Chapter Twenty Six-Revelations

Biddy had served a delicious dinner which both boys had eaten with relish but the warmth of the meal combined with the exhaustion of the last few days caught up with them as soon as they finished their dessert, and they both fell asleep right away.

Harry was having a pleasant dream where he was flying over a field of golden wheat when he was rudely and suddenly ripped from his dream world. He opened his eyes in confusion, taking in the dark room and trying to understand what had woken him up and frowning when he couldn't pinpoint the problem. He was just about to force himself back to sleep when he heard it. It was a small pain filled whimper; much like one would expect from an animal caught in a hunter's trap and now wide awake in alarm, he grabbed his glasses that lay on his bedside table and hastily put them on. Using the dim light that stole in from under the bathroom door, he turned to see Malfoy tangled in the beddings and the more he fought to free himself, the more tangled he got, and the more he became hopelessly trapped. Harry would have found the situation a bit funny except for the fact that the Slytherin's eyes were wide open and they stared unseeingly at something Harry couldn't see while tears fell in a steady stream down his fair cheeks. There was something horrifying about it all and not knowing what to do, Harry began shaking him and just when he started panicking because Draco wasn't waking up, the silver eyes seemed to lose their glazed look and became focused on Harry's face.

Draco looked at Harry, made a chocked noise, and before Harry could say anything, Malfoy was kissing him. Kissing him with an urgency that suggested the boy was trying to regain something and Harry didn't fight it even when he was pushed on his back, and Malfoy climbed on top of him. Malfoy didn't seem very aware of what he was doing, but he appeared to need it, so Harry did nothing more than hold Malfoy by the hips. Malfoy vanished their clothes with a wave of his hand, and another wave lubricated his hole. Before Harry could stop him, he impaled himself on Harry's erected dick and screamed at the sudden pain mixed with pleasure. Harry held his hips to still him for a minute, but Malfoy would not have it, and he began to move; bouncing up and down on Harry's shaft while the Gryffindor tried to get past his shock long enough to comprehend what was happening. His mind screamed that this was not the way to deal with whatever Malfoy was experiencing, but it was hard to listen to that part when the rest of him wanted to focus on the pleasure he was getting. Deciding to think about it later, he let himself go, and it only took a short time before Malfoy was screaming his orgasm and taking Harry with him.

When they had both regained their breath, the blonde collapsed on Harry's chest, and Harry held on tightly to the shivering boy. His hands travelled up and down the blonde's back in a soothing manner, and he did not stop until he felt even breathing indicating that his bed mate had fallen back to sleep. Only then did he wandlessly and wordlessly clean them but he did not let go of Malfoy; he let the boy sleep on top of him while he threaded his fingers in the other's soft platinum locks.

Despite how tired Harry was, the chaos in his mind would not let him fall back to sleep right away. Although Draco had been the one to take advantage of him physically, he felt like he had been the one to take advantage. Malfoy had not been in his right mind, and knowing what he knew about the situation with Voldemort, it was not a stretch for Harry to figure out the likely nature of the nightmare that had driven Draco to attempt to reclaim sexual control. Harry knew that they needed to speak about it, but it was a daunting task and one that he was not sure he was ready for. He wanted to know what had gotten Malfoy so terrified and panicked and be allowed to help but he also knew that that would irrevocably change their relationship in ways he was not ready for yet. One thing he was sure of though, was that those beautiful silver eyes should always be filled with happiness rather than tears, pain, and fear and he decided that in the little way he was allowed, he would try to bring Draco that joy.

Harry must have fallen asleep at some point, and when he woke up, Malfoy was gone, and a quick look at the marauder's map tracked him to the dungeons walking with Parkinson and Zabini. Harry took a quick shower, dressed fast and headed to the Great Hall for breakfast. As he walked from the East tower, he remembered with a cringe his blow up from the previous day, and when he got there to find himself being ignored by his friends, he realised that it was time to face the music.

