again. "I'll take you on a nice long holiday to wherever you want."

Silence, then – "A farewell present. How sweet."

Harry groaned and slammed his forehead against the door again. "Anything, Draco! What do you want?!"

"I want you to leave me alone."

"So you can sulk in the bathroom all day?"

"Yes."

Harry threw up his hands in frustration. "Fine! I'm going to Ron's; call me when you've stopped acting like a toddler." Harry stomped out into the kitchen, slammed a few cupboards, then snuck back into their room as quietly as he could and slumped against the wall to the bathroom. Draco would get hungry eventually, and when he came out Harry could strong arm him into going to the clinic for his third and final HIV test.

When they were still only casually dating, Draco had taken a job at a Muggle advertising agency, using his skill with Persuasion and Suggestion charms to rise quickly and become more successful than he'd ever thought possible. That had been three years ago. Harry and Draco had long since fallen in love and moved in together, so content and trusting of one another that they hadn't had safe sex for years. Back then, they had no reason to. Now, things were different.

Draco was having dinner with a client one night, a large, obnoxious man whose arse Draco had to kiss if he wanted to keep his job. The blond had pulled out his wallet to give the man one of his business cards and before he could close it, the man caught sight of the picture displayed in the centre. Draco had only enough time to cast a wandless Immobulus charm on the picture to make it look like a Muggle photograph before the man grabbed his wallet and stared.

Draco had frozen it in the midst of a kiss, his and Harry's arms wrapped around each other's necks, adoration glowing in picture-Draco's eyes. A dark look formed behind the man's eyes, but he only asked who else was in the picture. Draco told him about Harry and the man gave back his wallet before Draco excused himself to use the restroom. He calmed himself, returned the picture to its original form, and suddenly wanted nothing more than to go home to Harry.

He and his new client finished their meal in normalcy, but towards the end, Draco began to feel feverish and dizzy. The man helped him outside, but almost as soon as his feet hit the sidewalk, he had blacked out.

Paranoia following the war had convinced Harry that they needed a permanent way to contact each other if anything should happen, so when the small metal disc under his skin on the inside of his wrist began to burn, Harry concentrated on its twin and left a stunned Hermione in the wake of his Apparition.

Sitting on the bed in the dirtiest, coldest hotel room he'd ever been in, was a shivering Draco, naked and obviously beaten. Harry raced to his side and tore his own robes off, wrapping his distressed boyfriend in their warmth and gathering him in his arms. Even when he Apparated them back to their flat, it took a long while to get the truth out of Draco. One moment he'd be clinging to Harry as though his life depended on it, then the next he'd be pushing him away, panicked at any contact. Concerned about his more serious injuries, Harry called Snape, who was far from a healer but perhaps the only man Draco trusted after Harry, and he had some skill in healing.

Snape had been beyond disturbed when he left them that day. Harry knew he had a protecting-people-thing, and had seen Draco's attack as his own failure, even though none of them could have possibly intervened. Draco calmed after Snape's visit; he let Harry touch him and he told him what had happened. He refused to go to the doctor, but did let Hermione – Mediwitch-in-training – give him advice. "Get tested," she had told him, over and over again until he finally relented. At one month, the negative result had almost been expected. At three, he had fought Harry just as he was fighting now, but he yielded sooner, and the still-negative result gave them hope, but not enough.

Now, at six months, a negative result would be permanent, and Draco could begin to really heal and move on. Unless, of course, he was positive.

Harry refused to think about it. He knew he would love Draco whether he was sick or not, but he was so tired of seeing him hurt, so tired of wishing day after day that he could have the old Draco back, the one who bickered with him over petty things and snarked at him, only to turn around and hold him at night, all night. He knew being positive for HIV would devastate Draco and he didn't know just hard Draco would try to push Harry away if that happened.

Harry repressed a sigh, and a few minutes later, he heard a soft click and a creak as the bathroom door opened. Draco's pale blond head peered around the door, and – was that a disappointed sigh? – he stepped out of the bathroom and walked to sit on the bed, head in his hands. Harry stayed crouched by the wall, wondering how long it would take Draco to notice him. He didn't have to wait very long; as soon as Draco removed his head from his hands, he stared at the wall and went wide-eyed at the sight of his boyfriend crouched on the floor. He tried to lunge back into the bathroom, but Harry was too fast for him and had him pinned on the bed in seconds.

