Chapter One Researching a Patient
Healer Draco Malfoy walked down the halls of the St. Mungo's Mental Ward. His crisp white healer cloak billowing behind him in a fashion that reminded him of his godfather Severus Snape. He tucked his shoulder length blonde hair behind his ear as he arrived at door number 18. Here is where the hospitals newest patient was being roomed. Inside, once he opened the door, he saw the same thing that he sees every day. A small fragile little girl sitting on crisp clean white bed staring at the wall farthest from the door. She makes no sound and moves very little is at all. The nurses have to knock her out with a sleeping spell just to clean her and try to give her nutrient potions. But still, every day for a month, he comes here y at the same time to try and get some sort of sound out of her.
"Hello Honey, How are you today?" Draco starts out softly. Because she doesn't talk they don't know her name and the resident therapist thought it bad to call her something she doesn't like to be called so they stick to honey and dear.
"Do you know what today is? Cause I think that Nurse Holly said today was the day that you were going to get a visitor!" he tries to excite her. Draco reaches in to touch her shoulder and she shudders and moves towards the middle of the bed. He makes a mental note to himself that he once again got her to move but only by enforcing physical touching but still no sound.
"You know I really would like to be able to tell your guest your name. That way he has something to call you." Still silence from the little girl on the bed.
"Alright I have to go meet him at the front door But I will be back. Ok?" Draco sighs when he once again receives no verbal or physical response, but there is always tomorrow.
Draco shuts the door to the room silently and lets his thoughts wonder as he makes his way down to the front door of the ward. All that his nurse could tell him about the girls guest is that he is looking to foster a child until the child is ready to be adopted. But that is all. No name. No Number. Nothing. Draco reached to lobby and saw the last person he expected to be in the lobby of his hospital ward.
"Potter What are you doing here?" Draco snarled at the guest. "Finally realized that this is where you truly belong?" He hadn't realized what he was saying until the words were already out of his mouth. Draco eyed harry Potter up and down. Heislookingrealniceinthosejeans.Allthosecurvesjustmakesmewanttothrowhimonethefloorand..WAITwhatamIthinking?ThisisPotterwearetalkingabout. Draco had found out that he was gay in the middle of his seventh year after the war was over. Once his family name was clear he earned his Healers certificate and started working in St. Mungo's Children's Ward. And here he was face to face with his life long enemy.
"Well Draco I am here to foster a patient of yours. The people at the agency told me she in this ward. Do you know where she is?" Harry asked with an air of innocence. He dragged his hand through his shoulder length hair. A nervous habit he picked up since the final battle had ended. BoyhasDracochangedalot.Hishairhasgrowntoo.AndIcanjustseethatthecoathewearsisjustclingingtohisnicefirm...WAIT!Wheredidthatcomefrom?OhBoy! Harry too had found out his preference at the end of the final battle. He started experimenting for a while but nothing really seemed right to him.
"All right …. Harry ... I will show where her room is and will fill you in on the way." Draco said opening the doors to the wards hallway.
"Alright Harry here is the story. This little girl came to me a month ago she was carried in here wrapped in a small ball looking like she could not have been more than 2 or 3 years old." They turned a corner. "We put her in the bed and waited, After three days she woke up and panicked. I mean really panicked we had to sedated her just to calm her down slightly. And ever since then the only kind of reaction that we can get out of her Is when you touch her she tries to move out of the way." They had arrived at the room.
Prepare yourself."
"Alright open the door Draco. I'm ready."
Draco opened the door just as he had earlier that very same day. And the sight that Harry saw was no different than what Draco saw earlier that day. The little girl was still sitting on the bed towards the wall almost as if she hadn't moved.
"Hello Honey, it's me again. Remember? Only this time I brought a guest. This is Harry Potter. He will be bringing you home."
Draco directed Harry to the front of the bed so that he could see the little girl for himself. And what Harry saw almost made him cry. This little girl was just that. By the looks of it she only weighted about 50-60 pounds which didn't seem right for a girl they presumed was 8 years old. Her eyes were a sullen color but showed that they might have originally ben a aqua color. A perfect mix of ice blue and emerald green.
"Hello little one I'm Harry Potter but you can call me"– He paused. What should he have this little girl call him? – "Garnie." He went to touch her shoulder but she once again moved out of the way before the hand could even reach her side. "That's ok we'll deal with that later."
Harry moved out of the way so that Draco could do what he needed for paper work.
" We will have to have a trail period where we check out your house and how you work with her." Draco said looking at Harry who was watching the little girl solemnly. He had a sad look on his face and something inside Draco just wanted to make that sadness go away.
"Well I'll leave you too it and I'll go fill out some paper work." In reality Draco was just going to go watch them through the one way mirror they had in the room, charmed to be unbreakable of course.
Harry took a step towards the little girl.
"Hello Little One. My names Harry." He reached out again hoping for a different reaction… Nothing. Maybe if he actually touched her. No Draco said not to. Talking…. Talking is good.
"Have you ever had a visitor?" Nothing. " You know I am very excited about you coming home with me." Again nothing. "How about we change the colors in here? They are a little ….white …don't you think." And even though he got no reaction from the little girl he changed the color anyway. The walls went from a hospital white to a nice pale blue to match the color of what he thought her eyes were.
She moved. Only a fraction, but if you were looking for it you saw it. Harry almost cried. And on the other side of the wall/mirror Draco stood up from his chair and waited with bated breath.
"Did you like the color Little One?" He changed it again. This time to a light pink that some little girls adore. Her face changed only slightly but if you looked you saw it...the look of disgust. Harry smiled and then slowly got up from his chair and charmed the walls to change every few seconds to a different color. He nearly ran into Draco running out of the door.
But although he hasn't played in years Draco still has all of his seeker reflexes and managed to catch Harry and turn so he fell on the bottom. WowheislighterthanIthought.SomethingIcouldgetusedtocarryingaround… WAITcan'tthinkthatheisgoingtobeleavingandmostlikelynotcomingback. But still Draco made no effort to remove Harry from his person.
In all of the excitement Harry ran right into Draco and did not seem to mind at all. WowheisstrongIcan'tbelievethathestillhastherelfexes.AndhishandsaresoslimIwounderwhereelsethosehandscould...NO!NO!Thisiswrongsovery.StopthisHarryrightnow!
"Harry!"
"Draco!"
The two said simultaneously, still not getting up the position on the floor.
"Did you see that?" Harry asked excitedly. He had never been so over joyed since... well never.
"Yes I did I can not believe that you finally got a reaction out of her... Wait what did you call her?"
"Little One. It seemed like a better title than honey or dear."
"Brilliant." Draco agreed. "Well I see that you will have no problem with her so I will go get the paperwork. Why don't you come with me?"
"Alright."