'I am sorry guys.' Harry said the moment he sat down. 'I was exhausted and suffering from lack of sleep; my temper was just itching to explode, and you did not deserve my outburst.' Harry was aware that he had not said anything that wasn't true, but he could have said it in a better way. He looked apologetically at Ron, Hermione, and Ginny and almost sighed in relief when he saw a small smile appear on Ginny's face before she spoke.

'Anyone would be stressed if they had to stay up all day and night taking care of someone they didn't care about.' She said almost challengingly, and Harry didn't correct her about the caring part. He couldn't say that he was no longer so sure that he didn't care because he didn't want to get into another fight when she was letting it go this easily. The fact that he cared would remain his secret for now as he tried to figure out exactly why the years of enmity no longer seemed to matter with each day he spent with the blonde Slytherin. The weight of the insults and humiliation that had passed between them over the years kept lessening and Harry could not bring himself to mind.

'We care about you, Harry, and we are afraid of what he could and will do.' Hermione said in the motherly tone she had been adopting, and Harry had a distinct impression that she felt he was testing her patience every time he spoke or did something. It was not exactly a new insight since she always had that attitude whenever she attempted to explain something to him and Ron that she thought was obvious. This time, however, Harry felt a condescesion to the tone that he had never detected before.

'Yea.' Ron agreed grudgingly, and Harry felt that he unlike the others did not want to let go so easily but was forced to do so. What was forcing him, Harry couldn't begin to guess, but Harry was not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. It was probably Hermione, so he didn't dwell much on it.

'The ferret is a death eater mate; his entire family are death eaters. The Malfoys have never been anything but evil.' Ron continued, and Harry nodded because it was easier to nod and say yes than argue that they had all seen Malfoy shirtless on Halloween and he did not have a single blemish on his perfect skin. Harry also knew from experience that there was no flaw anywhere on the blonde's beautiful body. His thoughts went back to the previous night when he thought of Malfoy's body. That had been the first time they had had sex since calling the truce, and he really didn't know what this meant for them; for now, he would just go with it and see how Malfoy reacted.

'Are you listening Harry?' Ron asked looking exasperated that his friend had been wool gathering when he was talking to him.

'Sorry Ron, what were you saying?'

Ron leant in closer. 'Have you managed to find something on Malfoy?' He asked in a conspiratorial tone.

'No, all he does is read and do homework.' Harry said, glad that he didn't need to lie. Maybe he wasn't telling the whole truth, but he wasn't technically lying either. Malfoy's grey faction was a point of interest, but he knew nothing about it yet, and he didn't want to jump the gun and have his chance of finding out more compromised. 'Maybe he will do something now that he has recovered.'

'Probably.' Ron agreed and kept his thoughts to himself. He had known Harry for a long time, and even though the boy who lived had gotten better at hiding his feelings, Ron could still detect that something was off with Harry. To be truthful, he thought a lot of things were off with the entire bonding and Malfoy situation, but he couldn't seem to connect all the dots.

Malfoy should have been poor, and yet he had been able to buy something worth three million galleons during Christmas the previous year! Although Ron still suspected that the Slytherin had not completely cut off ties with his family as he pretended to have, the very nature of the Malfoy family made him question his own theory.

The bond Malfoy had entered into was unbreakable, and since Harry was a half-blood, any children born of the union would not be purebloods. Ron seriously doubted that Lucius Malfoy would allow his only heir to bond with a half-blood even for information about the light side. There was the fact that Draco Malfoy could sire an heir with someone other than Harry, but that child would be a bastard, and it was unheard of for a bastard to inherit in a family like the Malfoys. The more he thought about it, the more the prospect that Malfoy was still in contact with his family became unlikely, and the more desperate Ron became to cling to that theory because the alternative was worse.