"Good morning, love. Have you finished sulking?"

"Get off me! I'm not going!"

"Oh, I think you are, Draco. I said I'd give you anything if you'd go – you asked me to leave you alone and I did, so now you have to hold up your side of the bargain."

Draco finally ceased his thrashing and glared at him. "Bastard," he spat.

Harry leaned down to press a kiss on Draco's forehead, and the blond squirmed as though trying to escape it.

"Let me up, I need to get dressed."

Harry got up and watched his boyfriend dress himself, wary of any sudden bolts into the bathroom. Draco finished tying his shoes with a scowl, stood up to face Harry, and found himself leaning into a gentle kiss. "This is for your own good, Draco. Think how happy you'll be when you find out you're okay."

"I think you mean 'if', but whatever, let's just go." He strode out of the bedroom, and Harry followed him with a sigh.

Out on the street, Harry noticed that the blond at his side was walking as though he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders – a slouched and defeated look on a man who used to yell at Harry night and day for his appalling posture. He couldn't even imagine what Draco was going through today, and regretted having to put him through so much pain. Harry tried to reach out and grab Draco's hand, but the blond just gave him a look and shoved his hands in his pockets.

Draco refused to touch him in public anymore, and Harry really didn't blame him. It was one thing to be raped, and it was another to have been raped because you had been accidentally outed and someone felt the need to get revenge on the queer population for their existence.

Their walk to the clinic was a quiet one, the interval in the waiting room even quieter. When the nurse finally gestured for them to come back Harry was almost relieved.

She focused on her clipboard, asking the usual questions until she got to the last one. "Last initial?" Draco gave it and she looked up. Taking a quick look at Harry she asked, "Would your partner like to be tested as well?"

Harry started a bit at this question, but he recovered with a shake of his head. "No…um, that is to say, no thank you…we haven't…well…"

The nurse raised her eyebrow as if to say she clearly did not understand whatever language it was Harry was attempting to speak.

"No, he does not." Draco sighed in exasperation. "We haven't fucked since I was raped, now can we do this before I'm dead, please?"

The nurse looked genuinely shocked for all of five seconds before she nodded and led him to sit in a small chair. The last thing Draco had wanted to do was infect Harry, so he'd refused any sexual activity until they knew for sure he wasn't infected himself. It was difficult, and it had caused some strain on their relationship, but Harry was willing to die for Draco, and he was willing to abstain for him too.

Draco was back sitting next to him within the minute, and now came the hard part – the waiting. Twenty minutes felt like hours to them, and Draco made it perfectly clear that he didn't want to 'talk about it' or 'get anything off his chest'.

A nearly excruciating half hour later, a different nurse called "Mr M" back into a cubicle with a frown on her face. Harry and Draco sat down at the makeshift desk. Harry reached his hand out to brush the back of Draco's, but the blond just shifted uncomfortably in his chair and moved his hands to his lap. Harry shook it off - It's just nerves, Harry, he'll be back to normal in no time.

When the nurse walked in, Harry knew right away that something was different. Something was wrong. She didn't have the now-familiar envelope in her hands.

Maybe positive results were delivered by a live person for sensitivity's sake. He felt his heartbeat throb through his neck, muscles all throughout his body tightening in preparation for the possible blow.

"I'm sorry, Mr M…"

Harry's breath caught in his throat and an invisible hand tightened around his heart. Next to him, he could almost hear Draco's panic come to a fever-pitch.

"I'm afraid our equipment has broken down and we need to send your sample to another lab overnight."

Harry's heart unclenched and Draco let out a repressed gasping sob. Almost immediately, the nurse realized her mistake and she gasped. "Oh, God, I didn't mean to start out that way…oh, I'm so sorry…" She lowered her head and began again. "That was terrible of me, I wasn't thinking; you must be terrified and I only made it worse – I really am very sorry."

