Hey guys! So, I know some of you will recognize this story. Yes, I haven't updated in like 8 months, *cringes* I'm sorry! I just lost all motivation for this! But recently, it has come back into my mind and I haven't been able to get it out.
So, to those of you who have read this before, there are some changes you should be informed of. If you aren't a returning reader, well, sit back and cruise on through, except for the warnings at the bottom. Please do read those.
Returning readers, please note: I have decided to rewrite Iron Heart. I didn't like where it was going, which is another reason why I had stopped this. The majority of this chapter is the same, but I must inform you that this is NOT a Drarry fic. NO SLASH WHATSOEVER. Sure, friendship, but no romance. If I decide on romance it will be with other characters. You can leave a note saying who you would like Draco or Harry to end up with. But please don't say each other.
What I'm trying to saying is: Sorry Drarry Lovers.
Warnings: At times, this story will get very graphic and disturbing. Besides strong language, there is going to be a lot of child abuse (physical, mental, sexual) If you don't like or feel comfortable with blood or pain, then don't read this. There also will be cutting/self-mutilation and harm in this story and guaranteed violence. I will tell you in an author's note before each chapter what warnings there will be in the content ahead of time, so you don't have to read the chapter if the description of warnings makes you squeamish. You have been warned.
Warnings for this individual chapter: Physical abuse (slapping, kicking, etc.) slight hints of sexual abuse, light language
Mistaken spirit, broken heart, hiding pain that should never have start.
Iron Heart
The Hogwarts Express arrived in the station, and too soon for Harry's liking, he was saying goodbye to his friends. Sighing, he stepped off the platform, searching the crowd for his uncle. His eyes scanned the crowd. There was Cho Chang going off with her mother, the Weasly clan bobbing up and down in a sea of red. Ron turned towards him and gave him a wave, which Harry gave back but with a little less enthusiasm. How could he be enthusiastic? It was summer and he had to spend most of it with the Dursley's. Not only would Harry serve as a punching bag for Dudley when he got bored, but he would most certainly be subject to his uncle Vernon's wrath. Ah yes, he was ecstatic.
The green-eyed boy finally spotted his uncle. Then he was struck with the thought, how could he have missed him? Harry knew that his eyesight was poor, but not that bad. There was the great purple-faced Vernon Dursley, standing, well, appearing to be squatting because of his excessive weight, near the brick wall. He was impatiently twirling his car keys around his stubby finger; his watery eyes scanning the crowd like Harry had been doing not long ago. Sighing, Harry stepped towards his fate with one last longing glance around.
What he didn't expect was to lock eyes with another person. Green clashed with silver, piercing into each other. Harry was shocked to find that their eyes held similar emotions: fear and dread. But for what? Harry looked at Draco Malfoy and a tall blonde man that Harry knew as Lucius Malfoy put a hand on Draco's shoulder. Draco winced almost unnoticeably, but Lucius and Harry both caught it. With a last glare towards the unruly black haired boy, the platinum blonde turned and followed his father out. Harry felt a hand clamp down on his own shoulder. He jumped about a mile, turning himself to find his whale-like uncle before him.
"Hurry up, boy, I haven't got all day," he growled, dragging Harry towards the car. Harry suppressed an eye roll.
"What else have you got to do?" Harry thought it was a decent question, but apparently Vernon didn't. Before Harry could do anything, a meaty hand connected with his cheek, successfully knocking his glasses of his face. Harry silently cursed. Way to go Harry, you set him off early. He bent down to grab his glasses only to receive a kick to the face, or rather, his mouth. Blood swelled inside Harry's mouth. It tasted like iron, or what Harry imagined iron would taste like. He ran his tongue along with teeth, good, they were all there still. He didn't want anybody getting suspicious. He didn't know how many more injuries that were inflicted by his uncle he could pass off as Quidditch injuries. Speaking of Quidditch, what happened to his seeker reflexes? He must be getting rusty, Harry thought to himself, or he might have been able to dodge the blows. Damn, that's just what he needed, not being as attentive as usual, and just in time for the summer!
"Are you going to stay down there all day? Get up already!" Vernon rumbled, grabbing Harry's already messy hair and pulling upward. With a cry, Harry was effectively pulled to his feet. Next, the car door was wrenched open and Harry was stuffed in like a turkey stuffed into an oven. It felt like an oven too, Harry thought lamely, the sun was strong today. The door was closed roughly, narrowly missing Harry's foot, as Vernon climbed, well, tried to climb into the driver's seat. Again, Vernon was faced with challenges because of his size. Not that Harry minded. It made him slower, and since Harry was a naturally fast runner, it helped in escaping his uncle's rage.
Harry watched the world blur outside the window. His uncle was speeding, and absently, Harry hoped that he would get a ticket. He was probably late for a show on the TV again. Or maybe he was having some kind of roast for dinner and needed to get home quickly so he could devour it. Both options seemed likely to Harry, but this wasn't what was on the Boy-Who-Lived-And-Continues-To' mind. What struck him was something other than that.
