Draco Undone
by Passo
Chapter 9: The Immense Night
Draco gasped and opened his eyes. After a few seconds, he realized where he was and his heartbeat slowed as he recovered from his nightmare. It had seemed so real... he saw himself last year, holding his dead sister in his arms as other Death Eaters dragged a screaming and kicking Lucius Malfoy away. His mother was on the floor, unconscious, with a gash on her forehead that dripped blood all over her face and dress. His sister looked like a beautiful, sleeping doll, a doll that would never open her eyes again. He heard Voldemort's chilling laugh, it echoed around the room and went on and on, as if it would go on forever. Draco let go of his sister and covered his ears, yelling for it to stop…
And then he woke up.
He looked at Harry and checked if he woke the other boy up. Harry was still asleep, his chest rising and falling as he breathed.
Draco tossed the blanket off him and walked to the window. The drapes were drawn and he could see the endless sky, watching the rain fall on the school grounds like strong sheets of water. Suddenly cold, he took his robe and put it on with shaking hands. He had not dreamed of his sister or those dark days in months. Recovery was not easy but he and his parents persevered, stubbornly trying to make each day better than the last as they attempted to put the past behind them and still keep their daughter's memory alive.
Draco smiled. People may say a lot of things about the Malfoys but his family was always known for their tenacity.
He thought about the last few weeks and the happiness that Harry's presence brought him. Their relationship - if it could be called that - was just beginning and they were both still in that giddy stage where everything they did was new, exciting and bright. He knew that they couldn't stay in this high forever and it would eventually wind down, the excitement abating to a more steady affection. Draco looked forward for that day to come because it meant that he and Harry would have a chance to have a real relationship instead of the clandestine understanding that they currently had.
"Draco?" Harry's head peeked out from under the blanket. He didn't have his eyeglasses on so he squinted at the blurry figure of the Slytherin standing by the window. "Is there something wrong?"
Draco shook his head, "Nothing is wrong. I just woke up and couldn't go back to sleep."
He walked back to the bed and sat beside Harry's prone figure. He brushed a lock of Harry's perpetually messy hair off his forehead and gazed at him adoringly. Harry was barely awake, he was still blinking tiredly and had a few sleep wrinkles on his cheeks, yet Draco had never seen anyone so exquisite.
"You have beautiful eyes," he thought out loud.
"Thank you," Harry murmured. "So do you."
Harry's vision may be lousy without his glasses but he would never forget Draco's face. It's as if the Slytherin's image was stamped permanently in his mind - he recalled every single look and expression he had seen ever since he met Draco when they were both children. The rest of his features matured as they aged but Draco's eyes stayed the same: cool, grey, long and sharp, with a slight upward slope that made him look more fascinating and mysterious than he already was. His straight, aquiline nose was an arrow that led to his lips. His full and entirely captivating lips.
Harry never thought this about Draco before but the Slytherin had very sensual features. He never understood why girls - even those in Gryffindor - thought of him as attractive even when he was barely civil with most students in the school. Now he finally realized how wrong they were; Draco was beyond attractive, he was beautiful.
Later, as Draco lay beside Harry and tried to go back to sleep, he thought about how mysterious and fickle the heart is. It was the only thing powerful enough to turn years of hatred into love.
I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way
than this: where I does not exist, nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.
~ Pablo Neruda
Harry regarded Ron with sympathy. His best friend tried to tell them how Dumbledore found out about his relationship with Snape.
"Remember our first date a few days ago, the one that was a major disaster? That was when maitre d' messed up major time and thought he was my dad." Ron buried his face in his hands, remembering the less than pleasant experience. "I have never seen him so upset. Not even when Harry accidentally blew up a bucket of slugs in Potions and drenched everyone in slug-juice."
"Ah yes, when he thought you were his son," Hermione tittered, trying not to laugh too hard as she imagined how it must have been. "But you look nothing alike!"
"That's what I said," Ron mumbled gloomily. "I wondered if he'll ever agree to go out on another dinner date with me. Luckily, he calmed down and we went to eat at the Three Broomsticks."
"You mentioned something about Dumbledore?" Harry prodded.
"Um, right. When I slept over Sev's room that night, Dumbledore nearly walked into us the day after." Ron looked a bit uncomfortable but the two were listening closely with fascination. "Well, I tried to hide in the closet but I fell out by accident... half naked! In front of the Headmaster!"
Hermione and Harry laughed loudly, imagining a shirtless Ron on the floor with Snape and Dumbledore in the room.
They were under a shady tree by the lake, enjoying the relative privacy it offered away from the crowd of students in the Great Hall and their noisy common room. It was a beautiful day, it was the kind of day made for one to sit outside during lunch instead of staying indoors with the rest of the school. Thankfully, they had a close personal friend in the kitchens (aka Dobby) who was only too happy to give them extra sandwiches and juice for their impromptu picnic.
Harry felt like there was something more to Ron's story.
"I think that there's something else," he guessed, "A possibly recent development that you have not shared yet."
