Primoris Oraculum Duo (First Prophecy Two)

Chapter 9

Draco found that it was not easy to avoid his housemates. They were determined to celebrate and equally determined that Draco would be at the center of it. He had used every excuse to keep from helping plan the party that was scheduled to coincide with the funeral of the Grangers. Finally, he just pushed Pansy aside when she grabbed his arm to pull him to a table where lists of decorations and refreshments were being compiled.

"This is sick, even for Slytherins. I am not going to be a part of it. If you must behave in such a juvenile way, leave me out of it." He started up the stairs to the boys dormitory but was stopped by Pansy's hard voice.

"Draco, this is the beginning of a lot of celebrations. Your own father is probably having a party at your mansion tomorrow. It would be awful if he heard that his son was shirking his Slytherin duty, as well as looking as if he disapproved of showing loyalty to our side."

Draco paused to give her a snarling expression, but continued on up to his room. He had no intention of giving in to her blackmail. He took a long, hot shower, feeling a need to scald away the slimy veneer of pureblooded self-righteousness. Slicking his hair back, he pulled a heavy cloak around himself and walked back into the common room.

Pansy brightened. "I knew you'd change your mind. Come and join us."

He gazed at her coolly for a long moment. "I will … celebrate … in my own way. Enjoy yourselves." He swept out of the doors to Slytherin House, aware that they were all staring after him, unsure if he was mocking or serious. He knew that he did not dare to be any ruder than he already had. It wouldn't do for his father to become suspicious of his son's leanings before he himself was sure of what they were. When it came to it, he would be able to say he deplored their childish ways of celebrating and chose to contemplate the event in a more mature way. Surely his father would not find fault with that …

Walking quickly, he made his way through the castle, taking numerous twists and turns. The Slytherin in him was certain that Pansy would have him followed. His goal was to make them believe that he was simply roaming the halls. He sensed the student shadowing him for over a half hour before they gave up the pursuit.

He wound up climbing the stairs to the Astronomy Tower. Out on the open battlement, he breathed in the evening air. Where had the day gone? It had seemed to be moving so slowly, and now, here towards sunset, it seemed like the day had sped by.

Glad for his heavy cloak, he sat against the wall, wrapping it around himself. Out here, he felt removed from all the ugliness and the push to make an overt stand for the Dark Lord. The time was coming closer, he knew it, when he would have to make a declaration. He knew that he did not want to make the expected declaration, but he didn't know if he had the courage to do otherwise. The sensation of falling into an abyss was almost overwhelming.

He pulled his wand and waved it at the doorway to the tower, not wanting to be joined by anyone, let alone some snogging couple looking for privacy. The Astronomy Tower was a popular meeting place for dates, and he really didn't want to leave to find another place of his own. His own locking spells were quite strong and he knew that no student would be able to get past it.

So, he sat; staring up at the sky as it changed colors from late afternoon, early evening, dusk, and then nightfall. The door was tried many times, but whoever was on the other side always met with failure when they attempted entry and they soon went away.

It was midnight when the door opened and Draco started. He saw it standing open and then slowly close again. Then he heard the locks turning, securing it against further entrance. With narrowed eyes he swept the area. Finally, he leaned his head back with a heavy sigh.

"I know it's you, Potter. I just don't know how you got past my locking spell; no one has before."

There was silence for a long time and Draco wondered if he had been mistaken in thinking it was Potter. After all, no one had seen him in weeks. For all he knew, the Golden Boy was not even at Hogwarts. Lucius had asked, but Draco had honestly been clueless as to where or why Harry Potter had gone.

A soft rustle of cloth sounded to his right and he focused impassive eyes on Harry when he pulled the Invisibility Cloak from over his head. He was sitting a few yards away, but wasn't tense or wary appearing. In fact, he looked to be feeling as morose as Draco did. He kept his green eyes steady on Draco's for a long moment and Draco was surprised to feel a touch of Legilimency. It was a gentle probing, very unlike the kind his father ruthlessly employed whenever he felt Draco might be keeping secrets, but a probing nonetheless. Was it his imagination, or did Potter actually know how to see into his mind?

"Your locking spell is good against students, maybe even most teachers. I hope you don't mind me coming up here. I needed to be in the open and this is the best place." Harry waited for Draco to respond.