Very calmly, Draco rose from his seat and walked out of the little cubicle without a backward glance. Harry sighed as he watched him go, and then turned to the nurse again; she nearly had tears in her eyes knowing the amount of pain she had just caused, and Harry found he couldn't be very angry with her.

"He'll be okay, and thank you for your apology."

She nodded. "I…we'll call tomorrow when we have the results and you'll have to come in again. And please, tell him again that I'm sorry."

Harry gave her a curt nod and left the cubicle to find Draco.

He found him on the street outside the clinic, slowly walking away, scowling at an unfortunate kitten that had crossed his path. Harry saw Draco's leg twitch and ran forward to prevent the poor little thing from being on the wrong side of Draco's boot.

"Draco!"

The blond looked back, rolled his eyes and kept walking.

"Draco, wait!" Harry caught up to him, panting, and fell in step with him. "Are you okay, Draco? God, that was awful." The blond mumbled something that sounded like "stupid cunt" but didn't say anymore. "…Draco?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I'm not a weeping babe, you know; I can handle it."

"I…" Harry started, but shook his head and thought better of it. They walked for a few minutes in silence, Harry didn't know where they were headed, but it wasn't in the direction of their flat.

"Where the fuck do they find these people anyway!" Draco suddenly shouted, and Harry whipped his head to the side in a start. "You'd think they could give them one ounce of professional training; I could go in there and do her job for fuck's sake!"

Harry didn't have anything to say. Draco had said he was fine, not just today but for the past six months. Clearly, he wasn't as fine as he was letting on. Needing something to fill the silence, Harry blurted, "She really wanted me to make sure you knew how sorry she was."

Draco grumbled, "She's probably just afraid of losing her license, the bitch."

"I don't think she could lose her license over something like that, Draco."

"What do you know about it?! You always have to be right about everything, don't you! Well, I'm sick of you cleaning up my messes and treating me like a child! Just leave me alone."

Harry sighed and reached out for him. "Oh, Draco –"

The blond recoiled from his touch and shoved his hands angrily into his pockets. "I'm serious, Harry, I want to be alone right now. Just go home."

Harry nodded hesitantly and looked down at the concrete, an ache already forming in his heart. "Are you coming back?" Harry knew he looked and sounded like a kicked puppy, but he just couldn't help it.

Now it was Draco's turn to sigh. "Yes. Probably."

He nodded again, started to say something, but changed his mind. It was becoming habit. They stood there, staring at each other, pleas in both their eyes, until Draco looked away.

"Go home, Harry, just please go home."

Harry turned away from him and walked into the closest alley so that he could Apparate. He heard Draco's footsteps grow faint and his tears mercifully waited to fall until it was quiet and those footsteps were gone.

********************************************************

Harry didn't register Draco's arrival in their flat until the loud jangle of keys on the countertop clashed through his mind and scattered his thoughts. He had paced the house, rearranged their bookshelf twice, and finally had put on one of Draco's old t-shirts and his own pyjama pants before stretching out on the sofa to lose himself in a telly-induced coma.

His eyes, unfocused and unblinking, stared at the black box surrounding a colour-changing blob, so dry that they hurt when he turned and blinked to look at Draco.

"I brought pizza."

Harry rose from the sofa in a stupor, caught between relief that Draco was back and painful uncertainty about how long he would stay. They sat at the table in unison, but each seemed in his own world.

They had their supper in complete silence. Harry didn't want to talk about the fact that Draco had almost left him, and similarly, Draco didn't seem to want to bring it up. When the blond took his plate to the sink, Harry followed him and waited for him to put down the dish before he grasped his arm.

"I'm glad you came back."

Draco scoffed. "I'm sure." He turned his back on Harry and walked into their bedroom.

The wall of patience and understanding that Harry had built up over the months of trying to sympathize with the hell Draco had been through came crashing down with his words. He threw his plate in the sink with a satisfying crash and stomped over to the bedroom to slam the door open. Something shattered in the hallway from the force of the door hitting the wall. Draco sat at the edge of their bed in the dark, looking pitiful and upset, but Harry was done feeling sorry for him.

"What the fuck is your problem, Malfoy?"