Grudgingly, Ron had had to consider the possibility that Malfoy not only knew the owner of Dragon World but was in fact he. The store had begun right after Malfoy bonded with Harry and when Ron examined the situation more clearly, little things that meant nothing by themselves started to come together to form an unsavoury picture. Bill quitting Gringotts right after speaking with Malfoy. Numerous letters delivered by regular owls instead of the eagle owls that the Malfoy family preferred. The unexplainable financial independence that allowed Malfoy to continue with his normal lifestyle. Genius way of playing chess and the most of obvious of all, the name of the store. It always surprised Ron that he seemed to be the only one to connect these pieces together, but he also had to give the allowance that everyone else was also playing their cards close to their chest-merlin knew he was yet to voice all his suspicions to the order or anyone for that matter.

Sighing, Ron thought of the one thing that had prevented him from at least discussing his theory with Hermione. Aside from potions, Malfoy had not even once outperformed Hermione in the last few years which made the likelihood of him being the inventor less likely, but Ron was not blind to the fact that Malfoy could have been hiding his abilities this entire time. If that was true, Malfoy and his grey faction could be more of a threat than anyone had yet to realise.

For now, Ron hoped that Malfoy was just another contact for the inventor of Dragon world because then, the order had the chance to attract the real owner to the light. Ron would not stick his head in the sand though; he would continue to check for signs that Malfoy was more than he 'pretended' to be. Sighing again, Ron forced his mind back to the conversation at hand.

'Harry, I was thinking that we could go shopping when we go to Hogsmeade this weekend.' Ginny said, and Harry suppressed the urge to groan although he appreciated the change in topic. He had never been one to enjoy things like shopping, but he also needed to reconnect himself with his friends, so he grit his teeth and resigned himself to the inevitable.

'Sure Ginny.' He answered. 'Anything in particular you want to buy?'

Ginny took that as a cue that everything was all well between them and linked her arm through Harry's. It didn't feel right, but Harry forced himself to keep the contact although all he wanted was to yank his arm away. He watched Ginny flutter her eyes and for a confused moment there; he almost offered to blow out whatever was in her eyes before he realised she was flirting. If he was honest, Ginny was a beautiful girl, and he had felt a sense of accomplishment knowing that his girlfriend was one of the most sought-after girls in Hogwarts, but all he could think now was that she wasn't Draco. Her flirtation was too obvious while Draco would have let his eyes droop seductively and...

'Harry?' Hermione called impatiently, and Harry realised that he had missed whatever Ginny's answer had been. 'What is with you today?'

'Sorry Hermione, I suppose I am still a bit tired.' He answered quickly and shook his head a bit in a vain attempt to rid his mind of the cloud of lust that had invaded it.

'I was saying that this entire marriage has been hard on Ginny, and it has affected your relationship.' She said again when she was sure that she had Harry's attention. Hermione Granger was not the brightest witch in a century for no reason, and she was not buying any of Harry's 'tired' act, but this was not the time to get into that.

Grudging, she could admit that Malfoy was one of the most beautiful people she had ever met, and that was saying a lot considering that they had had veelas in the castle in their fourth year. While her best friend was capable of resisting the imperius curse, Hermione did not have any faith that Harry could resist a determined Malfoy; not when said Malfoy was pretending to be less evil than he truly was. Harry may not see it yet, but Hermione could see that he was falling fast for their mortal enemy and that could not be allowed to happen. Something needed to be done and fast.

'Maybe the two of you should take some time to be alone during the Hogsmeade visit. You could go shopping with Ginny first, and then meet us for dinner at that new restaurant.' She suggested, hoping that Ginny would take the opportunity to get Harry back on track.

'There is a new restaurant in Hogsmeade?' Harry asked in surprise. He hadn't been to Hogsmeade since they came back from Christmas break; first, because the bond had not allowed him to separate from Malfoy and after that, Harry had had to compensate for the training he had missed because of the bond. The only reason he was even going this time was because Dumbledore had to represent the English wizarding community in an International confederation of wizards meeting that weekend, and he had not been able to find a replacement with the skill that Harry required. Although Harry knew he needed the training if he was going to stand a chance against Voldemort, he wasn't too regretful about missing one session because he had genuinely missed going to Hogsmeade.

