Try Again (H/D drabbles, G)

[sesheta66]

Title: Try Again
Author: sesheta_66
Rating: G
Word Count: 100 (x 3 drabbles)
Challenges: hd100's prompt of "war."
Summary: The end of the war opens up a world of possibilities.
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are not mine. They belong to JK Rowling and her publishers. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.



No more war, Harry thought. He listened to the celebrations around him, but just couldn't bring himself to join in. Yes, he was relieved it was over. Yes, he was glad Voldemort was finally gone. Yes, he was pleased that most of the Death Eaters and other followers had been either killed or rounded up, so they couldn't avenge their master.

But everyone had paid the price, a high price. Loved ones were lost, ideals shattered, friendships ruined.

As that last thought poured over Harry, he thought back to a potential friendship that was ruined before it had ever begun.

---

Harry excused himself from the celebration outside and went back into the school, into the Great Hall where he had seen the Malfoys huddled.

"Draco, may I have a word?" he asked. Draco looked up at him in surprise, but nodded his assent.

"You will not harm my son!" Lucius said, getting up and looking ready to continue the war with Harry right there.

"Relax," Harry responded. "I just want to talk to him."

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"You don't, but given the circumstances, I'd say it's fairly likely I am."

"Father, never mind. It's fine."

---

"What did you want, Potter?" Draco said, his tone defeated.

Harry smiled at his former rival, the young man he had made it his mission to hate, the young man who had been a thorn in his side for so long. "Friends?" he asked, as he held out his hand in greeting. When he received a gaping stare in response, he elaborated. "Nearly seven years ago, you offered your hand in friendship, and I turned you down. War ... a lot has happened since then, and I thought perhaps we could try again."

Smiling, Draco took Harry's hand in his own.

Comments

[ruinithil.livejournal.com]

Aww, brand new start H/D <3

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

I love a new start for the boys. *curses the epilogue*

And welcome back into the fray! You've been missed. *smooches*

[ruinithil.livejournal.com]

Stupid epilogue *glares*

And thanks so much <3 :)

[starongie.livejournal.com]

Aws. <3
See. A hand shake would have has such a poetic touch to their relationship in the ending. Fucking Jo.

[svgurl.livejournal.com]

aww, this was so good. a new beginning for our boys. i hate that we didn't get any interaction from h/d. JK was taunting us, with so much nice h/d interaction. and we barely got a closing. :(

at least there are wonderful writers like you who give us better endings than she did. :D

wonderful fic! :)

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

I need in on this...

*kicks the epilogue*

There. I feel a little better.

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

What a hopeful new start! *sighs* I love the boys so very much.

[ruinithil.livejournal.com]

*laughs* I think the epilogue is pretty bruised up by now, yeah?

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

*giggles* - that it is!

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

*grins* - I agree. I suppose she thought a curt nod was enough?

I just read all the 'good stuff' in the nod ... and I'm filling in the nineteen years with what SHOULD have happened (er ... minus the angsty ones which I write ... I don't really WISH for that ... I just like writing angst).

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Thanks ♥

Well, there was the curt nod at the end. *rolls eyes*

*blushes* - aww, thanks!

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

*grins* - I love our boys too. And they're soooo meant to be together.

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

*nods frantically*

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

Yes, but I never tire of kicking it.

*kicks it again, for good measure*

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

*laughs maniacally*

It deserves kicking. Really, it does. I mean, wtf was the point of it anyway? Bah!

[drgaellon]

NICE. You're so good at conveying a lot in few words.

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much.

Brevity has never been my forte, so I'm glad I seem to have improved in that area. ♥

[kaykayen.livejournal.com]

Very nice.

A curt nod was sooo lame... We all know it should have been a handshake as a beginning to so much more.

[charmed310.livejournal.com]

*WEEEEEPSSSS!!!*

Oh, and the icon!!!! Are there more?????

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

I know! I'm so not a fan of the epilogue. J.K. was totally pleased with it, though, and I was really happy for her because, well, it's her baby, after all.

BUT! I just can't like it. I've said this all before in my review of DH, but I thought the book was much more powerful ending with the chapter directly before the epi. So, as happy as I am for Jo's happiness, I still kick the epiloge whenever I can.

