Time and time again, Draco and Harry met up in different secluded areas to fulfil Harry's needs of physical connection. It started off slower than the first time; they'd do their homework tucked into each other's sides, sometimes they'd sit across from each other and just tangle their legs together, Draco's hand occasionally reaching across to take Harry's hand and gently run his thumb back and forth across Harry's knuckles while they both read. 

Over the next two weeks that they met, Harry had only kissed Draco again twice. He was angry about something he didn't even remember and as soon as Draco had walked in, he'd grabbed the blond by the tie and pulled him into a kiss with angry tears in his eyes until he'd calmed down.

Following that, Draco made Harry talk it out- whatever had made him upset. He remembered talking to Draco for almost an hour about it, but after they'd dropped the topic, they'd talked for hours. About everything. The war, their own experiences, why they did what they did. Draco also confessed to having been writing out what he planned to say to Ron and Hermione and everyone else as apologies. Harry had wanted to kiss him, but refrained.

That would be kissing out of emotion, not as omega-fixing, which was not okay. He and Draco's relationship was strictly platonic, even though, after confessing to Hermione to where he'd been going for hours at a time, she accused them of 'dating without even each other knowing it'. He'd accused her of being crazy and not understanding their situation and she hadn't brought it up again.

That was the second time Harry kissed Draco. This time, he didn't talk to him about what was bothering him, because he was scared it would scare the blond away. The last thing he needed was Draco going away.

Harry didn't think he liked Draco. Not in a romantic way, as Hermione had implied. It was just pheromones that made him happy to be around the blond at all times. Cuddling while reading through arithmancy, the feeling of Draco's hand atop of his, the way their legs entangled so casually- the kissing, Merlin the kissing. 

Harry was bright enough to admit that he was touch starved. From the Dursleys, from the war- even while he dated Ginny, she was never the close and affectionate type. She didn't really like contact and Harry respected that, despite how much it hurt him. Now, though, he felt the fulfilment of a body next to his. The last thing he wanted to do was lose that. For the first time, he had reliable human contact. Someone who could warm his skin, forever cold from the nerve damage of the many unforgivables cast his way. 

Though, as the days progressed, Harry found himself enjoying the Slytherin's company for more than the body and pheromone comfort. Draco was insanely smart- Rivaled by only Hermione, out of everyone he knew. He cared, he was funny, and he was stupidly sweet. This was Malfoy. Draco Malfoy. Death Eater, son to Voldemort's right hand man. 

And yet, he put effort into squeezing Harry's hands more when it was a particularly cold day and Harry's fingers were so cold they'd hardly move. He helped Harry with homework and essays and studying for tests- and he understood it. Hermione was strictly logical and fact, and that soared right over Harry's head- but Draco had metaphors and analogies he applied, using information that otherwise Harry wouldn't have even thought about to connect it to life experiences and made it suddenly click in Harry's mind. 

And Harry trusted him. 

He trusted Draco with his life. And that's why, with his heat coming the following week, Harry turned to Draco with a horribly embarrassing request. 

"Malfoy?"

"Mm?" Draco looked up from his book, gently running his thumb along the length of Harry's index finger as he had been for the last twenty or so minutes.

"I want to ask something of you, and I... I don't want you to feel like you have to," Harry finally stammered out, his own thumb reaching out to brush against Draco's. 

"Alright. I'd tell you if something made me uncomfortable, and I hope you'd do the same." Draco smiled reassuringly and that alone just made most of Harry's unease melt away. His shoulders were still tight, though, and his face burning. 

Harry nodded, taking a deep breath. "Well, my heat is... It's next week."

Draco nodded, his thumb never stopping. Back and forth, back and forth in a soothing caress. "Mhm."

"You remember how we uh..." Harry ducked his head down, growing a sudden interest in his lap as he realized what he was about to say. "Kind helped each other out?"

Draco's thumb faltered for only a half a second. "Yes. I do recall."

Harry licked his lips, drawing his bottom lip between his teeth nervously. "I wanted to know if you'd... Help me out, again."

"Like the first day, or in the infirmary?"

Sexually or comfortingly?

Harry paused. This was the question. "... Both. Or just infirmary. I... It... Anything helps. Oh, hell, that was too much, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"Harry." Draco squeezed his hand lightly and the Gryffindor froze slightly. "As long as there are... precautions... in place, then I don't mind helping you."

Harry's head shot up, looking for some sort of mocking in Draco's eyes, but found none. Just genuine care- mixed with what he thought was arousal. That was probably just an alpha reacting to the mention of a heat, though- not Harry himself.

Harry wondered why he'd want his friend to get aroused at the thought of him. That wasn't very platonic.

"Precautions?" Harry finally croaked out in questioning. 

Draco nodded. His thumb resumed it's gentle brushing across Harry's skin. "What you want me to do, what's off limits, triggers... Stuff like that. The last thing I want you to do is be even more uncomfortable than you already are."

Harry could have buried his head in Draco's chest and sobbed. No one had cared what his triggers were before, nor what was off limits. They just assumed he was game for whatever. Girls he'd been with- Ginny included- wanted it rough. Harry didn't like that. Didn't want to hurt people anymore. But they insisted, 'c'mon, don't be scared' and goaded him into doing something he hadn't wanted.