'It's so posh, Harry.' Ginny gushed in excitement. 'We have been waiting for you so that we can try it out together.'

Unbidden, a thought came to Harry informing him that they had waited so that he could pay. The unwanted uncharitable thought shocked Harry so much he almost stood up from the table. He had no idea where it had come from or why it had come in the first place, but it was there, confusing him because he had always enjoyed sharing his wealth with his friends. Before he could think more on it, Ginny stood up and turned to Harry with a regretful look.

'I am sorry, but I have to go now, see you at lunch.' She kissed Harry on the cheek before she left. Grey eyes watched the entire scene and thought that Harry looked slightly uncomfortable which made their owner just as uncomfortable. Pushing his discomfort aside, Draco turned back to his coffee which he was sure Biddy had stood over until it was done to avoid a repeat of the poisoning. Thinking about the poisoning brought a frown to Draco's face because his friends had already told him everything that had been in the paper and even if they hadn't, he would have noticed that something was wronger than usual because not less than ten people had mockingly called him pretty on his way to breakfast.

He had been poisoned, and the school took it as another form of entertainment for them, and Draco couldn't help but be pissed. Severus had told him that morning that the poison had been put in his coffee by a confounded elf, but Dumbledore had closed the case saying that there was no way to know who had cursed the elf. The four Slytherins who had gathered in Severus' quarters knew that that was bullshit and while Dumbledore was willing to put matters to rest, Draco had no such intention. He was aware that Ginevra was the culprit, and she would pay.

Angrily, Draco raised his head and directed a glare at the place she had been only moments ago, but his expression lost its hardness as he once again got caught up watching the fleeting emotions on Harry's face, as he listened to what his friends were saying to him.

'Harry, you have to do something to make Ginny feel secure in your relationship again.' Hermione said seriously, and although Ron seemed to agree with the sentiment, he didn't say anything.

'What can I do Hermione?' Harry asked. 'I am just beginning to get my privacy back after that bond debacle, and we still don't know what triggered it in the first place.'

'I know, but Ginny is important too.'

'I know that.'

'Maybe you should buy her something that shows that you still love her and want her to be in your life for the long run.'

Harry flinched at the implication of that and frowned before he answered his best friend.

'Hermione, I am married, I can't give her a ring.' He said quickly, maybe too quickly. The very thought of giving Ginny a ring made him nauseous, and if he was honest with himself, he knew that love and devotion were no longer the reasons he was staying with her. It was not honourable to lead her on when he already knew that things had changed between them, but he was afraid to let go and lose everything in the process.

'I know that Harry.' the Gryffindor girl rolled her eyes in mock annoyance, and Harry's eyes widened in confusion because everything felt horribly rehearsed to him; as if he was an actor in a play written by someone else. She continued, 'marriage rings are not the only rings you can give to a person, there are other rings with different meanings.'

'Is that so?' Harry asked with a raised eyebrow that made his friends frown because they had seen that same expression on Malfoy's face a hundred times before. Harry on his part just wanted to beat a hasty escape from his friends, but he knew that would be impossible unless he gave some sort of concession.

'I will see what I can do when we go to Hogsmeade.' He said, and he had apparently said the right thing because his two friends smiled genuinely at him. Looking at them, Harry didn't think they had changed; in fact, he remembered them being always that way but he didn't understand why he perceived them so differently now. It was like he was looking at them through different eyes and he didn't know how he should feel about that.

Harry was happy that the rest of the day passed without incident and although he had kept a lookout for the remainder of the day, the odd feelings he had had at breakfast did not make another appearance making him think that he had imagined them all along. He couldn't have been more wrong as he discovered when he went back to the East tower after dinner.

He arrived in the quarters to find Malfoy gone and after retrieving his cloak and map, Harry was set to trail him to the dungeons where he seemed to be headed. However, before he could begin his stalk, he was caught by another two dots and out of a curiosity that he really couldn't place, he headed to the astronomy tower.