Ron suddenly perked up. "How did you know?" he gasped. "I'm pretty sure no one saw us but... the day after that and... um, classroom..." he started mumbling and stammering as Harry roared with laughter. It was so easy to tease Ron and get him riled up.
Hermione looked confused, "What are you talking about?"
"What Ron has been trying to say, and very unsuccessfully if I may add, is that he and our esteemed Professor had been shagging in certain dark, hidden corners of the castle," Harry answered and watched with amusement as Hermione nearly choked on her sandwich.
"They weren't exactly deep and dark, but we do try to be discreet," Ron said happily, blushing as he smiled.
Hermione scrunched up her nose and grimaced, "Ron, you're my friend and I love you and I'm honestly happy for you, but please spare us the details."
Harry didn't know how he got roped into this. He was currently flying back to Hogwarts from the Snapes' family seat on the back of a thestral. The animal was sleek and beautiful and, with Hagrid's help, it readily agreed to carry him and his friends to wherever Snape was hiding and back. The ride was more uncomfortable than he thought it would be but he didn't dare complain. The thestrals were gracious enough to do them a favor. Upon Ron's request, they left him outside the crumbling castle where Snape grew up and returned to Hogwarts with Ron's thestral.
It all happened so fast. One moment Ron was happier than a kid on Christmas day and then,
BOOM!
He suddenly was not.
Snape had gone without a word to anyone. Then Hermione went on and on about Neville Longbottom, Parvati Patil, stupid mistakes, conspiracies, Snape's life history and where his blasted castle was before finally declaring that they would cut a full day of classes to take Ron to the love of his life. She ordered Harry to take care of the transportation. By the time Harry digested exactly what happened, he was already on a thestral, flying over trees and fields as he followed Hermione's lead.
After they took the thestrals back to Hagrid's cottage and had tea and cakes with their sizeable friend, Hermione rushed to the school hurriedly, muttering something about having to talk to Parvati.
Harry didn't mind. It was the perfect time to meet up with Draco. He was so cold and the thought of warm hugs from the Slytherin cheered him up enormously. He used the yellow cube given to them by Snape and spoke in a low voice. He didn't want to make it awkward for Draco if he was with his housemates. Luckily, Draco agreed to meet Harry in their room within half an hour.
"Harry?"
"Yes, Draco?"
"Do I make you happy?"
"What kind of question is that?"
"I just want to make sure that you are."
"Silly Draco. If you didn't make me happy then I wouldn't be here with you."
"That's good." Pause. "You make me happy, too."
Smiles.
"Hey, do you want to practice quidditch? Dinner won't start until after a couple of hours."
"Did you even need to ask?"
"I'll meet you at the pitch."
"I can't wait. I'll beat you in less than ten seconds, Potter."
"In your dreams, Malfoy."
"Oh yeah?"
"Your broom is a snail compared to mine."
"Just because Krum uses the Firebolt III doesn't mean that it's the best!"
"Riiight. Keep on telling yourself that."
"Stuff it, Potter."
Kiss.
"I'll see you in a bit."
After dinner, Harry listened to Hermione rant and rage about Parvati and her gossipy friends. Apparently, instead of finding out more about the conspiracy to have Ron and Snape break up, she didn't learn anything and unwittingly caused gossip to spread around the school like wildfire.
"I'm going to kill her," Hermione seethed as she paced back and forth, her hands clenched into fists. "She said she did not give Snape the 'contract' outlining the original bet but I need to know who it is! Neville is positive that it was Parvati so I don't know who to believe."
Later, Harry would greatly regret what he said next. He tried to soothe Hermione and helpfully suggested that they ask Padma Patil instead. Which made Hermione come up with the brilliant idea of Harry going out with Padma on a 'fake date' and grilling her about trying to sabotage Ron's love life. No amount of refusal could convince Hermione that it was an awful plan that could backfire in many ways. And that it could potentially harm Harry's own fledgeling relationship with Draco.
Of course, she didn't know about the last part.
Confident that Padma would never say no to a date with the famous Harry Potter, Hermione took charge and arranged everything, even booking the reservation at The Unicorne and choosing Harry's outfit on the day of the big date.
To Harry's relief, Draco told him that he planned to spend the whole evening in Hogsmeade with his Slytherin friends, which left Harry free to get involved in Hermione's nefarious schemes. Soon, Harry found himself escorting Padma to a table. He tried to be entertaining as he silently gnashed his teeth and told himself over and over that he was doing this for Ron while he alternately cursed at Hermione for being a bossy bitch.
But luck wasn't on his side today. As he and Padma started discussing her family and her brother's growing fascination with Muggle football, Harry was suddenly and violently pulled off his chair. Disoriented, he adjusted his glasses and looked into the cold, grey eyes of an incredibly furious Draco Malfoy.
TBC
(August 2015)
Author's note: There's a lot of overlap with The Catch in this chapter. I feel really bad for Harry but let's give him a chance to make it up to Draco. I'm sure they'll be fine… right?
I'm posting the next chapter, Detective Blaise, today as well since both chapters 9 and 10 are relatively short. I hope you'll enjoy both. Please review if you like them! :-)
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