A/N: Hey guys! Here's the next chapter of Escaping Darkness. It's still off to a slow start, but I promise, it gets better! Keep reviewing, and I just might throw a curveball or two as well! Okay, disclaimer and warnings are in chapter 1. You know the drill. Don't forget to review!
I heard music lighting up my darkness
I felt the phrase melt away my sadness
A melody as potent as wine
I let it sweep me out of my depression
I let it point me in a new direction
Breathing hope on this life of mine.
Now who could fail
To let it touch the honesty within them
And who could help
But be comforted inside
It took a harmony to heal the bad times
It took a rhythm to release the sunshine
Even then, it took me so long
To break the silence I'd resigned my life to
To break down barriers I'd shut my eyes to
Releasing me from all that was wrong.
Now I don't try
To understand the way it moves my spirit
That is why
S'pose I'll never know
How a subtle change of key
Can do these things to me
And make me feel, like I feel.
I heard music lighting up my darkness
Felt the phrase melt away my sadness
A melody as potent as wine
I let it sweep me out of my depression
I let it point me in a new direction
Breathing hope on this life of mine.
Breathing Hope by Eleanor Mcevoy
"So who do you think wants you dead?"
It was the day after Harry had been released from the infirmary, under close watch by Madame Pomfrey and a few other professors. Now, he was sitting with Hermione and Ron in the Gryffindor common room, a silencing charm protecting them from prying ears. He had been forced to give them an explanation as to why he had collapsed in the girls' bathroom, of all places. Not wanting their disapproval over his actions, he had told them that he must have been poisoned somehow, and they latched onto that concept without question.
Harry raised an eyebrow at Hermione. "Other than Voldemort," – cringe from Ron – "and his team of Death Eaters, I'm not really sure who that would be," he said sarcastically. Hermione huffed.
"No need to snap at me," she said in an affronted tone. "I'm just trying to be logical here…"
Ron looked at Harry. "She's right, mate. You alright? You've been a little…on edge, lately. Everything okay?"
"Yeah…everything's fine. I'm just tired…"
"You haven't been having dreams again, have you?" Hermione's sharp gaze settled on Harry, who rolled his eyes.
"No, I haven't," he said, trying to hold his temper in check. "Honestly, Hermione. I'm just tired. No dreams. I just need sleep."
Hermione narrowed her eyes, but didn't press the matter, instead once again focusing on Harry's 'poisoning'. "Okay, so it has to be someone in the school, otherwise the wards around Hogwarts would have gone off," she mused. "It's probably a Slytherin…maybe Parkinson, or Nott…"
Ron piped up. "Or Malfoy! He's always hated you…he'd probably jump at the chance to poison you."
Harry shook his head at that. "No, it wasn't Draco," he said. "I know that for su-" He looked at his friends, who were staring at him. "What?"
"Who's Draco?" Ron asked, an odd look on his face. Harry realized his mistake, and fumbled with his words.
"Erm…uh…I meant Malfoy," he said, flushing slightly. Ron's eyes bulged, as his mouth opened to speak. But Hermione beat him.
"Why'd you call him Draco?" she asked suspiciously. Harry sighed, not knowing how to let them know about his and Draco's truce. He'd avoided the subject, knowing that his friends might not like the idea of him and Draco working together.
"Well, Dra-Malfoy and I decided that we were both tired of always fighting. We'd rather put our energy into possibly forming a lasting friendship," he said warily, gauging their reactions. "We called it quits." Silence met his words. But silence is fragile, and something similar to a roar broke said silence.
"WHAT?"
Harry winced at Ron's shout of disbelief. "Ron, calm down," he began, glancing around to see if anyone noticed, but the redhead cut him off.
"This is Malfoy we're talking about, right? Draco bloody Malfoy, Ice Prince of Slytherin, Daddy's boy, ferret extraordinaire…He's made your life bloody miserable, mate, and here you are talking about a truce with him?"
Hermione's face showed she agreed with their hot-tempered friend. Harry scowled at the both of them. "So what?" he said angrily, barely hearing Ron's continued protests. "So he's made my life a living hell. But we are both willing to move past that. And if you ask me, we are more mature than you, for being able to forget past hatred, and just focus on the future. I'm sick and tired of fighting against him. I'd rather waste my energy fighting Volde–oh, grow up, Ron, it's just a name – Voldemort."
Ron stopped mid-rant, his mouth hanging open, at Harry's words. "But…he's…it's…" he spluttered. Harry turned hot green eyes on Hermione, who glanced nervously at Ron.
"Harry, he has a point," she said cautiously. Harry snorted, and crossed his arms. "If you want a friendship with Malfoy, fine, but don't expect us to be all friendly with him either. If you remember, he called me a Mudblood! Still does!"
"I know, but he's not what you think. He's not some cold, heartless ferret. He's just like me," Harry said defensively.
Ron was still seething, and pointedly turned his back. "I'm going to bed," he growled, marching off up the stairs. Harry glanced at the clock. It was almost seven o'clock in the evening.
Hermione watched Ron stomp off towards the boys' dormitory. "Harry, just be careful that Malfoy doesn't manipulate you," she warned. "I don't trust him, and I don't think you should either." Harry grunted, and stood.
"I'm going to walk around a bit," he said shortly. "Be back later." With that, he quickly went up to the boys' dormitory, grabbed his father's invisibility cloak and the Marauders' Map, shot a glare at Ron, then went back down and left the common room.
