A/N: Thanks for the reviews :) it mean a lot to know that even though not much happens in this story, I can still keep it interesting.

Chapter Fourteen

The Untold Story

As he slept on, more nightmares plagued his uneasy sleep and a conscious part of him kept reliving those short but awful moments that he knew he would never be able to forget. Being on that bed, half nauseous, half defiant, he hadn't felt like himself at all. Although he'd had out of body experiences before, this time had been completely different. It was as if he'd been watching himself on that bed, and his pants being lowered, as if it had all been someone else and not him that it was happening to. That had lasted up until the moment when he'd watched himself get penetrated and then he'd crashed back into his body painfully enough, finally believing that it really was him that this was happening to, feeling worse than trash. Now, reliving it, he couldn't hold off the tears anymore. The nausea and dizziness had subsided and even the emptiness that made him feel light as a feather was gone. It was all a mess of shattered reality inside him. He had thought nothing on this scale would ever really happen to him. After all, he had his magic and his Draco to keep him safe. Both had failed him. He felt more tears sting his eyes and continued to cry in his sleep. He couldn't blame Draco for this, not really. Anyone would have lost sight of another in that bloody overcrowded club. The only person to blame for this was himself. How could he have let go of all precaution like that? What if the stranger had ended up being one of those holding a grudge against him and had identified him when they'd gone off to a private place? He was lucky he wasn't dead.

Some time after going through the painful experience again and feeling his breath catch for the hundredth time, his mind slipped further into unconsciousness and tried to change the situation; to make the nightmare more bearable. In his dream, as he lay on the bed, Harry watched, hopeful, as the flames in the fireplace turned green and a new figure walked through them, menacing and ready to take Harry back no matter what the cost. He felt Draco's warm aura tingling around him, felt him push the heavy figure off him and kneel beside him, just looking into his eyes, and ask him if he was okay. His brain wanted desperately for that to have happened, but the realistic part of Harry knew that no such thing could have happened. Life wasn't a fairy tale. People didn't get saved just because they wished for it hard enough. He'd gotten himself into a bad situation and now he had to live with the consequences.

He woke up, feeling colder than ever. It must have been the early hours of the morning. The sun was up, but evidently had not been in the sky long enough to warm his room yet. He wasn't sure why he'd woken up so early when he had no desire to get up and face the world, especially when Draco would undoubtedly want to question him about last night, but when he became less disoriented, he felt the familiar warmth of Draco's aura and knew that he wasn't alone like he'd hoped to be. It had probably been the feel of Draco's golden aura that had pushed his mind into changing his nightmare to include Draco as a saviour, which meant that he must have been standing there for quite a while now to have influenced his dreams. He couldn't find it in him to be annoyed that his sleep had been disrupted; it was an easy choice between reliving that nightmare which he had no control over and facing Draco's questions and handing him hasty lies that were very well within his control.

He looked up at Draco with half-open eyes, lies already half-formed in his head. He was standing by the wall, the same place Harry had found him in the last time he'd stood there. He hoped Draco wasn't making a habit of this. When his vision cleared further and he could notice details, he caught Draco's pale face and delicate frown, and all thought of playfully chasing Draco out with a pillow disappeared from his mind.

"Where did you disappear off to last night?" Whispered Draco, eyes pasted to the floor, a permanent frown marring his features. "I looked everywhere. Checked every bathroom stall. Looked under every table. I even asked people if they'd seen someone with your features, never mind the risk of having them recognize you as Harry Potter. And then I come back after hours of panicking and looking through every corner of the club to make sure you're not passed out somewhere, and here you are, sound asleep."

Harry took a moment to swallow and clear his throat. He hadn't expected this. He'd been so busy trying to forget what had happened that in comparison not having told Draco that he was back at the Manor by sending Shabby with a message did not seem that big a deal. But looking into Draco's betrayed eyes now, he could see how it may have been the second greatest mistake he'd made last night. Of course Draco would see it as a betrayal, a childish tantrum with Harry running away when he'd seen Draco giving more attention to others than to him. He could see all that and more in Draco's stormy eyes that were far less open to him now than they had been just a few hours ago. Maybe his lost innocence wasn't his only loss last night. All in all, he'd handled his one night of freedom the worst way he could have. But in the midst of all these disasters, here was Draco, handing him a story to build up on. He'd thought that Harry had run away in the face of strangers crowding him without the attention of Draco to sedate him and so Harry would just go with it. After all, he was protecting him from the truth which would hurt far worse. If Draco ever found out how he'd failed in protecting Harry by taking it for granted and trusting Harry to take care of himself for a few minutes, then he would never forgive himself.

