hd-erised fic claim: thickets
Reveals are here and I can finally spill the beans! Thank you so much to the @hd-erised mods for organising a brilliant fest; to my beta team @thehoneybeet @getawayfox @citrusses for being the most encouraging friends; and of course to @writcraft, my giftee - it was such a joy writing for you. Thank you for the inspiration, and for your wonderful comments!
Thickets | E | 17.3k
Tags: EWE, POV Draco, Drarry in their (late) 30s, artist Draco, ex-Auror Harry, FWB, exes, exes to lovers, minor character illness, parent death, caring for a terminally-ill parent, homophobia, homophobic language, Malfoy Manor, flashbacks, falling in love, smoking, drinking, walking, countryside, painting, magically powerful Harry, pining, miscommunication, portrait Draco, drinking and talking, rain, thunderstorms, forests, nature magic, explicit sex, outdoor sex, semi-public sex, dream sex, forest sex, blow jobs, facials, anal sex, sleeping together, switching, pillow talk, happy ending
When Draco returns to the UK after two decades of building his career as an internationally-renowned artist to look after his ailing, estranged father, he crosses paths with his former flame, Harry Potter, in the most unexpected way.
Harry wanders in and out of view from an upstairs window, pushed open to let the fresh air in. He stops, obviously sensing a stranger in the vicinity of his wards, and Draco grips the handle of his rucksack hard, his head tilted back, his face flushed from the rain and the sun, his lungs tight. It’s as if Draco knew where, exactly, to look. It’s as if he knew, where, exactly, he’d find the still point of the turning world—Harry, who at thirty-nine is rose-golden and everything and too much and at this moment, too close and too far away, somehow. Harry leans out of the window. His hair is as wild and curly as ever, his beard dark. He’s filled out a little, but his glasses are the same, his scar is the same, and his stunned expression is the same expression Draco recognises from a lifetime ago, and when Harry opens his mouth to speak, nothing comes out. Draco feels the magic around him sizzle, then slip off, like a wave approaching the shore only to disappear again. “It’s you,” Draco breathes.
Fic Rec!!!!!
Ahhhhhhh!!!! I had a sneaking suspicion this might be you @wolfpants and I have been itching to see if my instinct was right on reveals. I have said this before in comments on other fics of yours, but I absolutely love, love, love your writing and this was no exception. The cadence of the story was sublime, you have such a talent with words. Both Draco and Harry are beautifully crafted, the story was captivating and immersive from start to finish and it was so easy to just sink into the rich and expansive post-war world you so cleverly created.
Instant rec. If you haven't read this fic yet, please go and read it immediately.
