A/N; excuse me a moment please, dearest readers, whilst I express my shock in a completely unique and original way (little kids, cover your ears) HOLY FUCK!
'Ahem'. Yeah, sorry about that, I just needed to get it out of my system, and here's why; this story has earned over 200reviews! So, right now, I'm really really, really really happy, and would like to thank everyone who has reviewed in the past, even if it was just one of those little ones consisting of one word; update. And also, thank you to all the readers who have made it this far; to me eleven chapters is a lot (this coming from the girl that very rarely manages to keep a story going) so I'm amazed – but very happy – that you're all still reading this!
Dislaimer; geese, I hate this thing. I mean, who exactly wants to go around telling everybody that something absolutely brilliant isn't theirs? Oh, and if they did (go around telling everybody that Harry Potter belonged to them), who's stupid enough to believe them?...please don't raise your hand to that question, I will be scarred for life.
Warnings; 'sigh' Yep, I hate this bit to. It's boring, and I can't write anything about Harry and Draco in it! Slash/yaoi/shonen-ai or whatever you want to call it, though it's not yaoi really at this point in the story; sorry people! Mentions of abuse/self harm, inappropriate language (what can I say, bad habit) and…well, that's about it really.
Speech "blah"
Thoughts 'Isn't this bit boring to?'
Warning; I hope this chapter's okay for everyone, it switches times quite a lot and replays events from another pov. I hope it's okay…enjoy!
DmHp
Draco gasped a little as the first tidal wave of pain washed over him, but there was no fault in his step. He had been walking for a while now, he assumed, into that bleak mist that seemed to cover the entire plain of reality, and had begun to wonder when he would find the end of his existence; it hurt, to be so far away from his mate, and it hurt to know he was willingly walking away from it all. But, he had his reasons.
Draco didn't want to get hurt.
DmHp
Blaise shifted uncomfortably in the chair, yawning as he shook off the last of the sleep that had overcome him a few hours ago. He was still sat by his friend's bed in the infirmary, and now stood up to leave.
He walked a few steps away from the Slytherin and his mate, before turning around just to watch them again.
It was odd, he figured; the last time he looked Draco had been facing Harry…
DmHp
Hermione was, for the first time in a little over two weeks, lacking a book.
During the time Harry and Draco had been in a coma, she had only ever spent her free time with her nose in a book of some sort, but now…now, she was sat in the Slytherin seventh year girl's dormitories, with a steaming cup of hot chocolate in one hand as she conversed with the Slytherin girl who she had begun to regard as a best friend.
"They're figuring it out for themselves, Hermione, I bet you anything," Pansy spoke softly, taking a sip at her own drink as she made herself more comfortable opposite the Gryffindor on her bed "it's not like they'll sit around and do nothing."
"Yeah but…how do we know that they're not really anywhere? Maybe it's just like they're sleeping; they don't know what's going on around them and they're not on some other plain of existence…Pansy, they may really be dying."
The Slytherin ran a shaky hand through her hair, before drawing a deep breath.
"I know," she said firmly, staring the other girl squarely in the eyes "but I also know that Draco for one won't die without a fight. In fact, if I know him – and I'm sure that being one of his closest friends for over twelve years means I do – he's currently looking for a nice, sturdy barge pole to hit Death round the head with."
Her look of utter sincerity made Hermione positive that was indeed what the blonde was currently doing.
DmHp
Snape glared at the third year class as their constant, aggravating chatter grew to a head-ache inducing level, effectively shutting every student who noticed up. The rest looked around the room as the noise level dimmed, trying to find the reason…and upon seeing their Potions teacher's 'shooting-daggers' look, they instantly returned to work; in silence.
In truth, Severus had taken the news of his godson's – and though he wouldn't admit it, the foolish Gryffindor's too – coma worse then anyone else, though no one who knew him personally was too shocked. Hermione had merely been a little shocked before appearing thoughtful the first time he visited the ward whilst she happened to be there, and she had been relatively civil ever since.
The potions professor was worried, just as he had every right to be, and was also angry at himself for not finding a suitable potion to wake the two boys. Of course, he mused, this was a veela he was dealing with; any potion would have to have major modifications anyway.
Snape looked back down at his parchment of notes, scribbling down something else he deemed useful to changing the potions he worked with; he had been doing it none stop for the past two weeks – messing around and modifying potions that is.
He growled under his breath as the students began to talk again, starting with a few hushed whispers which turned into a constant humming of chatter before it exploded into a full blown, head-ache inducing chatter again, the kind that spread across the room like a Mexican wave; a never ending, loud, annoying Mexican wave that the potions master hated.
All four houses suffered a sever loss of points that day, and Snape's reputation for being the meanest teacher in the whole of Hogwarts increased a good few notches.
DmHp
Harry groaned as yet another bout of pain shot through his body, and he began to massage his temples in an attempt to stop the nagging pain there. It was funny, he decided, he had never felt so completely cold before…
'I miss Draco…'
'I feel cold, Draco was always so warm, comforting…'
The dark haired boy shivered, closing his eyes.