"What else did you expect?" He bit out, narrowing his eyes as Draco's head snapped up and he locked eyes with him. "First you take me to this overcrowded place for the very first time I'm going out to be around strangers again, overwhelming all my senses, then you disappear on the pretence of getting me drinks when you very well know I can't even drink because of my weak stomach, and leave me with strangers groping me. Then when I finally find you again you're in the middle of the dance floor, grinding against said strangers, having the time of your life."

He glared at Draco, feeling something tear inside him as Draco got paler and paler. I'm doing this for his own good, this is still far better than the real reason why I left the club, He told himself. And yeah, I'm getting my grudges out of the way at the same time. This is all true, after all. He was an idiot to think taking me there would be a good idea. Maybe he's not responsible for the decisions I made or the trouble I got myself into, and maybe it wasn't his fault that I couldn't find him in time to ask him to rescue me from the hole I'd dug myself into, but being angry is better than breaking down and crying right now.

"You didn't look like you needed me," continued Harry in the same acidic tone. "So I left."

"Oh, Harry," Draco stepped forward, biting his lower lip, the hurt in his eyes replaced by guilt. "I'm so sorry, it's so hard to lose track of things in there, and I was so worried about your reaction that I dismissed everything else and rushed away from your side on your very first time out."

He hung his head, slumped down and slid to the floor. "I'm so sorry. I never thought about it from your side."

"You were worried about my reaction to what?" Asked Harry suspiciously. He watched Draco take a deep breath, come to a silent decision if the look of determination in his eyes was any clue, and prepare himself as if facing an execution.

"There's a reason I took you to the Mist on your first night out. And there's also a reason why I was insistent on going tonight instead of waiting for later, when I could see it in your eyes that you weren't ready yet," He confessed hastily. Harry sat up on the bed, leaning forward. It seemed like Draco had thought long and hard about how to word this, and he felt himself hanging off every word. "I wonder if you noticed that the Mist was a gay bar."

"Indeed?" Asked Harry a touch too sarcastically. He frowned. He'd been spending too much time around Snape.

"Yeah, well," laughed Draco somewhat hysterically. "I wanted you to see my preferred sexuality without my having to outright say it to you.

"Because… because I fancy you Harry."

Harry gulped. Of all the things, he hadn't expected this to be what Draco would say to him. He felt his expression go blank, his body go limp, his mind freeze. "W-what?"

"You heard me." Said Draco, somewhat braver, looking up at Harry. "I fancy you Harry. Have for a long time. I'm tired of being invisible. Yes I was grinding with random strangers. But that was to show you that I prefer male company, to that extent and of that nature, and I stayed away from you because I was sure once you'd figure it out, you'd run for the hills. Of course I hadn't truly expected you to vanish so suddenly, or I would have anticipated you being back at the Manor instead of looking all over the Mist for you."

Draco scratched behind his neck, frowning. "Actually, I was so frantic with where you'd gone that I lost all rational thought and didn't think to check here first and foremost." He looked up at Harry sheepishly. "I guess that was another error on my part. Shouldn't have barged in here and put the blame on you. Forgive me?"

Harry looked back at Draco silently. Besides shock, he could feel hot guilt running through him at the words. Draco was apologising for putting all the blame on Harry, when in all actuality Harry had been putting all the blame on Draco more than gladly in order to avoid talking about the real reason behind his disappearance. He would be damned to let Draco take the fall for this, but between being stunned into silence from Draco's confession and not yet being ready to talk about what had happened to him last night, he simply nodded his forgiveness, not finding his tongue to say anything more.

