Xerxes laughed and Rabastan chuckled.
"It's tradition." Xerxes told him.
"I know, I know. I got the lecture from Lucius. It still doesn't make it fair, though. There's nothing wrong with kissing."
"You two aren't even supposed to be sat next to one another, but luckily for you both, I'm a very lenient man." Both Harry and Rabastan laughed at that and Xerxes joined in.
"Watch it the both of you. I can force you to sit on opposite chairs." Xerxes threatened. "We're bonding." Harry said. "You can't interrupt our bonding!"
Xerxes scoffed. "You're lucky that I like you. You're far cheekier than you have any right to be!"
"You like me this way, don't try to deny it." Harry said with a wide grin.
"I definitely like that smart brain of yours more than the smart mouth."
"I like both." Rabastan said.
Harry laughed and nudged him gently. "I like your mouth too."
"Enough." Xerxes warned them. "You will be confined to separate rooms at this rate." Harry snorted and moved so he shifted his position on Rabastan so that he didn't become too heavy for any one part of Rabastan's body.
It happened in an instant. One moment they were all fine, talking and laughing, the next Rabastan's arm had clenched vice tight around his body and had driven all of the air from his lungs, making Harry gasp in pain and choke for breath.
"I'm so sorry." Rabastan said loudly as he clutched his violently spasming arm tightly with his opposite hand to keep it controlled.
Harry held up a hand and tried to catch his breath back, his one arm around his ribcage to ease away the remaining pain.
"What happened?" Lucius demanded and it was then that Harry realised that Xerxes had sent off a house-elf to get the head of the Malfoy family. "I'm alright." He insisted a little breathlessly as he was still a bit winded. "It was an accident, that's all."
"That wasn't what I asked." Lucius growled out as he crouched down in front of him and pulled his arm away from his ribcage, his wand in his hand as he checked him over for any damage.
"It was nothing." Harry said firmly and with a slight bite. People making this much of a fuss over what had happened would do more harm than good for Rabastan's mental health and his confidence. Harry didn't want that at all.
"There are no broken bones. You may bruise, however."
"I've told you that I'm fine. Rabastan, I could use a drink. Will you accompany me to the kitchen?"
He didn't even give Rabastan the time to answer as he stood up, stepped forward, took his hand and all but dragged the man out of the room and towards the kitchen.
"I am sorry." Rabastan repeated.
"You don't need to apologise. I told you, I'm completely fine, which is why I don't like people fussing over me as if I was smashed in the face with a bludger." He scowled. "I know you can't control it, Rabastan. I know you didn't want to hurt me, so I got angry when Lucius and Xerxes started fussing and demanding what was wrong. I'm sure it made you feel much worse than when you actually squeezed me!"
The averting of Rabastan's eyes told Harry all he needed to know. He moved to snuggle into Rabastan and wrapped an arm loosely around his waist.
"It's alright, Rabastan." Harry assured him. "I still care about you and I still want to marry you." "I don't understand why." Rabastan all but growled. "I'm a mess and I'm not getting any better!"
Harry chuckled lightly and nuzzled his face against Rabastan's robes. Underneath them, he could feel how thin and unnatural his betrothed felt, but he forced himself to ignore it.
"You are getting better and I'm amazed that you can't see for yourself any of the progress that you've made. You're so much better now than you were just four months ago and I'm incredibly proud of you." He said, smiling up at Rabastan and letting him see the stark truth of his words on his face and in his eyes.
Rabastan stopped walking and Harry was forced to stop as well, one of those huge, but almost skeletal hands cupped his face, pressing lightly, but Harry could still feel the strength that was hidden there, belied by its weak and brittle appearance. It was the smile on Rabastan's face, however, that stopped Harry short and his eyes were drawn to that smiling mouth, to those lips.
Rabastan had him up against the wall in the next moment, their bodies pressed tightly together and they were snogging furiously. Harry put his arms up around those shoulders, playing with the dry, straw-like hair at the back of Rabastan's neck.
"Watch you don't get caught doing that."
The two of them sprang apart like naughty boys to see a grinning Rodolphus walking down the hallway towards them.
"Couldn't you have just walked past without saying anything?" Harry groused. "I was enjoying myself."
"I can see that." Rodolphus said seriously. "Rabastan, you know that the betrothal contract doesn't allow this sort of behaviour."
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