A Cup of Tea, Please

15 | Misunderstood

As Harry expected, things between him and Draco were rather awkward after what happened. But to take their minds off of it, Harry introduced Draco to other parts of the cafe that he'd been hiding as a surprise.

But the thing that really seemed to capture Draco's attention was the section of the cafe where there were owls and cats free to roam around the room as you ate. Although Harry wasn't very interested in it, he decided to stay in a separate room from the rest of the cafe area with Draco so that he could obsess over the 'fucking adorable things' without being scrutinised by customers, which Harry scoffed at.

But Harry couldn't lie, seeing Draco cuddling the tiny kittens in his lap and mindlessly stroking the owls as they sat on his shoulder did warm his heart a bit. Just a bit. He hadn't expected Draco to have such a soft spot for animals but it was a precious sight to see.

It was so natural the way in which Draco instantaneously charmed any animal that crossed his path. Or maybe that's what the cafe animals were trained to do, though if that were the case, it didn't make any sense to Harry why some of the cats ran away from him yet decided that Draco was the perfect cushion.

"Don't you wanna move on?" Harry asked as he looked down at Draco, who was tethered to the ground by a pile of fuzzy cats.

"You're just jealous that they love me more," Draco remarked, gently running his thumb over the head of one of the tiny kittens.

"Just a bit," Harry admitted, "but we also don't want to spend our whole day here, do we?"

"I wouldn't mind." Draco's voice was softer and lower as he said his words, conscious of the fact that some kittens were starting to fall asleep.

"But——"

"Keep your voice down!" Draco whisper-yelled, covering the ears of the kitten he had been petting.

"I didn't even say anything," said Harry in a low voice, admittedly jealous of the kittens. Seeing that, Harry yearned for someone who cared about his comfort as much as Draco cared about the cats'. But no, all his friends seemed to prefer spooking him by appearing in the fireplace at the most unexpected times, rather than cuddling him in the freezing depths of Grimmauld Place. "Mind if I join?"

Draco surveyed Harry thoroughly before speaking, "I suppose not. Just make sure you don't wake up the kittens."

Harry flashed Draco a smile as he sat down next to him on the carpet, cross-legged. "I'll try not to."

He watched as Draco scooped a few sleeping kittens into his arms and placed them in Harry's lap with the utmost care as to not disturb them. Despite having scrutinised and criticised Draco's affection towards the cats, Harry felt himself instantly fall in love with the little furballs, smiling at the sight of them curled up on him.

"You see that one?" Draco whispered in Harry's ear, nodding towards a black cat whose eyelids were fluttering. "She's waking up, but she still seems tired. What you need to do is pet her tail—it'll soothe her."

Harry did as Draco instructed, and the cat's eyes closed with a soft purr. In no time, she was fast asleep in Harry's lap alongside her siblings.

"How— how did you know?" Harry asked, turning to look at Draco, who was now caressing an owl's cheek with his index finger.

Draco shrugged. "It felt right."

As Harry started petting another cat in his lap, he heard Draco utter something about wanting a cat under his breath.

"Same," Harry replied.

"You heard that?"

"Yeah. Grimmauld Place is lonely and I don't think I'm ready to bond with another owl just yet . . . it'll feel like I'm replacing Hedwig."