Draco gave him a bright smile. "I know it was cruel of me to have ignored you and simply assuming the worst." He crawled over to Harry's bedside and sat cross legged next to it on the floor. "It was an overwhelming experience wasn't it? I was really rash, taking you there, yeah? I'm a prat."

Harry smirked at Draco. This, he knew how to deal with.

"Yeah you are. I'm glad you finally see the light," he joked. Draco's smile broadened.

"Uh huh," he agreed. "Who was that guy talking to you anyway?"

"What?" Gulped Harry, the smile leaving his face. Draco had seen the stranger? How much had he seen?

"The one you dragged to the dance floor?" Asked a confused Draco. "To get back at me with, I presume?" A hint of a smile played at the corner of Draco's lips. Harry sighed in relief. If that's all Draco had seen, then he could still get out of this.

"No one. I didn't even catch his name." Replied Harry nonchalantly.

It was Draco's turn to smirk.

"So no one I need to worry about?" He joked.

Harry looked away nervously. Draco was hinting too much at his previous confession about fancying Harry. It made him uncomfortable to have to think of it so soon after what had been such a cruel violation of his senses and body. He couldn't think of anything remotely intimate right now, be it physical or mental intimacy. If people didn't bother him about it for another ten years it still would be too soon.

"No," said Harry, remembering to reply after the awkward pause. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything," murmured Draco, too eagerly for Harry's liking. He shuffled through his brain, trying to come up with something that would bring an effective subject change.

"I felt really nauseous after going through the floo. Why was that?" Asked Harry, relieved to have found a suitable question. Although he had a fair idea about this, it wouldn't hurt to discuss it. When Draco frowned at him in concern, he only had a few seconds to regret his choice in bringing it up. What was Draco looking at him like that for?

"You're not taking your nourishment potions, are you?" He accused. When Harry shook his head guiltily, he sighed and continued in a more subdued tone, "I should have known. The same thing happened to me. I realised that eating was pointless while the sphere protected and healed me, and so I stopped too, at least until my first floo when I realised my mistake."

"What does eating have to do with it?" He asked, feigning too much ignorance. He wondered briefly if Draco would call him out on it, and was relieved when he didn't, too caught up in lecturing Harry as he was.

"Well the Manor and the Mist are miles apart, each hidden under their own protective sphere, yeah?" When Harry nodded, Draco continued, "and their only connection is the floo network. The floo that connects all places that are hidden under their own individual spheres, that is. It is an entirely different network from the floo that connects places that are outside the sphere, so that criminals like us can't cross to the innocent side," Draco rolled his eyes, obvious disdain marking his words. "But the floo that connects here to the Mist and other places that are under spheres separate from here, has to cover the miles separating these spheres and so ventures outside the protective spheres for miles. Call it an oversight if you will. While we are travelling from sphere to sphere using floo, we'll be momentarily free from the influence of the sphere, causing our body to not heal itself for a while. That's what you were feeling," Draco finished. "You were feeling the lack of nutrition in your body because the sphere wasn't there to heal you while you were travelling through the floo network."

Harry nodded silently. On top of everything else, now he had to remember to take his nutrition potions too. Great. In the silence, as he thought about how his life needed to change after a few hours had changed them forever, Draco apparently had gone back to the subject Harry had veered him away from.

"So, um," Draco broke the silent, bringing Harry out of his reverie. "Are you running for the hills yet?" He gave Harry a sardonic smile. "After finding out about my… preference?"

Harry looked into Draco's eyes, feeling his heart beat loudly in his ears. Draco looked so open and vulnerable. How could he turn him down?

"No," he said softly. "I don't care about that."

Draco looked back at Harry with relief shining bright in his eyes. "You don't?"

"I don't," replied Harry reassuringly. He couldn't help but smile. "Are you still worried about that?"

When Draco pursed his lips and didn't say anything, Harry muttered, "Bloody idiot."

"Oi!" Objected Draco, although the relieved smile was still on his lips. "It's not like you gave me an answer when I confessed to fancying you. Don't think I don't see you trying to change the subject," Draco stuck his tongue out and climbed onto the bed next to Harry, "unsuccessfully."

