What Draco Wants

JK Rowling owns it all. I just play with her toys.

Chapter 12

Draco tried to keep his gaze about three feet in front of him. If he looked any further and accidentally caught sight of Potter that pain in his chest would return with a stab so sharp it took his breath away. He concentrated on his classes and tried to make up for all the work he missed when he was obsessed with the amulet. Exams were coming up soon and he wanted to do well. He had no idea why he wanted top marks. There was no longer a father to berate him for getting lower grades than Granger, or to scream at him for letting Potter catch the snitch before him. He figured it was something to keep his mind busy so he didn't wallow in self pity.

He knew now that despite what Potter fantasized about, he hated him. Draco tried to figure this out. Why would someone have sexual desires for the image of the one they hated? Could it be that Potter was so afraid of someone he cared about getting hurt that he only felt safe dreaming of one he wished dead? That was the only conclusion he could come up with. Potter wanted him dead so it was OK to have sexual desires for someone he'd never actually have.

As Draco lay on his bed pondering that line of thought for the millionth time there came a hammering at his door so loud and so insistent he swore the door would cave in. With a flick of his wand the locking spell was broken and his godfather stumbled in. He was dirty, sweaty, his robes were torn and there was a fresh cut on his forehead. "Where is he?" He demanded

"Where is who? What the bloody hell happened to you? You are bleeding" Draco yelled.

"Never mind that, look in that amulet of yours and tell me where they have taken Potter!"

"The amulet, what? No, I don't wear it anymore" Draco stammered
Snape grabbed the front of the boy's pajamas "NOW, where is he. Damn it Draco, the amulet, where is it?"

Draco slammed open the tiny drawer and pulled out the amulet. His heart dropped when it appeared black and cold in his hand. "Put it on boy, put it around your neck!" Snape snapped at him

Draco did as he was told and heaved a sigh of relief as the image of Potter began to become clear. When he could see him fully Draco felt bile raise up in his throat.

"Well? Tell me, boy what do you see! Where is he? What is the situation" Snape had started to pace back and forth in front of Draco and it was making him even more nauseous.

"He he, um.. he is badly beaten. um.." Draco zoomed the image out as far as he could with trembling fingers. "Potter is um.. naked, chained up by his wrists. He is bloody and ..." Draco ran to the bathroom where he vomited. Snape followed him into the bathroom and pulled him up to his feet by the front of his shirt "Now, boy, be sick later"

Draco swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. "I see, um.. a dungeon. Oh gods! It's the manor, they have him locked up in the dungeon of the Manor. My father is there, many of the Death Eaters, um probably ten that I can see." Draco looked up at his godfather "Please hurry! Bring him back safe. Please, I beg you!"

Snape nodded and yelled over his shoulder "Because of you, now we can" as he ran out of the room.

Draco fell to his knees and clenched the amulet to his chest. He rocked back and forth as the tears streamed down his face. "No, if it had been up to me they never would have gotten him in the first place. I should have been watching over him."

Draco sat on the floor and watched as the clock passed an hour. He would sneak little peeks at the amulet but didn't dare look to closely. Another hour passed and he peeked again. What he saw was Potter still hanging in the chains by his wrists but the background was a blur of activity. Lights flashed, people ran back and forth, smoke swirled around Potter's body. He saw a light hit Potter in the side and his back arched as he screamed, the cruciatus curse. Draco's head was full of Potter's screams. He dropped the amulet and crawled backward into a corner pressing himself as small as he could. He covered his ears with his hands and even though he was not holding the amulet he could still hear the screaming memory in his own mind. "Stop Stop! Nooo! Please, please get him out!" Draco yelled.

When he had stopped hearing the screams and he had calmed down a bit more he looked again. A girl with bright purple hair was lowering Potter to the ground very gently. Draco zoomed out and saw many dark figures laying on the floor. Some of the Order members that Draco had been allowed to meet were milling about talking. A big black man took off his cloak and draped it over Potter's unconscious body and gently picked him up. Then they were gone. Draco waited but the amulet showed him nothing, it was black and cold.

Draco dressed as fast as he could and raced up the dungeon stairs toward the hospital wing. He hid until he knew it was clear and slipped inside before the Order arrived with Harry. He found a quiet corner to hide in, far away enough from Harry's usual bed not to be seen but to where he could hear what would be said.

Just as he predicted he saw Madam Pomfrey bustle in and prepare Harry's bed. Draco looked down at the amulet and saw the big black man carrying Potter in his arms toward the castle. He looked so small under the man's cloak and so pale in the bleak moonlight. He knew his hiding place was perfect when he could hear the Mediwitch bark out orders to her student about which potions and bandages she would need. Draco's hands were shaking as he eyes passed back and forth between the amulet and the room. What was taking them so long! Surly a man of that size could walk faster than that!

Soon the ward was full of Order members, Dumbledore, and it seemed an entire circus of people. Draco couldn't make out a single voice to hear what was going on. Draco relied on his amulet zoomed in on Potter to see what they were doing to his body before it was covered up by another person standing to close to him. "Out, all of you out of here and let me tend to him now" came the loud stern voice of Madam Pomfrey. Draco stifled a chuckle as the huge black man shuffled out as if a chastised child, along with the rest of them.