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

Lame, indeed. But in my world (which you're welcome to visit), the nineteen in-between years held so much more than nods & handshakes. *grins*

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

*hands you tissue* - but it's not sad ... it's hopeful, right?

Check out this link (http://community.livejournal.com/potterpuff_fans/tag/harry/draco) to see other Harry/Draco Potterpuffs.

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Heh. I just found that she wrote seven fabulous books (say what you want about some parts of some of them, and inconsistencies ... I still loved them all), and then ... then ... well, what was that? Not from a Harry/Draco context, but when compared with the calibre of the writing up until that point. It felt flat, dull, boring. I realize that the action was over, and that it was meant to be a wrap-up, but still.

Ah, well ... I just finished listening to the entire series again on audiobook, so I'm set to read the seventh book again - it'll only be my second full read (I've gone back & skimmed over some parts, but I've only read it through once). Maybe the epilogue will grow on me.

[ravenqueen55.livejournal.com]

I know; I felt the same way. It felt out of place with the rest of the series; disjointed.

I have to reread it again soon. I hope now that I know what happens, I won't be so thrown by those last few pages!

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

I just wanted to say that you have such a good use of voice in this. The whole sequence is lovely, but you've really captured the characters' vocal tones as they would be at this point. I also support you in your abuse of the epilogue, as is only proper.

[winter-june.livejournal.com]

You know, your fic gives a closure to the story (the circle comes to the end) and at the same time opens everything to the future in a way far, far better than the original. Not only for the shake of slash-lovers, but for the whole series of books, this should have been the end of them.
And when I say that, I mean it should be the 'final' end, without any kind of epilogue (epilogues should be for readers to make as a law).

[gurliemoviegeek.livejournal.com]

Hooray for both brand new starts and your lovely writing!

Thanks so much for sharing!

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for reading & commenting. Oh, and for your support of my abuse of the epilogue. *grins*

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Oh, what a perfect icon!!!! Damn, I wish I had room for more. May I scoop & use as a pic within it?

Thanks for your lovely comments. Much appreciated. ♥

Epilogues are all well and good when they aren't just there to patch things up and wrap them in a little bow to appease the masses (sorry ... that's just how I viewed this one). It didn't seem to really DO anything. To me, it just didn't add value ... there was nothing in it that made me go, "hmmm" - whether in a good or bad way. It just did NOTHING for me, and fell far short of the standard JKR set for herself in the seven books. Now, if it actually told us something, that'd be okay. It seemed like a few pages of " ... and they all lived happily ever after - the end," y'know?

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Thanks, hon. ♥

[lackofmendacity.livejournal.com]

Awwww... what a hopeful new beginning. :) And such a nicer turn of events than in DH. *nods firmly* :D

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Mmm ... I like this better than the epilogue. Most definitely. *nods along with you*

Thanks ♥

[winter-june.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Of course, the icon is all yours to do what you like. I know about not having room for them, because I've a basic account (and really don't want to give LY any money updating the it). I stored the lot in my IJ (http://winter-june.insanejournal.com/profile/) page, and change them as I need them, which is the reason they change to the default after a few days.

As a rule, I don't like epilogues. I don't want them. I’d like the possibility of make my own finals, or better, my own ‘go ons’. I think that universal characters (from Sherlock Holmes, to Alice, to Jim Hawkins, to Harry Potter & Cia) evolved to belong to the public, leaving behind their creators. By giving them this kind of end, JKR established her total property over them (which is her right, when all is said) but I feel cheated, 'stolen' of something I've feel was a little mine to play with. I can simply go on as if the epilogue wasn't there, but it is not the same not knowing than forgetting. Forget implies a conscious effort from me, and it's something I've preferred not having to do.*sigh* But if I don't have another option, I'll use my selective memory for good. Fics like yours are really what all of us need.♥

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Thanks much. To whom do I give credit if asked? Is it yours, or did you scoop it from elsewhere?

Thanks again for your lovely comments. ♥

[winter-june.livejournal.com]

I make it from photomanip of two Shutterstock Archive photos here (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2354/1518928310_aef80fe5c1.jpg?v=0/) and here (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2383/1518073509_92e8e1c960.jpg?v=0/).