He didn't hold it against them. They couldn't have known that Harry was mortally terrified of hurting people. But it was nice that Draco cared- or, at least asked. 

Draco withdrew his hand, and for a moment, Harry panicked that he'd changed his mind and that he'd lost Draco, but the blond alpha just grabbed a piece of parchment and handed it to Harry. "Here. Write down what you're okay with, what you're not okay with, and stuff that might trigger you."

Harry took the parchment, brushing his fingers along the edge of it. "Will you do the same?"

Draco smiled warmly. "If you wish, then of course. Then we'll make a list of things we're both okay with."

After ten or so minutes of the two silently scratching out lists, Harry put the quill down on the table and looked over it a few more times before picking up the quill to scratch his name at the top before glancing over at Draco, who was frowning at his nails. 

"You okay?" Harry asked, nudging him.

"Mm? Oh, yes, I just realized I haven't done my nails in a while."

For some reason, that made Harry laugh as he looked down at his finalized list.

Harry-

OK: Kissing, cuddling, frottage

NO: Penetrative, biting

TRIGGERS: Inflicting pain, being insulted, being hit, being held down, the war, dark magic/spells that I can't hear being cast/spells being cast behind my back

Draco glanced over at his list, resting his chin in his palm as he read it over a few times, finally glancing up at Harry. "Your 'Ok' list and your 'No' lists are pretty short."

Harry flushed slightly. "I didn't want to be presumptuous."

Draco whistled. "Big word, Potter. You've been hanging around me and Granger too much." Harry smacked him while the blond grinned. "Well, I'll ask you some questions then, and you'll write down where they'll go, okay?"

Harry bit his bottom lip as he picked up his quill, nodding. 

"Are you okay with my hands on you anywhere?"

Harry nodded before realizing he was supposed to be writing this down, quickly scribbling down 'hands' under the 'OK' portion.

"What about my mouth on your body? Not anything personal, but like your chest, legs or back? Hickies and/or just mouth?"

Harry found his face flushing a deep red at the thought and with shaking hands wrote 'Mouth- Non-Intimate' under the OK section again. "Everything is okay, as long as you don't bite."

Draco's voice was horribly calm for what he was saying. "That's easy. What about my mouth on more personal areas?"

Harry nearly choked on his words as he asked 'like what' in a nearly broken voice.

"Neck- around your scent glands, prick, arse."

Harry thought about it for a minute. "I... I think around my neck would freak me out."

"Okay. Here, do you want me to-?" Draco gently took the parchment from Harry and started to write. "What about the other two?"

Harry flushed darkly as he licked his lips. "I... I think those are fine."

"If not, you know to let me know," Draco replied easily, as if he weren't talking about giving Harry a blowjob and eating his arse out. "Okay, what about my fingers inside you? I know under 'No' it says penetration, but do you mean fingers or sex or both?"

Harry swallowed, flushing down to the base of his neck. "I... No penetration at all, please. Not from you, at least. That feels too... intimate." Harry's unspoken words were 'If I feel your fingers in me, I'm going to beg you to fuck me, and I don't want to do that while I'm in heat'.

"That's perfectly alright. Obviously, I won't bite you, and I have my mouth around your neck as a no. Does that sound alright?"

Harry nodded weakly. "Yes."

"Right. And triggers- you don't like causing pain?"

Harry shook his head. 

"Good, I've never been one for pain anyways. Being insulted- like, degraded?"

"I don't like it. Makes me uncomfortable and feel gross."

"Alright. Being hit, obviously, I would never hit you, and being held down, I'll avoid that. The war is an obvious no and I'll make sure to enunciate any spells I cast. This is rather simple. Anything else you have, for any of those? I don't want to accidentally upset you."

Harry shook his head. "Everything else is okay. If I find something I don't like, I'll tell you."

"Perfect. Okay, so, does this look okay to you?"

Harry-

OK: Kissing, cuddling, frottage, hands/touching/groping, mouth (non intimate), mouth (intimate)

NO: Penetrative (no fingers or sex), biting, mouth (neck),

TRIGGERS: Inflicting pain, being insulted, being hit, being held down, the war, dark magic/spells that I can't hear being cast/spells being cast behind my back

Harry looked over it several times, checking over the revisions Draco had made before nodding. "It looks good. What about yours?"

Draco seemed to have forgotten all about it. "Right. Well, don't feel pressured just because I put things down that you didn't- I'm just more open. I am a Slytherin, after all."

Draco-

OK: Everything that isn't on 'NO'

NO: Penetrative sex (receiving), claiming/biting

TRIGGERS: The war, Death Eater Talk, restraints/chains, dark magic, threats

Harry felt his face flame red at just how open Draco was, then suddenly realized something. 

"What if I want to do something to you? I don't think that will happen, considering how a heat works, but what are you okay with?"

"Anything you're comfortable with that isn't on my no's list."

Harry flushed a dark red for what felt like the millionth time in the last hour. "Okay."

"Okay. Are you comfortable with everything? Anything I should clarify or should know?"

"No. Thank you, a lot."

"Of course, Harry."

Goosebumps rose up on Harry's arms. Draco only called him Harry during soft moments that he wanted Harry to know he was genuine, and every time Draco did it Harry felt his body seem to speed up every function it had, including breathing and his heart. 

All he could do was smile.