'I feel like death himself…I wonder how Draco's doing…'
He's dying, you git, how do you think he's doing?
Ah, a big welcome back to Harry's conscience. (A/N I know in the last chapter Harry's conscience was just in italics, but I wanted to differ it more from Harry's thoughts so it's now also bold. Just thought I'd mention it…)
'It's not my fault.'
Liar.
'There's nothing I can do,'
Liar.
'It's not like I care anyway…'
Liar.
Harry had his conscience to thank for the idea to follow the blonde veela that he did not in anyway shape or form care about. Nope, not at all.
DmHp
Draco, panting heavily as he wiped a trail of sweat from his for-head, stumbled in a moment of dizziness, and the blonde heard a pitiful moan that had no doubt been emitted by his own lips. Why couldn't death just be swift and painless?
He never expected two, strong arms to catch him as he fell.
DmHp
Poppy's head shot up as she heard a loud noise come from her infirmary, and she strained her ears to try and catch any other sounds. All was quiet. Perhaps it had been her imagination.
Frowning, she looked back down at the book she had been reading; looking for other ways that didn't involve a potion to wake the two boys that had been placed in her care a little over two weeks ago. It seemed like such a long time ago, but they had never woken…
Another noise reached the nurse's ears, and muttering angrily to herself she set the book down and stepped out of her office to investigate. There was no one there.
A second year student, who had come in the day before with stomach problems, was sleeping off a potion in a quiet corner of her infirmary, but other then that the hospital wing was empty; as it should be.
Poppy's frown deepened, and she pulled out her wand as she walked towards the two beds at the farthest end of the hospital wing that were surrounded by one of the ever-white curtains that seemed to be so popular in the wing. Drawing back the curtain in one swift motion, she raised her lit wand to give survey the miniature ward.
The two teenage boys were still in a coma, just the way she had left them.
Well, other than the fact that the blonde haired veela was once again turned to face his mate.
DmHp
Pansy looked up in shock at the sound of a delighted squeal, and she glanced questioningly over at the Gryffindor teenager that was sat opposite her.
"Honestly, must you be so loud?" Blaise asked, rubbing one ear absentmindedly. Both girls ignored him, causing Blaise to roll his eyes at Crabbe and Goyle who were near-by.
"Listen to this," Hermione demanded, leaning forward in her chair as she read a passage from one of the many books they had been studying
"In 1786, a case was reported of a veela and their mate who had both been sent into a coma after a period of difficulties within their relationship. Local healers declared that there was nothing they could do, and the couple were put under heavy surveillance. Veela experts at the time deduced the most likely cause of the coma was the fact that one the pair had begun to push the other away for their own protection, fearing the love they felt was based purely upon their Veela instincts. In retaliation, the other also began to pull apart, fearing their mate was rejected them. The mutual misunderstanding and complications this caused to the relationship put too big a strain upon their fragile bond – which had not been completed - and therefore sent the couple into a medically unstable coma.
Another instance of the same nature occurred again in 1792, later in 1834, and then once more in 1903. No case has been reported since,"
"Well?" Pansy asked, setting her own book down upon the table "What happened?"
Hermione's face fell dramatically as she scanned the page in front of her.
"Nothing. They never woke up and died three years later in their 'sleep'."
DmHp
Relief washed over Draco as a sense of warmth and comfort encase him, the two arms providing a safe haven from the world and his woes. The person – he wasn't really paying attention – lowered him gently to the ground, kneeling beside him as they took his hand in theirs.
The world was spinning, but as he closed his eyes and a feeling of sickness overcame him, there was still only one word which stood out in his mind.
'Harry…'
Not wanting to open his eyes for fear of his wish being proven wrong, the blonde settled for squeezing the other hand a little tighter as the person talked to him, though he barely heard a single word of it.
Through the fog that had clouded his mind, and through the hardly bearable pain that still seemed to be bugging him, four, little, insignificant words reached his delicate ears;
"…god I love you…"
DmHp
Setting down the book once more, Poppy decided she had had enough. Pulling out her wand and lighting it, she once more stepped out of her office and into the hospital wing. There was another noise, coming somewhere from the left corner, and so there she looked…but that was where the two boys were, safe and quiet in a coma…
Well, that was what she assumed anyway.
DmHp
Almost immediately the pain began to dim, fading away into the background as if it had never been there in the first place. Slowly, as though the world was suddenly coming back into existence, Draco became aware of tiny, little things that may not have even mattered.
Like, for example, the fact that his hand was still being held firmly in someone else's, and that that someone was crying softly as they spoke. He picked up on the tones of distress in that person's voice, and not only the underlying tones of pain and anguish but also love that were so subtle he had never noticed them in his previous state.
And then, as the foggy screen lifted from where it had blanketed over his thoughts, Draco opened his eyes.
Smiling softly, the blonde reached up his free hand, wiping away the trails of tears that had been sliding down his mate's face. Harry gasped, only just noticing that the veela was awake, and then proceeded to apologize over and over for being such an idiot and-…
…and he never got to finish his sentence, because a pair of soft, pink lips met his, effectively stopping any attempts at speech he had been wishing to make.