"It doesn't look as if you'll actually leave if I say I do mind, so I suppose I'll just have to bear it." He sounded pompous to his own ears and was surprised to feel dismay at that.

Harry sat for a long time just looking up into the sky silently. Draco relaxed when it looked like Harry wasn't looking for a confrontation.

Harry broke the silence by asking, "I would have thought your house would be having some sort of party. Did you leave early?"

"I didn't go. I couldn't stomach it." Draco kept his eyes on the sky. He could see Harry looking at him out the corner of his vision. He felt compelled to explain. "It's ghoulish to celebrate the death of a student's parents, even if they were Muggles."

Harry took a deep breath. "Hermione's parents were great people. They were nice, caring, and they shouldn't have had to die like they did."

"Potter, no one should die like they did, unless it happens to the ones who caused it." He looked at Harry in surprise, hearing those harsh words come out of his own mouth. Harry looked surprised too, but he didn't dispute Draco's sincerity.

Draco sat forward and blurted, "My father is a Death Eater."

Harry shrugged off his surprised expression and answered, "I know. He made sure I saw his face in the graveyard when Voldemort came back last year. I've seen him in his Death Eater best."

Draco looked confused. "But you've never said anything. You could have used that to get at me some way, blackmail, or – or something."

"That's not the way I am, though. It isn't something I'd be proud of if it was my father." He considered Draco for a moment. "I thought you would be proud of your father, actually. Mentioning that he was a Death Eater would have given you an opportunity to brag."

Draco snorted. "Brag? About that? Please, don't make me sick. My father is a monster. Any bragging I do is purely for self-preservation."

Harry now looked disbelieving. "Don't you want to be like him? I thought all Slytherin purebloods wanted to follow in their parents footsteps."

"Well, you thought wrong, Potter." Draco hugged his knees, rocking a bit. He knew he was giving Harry a weapon by making such an admission. "I want to be my own man, not a puppet like him; not bowing to an evil snake."

Harry hugged his own knees, leaning his head down to rest his chin on them. "Why are you telling me this?"

The quiet drew out but they both had time to wait, and think. The ground being tested was shaky, and neither of them knew what they wanted to share, but they wanted to know what the other was thinking.

Draco spoke softly when he finally did, and Harry had to lean toward him to hear. "My dear father expects that the death of Granger's parents will force her to leave Hogwarts. In turn, I will become the top student, as he feels it is my right." He stopped to gauge Harry's reaction to this. When Harry didn't say anything, he continued, "I am supposed to be grateful that he has seen fit to pave my way to academic greatness. In turn, he expects me to become the youngest Death Eater to serve the Dark Lord."

Harry stared at Draco's bowed head for a long time. Draco waited in the silence and when he raised his head he expected to see anger and revulsion. Instead, he met a face shadowed with concern. Harry asked, "What are you going to do?"

"A while back I spoke to Severus. He said I should follow my heart. It's his way of saying I shouldn't do it."

Harry remembered when he had seen the two on the Marauders Map, when it had seemed that Snape had given Draco a quick hug. Was that when Draco had been talking to him about this? He found that he couldn't be jealous if Snape was trying to keep Draco from making a huge mistake.

"He really cares for you, Malfoy. You should listen to him."

"I know that." Draco glared at him for a moment before his eyes softened again. "He cares more than my own flesh and blood does."

The boys sat quiet for another long time, growing more comfortable with each other being there. Harry decided to tell Draco something of himself, kind of a gesture to say that he would keep Draco's confidence.

"My family hates me."

Draco's head shot up at that and he spat, "Give me a break, Potter. Like I would believe that the Golden Boy has troubles at home. What, they don't give you enough attention, so they must hate you?"

Harry's mouth dropped open and it was his turn to be furious. "I thought you got it when we talked after that last Quidditch game. I hate being fawned over and thought of in those terms." He glared back at Draco, keeping his eyes locked with the grey ones. "My family hates me because I'm a wizard. They hate everything to do with magic. They treat me like a slave, call me a freak, starve me and beat me."

Draco's mouth was fixed in a thin disbelieving line. Clearly, he had trouble believing Harry. Harry took a great risk then. "Ask Severus if you need to. He can tell you how he found me this last summer, almost dead, locked in the cupboard after my drunk uncle beat me half to death."