Draco looked startled, but a sneer replaced that look soon enough. "You really have to ask me that?"

"Yes! I know this HIV thing is freaking you out, and maybe it should be, but it's not only doing that, it's tearing us apart! I've tried to help you, tried to comfort you, done my best to tell you that I'll always be here for you, but I'm really starting to doubt that you even want me to be here for you anymore."

Draco stared at his bare feet, almost no emotion on his face. "You don't have to feel obligated to take care of me just because you were with me before all this happened."

Harry nearly screamed, but found he just didn't have the strength. "I don't feel obligated, Draco; I love you. I would take care of you no matter what happened."

He scoffed again, just as he had in the kitchen. "Right."

Harry sighed and accepted the sickening feeling of failure and abandonment that washed over him. He brought a shaking hand up to his eyes as he whispered his next words. "This is killing me, Draco."

The blond looked up at him, astonishment plain in his gaze. Apparently, he hadn't realized how much this was affecting Harry, hadn't seen how all of his short comments, cold rejections, and defensive apathy about their relationship had gone straight to Harry's heart and etched a hole there. He saw it then, and realized he hadn't understood the meaning of true regret until that moment.

Harry let his hand fall to his side so he could stare back at Draco, detachment and exhaustion written all across his face.

"Do you want this to be over, Draco? Is that what you want? Because that's sure as hell what it feels like."

The blond shook his head. "No, I don't. You…this…it's all I've been living for. But…if I'm sick, we won't even be able to…again." He gestured at the bed and Harry's heart dropped into his stomach.

"Is that what has you so upset?" Draco didn't answer him. "God, it's not going to be like this forever, Draco. I love you, and dammit, even if you're positive, I'm going to make love to you again, even if I have to –"

Harry inhaled sharply, realizing what he had been about to say, and watched Draco's eyes widen in response to that unspoken threat. He sighed again, shaking his head, disappointed in himself. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. You know I'd never force you, Draco, I couldn't do that." He ran his fingers through his hair desperately. "And it isn't about sex. I just want to be close to you again. I hate this; hate that you won't let me touch you anymore, hate that you keep pushing me away when all I want is to see you happy again."

Draco brought his hands up to cover his face, not quite fast enough to mask the pain in his eyes. "God, you're miserable; I've made you hate me."

"No!" Harry fell to his knees in front of Draco and gripped his thighs. "No, Draco, I don't hate you. I hate that I wasn't there for you, to protect you, to keep all this from happening. I hate that you've had to live these months with this hanging over your head. I hate that you don't talk about where you want to go for the summer or tell our waiters that they better let the wine breathe longer next time because you're afraid there won't be a next summer or a next time to berate the waiters. I hate that you're right here, and I can see you and hear you and touch you when you let me, but I still can't love you the same."

"Because I might be sick," Draco whispered, and he nodded as if that was somehow what he deserved.

"No, Draco, not because you might be sick. It's because you won't let me get close to you anymore." He rubbed the muscles under his hands gently, trying to rub this message into Draco's body as well as his mind. "You don't tell me how you feel anymore; you're moody and frustrated, and I know I can't fix everything, but you weren't like this before."

"I don't know if I can be like I was before, Harry."

Harry nodded and pressed a kiss to Draco's cloth-covered knee. "I know this is a life-changing thing, Draco, but I don't want it to be life-defining. I don't want you to think of yourself as just a rape victim, possibly sick and scared to death; I want your life to be defined by you and me, what we have together, how much we love each other. No matter what happens, Draco, to me or to you, you'll always be the man I love and will love for the rest of my life."

Draco said nothing, just stared at his hands shaking in his lap. Harry sighed and turned away, unable to fathom the thought that someday he might wake up and never get to see Draco's face again.

"Harry?" a weak voice called out.

"Yes, Draco?"

The tear-stained face that stared back at him when he turned around cracked his heart right down the middle, causing tears of his own to form.

"I'm scared," Draco whispered, and they both fell apart.

Draco immediately covered his face with his hands, ashamed of his tears and his childlike confession. Harry practically lunged at him, a sob escaping his throat. He sat next to Draco and took him in his arms, holding him tighter than ever before as Draco buried his face in Harry's neck and clutched his sleeves with white-knuckled fists.

