A/N: Thank you guys for all the review/story alerts/favourites I got for the last chapter, and I'm sorry that I've made you wait for this one.

A fair haired boy, no older than six, sat on his mother's lap, laughing softly as she ran her fingers through his hair, his silver eyes sparkling.

"Where have you been mother? You went away for so long" the child questioned, with wide, innocent eyes

"Mummy decided that she wanted a little holiday, that's all Draco"

But the child wasn't accepting that

"But you were gone for months! And father said that you were causing a sc...a scab" the boy screwed up his face, trying to remember what his father had said "a sandal!"

The woman laughed, shaking her head

"I think you mean a scandal my dragon. And your father says things even when he's no idea what he's talking about"

"But father always knows what he's talking about! He's the cleverest man in the whole world mother!" Draco insisted, and watched as his mother looked suddenly tired
"One day, you might think differently dragon" she sighed, and stopped stroking his hair, suddenly sliding him off of her lap "Go and play now Draco. mummy has work to do"

"Father says the only work you do is spending the family fortune" Draco didn't say it spitefully as his father had, but curiously, as if questioning her

"Well sweetheart, the only work that your father seems to do is sleep with whores and use his money to get ahead of those with more talent than him. Now go and play darling" Narcissa managed to keep her sweet, patronising tone for all of her short rant, and Draco was thoroughly confused by the end of it. He went to his father and repeated what had been said, asking him what a whore was after explaining what his mother had said. For some reason, his father grew very angry, and stormed past Draco, telling him to stay in his office. Draco sat there for a long time, and when his father eventually came back, he was wiping blood off of his hands with a white handkerchief

"Father?" Draco asked cautiously, eyeing the now blood stained piece of cloth, and his father gave him a sick, twisted smile

"You were a good boy coming to tell me what your mother said Draco."

"Is...is mother alright?" He couldn't stop staring at the blood, and the look on his father's face, as if he had just finished caning Draco

"Your mother shan't be joining us for dinner, she's fallen ill."

"Oh" was all Draco said before slinking out of the room. It was after that that Draco decided to stop telling his father secrets.


Draco woke with a searing pain on the side of his head. He reached up and gingerly pressed against the side of his head, hissing in pain when he found a small lump there.

"I'm glad to see you're up" came a soft voice, and Draco looked up to find Harry sitting next to his bed, his face looking grim "Do you remember what happened last night?"

Draco did remember, all too clearly. He looked at Harry blankly, and, after a few more moments, gave a small nod

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Draco shook his head

"Come on Malfoy, you can't keep this stuff bottled up"

Maybe he could. Maybe he could just never talk again, and then people would grow bored of him and leave him be.

"Malfoy I really don't think it's healthy for you to..." Harry started going into a rant, and Draco rolled his eyes. He'd never be able to stay mute, otherwise he wouldn't have able to tell Potter to shut his mouth

"I don't need to talk about it"

Harry was surprised at the small, throaty voice, and he offered the blonde a glass of water, which he accepted gratefully.

"You should talk Malfoy, even if were just to some friends–" Harry cut off immediately, realising his mistake too late. Draco narrowed his eyes hatefully

"Yes, of course Potter, my friends, I've got tons of them. There are the ones that despise me for being an ex-death eater despite the fact that it was against my own will, the ones that think me a bastard for beating up Goyle, and the ones that avoid me at all costs because I'm a poof. Gosh, I've so many too choose from haven't I?" Draco, despite the hate in his voice, was broken by the sudden realisation that not a single person in Hogwarts liked him.

"Come on Malfoy, you know I didn't mean to. . .I'm sorry"

Draco was surprised at this. He'd never heard the all mighty Potter apologise before.

"You know you're going to have to talk eventually don't you?"

"Oh, well if Saint Potter says -"

"This isn't a game Malfoy! We're not kids anymore, you can't just insult me because you're afraid to admit the truth that you were raped by that fucking bastard Graze!"