DmHp
For a measureless period of time, the one strand hovered as two, now parted, doing little but shimmering in the darkness and light around them. The frayed ends glittered desperately in a vain attempt at rejoining the two strands, creating one, solid bond once more, but to no avail.
So it was surprising, of course, when the two strands, singularly parted and now standing alone, were rejoined, re-entwined by a much smaller, much stronger strand of power, pulsing with live energy.
This new strand, the one shaped out of un-reality that had appeared from within the confines of un-space, was green. No, not the lovely type of emerald green that was displayed by glittering gems that reflected the light, or that so commonly appeared as an eye colour in unrealistic – or even realistic – fictions and tales, or even the dark, forest-type green that represented all things Slytherin…
No, this shade of green was unique, full of life and energy. It was type of green that could be seen reflected in fresh morning dew swaying from a thin blade of grass after a calm nights rain; the type of green that contained within it the shimmering gold and scarlet red rays from an autumn dawn, the type of green that reflected the angry reds, happy yellows, vibrant oranges, content violets and loving pinks of the near-by flowers, the type of green that showed within it the muddy browns and darker greens of surrounding thicket and even the fresh water blue of a bright morning sky…
In reality, it wasn't really green at all; it was a colour that represented new, bright mornings and peaceful, content dusks, a colour that showed autumn for sweeping away dead leaves and the spring for growing new ones.
But, still, it was a strand of power, and it fixed the veela bond; that was all that really mattered.
DmHp
Harry didn't know how long he'd spend stumbling around half-blindly in the thick expanse of fog that blocked his path, but the pain (which felt like someone hammering a blunt nail into his head whilst carving the image of a heart into his chest with a spoon) had dulled considerably, telling him he was nearing his target.
When he finally spotted the blonde, stumbling with uncertainty, an ice-quilt was laid over all doubts, numbing any negative thoughts as he dashed forward with seeker precision to catch the veela he cared for so much.
Lowering the blonde safely to the ground, Harry grabbed onto his hand, holding it tightly as the first tear made its way down his cheek.
"Oh Draco…oh god, Draco, I never meant for this to happen, it wasn't supposed to go this far…oh god, I am so sorry, you have to understand, I only wanted to protect you, I never wanted you to die – oh god, Draco, please don't die, stay with me, I need you,'
Harry knew he was babbling. He wasn't sure if he cared.
"I came to realize…I got thinking, Draco, god I love you…I never told you, I have to tell you that Draco, I care for you so much, I was so damn scared!"
He felt soft skin come into contact with his cheek, and his tears being wiped away. He gasped, raising his head to look at the blonde veela who was looking up at him with glistening eyes.
"Oh god, Draco, thank god you're okay, I thought…oh, Draco, I'm sorry, I-…"
Harry's eyes flew open wider in surprise as Draco used a hand to balance himself and raised himself up to sit in front of Harry, before closing his lips smoothly over the younger teenager's.
After getting over the initial shock, the dark haired teenager found himself responding to the kiss, tracing his tongue lightly over Draco's lower lip. Almost in reply, Draco nipped a little on Harry's own lip, causing him to gasp and thereby giving the blonde enough time to slip his tongue into Harry's mouth.
Draco pulled himself upright into a better position, placing one hand on Harry's lower back and the other gracefully on the other boy's cheek. Harry wrapped one arm around the back of Draco's neck, pulling him closer.
Though afterwards Harry had no idea how they had managed it, Draco slowly eased the other boy backwards so he was lying down in a more comfortable position, straddling him as Harry wrapped both is arms around the blonde's neck; neither ever breaking the kiss.
Gasping for the much needed oxygen the two boys were lacking, the couple pulled apart, merely looking at each other as they regained their breaths.
"I-…" Harry opened his mouth to speak, most likely ready to apologize, but Draco merely silenced him again by closing the gap once more and placing a sweet, gentle and lingering kiss on the darker haired boy's lips.
"Love you too."
DmHp
Holding her wand up a little higher, Poppy surveyed the room again, still not finding the source of the noise. So, with her eyebrows knitted closely together, she began to walk back to her office…
…the nurse spun around, glaring daggers at the room in general. That time she definitely heard it, something…something…
Poppy turned to look at the innocent looking curtains that surrounded her two favourite patients, the two boys who she had come to care about more then anyone other student – or indeed teacher – in the entire school. It had come from behind there.
After performing a few charms to check the wards – which were still sturdy and unbroken – Poppy reached out towards the curtains, pulling them back in one, quick motion.
The clatter of her wand as it made contact with the floor represented the shock that ran through her body at the sight that met her eyes.
DmHp
A/N; ahh, another chapter, another cliffy. Heheh…sorry 'bout that, people. But, look at it this way, at least they kissed!!!!!!
Lol, anyway, again, this chapter is kinda' short…8 pages….'sigh'. I stopped it here because I wanted to have something interesting to write in the next chapter, not some boring drivel, so, I will try and make the next one longer. Oh god, I just made another stupid promise that I'll have to keep, didn't I…?
You know the deal, you review, I'll update!
Edited; 30-05-07