•••
Once outside in the relative quietness of the corridors, Harry let out a deep sigh. The encounter with his friends had gone exactly as he'd feared. Ron was irate, and Hermione was not very supportive of the new alliance with Draco, although she wasn't stopping it either. At least they've dropped the whole 'poisoning' subject, Harry thought bitterly.
Shaking away the thoughts from his head, Harry kept walking, more to clear his head than to really go anywhere. When he finally roused himself from his semi-stupor, he realized he was near the Slytherin dungeons. Why am I down here? he wondered. On a whim, he glanced at the Marauders' Map, tapping it with his wand and whispering, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good." The familiar map appeared, with various footprints showing where each and every person was in the castle. Harry's eyes roamed the map, when he spotted the name he was looking for. Draco Malfoy. And about to turn the corner.
Harry quickly tapped the map again with his wand, whispering, "Mischief managed," and had just managed to shove it in his robes and appear to just be walking along, when behind him, he heard, "Potter!"
Harry turned, to see Draco walking towards him. "What are you doing down here?" Draco asked, face puzzled. "I normally don't run into Gryffindors on my prefect rounds."
Harry shrugged. "Ron and Hermione were getting on my nerves," he explained. "I told them about our little truce, and they – Ron especially – didn't take it well."
Draco crossed his arms, stopping in front of Harry. "Neither did the Slytherins," he admitted. "They were planning to make your life miserable next week, and I intervened…let's just say Blaise is probably the only loyal one in Slytherin."
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Draco's lips twitched at that. Harry sighed. "They won't drop the whole 'someone's out to get Harry' deal."
Draco surveyed Harry's face. "You didn't tell them the real reason?" he asked, finding that strange. Even stranger was the fact that Harry seemed reluctant to answer that.
"No," the other boy said at last. Draco frowned. Harry looked up at him, and grimaced. "They don't understand, you see…I can't trust them with…with that."
"But you can trust me?" Draco's tone was slightly disbelieving, with a bit of a smirk behind it. "Fancy that."
Harry glared at him. "You admitted that you understand what it's like to live with this misery," he argued. "They have no idea. The one time I trusted them with a hint of my 'self-destructive tendencies' – that's what Hermione calls it – they treated me with disgust, as if they couldn't believe I'd even think about hurting myself. Hermione made sure that I knew that she thought it was selfish of me." His voice was bitter, and Draco felt a pang of sympathy for him. He knew what it was like to have that eating away at you, with no one to talk to.
"You're right. I do understand," he said softly. "I've known people who deal with that." He was not going to share that piece of info about himself with Harry, so he hoped to cover himself with the fictitious 'people'. Yes, Harry had shared his secret, but Draco wouldn't admit his own. He had too much experience with betrayal to let his guard down.
Harry looked down at the ground, sorrow on his features. "I wish they'd understand, the way you do," he said in a quiet voice. "I wish…" I wish they'd be there for me… he thought with a pang of hurt. It made the darkness swell up within him again. That feeling of loneliness…
Draco hesitantly reached out and put a hand on the other boy's shoulder, in a gesture of comfort. "I'll keep your secret," he promised again. Harry gave him a grateful glance.
"Thanks." The corridor was silent for a moment, then Harry chuckled.
Draco quirked an eyebrow. "What?"
"I can't believe that we aren't hexing each other yet," Harry grinned. "It's odd, that my greatest enemy is suddenly the only one who understands me. Yet, I feel like I can trust you, a Slytherin, with this. I have no idea why…maybe it's just 'cause Ron and Hermione aren't there for me right now."
Draco smirked. "Well, you said yourself, you never really put your heart into your 'dislike' of me," he pointed out. "Why shouldn't we be friends? You and I are far more alike than you think. You have many Slytherin-like traits…I think you could have been a fine Slytherin." Harry's grin faltered for a moment, and Draco wondered at that. He decided to ignore it, as he continued. "And I feel like I can trust you too. Out of all my friends, you and Blaise are the only ones I can trust. Blaise, because we grew up together, and you, because…well, you're Harry. You're the kind of guy that fiercely defends his friends – at least, the Harry that I've seen is. You seem loyal enough."
Harry smiled at that. "Yep. That's me. Harry, the loyal and brave Gryffindor." Just plain ol' Harry. Not Harry Potter, not the Golden Boy, not the Boy-Who-Lived…Just Harry.
Draco grinned. "I think I can get used to this friendship," he said sincerely. "You're different from the Harry you were five days ago – arrogant, annoying, rather stupid prat. The typical Gryffindor."
"Hey!" Harry protested. "I'm not stupid!"
"But you admit you are an arrogant and annoying prat, yes?"
Draco smirked at him again, one thin blonde eyebrow lifted in the classic Malfoy look. Harry swatted the other boy jokingly, saying, "I learned from the best of them all." Draco snorted. Harry's playful grin faded slightly, and he said seriously, "But thank you. You've given me hope, the hope that I can one day be just Harry."
Draco smiled. "You've always been Harry to me," he admitted. "I never thought of you as Harry Potter…well, okay, I did. But that was my parents' doing. I saw you as Harry, the Gryffindor who couldn't dance to save his life."
Harry glared at him. "Don't judge me," he muttered. Draco chuckled.
"You're welcome."