At the mention of Snape's name, Draco sat back. He knew that Harry wouldn't say that Snape had that information if he didn't. "How did he find you?"

Harry shrugged, unwilling to tell about their mental connection, not wanting to give Draco too much, in case he did turn Death Eater. "I don't know. I'm just glad he did, or I wouldn't be here now."

Draco looked at him piercingly, then asked, "That scar on your neck, did you get that from your uncle then?"

Harry reached up to trace the thin line that still showed from ear to ear under his jaw. "No. This one was from a deranged Muggle teenager who tried to kill me."

"Bloody hell, Potter!" Draco sputtered. "I would think that you had enough to do without going after Muggle bullies."

"He came after Severus and I tried to get between them. My mistake nearly cost me my life. Severus saved me then, too." Harry kept his eyes on Draco, assessing his response.

Draco kept his eyes on Harry, too, thinking about what he had said. Finally he asked, "You were trying to keep the Muggle from attacking Severus?" At Harry's nod he continued, "Why didn't you – better yet, why didn't he just hex the git?"

"We were in Muggle surroundings … couldn't use magic." Harry thought about how he hadn't even wanted to admit that he was a wizard at the time of the attack. Draco was sure to think he was loony if he tried to explain that.

Draco seemed to realize that there was more to the story but he didn't ask. They fell into silence again, both of them lost in their own thoughts. When Draco spoke, it was quietly. "I thought that you and Severus must be friendlier than either of you let on. How long has that been going on?" There was just a touch of jealousy in his tone, but Harry understood the feeling well, since he felt much the same way about Draco being Severus's godson.

"Just since last spring. Believe me, we're both just as shocked to be able to tolerate each other as you are." He leaned his head back down on his knees, remembering their current state of non-communication. "Right now, we aren't on good terms. He was trying to manage my study schedule and I decided to leave."

Draco looked impressed. "So being Harry Potter does have the advantage of being allowed to skip classes however long you want."

"I'm keeping up. Ron and Hermione owl the assignments to me and I send them back for them to turn in."

"But still, how can you do the practical parts?" Draco asked curiously.

Harry shrugged. "Potions and Herbology are probably way behind there, I guess. But I do alright in Defense, Charms and Transfiguration."

"How do you know? If you're off by yourself, how do you know you're doing them correctly?"

"Because they work." Harry stood then, letting his cloak fall to pool at his feet. Draco stood too and they faced each other. Harry looked at him levelly. "Test me. See if I can do what you've been learning in class."

Draco looked at him doubtfully. "Are you trying to get me to hurt you? You want me to lose House points if someone finds out we're dueling outside of class."

Harry shook his head. "No. Just do it. Test me." He held himself ready, but relaxed. Draco noticed that he had not drawn his wand.

Harry still didn't draw his wand after Draco drew his, and Draco narrowed his eyes. Taking a deep breath he started saying, "Petrificus To-"

Before the entire spell even left his lips, Harry was holding his wand. Draco looked down at his empty hand and then at his wand in Harry's hand. "How did you do that? Where's your wand? You didn't counter my spell …"

Harry walked forward and handed Draco back his wand. Only then did his eyes leave Draco's. He turned to an unlit torch on the castle wall and with a quick flick of his hand it was aflame. Another flick and it was out again, and then relit. He turned back to Draco, not saying anything to his surprised look.

Draco raised his eyebrows and raised his wand. "Now that I know to expect the unexpected, let's try it again." He began to volley spells and hexes in rapid-fire toward Harry.

Harry repelled, avoided, and countered every one, all without his wand, and seeming to barely move his hand. He never said a word.

Draco was panting with his own efforts when he finally stopped. He stood leaning with his hands down on his thighs as he regained his breath. "I would say you're way ahead of everyone in the practical magic department. How long have you been able to do it wandless, and Merlin! You can do it wordless, too!" The realization seemed to hit him all at once and he put his hands in his hair. "That was bloody brilliant, Potter!"

Harry looked astonished at this totally unexpected praise from Draco Malfoy. When the look of delighted amazement stayed on Draco's face, he allowed himself a small smile.