Harry lay back down and pulled the sheets over his head. "Was not," he mumbled from under them.

"Was too!" Claimed Draco as he bent over Harry and lowered the sheets from over his head playfully. The cheeriness left him when he saw Harry's expressionless face staring off into nothingness.

"What's wrong Harry?" He asked softly, putting his hand against Harry's pale cheek. Harry flinched and Draco pulled back his hand worriedly. "Are you so disgusted with my confession?" He swallowed hard when Harry didn't reply and he turned as pale as Harry was. "I see."

Harry finally turned to look at Draco, propped on his elbows over Harry's body, the worry and concern turning his aura a pale yellow. "Don't be ridiculous. It's just been one hell of a night. Give a bloke some time to adjust."

Inside, Harry could feel himself dying. In his head, he was back under the stranger, feeling helpless and sick.

"Then why did you flinch when I touched you?"

Harry looked defiantly into Draco's eyes, not answering. Draco put his hand back over Harry's cheek and this time Harry didn't flinch, but continued to gaze at him.

They stayed in that position, Draco leaning over Harry, until Harry was sure he'd memorized the exact shade of Draco's eyes and would be able to tell them apart from other people's even in the dark. His tense muscles relaxed one by one. This wasn't the stranger. This was Draco. His Draco. He knew Draco, knew that he would never intentionally hurt him, would never force him to do what he didn't truly want to do. When Draco finally lifted his hand and himself up off of him, Harry breathed in deeply.

"I'll let you sleep then," said Draco after he'd recollected his thoughts. "And give you some time to adjust."

"Right," replied Harry, breathless. When Draco was long gone, he got up and went to brush his teeth in a daze. His mouth still tasted foul from his earlier activities the previous night. He wasn't sure he'd ever be able to rid himself of the taste. Mixed with the taste of sleep as it was, it was even more disgusting than it had been only hours ago. He couldn't believe he'd fallen asleep with that taste in his mouth, with the sweat on his body, with the lingering feeling of having been violated that was so strong that he wasn't sure he remembered what was it like not to feel this way. How had he relaxed under Draco's touch a few moments ago? Now that his calming presence wasn't here, all he could hear was the loud and trapped beating of his heart against his ribcage. It wasn't fair, what had happened to him. He wanted it to be undone. He brushed his teeth thrice, vigorously and thoroughly each time, and stared at himself in the mirror, seeing how broken he really looked. How had Draco not seen that? He wasn't sure if he felt relief or sadness from that fact. After all, he'd attacked Draco, put the blame on him, so that Draco would be on the defensive and wouldn't have time to question Harry and see through his feeble lies. After all, it was no good to go over the memories of last night, or earlier this morning, or whenever the hell it had been. He shut all those memories in a steel box, shutting them off in the deepest and darkest corners of his mind. He'd just pretend it had never happened. If he pretended hard enough, then maybe it would be so.

He decided to think about something else. After all, between jerking off to images of Draco masturbating, hearing him confess to fancying him without so much an objection, and not pushing him away when he'd practically lain over him, stroking his cheek, Harry thought it appropriate to start questioning his own sexuality. Hard as he tried to remember anything from his life before, he couldn't recall whether he was straight, gay, or bisexual.

Dismissing it all, he decided that it didn't really matter. Right now, all that mattered would be to get himself back on track. He had to start taking the nourishment potions again, and start training his magic harder than before. It had escaped him when he'd needed it most, like that time when Snape had fed him the sleeping potion back in the small, dark room without Harry's magic coming to help push him off. In moments of pure panic he hadn't been able to call it forth, and that could be a huge problem in the future. Besides, as working with his wandless magic really drained him and took all his concentration, it would be a good solution to forgetting all that had happened last night even if his steel box proved to be breakable and the memories came rushing back.

Feeling drained enough for a lifetime however, he fell back onto bed and dozed on and off until midafternoon, this time dreaming pleasantly of an eventless day out in the green fields, sitting around reading books with Draco by his side, his hand in Harry's hair. He wasn't yet sure about his feelings towards the blond or his earlier confession, but that was okay. Their friendship was strong enough to survive this even if he decided to reject Draco in the end.