It had been when he and Malfoy had made eye contact. It was like they had some sort of understanding, or a connection under the hatred. Was that really so crazy to believe? The way that Draco had looked at his dad…it made Harry almost pity him. Wait, hold up! Draco? Since when did Harry call Malfoy Draco? Oddly, this brought Harry back to his first year when Ron had laughed at Malfoy's name. Sometimes Harry wondered what would have happened if he had accepted Draco's hand. Harry sighed. No, he had amazing friends, and he wouldn't want to be near someone like Draco. That git, Harry told himself, had been making his life hell since first year. Yes, he would definitely stay away from him. So why did he feel a tug in his heart at this?
Harry was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice the arrival of the car in the driveway to the Dursley's. A smart rap on the window Harry's head was resting on shook him up. He sprang up, seeing his uncle glaring at him through the window.
"What's taking you so long?"
Harry sighed. It couldn't hurt to be cheeky. He already had a guaranteed pounding awaiting him. He might as well have some fun with this.
"Sorry, I was contemplating the existence of the universe," he said cheekily, scooting over to the opposite door and opening it up to safely exit the car. Luckily for Harry, his uncle didn't seem capable of wrapping his pea sized brain around his words. He shrugged before grabbing Harry by the ear, which hurt very badly Harry noted, and again began dragging him towards the house.
Once inside the house, Vernon pulled him up the stairs. While he was fumbling with the keys to Harry's bedroom, Harry took a moment to look around. It was the same house that he had lived in all his life. Pictures of a fat Dudley harassed the walls. Dudley going to Smeltings, Dudley trying to ride a bike, Dudley holding a baseball bat…Harry shuttered. Then there was all of Petunia's artifacts, such as fancy floral vases, or the porcelain cat that gave Harry chills. The cat sat on a table in the hallway. Its eyes seemed to follow him whenever he moved. Vernon invaded the house with his impeccable smell. Harry realized that if someone was looking on the outside, they would never know Harry existed.
Vernon had finished with the keys, forcefully grabbing Harry and shoving him in the room. It wasn't much, a cot was in the corner with a few dirty rags that served as blankets. A single small window showed the rest of the monotone neighborhood, but for Harry, it was an escape. At night he would stay up when he was too scared to fall asleep and stare at the stars and the big night sky. It never ceased to amaze him how big this world really was, and that some other person was staring at the exact same moon as he was.
"Don't even think about trying anything. No dinner for you tonight," Vernon smirked evilly, causing Harry to whimper. With a final kick aimed towards his skinny shins, his uncle was gone, leaving his nephew crumpled on the ground. Outside in the hallway laughter could be heard. Harry dragged himself over to the cot and pulled himself up into a sitting position. He started to inspect his wounds.
This was nothing. Harry suspected that he had a few bruised ribs judging by how it hurt to breath, much less move at all. He pulled up his shirt to reveal a few black and blue splotches already forming. Oh yes, there was definitely a few bruised ribs. Harry winced, rolling up his pants. Skin on his shins had been scrapped off from the kick he had received. Harry absently dabbed at the blood with his shirt sleeve. That would scab by tomorrow. His glasses had a crack in the upper right, which was quite distracting, Harry found. Whenever he tried to look at something, like his bleeding shin, for instance, his eyes would be attracted to the little silver crack.
Harry figured that he should just lie low until tomorrow. He was sure that there would be a long list of chores to complete. He knew that he should sleep, but he was scared. What if Vernon came back later in the middle of the night like he sometimes does. He shuttered at the thought of his back being pressed against the cot, the only sound being his uncle's heavy panting.
The boy keeled over on himself, attempting to block out the world. If only the magical world could see their hero now, Harry thought dryly. Defeated Voldomort as a baby but beaten by a mere muggle. What infuriated him was that everyone, apart from the Weasley's and Hermione, thought that he lived like a king, everyone at his beck and will. No, that was probably Draco Malfoy. He probably lived in paradise in his big house. If only Malfoy knew how Harry really lived, maybe he would let up on the teasing a bit.
The day passed, and the smell of dinner tortured Harry's nostrils. At times, Harry was positive that his uncle put food just outside his door so that the smell would waft through the cracks. Unable to sleep, Harry perched himself on his cot and gazed out the window. The stars were splattered across the sky like someone had used silver paint and a tooth brush to scatter them everywhere. The stars were free. They could shoot across the sky or choose to stay stationary. It was their choice. They had options. They weren't trapped.
Against his will, Harry's eye lids drooped. The last thing he thought was how the stars matched Draco's eyes.
Thanks for reading the first chapter! I promise the next one will be up soon, and please please please leave a review if you would like this to continue. I lost motivation once and I don't want it to happen again!
Oh, and please don't be mistaken: if there were hints of Drarry, they were unintended :/