"Just since this past summer. Lots of … stuff … happened. When it all started to clear, I was able to do it a little. Since I've been in hiding I've been practicing every day." He walked back over to the wall and sat, pulling the cloak over his legs.

Draco sat back down and asked, "So where have you been? Why haven't they made you come back?"

"They know I need the time … the space to think. The ghosts keep me company." He looked at Draco. "Even the Bloody Baron comes and helps me with duel practice."

Draco frowned. "You didn't answer the question, Potter. Where have you been? Why are they letting you do this?"

Harry sighed in resignation. "The castle is a really big place. They don't know where I go or I think they would have paid me a visit by now. Why they're letting me is a harder question to answer." He thought for a bit before continuing. "I hate being the Boy Who Lived, but I have to admit that it probably gives me a little leverage when things get wonky. It was an awful summer and school didn't start out so well either. I think they are just happy that I ran away and stayed inside Hogwarts. If I had left, they would've come after me. The ghosts are probably giving Dumbledore all the information he needs about me."

He stared in the darkness towards Draco and asked, "Do you want me to tell you honestly?" He barely saw Draco nod. "I wasn't myself most of the summer. I wouldn't do magic at all and I couldn't talk to anyone except Severus. I think they're afraid if they push too hard, I'll lose it again. The next time, I might not get better. Next time … might be the last time …"

Draco peered at him with narrowed eyes. "What happened to you? I thought Harry Potter was indestructible."

Harry gave a humorless chuckle. "That's one of those pesky expectations that I have to try and live up to. I'm supposed to be able to stand and take whatever hell Voldemort thinks up. I'm supposed to be strong enough to survive until the day I'm supposed to take him down. I'm supposed to just accept this and deal with it. I'm not supposed to voice my reluctance or fears. That part is supposed to be buried deep where the wizarding public can't see it. Their boy hero has to be faultless; their safety assured."

The torch on the wall flared blindingly bright and exploded, leaving them in darkness that seemed even deeper after the flash of light. Draco jumped, startled to feel the crackling of magic still extending from Harry to include the area where Draco sat. Gradually it diminished, and the hair on Draco's arms lay down again.

In a sudden rush of thought, he realized that he and Harry were very similar in many respects. He, too, was burdened with expectations that weighed heavy on his shoulders. Although, he admitted to himself, no one expected him to save their whole world from ruin by an evil monster.

He laughed lightly and Harry looked at him in the dark. His green eyes were almost glowing in the starlight. Draco said, "You win, Potter. I was going to say that people expect hard things from me too. But then I realized that my father and the whole of Slytherin House don't add up to as many as the ones watching you. I'm just expected to do my duty to my family, and by example lead my house into service for the evil bastard."

Harry grinned and said, "But you won't. You know it's wrong and you'll do the right thing for yourself, and the right thing for your house."

Draco immediately sobered at that. After a few moments he muttered, "I'm not as strong as you are. If I renounce the Dark Lord, my father will stop at nothing to see me dead. At the very least I'll be disowned. My life will be worth only as much as the reward he puts up for my painful death."

Harry asked softly, "So you'll just keep on sniping at Gryffindors, spreading hate between the houses, pretending you're one of them right up to the end?"

Draco maintained his silence, wanting to yell at Potter that he didn't know what he was talking about. He wanted to find his comfort zone again, feel like he was in charge of what was happening to him. But he knew Harry was right. If he didn't jump over to the side of the Light, he would be stuck baiting Gryffindors, and spreading hate, just like he said.

Harry let the silence extend to more than a half hour as they both sat still in their own miseries. Coming to a decision, he said calmly, "If you decide to walk away from them, I'll do whatever it takes to protect you."

"Can you guarantee my life, tell me that no junior Death Eaters will try and slit my throat in the middle of the night?" He stared hard through the darkness, wondering if Harry would lie to get his loyalty.

When Harry answered, his voice was soft, but filled with certainty. "I won't make a promise I can't keep. I can't even guarantee to make it through tonight. But I'll do my best for you, just like I will for all my friends."

Draco heard the soft swish of cloth and when he tried to see Harry he realized that he had pulled on the Invisibility Cloak. The door to the Astronomy Tower opened and closed softly and Draco was alone.

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