"Put your arms around me, love," Harry whispered.

As soon as Draco's arms were secure around his neck, Harry slid an arm under his thighs and lifted him up off the bed and into his arms. He walked around to the side of their bed and sat down, stretching them both out so that their legs were entwined and Draco's head lay heavy on his chest. The blond continued to cry softly, and Harry kept murmuring words of comfort to him, making him feel safe and loved.

I'm sorry, Draco would say, and Harry would say, You've nothing to be sorry for.

I love you, Draco would say, and Harry would say, I love you too. Then Draco would ask him why. Harry couldn't answer; he just held on tighter and pressed kiss after kiss to the top of Draco's head.

It didn't take long after Harry began running his fingers through Draco's hair for the blond to fall asleep. Harry didn't follow him for a long while; he kept stroking Draco's hair, watched the moon fall into the window frame and pass out of it again, and listened to the cars passing outside against the cadence of their breathing. When his eyelids began to droop, he Accioed their blanket and covered them, just before sinking into sleep.

********************************************************

Harry woke slowly, but he could tell right away that Draco had left their bed. It was too small for him to be curled up on the opposite side, especially with the way Harry sprawled out over it, a quirk which Draco often complained about but one for which he never suggested a change. He was surprised, then, when he felt the soft touch of a hand stroking his foot, and he rolled over to look at Draco.

Fully dressed and looking as though he had been up for hours, the blond sat on the end of their bed, legs crossed in front of him, gently stroking Harry's foot. He looked up when Harry rolled over, and raised the phone from his lap briefly before setting it back down.

"The nurse called." Draco held the phone in his lap, like it was his only remaining lifeline, but the rest of him seemed calm, relaxed, much better than he had been yesterday.

Harry sat up and rubbed at his eyes, forcing the sleep out of them as he reached for his lover. "Draco?"

The blond looked at him with a genuine smile, a little sad around the edges, but a smile nonetheless. "She says the results are in; I thought if we hurried we might be able to get this whole thing done and then have lunch in the city. Does that sound okay to you?"

Harry nodded, relieved to hear that for the first time in six months, Draco was planning something for the future. Their future. And short or long, their future was theirs. Harry smiled back at him and Draco leaned in for a short kiss. When they parted, Harry said, "I love seeing you smile."

Draco blushed and rose from the bed. "Get up, lazy," he said quietly before turning and walking into the kitchen.

Ten minutes later, Harry emerged from their bedroom having taken the quickest shower of his life and thrown on whichever clothes he happened to grab from the floor. In the kitchen, Draco handed him a cup of coffee and shook his head as he pulled Harry's shirt off, turned it right-side-out and slipped it back over his head.

"You're a mess."

Harry smiled. "I know. Ready?"

Draco nodded and kissed his cheek. "Ready as I'll ever be, I suppose."

They walked a little closer than they had on their previous trip to the clinic, and their shoulders brushed every so often. Harry's hope was rising with each one of their steps. Draco had been almost himself this morning.

They finally rounded the corner of the clinic's street and Harry sucked in a deep breath. When they got to the doors, Draco stopped dead in the clinic's entrance and closed his eyes. Harry felt the tug on his hand and turned.

"Draco? Are you okay?"

The blond was taking small breaths, careful not to let his anxiety turn into panic. "Will you stay?"

Harry took Draco's face in his hands and kissed him gently. "Yes, of course."

Draco opened his eyes and smiled his sad little smile again. "Then yes, I'm okay." He opened the clinic's doors and pulled Harry in behind him.

The nurse spotted them right away and practically ran to make her apologies. Draco silenced her with an acceptance. "Yes, you're sorry, and it's fine. I'd really like to get this over with now if you don't mind."

She nodded sheepishly and led them back to the same cubicle as yesterday. A large, white envelope sat dead centre on the desk, and all three pairs of eyes were on it as they sat down.

