So you want Dark Mark removal fics

[snowgall]

So you saw the amazing artwork posted to tumblr by Alekina...

 

credit: Alekina

 

...and want to read the fic it's based on, but can't because it's not based off of any existing fanfic. Well, if you just desperately want to read a fanfic where Harry helps Draco change/remove his Dark Mark then I can rec a couple of fics for you:

 

Absolution by dracosoftie, NC-17, 31,000 words (Best of 2010)
Summary: Draco and Harry return to Hogwarts after the war, both struggling with their own issues. Their unlikely friendship blooms into more but is torn apart by circumstances outside their control.

This is not a very angsty fic, but it is a fun and engaging one. It hit almost all of my buttons: 8th year, friendship first, reformed!Draco, the cool bit with the darkmark as a slave bond to Harry, and sex magic! There is some minor inconsistency with how Draco was treated by the powers that be at the end, but overall this is very enjoyable.

Becoming Us (Part 1) by VivacissimoVoce, NC-17, 28,000 words (2013)
Summary: Following the war, Harry Potter and friends return to Hogwarts to repeat their interrupted final year. To everyone's surprise Draco Malfoy returns as well, but something has changed. Harry learns the weighty consequences of being marked as a Death Eater and must decide whether to help Draco escape his past. Non-canon Dark Mark backstory

This is a sweet simple story, with a nice gradual pace to their developing relationship. In this one Draco is trying unsuccessfully to remove the mark, and it's Harry who figures out how best to cover it up (non-magically). Harry doesn't do the cover-up himself, rather he accompanies Draco on his appointments at a muggle tattoo parlor.

 

Those are the two best fics I know of that involve Harry in changing Draco's Mark. If that's not enough for you, I know of two others which are decent reads as well:

 

Watching for a Sign by bsmog, R, 18,700 words (2013)
Summary: Draco tries to cover the Mark, but the results aren’t quite what he’d hoped. Or, perhaps at the end of the day, they’re more like what he and Harry both hoped after all.

He Dreams of Lions by winnett, R, 19,000 words (2007)
Summary: When Harry finds out something terrible might happen to Draco, how far will he go to assure he won't die? Written for HDSBeltane fic exchange.

 

---

 
More in this series:

• Excerpts from eleven new fics inspired by Alekina's art (from the recent fest at hd_remix).
• Fic recs from 'That Picture' flash fest, or: Dark Mark Removal fic recs, part 2

 

Comments

[k3lib3li.livejournal.com]

Damn! I love that pic, do you have a clear copy that i can turn into a wallpaper?

[snowgall]

There's a larger version on the artist's tumblr site (linked with the text "amazing artwork" above). If that's not big enough, you'll have to ask the artist directly.

[sophie-french.livejournal.com]

Ah yes! I love Becoming Us, a wonderful, wonderful fic! <3

[snowgall]

It really is lovely. I was happy to have an excuse to rec it :)

H/D Fen! 'That Picture' Flash Fest is coming!

[livejournal.livejournal.com]

User vaysh referenced to your post from H/D Fen! 'That Picture' Flash Fest is coming! (http://vaysh.livejournal.com/656802.html) saying: [...] It needs fic so bad. All the Dark Mark removal fics [...]

[vaysh]

@ edit: ♥

[this-bloody-cat.livejournal.com]

*coughs delicately* I kind of love your recs. Following you now.

[snowgall]

You're so sweet! I love your collections on AO3. Whenever I see your bookmark on a work, I add it to my 'to read' list :)

[this-bloody-cat.livejournal.com]

Really now? :'D I had no idea anyone even knew I had collections on Ao3 and all of a sudden everyone's talking about them. Yes, yes, make the cat happy...

[snowgall]

Actually I learned that you *could* have bookmark collections by noticing yours. AO3's FAQs and such don't really touch on this. They act like collections are just for fests and such and don't explain that you can set one up just for your own personal playground. So I learned something from you too, and you didn't even know you were teaching a class :)

[this-bloody-cat.livejournal.com]

Hell yeah, the undercover teacher! ♥ *preens*

[ninasafiri.livejournal.com]

Ahh thanks for this!!! I haven't read of any fics that altered the Dark Mark other than beren's The Corruption Sequence so this is a treat <3

[snowgall]

You're so welcome!

And you know, I've read The Corruption Sequence but didn't recall that Harry altered Draco's mark in that, so I really appreciate the reminder. I just now double-checked, and if my reading notes are accurate the mark change doesn't happen until the third work in the series: Alteration. So I guess I didn't think of it as a fundamental part of that series. But it is definitely still a worthwhile read and a classic, so it's great to have this in the comments so someone else can see it and choose to read it if they like.

Thanks so much! And I hope you enjoyed some of these fics as much as I did.