Chapter Eleven – Bond Between Enemies
The fire blazed, heating Draco's face and hands as he stared into its depths. The kitchen of the Burrow was empty and silent. Everyone had gone upstairs to bed, but he had chosen to remain downstairs to think.
All those things Lupin had said still hadn't proven to Caroline that her father wasn't worth meeting. She was still determined to meet Lucius, but how could he stop her?
Why do you care? a voice in his head questioned. What does it matter to you if she meets the bastard? It doesn't affect you. Draco couldn't answer. The voice was right. It shouldn't matter to him. It didn't, but still . . .
You care about her, the voice said. You want to protect her.
"I don't," Draco said aloud. "I couldn't care less about her."
"About who?"
Draco looked up to see Harry entering the kitchen. He, like Draco, had not changed into his pajamas. Draco, appalled that Harry had heard him talking to himself, was speechless.
"Scoot over," said Harry, sitting on the bench beside him.
"I was kind of in the middle of something, Potter," said Draco, but moved aside all the same. "I'd rather not be interrupted."
"That's just too bad," said Harry. He looked into the fire, his green eyes ablaze with the glitter of the flames. "Caroline seems really sweet," he said, after a moment of silence. "Hard to believe she's your sister."
"Very funny," Draco snorted. "But . . . Yeah. I guess you're right. We're nothing alike. She can be so damn annoying. She's ridiculously polite and unnaturally sweet. It's sickening. I doubt she has a mean bone in her body."
"You care about her," Harry said.
"What?" How did Potter know the mental struggle Draco was having? "I do not."
"Don't lie, Malfoy," Harry said, calmly. "It's obvious. You care about her. She's your sister. That's not a bad thing." Harry kicked at a log in the fire. "I don't blame you for not wanting her to meet your dad. God knows how he'll treat her."
Draco sighed and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands. "She has no idea what he's like," he said, quietly. "I'm his son. He's been in my life since I was born, and he doesn't even love me. How could he love her? She's half muggle. He'll just hurt her, and she won't even listen to me."
"He is her father," said Harry. "I know you're just worried about her, but she has a right. Maybe it's a mistake she has to make on her own."
Draco said nothing, but he knew Harry was right.
"So," said Harry, "where does this leave us?"
Draco looked at him. "Excuse me?"
"Us," Harry repeated. "You and I. We're still different, but we have something in common now, don't we? Caroline is the link between us. She's the bond between enemies."
"We aren't enemies, Potter," Draco sighed. "Voldemort was your enemy."
"We're enemies in a different way," Harry said. "You don't want me dead, but you want me out of your life. Same goes for me. We were enemies at Hogwarts. We nearly killed each other a few times, too. Imagine if we'd known then. Do you think things would have been different? Would they have changed if we'd known that your sister was my cousin? Would you have felt different if you'd known your father had once had an affair with a muggle?"
Draco thought for a long moment, then said, at last, "Yes. I emulated my father for years. If I'd known that he had a child with a muggle, that he was a hypocrite, that he'd hurt my mother like that, I would have wanted nothing to do with him. We wouldn't be friends, still, but it wouldn't have been like this."
Harry nodded. "And if I'd known that your father killed my aunt . . . well, I'd still hate him, but if I'd known that your sister was part of my family, I wouldn't have treated you the way I did."
"If only we'd known," Draco sighed. "Now it's too late."
"Is it?" Harry asked. "Is it really? We may not become best friends, but we can still be friends on some level. We can do it for Caroline's sake, anyway. I don't want to upset her by having her brother and her cousin hate each other."
Draco bit his bottom lip. He wasn't sure. Could he be friends with Harry Potter? Could he put their past behind him? "I'll think about it," he said, at last.
"Good," said Harry. "Who knows? Maybe we can learn a lot from each other. Caroline's been through enough. This will make it a lot easier for her."
"I guess," said Draco. "But, what will Weasley think?"
Harry sat quietly for a moment, then said, honestly, "He'll hate it, but it'll pass. He knows it's the right thing . . . And Hermione will make him be nice."
Draco laughed. Maybe being friends with Harry wouldn't be such a bad thing.
Author's Note: I know, I know. That was really, really short and stupid, but that's how my notes are laid out. I'm sorry. I'll make up for it later chapters. Anyway, this chapter's song is "World's on Fire" by Sarah McLachlan, which is kind of a theme song for Draco and Harry. It's a good song for heroes. Enjoy.
Hearts are worn in these dark ages.
You're not alone in these stories' pages.
The light has fallen amongst the living and the dying.
And I'll try to hold it in.
Yeah, I'll try to hold it in.
The world's on fire. It's more than I can handle.
I'll tap into the water and try to bring my share.
Try to bring more, more than I can handle.
Bring it to the table.
Bring what I am able.
I watch the heavens but I find no calling.
Something I can do to change what's coming.
Stay close to me while the sky is falling.
I don't to be left alone.
Don't want to be alone.
The world's on fire. It's more than I can handle.
I'll tap into the water and try to bring my share.
Try to bring more, more than I can handle.
Bring it to the table.
Bring what I am able.
Hearts break . . . hearts mend . . . love still hurts.
Visions clash, plains crash, still there's talk of.
Saving souls . . . Still cold's closing in on us.
We part the veil on our killer sun.
Stray from the straight line on this short run.
The more we take the less we become.
The fortune of one man means less for some.
The world's on fire. It's more than I can handle.
I'll tap into the water and try to bring my share.
Try to bring more, more than I can handle.
Bring it to the table.
Bring what I am able.