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Nice job.

[thrnbrooke.livejournal.com]

That would make a fantastic scene in a chaptered story! *grin*

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Hmmm ... *ponders* - I have a post-DH fic that I've been neglecting ... perhaps this would fit. Thanks!

[starongie.livejournal.com]

Bleh. Because they had fucking too much subtext in the Sixth Book that she had to ruin it with a Ginny/Harry Kiss "Relationship", and then a Handshake would have helped too many pervy minds with all the adultery and stuff.
She annoys me now. Fanfiction rules, the books, well, they aren't close to being my cup of tea anymore.

XD Exactly. I can't wait to read that, (or have you already posted?) I'm lacking on understanding LJ and it's updates, learning, but there's too much fanfiction to be read and I'm lazy.

AH. ANGST IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL.
It makes me feel warm and sad and just beautiful writing, our angst. <3

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

Heh. C'mon ... we wouldn't be here if it weren't for her & her books to begin with, right? Don't be too hard on her. I definitely don't like the epilogue, and the only person I know personally who did like it is my son ... but after all, it's not the adults she's writing for, right?

As for good fanfic, I absolutely enjoy it. In fact, the seventh book sounded like a strung-together group of fanfic pieces! I kept reading it thinking, "Hey, I've read this before." Hee!

I've started "The Missing Years" series, which fills in the nineteen years. However, I got really busy with fic exchanges & put it on the back burner. I should be posting an update this month sometime (I've posted one, and have started the second, but still have 11 birthday fics to do). Here's the link to part 1 (http://sesheta-66.livejournal.com/68772.html) which I wrote back in July. I definitely have NOT abandoned it!

The angst one I was talking about is a one-shot I did last month with no happy ending. It's called A Hero's Life (http://sesheta-66.livejournal.com/83730.html) and was done for the dracoharry100 bi-monthly challenge.

All my fics are on my LJ, by the way, and I try to keep the 'tags' up-to-date, so any series/sequels can be found easily ... plus I put links to the next fic at the end of each, so you can go from one to the next. I haven't yet organized my fics enough to have a quick link, but that's the plan. I too like the 'easy click' or 'direct me to your fic' route on LJ. *grins*

[starongie.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm not being as hard as I COULD be.
But yesh. I do thank her for all the fanfiction her stories gave out.


ACK> EXACTLY.
I was reading Published Fanfiction.
And it wasn't even the type I wanted too.
-eyes-
ARE JOO READING MY MIND?

And. XDD
I'm talking to people who have sons.
Damn. I feel young. Sadly young. Tsk. <3

EEEE.
I LOVE IT WHEN PEOPLE LINK ME STUFF.
I do. I do, I do.
Need a beta?
Hell, ANYONE need a Beta?

<3 Maybe I should link you to Lighting's?
BUT. How do you link to a member? You know, how you did for the dracoharry100?

^_^
Can I friend you? I mean, siriusly?

[sesheta-66.livejournal.com]

I'm talking to people who have sons. Damn. I feel young. Heh. You don't wanna know how old they are. Seriously. And I'm not advertising it either, so no need to ask. ;)

No need for beta ... got lots, though I only use for fic exchanges generally ... you can post on any of the comms that you'd be interested & there are also beta sites where you can put forward your willingness (some test their betas too).

Linking to a member: replace squiggly brackets with 'less than' and 'greater than' signs: {lj user="LJUSERNAME HERE"} if you are in html mode. If you're in rich text mode, highlight the name/text and there's an icon you click to indicate it's a link.

Friend away, but if you're under 18 don't be offended, but I won't friend you back, because on the rare occasion I f-lock something, I need to know I'm only posting to over-18s. Most of my stuff isn't locked anyway.

[starongie.livejournal.com]

Not asking. ^^
Ah, lucky. I need to start advertising my beta-compaign soon enough. I will keep that in mind.

So that's how you do it, I've been wondering. Thanks.
Eck. I'm not in the mood to talk, so...yeah. xD

Ohs, don't worry, you can friend me back. =)