99,146 words. NC-17. Harry/Draco, with a mild shot of Harry/Tonks. In Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts, he must face the consequences of the attack on the Department of Mysteries and the effects of Voldemort's return. And in doing so, he finds that even your enemies can teach you valuable lessons - about the world, and about yourself. As usual, this work of fiction is based on characters and situations from the books created and owned by J. K. Rowling, various publishers, et al. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. I could not have written this fic without the incredible aid of the HP Lexicon. And the title, taken from a beautifully articulate post of Aja’s, is all hers. Thanks go to frowl.org for hosting me, and to Christy (moondanger) for her invaluable input. Moreover, I owe eternal gratitude to Susan (idees_fixes), the best beta-reader and consultant anyone could ever want. I could not have done this without her. And to Aja and Reena, whose belief in these boys is inspiring, but whose belief in me is even more so: this is for you. [ one | two | three | four | five | six | seven | eight | nine | notes ] [ please review here or e-mail me ]