The nurse placed the envelope in Draco's hands, and the blond looked at it as if it might jump up and bite him, regardless of the fact that it was just as white and sterile and lifeless as the room around them. Draco turned his head away and pushed the envelope in Harry's direction, but Harry's heart was beating just as quickly, and he knew he couldn't do it either. He shook his head and nudged Draco's hands back over.

"You do it, Draco…I…can't…"

Draco held onto it for a few more minutes, fiddling with the edges, running his thumb underneath the flap and pulling it back out again. Finally, he looked up and held the envelope out in front of him. The nurse, who had been awkwardly trying to give them the illusion that she wasn't there, looked shocked at this.

"Me?" she said incredulously.

"Yes," Draco replied, as sincerely as he could manage. "Please."

She nodded, wide-eyed, took the envelope and looked back and forth between the two of them as she opened it. Draco's hand came down next to Harry's thigh, seeking out his touch; Harry grabbed his hand and squeezed gently. I love you.

The nurse's eyes scanned the paper and a smile blossomed on her face. "Negative."

Harry let out the breath he'd been holding, relief and happiness filling his gut, and he turned to look at Draco. The blond was just staring at the nurse, blinking rapidly. "Are you sure?" he asked.

She grinned and said, "Positive." Her eyes and Draco's widened at the same time and she groaned. "Oh God…I mean, yes I'm sure you are negative."

Draco smirked at her and then he laughed. A real laugh, full and happy and so full of energy; it was a sound Harry had sorely missed. He turned to Harry and kissed him over and over again, little presses of his lips to Harry's face, sloppy off-target kisses that spoke of his immense relief more than he ever could with words. He even stood and pulled the nurse to her feet, gifting her with one of those kisses as well. She blushed and giggled, and handed the envelope to Draco.

"I'm glad," she said, "and I hope you'll both be very happy together."

Draco smiled and slipped his arm around Harry's waist. "We will be, thank you."

Harry was stunned. In the blink of an eye, he had Draco back, his Draco, the one he had fallen in love with, the one he couldn't imagine living without. He laughed, earning him a look from the nurse and his lover, but he brushed them off and took Draco's arm to lead him out of the clinic and into their lives.

They walked out of the doors and into the sunshine, and two seconds later Draco yanked Harry into an alley and started sucking on his neck.

Harry gasped in shock and pleasure, but his gasp melted slowly into a moan and he gripped Draco's arms to pull him closer.

"Maybe…oh God…maybe we should just…skip lunch…fuck…and go home…"

Draco broke away from his neck mid-lick and gave him a playful grin.

"Hah, there's no way you're getting out of paying the lunch bill, prat. You're buying me the biggest, fanciest lunch in town and then we're going home and you're going to shag me until I can't see straight." Draco ended his retort with a searing, tongue-filled kiss, and Harry groaned, six months worth of unresolved tension melting away from all his muscles to pool in his groin and send his heart racing.

When he tried to push Draco back against the wall and grind against him, the blond laughed and eased out of his arms. He pressed his hand to the front of Harry's jeans and squeezed as his mouth worked on forming a beautifully-coloured love-bite just underneath Harry's ear. "Save this up for later; I want to love you for days." Draco stepped back, his composure falling neatly into place while Harry whimpered and panted across from him. "Plus, I'm starving to death. You haven't been forcing me to eat properly, and I'm practically skin and bones over here. Some boyfriend you are."

Harry let out a happy little sob. "God, I missed you," he whispered under his breath. Draco turned from straightening his clothes to look at him.

"What?"

Harry smiled. "Nothing, let's go eat."

They started walking down the street, hands brushing every other step, when Draco turned and gave him a little frown and muttered something about "thick Gryffindors" before taking Harry's hand in his own. "Now, didn't you mention something about taking me on a nice long holiday wherever I wanted?"

Harry grinned. "I think those were the conditions for you to come out of the bathroom."

Draco pouted. "Oh. Does that mean I have to lock myself in again when we get home?"

Harry laughed and kissed him right in the middle of the street. "How about if you never lock yourself away from me again I'll take you on that holiday?"

Draco grinned and kissed him back. "Now that's something I can do." He squeezed Harry's hand in his own and continued walking down the street into a future ahead of them that was by no means guaranteed to be good, but would at least be theirs.