Draco Malfoy wondered in the dungeons of Hogwarts castle. It was like any rainy Saturday afternoon except for one thing that was becoming more and more frequent. He was alone. He wasn't sure what happened, but it had started on the Hogwarts Express at the beginning of term. His friends had been coming up with special ways they could terrorize their classmates since this was their final year, but the thing was, Draco didn't much want to do that anymore. He guessed it had something to do with his summer. He had finally gotten the one thing he had dreamed about for so long. The Dark Mark.
Oh Gods, the pain had been horrible. It was like a hundred Crucios all at once, but it lasted much longer. It had seared for hours, the curse burning inside him where the Dark Lords wand had touched him. Merlin, the things he had seen.
The punishments given to Death Eaters when they disobeyed were so horrible he didn't even want to think about them. He had enough in his nightmares. He had seen innocent people killed, families torn apart, and after that he didn't want to hurt anyone. He wanted nothing to do with the Dark Lord either. He just wanted to disappear and forget about this stupid war. He had already been branded though.
And all the while he was walking towards the kitchens hoping to get some food from the house elves, he knew he should be worried what the Dark Lord would do if he ever found out about his disobedience, or worse, what his father would do, and he should be scared, so scared, but he couldn't because all he could think about was a certain Gryffindor.
No matter what he did he couldn't get things to change with Harry. When he had approached him their first time on the Hogwarts Express all he had in mind was personal gain and friendship, but he had changed now. He had finally realized this summer that the world didn't revolve around him. He had also realized how sexy Harry Potter was.
It had happened in fourth year during the Triwizard Tournament. Seeing him fight that dragon had awakened a feeling he didn't know he had. When that dragon broke its chains and chased Harry out of sight he had gotten so afraid that he would never see him again, and to his horror was actually on the verge of tears. After Harry had flown back insight he was immensely relieved. Eventually he had come to turns with his crush on Harry. Being gay was nothing new, he had known he'd fancied blokes since first year. It probably had something to do with Pansy.
Then he saved that little Dalacour girl. Draco realized how stupid that was, but still. He had thought that girl was in real danger and had risked his life to save her. That was something Draco could never do. Also, the sight of Harry in those tight fitting shirt and trunks, dripping wet and gasping for breath had definitely made an impression on him. In fact, its what had forced him to start wanking.
His feelings for Harry had quickly escalated from there. The hero complex that he had thought so infuriating before had become endearing. As had the way he was always late for class, the way he got flustered when he couldn't find his homework. Everything about him was just… well… adorable. His amazing emerald eyes, the way his hair was always messy in the back, even those horrible glasses, it all made him more adorable. Harry seemed to awaken a sappy part of him that both disgusted and intrigued Draco.
No matter what he did now, he couldn't get Harry to see how he changed. He had messed it up to horribly the previous six years. He wanted Harry so bad that it hurt. Watching him from the distance like a stalker just wasn't enough. He knew Harry was upset because his godfather Sirius Black had recently been killed by Death Eaters. He had seen him crying and it broke his heart. He just wanted to hold him in his arms and tell him everything was alright, and stroke his hair that looked so silky and… oh Merlin, his body was starting to react. Good thing he had lose fitting robes.
To top it all off, he was worried what the Dark Lord had planed for Harry. He only shared those plans with his most trusted servants. He was most certainly plotting and he was angry that he had no way to protect him. 'Though a Death Eater isn't the best protection,' he mused bitterly.
As he rounded the corner to the kitchens still thinking, he stopped suddenly and stared at the scene before him.