Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its contents, and I'm not making any money off this.
A/N: This isn't properly British.
Out of the book, into the fire. Harry doesn't know what's come over him; he's warm all over and he's sweating too much. He feels like his stomach is doing flips, and his heart's beating too loud; he needs it to stop. The rushing blood is overtaking his eardrums, and he needs those to keep track of Ron's steady breathing; no one can catch them.
But Tom's too calm for that. Too cold for worries. He slips between the curtains of Harry's four-poster bed, and pulls them shut behind his full, solid body. It's fleshed out and it's opaque, and Harry still isn't sure how that's possible. Tom says, "Shh, don't worry," and Harry trusts.
Tom's just a memory, just words on a page. He listens to Harry, understands Harry, talks to Harry when there's no one else to turn to. He's strange and he's exotic, pale and handsome, and he slithers under Harry's covers like he was made to be there. His arm snakes around Harry's small body, and Tom pulls them flush together, and Harry makes a squeaking noise, but goes. He's never felt this way before, and from what Tom tells him, that's okay.
"It's because we were made to be together," Tom whispers, in a smooth, foreign language that only the two of them understand. Harry's scar tingles when they're together, and there's something in him that feels like a part of Tom. Tom says it's because they belong together. Tom brushes his bangs aside and gently kisses his scar, and Harry lies still and quiet.
Tom settles down beside him, pulling Harry in by the waist, tightly and under the covers. Harry snuggles into Tom's chest and can feel all the magic pulsing under Tom's skin.
Tom strokes his hair gently. Harry doesn't want to sleep. He's tired, though, and his eyes flutter closed against Tom's shoulder. He mumbles sleepily, "I'm so glad I found you, Tom," because he's never felt this safe and right, not with anyone.
"Me too," Tom hisses, and Harry smiles as it tickles his ear. "Me too."