What little colour Draco had recovered quickly drained from his face, his left eye twitched slightly, and his throat went dry.

"You don't know what the fuck you're talking about Potter" Draco's voice was barely a whisper

"Draco" Harry said softly, and Draco thought it odd to hear his first name spoken in Harry's voice "Please, let me help you Draco"

"I don't want your Goddamn help! I don't want anyone's help! I'm not some sad case that needs therapy, I'm fine!"

"You're not! You can't even have people touching you normally without jumping, or screaming. Draco let me help you, let someone help you, please."

"No" Draco's voice broke halfway through the word "I can't. . . don't need it. . . 'm fine" he mumbled, tears in his eyes. Maybe, if he just kept on saying those words, they'd come true, and he really would be fine, and no-one else need ever know, and he could carry on like nothing happened, and one day, he'd wake up, and not even be able to remember the night that his life turned to complete shit, the night where everything got so fucked up and despite how hard he'd tried to forget it he couldn't, and every time he felt someone touch him, all he could remember was how he touched him, and how sometimes he wondered if it was even worth carrying on when all he was now was someone's dirty, cheap whore and -

"You're not a whore Draco, you didn't have a choice" Harry said softly, and Draco jumped

"W...what?" Good God, either Potter's legilimency skills had suddenly improved drastically or else -

"You're not a whore, and you do need to carry on. You can't kill yourself, that's just letting Graze know that he had that much of an effect on you, when really, you need to show him that you're stronger than that"
Shit. Was Draco really so stupid that he had been speaking aloud? Draco shook his head, trying to clear his mind, but all he could feel was anger. He was angry at Potter for getting information out of him, angry at Robert for raping him, angry at himself for making this whole mess happen, and angry at his father, because the bastard hadn't even tried to console him when he had come to visit. Hell, he hadn't even wanted to be there, you could tell that by just looking at him. Draco Lucius Malfoy was a joke to the world, and his father hated him for it. The man who Draco had most admired ever since he was two years old, hated him. Tears burned in Draco's eyes, and he'd be damned if he was going to let the golden boy see him cry.

"Get out" Draco growled

"Wh–…Draco what's – "

"Don't call me Draco. We're not friends Potter, and you have no right to visit me. Get out and don't come back" Draco spat hatefully

"You can't keep pushing me away Malfoy! You need help – "

"I don't want help!" Draco shrieked, and flung himself out of bed, happy to find that he was a good few inches taller than Harry "Let it go Potter, no-one cares if I'm in need of help, look at who I am! Tell me that you honestly want to help someone like me." He swallowed thickly, blinking back tears, and slowly, calmed himself, sitting on the side of his bed "Nobody cares about me Potter, I'm scum in the public's eyes, so why don't you bugger off before you get my filth on your golden boy reputation?"

Harry sighed heavily, the blonde was slowly drowning in the hate that the world had thrown at him. Nobody wanted to associate themselves with the likes of Draco Malfoy, and Draco had accepted this, he didn't expect people to want to help him anymore. Harry was at a loss as to what to do. Draco had shut his eyes tight and his head was hanging in self-hate, his face buried in his hands. Draco's back was heaving, and Harry suddenly realised that the fallen prince was silently sobbing, the pressure of being re-visited by Robert, of admitting that he thought himself a whore to Harry, of telling Harry that the world thought of him as scum…it was all too much for Draco. He had given up on wearing his mask of hate, and had finally brokn down into tears. Draco wasn't as strong as he pretended to be. He was just a scared teenager, who was so hated that he had given up on the thought of someone ever trying to help him. He had fought with being gay, and when he had finally accepted the idea, it had got him beaten by his father, and raped. The world no longer cared for Draco Malfoy, and Draco Malfoy no longer cared for anything. He had grown up unloved, and sometime during his childhood, had forgotten how to love himself.

Hope you guys have a great Christmas (I may or may not update before the 25th, not sure yet) and as a Christmas present, all I ask for is reviews reviews reviews!One review from each reader would make my Christmas complete!