Potter was laid out on his left side, his back toward Draco, a sheet had been laid discreetly over his hip. He caught a glimpse of the raw mess that was Potter's back and had to turn his view in the mirror before he became sick. Draco had been beaten before but never anything like that. He sent up a silent prayer to any and all gods he knew that Potter would live. He knew how strong Potter was and that he most likely had lived through worse. It was a thought that Draco didn't want to follow to the end. The Mediwitch ran her wand over and over Potter's body while another younger version carefully washed his face. Once the grime was washed away Potter didn't look quite so bad. His eyes had dark circles under them, his lip was split and his jaw bruised. Draco's thumb caressed the image of Potter's cheek as a tear ran down his own.

It seemed like hours had passed by the time salves were applied, magic used and dressings put into place. They had carefully dressed him in the typical open backed gown, and covered his legs with a soft light sheet. As soon as the lights were put out save for a single candle Draco crept out from his hiding place. He had removed his shoes so his footfalls would not be heard by the ever alert ears of the nurses. He slowly circled the bed inspecting Harry's body from every angle. His back had been magically healed but there were still some raw places covered now in bandages. Draco raised the sheet and carefully slid the hospital gown to the side. He quickly dropped it blushing bright red at seeing Harry's behind was just fine with only a few pink stripes on his firm round cheeks. He decided then, no more peeking. He rounded the bed to see Harry's face. The cuts and bruises had been heeled though his eyes still looked shallow. Without thought Draco's hand reached out and brushed the hair at his temple back from his face.

"What are you doing up here young man?" came Snape's best chastising voice. Draco's hand jerked away as he stumbled back from Harry's bed.

"I um.. I " Draco sighed and tossed up his hands. Snape knew how he felt about Potter therefore the question really didn't require an answer. Draco felt a nudge on his mind as he saw his godfather's eyebrow raise as a signal it was him. Snape tilted his head back to where Draco had been hidden earlier and began to walk that way. Draco followed him with curiosity.

Snape turned so quickly that Draco almost bumped into him. He looked up at the only adult he had ever trusted fully. Snape looked down his hook nose at the boy, his eyes were hard and black as coal. "What is it, Professor?" Draco asked as worry started to creep up his spine. Snape sighed and pinched his nose between his eyes before he spoke.

"Draco, your father was there tonight. It was partly his doing what happened to Potter."

"I figured as much when I saw him in the amulet and that Potter was taken to the manor. Only he could have gotten past the protective wards" Draco felt his mouth run dry and his stomach churn as he recalled the image of Potter hanging there like a bloody marionette with his father at his side.

"Draco, I was not there when everything went down. It would have given away my position. However, I was there in the aftermath to clean things up from the Dark Lord's perspective." He put his hand on the smaller boy's shoulder and looked him in the eye as he said "Draco, your father was one of the casualties. He did not make it out alive this time."

Draco's knees became weak and he head was full of a buzzing sound. Snape directed him to a near by chair and gently pushed him into it. "Do you know what this means, Draco?" When he shook his head he pushed his blond hair out of his eyes as he looked up at his godfather. "Well, for one thing, it means that you are now the Master of the Manor. We have changed the wards and it is under the protection of the Order."

Draco stood and put on his best Malfoy mask. "I want the Order to search the dungeon for anything that might be helpful to the cause and then I want that area sealed up. It is no longer a part of my home."

Snape nodded and clapped Draco on the shoulder lightly, pride filling him for this boy he had always felt was more his son than Lucius Malfoy's. "It will be done as soon as day breaks. You have my word." He jerked his chin toward where the boy lay in the bed "How is he?"

"He will be fine I think. I heard Madam Pomfrey say there shouldn't be much scaring if any at all. How he comes out mentally they do not know yet. They can't know for sure until he wakes up. Did you know he was in therapy already?" Draco asked.

"Yes, I was the one who suggested it. There are some around here that do not feel the mind and the body are one." When the blond looked up in confusion and a bit of shock behind his eyes Snape just gave him the look to let it be and not ask any questions. Draco nodded and looked over his shoulder to where Potter's back was facing him. "I think someone should stay with him tonight. Why don't you pull up a chair, just in case."

Draco's huge gray eyes looked from the boy to the man beside him. His hands began to shake as he recalled Potter's words "You. You. No" right before he ran out into the snow. "I can't, Godfather, no it has to be someone else. If he woke up and saw me here he would freak."

"He won't wake up for hours, perhaps days. It will be fine, trust me" Snape's voice was so soft, so unlike him that Draco sighed and agreed. "Good, I'll go tell Madam Pomfrey you will be staying" With a flurry of robes he walked away.

Draco slept in the chair next to Harry's bed. Every time the Mediwitch came in to check on him Draco woke up and watched her every move. She did shoo him out every time she had to uncover Harry's lower body but other than that she left him alone.

As the sun crept through the windows Draco watched the rays shine in Harry's hair. Draco stood behind the boy and stroked the ebony silk he loved so much. "You know, Potter, I really do understand you better than you think I do. But here is the thing, you many not be mine but I am yours. I don't know how or when exactly that happened but it did. I am yours if you like it or not." He picked up the comb on the bedside tray and started to caress it through Harry's hair. "I know I let you down last night. I won't ever let it happen again if I can help it. I will watch over you, I will keep you as safe as I can for as long as I can." Draco stopped long enough to wipe his eyes on his sleeve and then continued to run the comb through the top of Harry's head. He collected all the hair that the comb gently pulled from his crown and laid each one carefully into a tissue. He gently stroked each eyelid and collected several stray lashes. He couldn't bring himself to pluck them out and cause Harry more pain, no matter how minor. A sob hitched in his throat as he laid his hand on Harry's cheek. He wanted so desperately to kiss those sleeping lips but he figured he had stolen enough from him. He kissed Harry in the middle of his forehead instead and rushed out of the room before his emotions could over take him.