The trek did not take long. On the way, he had kept watch of the two dots to make sure that they had not moved and when he got there, it occurred to him with misplaced amusement that they were moving-just not in the way he had expected.

Harry could not see their faces, but he knew that the girl being humped from behind by Dean Thomas was no other than Ginny. Surprisingly, the anger that any normal person would feel at realising that they were being cheated on did not materialise in Harry. He didn't know why he stayed, maybe it was to reassure himself that he truly felt nothing at the scene that unfolded in front of him, but stay he did.

The oblivious couple fucked, they came, and Harry left because there was nothing else to see. All he felt was 'relief' because now he no longer had to feel guilty for desiring Malfoy with such an urgency that he worried his body would catch fire.

Deciding to start following Malfoy on the next day, Harry went back to their room only to find his query there. Malfoy seemed to have just gotten back himself; and when their eyes met, all Harry saw was Draco with his slightly trembling lip and eyes molten silver with a fire that was uniquely his.

'Kiss me.' Draco ordered causing a burst of lust to erupt in Harry.

It was the first time that the Slytherin had initiated a sexual encounter except for the previous night which didn't count in Harry's books, and it made his heart pound so loudly he feared that everyone in the castle would hear it. Tentatively, Harry moved closer, and when their lips finally connected, he had the sudden thought that he would not mind staying in that exact moment for the rest of his days.

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Earlier that day right after breakfast…

'I am sorry, but I have to go now, see you at lunch.' Ginny kissed Harry on the cheek before she left. She hurried through the halls knowing she was late but there was nothing to be done about it. Her cue to leave the Great Hall was when Dumbledore got up from his place at the teacher's table, but she had to make sure that everything was right between her and Harry, so she had taken the few minutes required to ascertain that. Ginny was sure the headmaster would understand.

Within minutes, she arrived at the headmaster's office, and the gargoyles sprung open for her without requiring her to say the password that had been noted on the small bit of parchment that rested in her pocket. Nervously, she rubbed the paper in her pocket as if trying to ascertain that it was still there, but that was only a distraction because she knew why she had been summoned there and it had nothing to do with the paper. She wanted to be remorseful for her actions, but she simply wasn't.

'Have a seat miss Weasley.' The old man said the moment Ginny walked into the office. There was censure in both his voice and face, and she prepared to feel his displeasure as she sat down.

'Headmaster...' she began.

'Miss Weasley, I expected less impulsive behaviour from you. Not only did you put Harry's life in danger, but you also sabotaged yourself in the process. What do you think would happen if Harry found out you are the one who poisoned Mr Malfoy?' It was a rhetorical question that required no answer and Ginny did not try to offer one.

On his part, Albus was trying to contain the anger that bubbled just below his surface. The silly girl should have known better than to act so recklessly and yet she had poisoned the young Malfoy without regard for what would happen to Harry. He watched as she tilted her chin defiantly and he had to restrain himself from throttling her.

'Can't you see Professor, if we do not act quickly, Malfoy will steal Harry from us.' Ginny was not as stupid as everyone assumed and she saw how Harry had been changing since he bonded with Malfoy. He had become distant with her to the point that he barely touched her and even when he did like today; he would flinch in what she could tell was revulsion. She knew that Harry's heart had already been stolen, but his heart was a luxury she could live without. Ginny didn't care for as long as everything else belonged to her.

Harry could not be Malfoy's. Ginny's family needed Harry, the Order needed Harry, and most importantly, she needed Harry. She shouldn't be blamed for trying to protect what was hers from the likes of Malfoy.

Plus, if Malfoy was not around, that bloody defamation suit would amount to nothing. She thought as she remembered the summons she had received just days before she had decided to poison Malfoy. Her solicitor wanted a meeting to discuss the terms that had been given by Malfoy's side and her blood boiled every time she thought that she would have to apologise and pay reparations to that faggot death eater. Her face had begun glowing red with anger when the headmaster spoke.

'No matter your reasons, such selfish acts will not be tolerated.' Dumbledore said, and from the aura of power emanating from his person, Ginny knew that she would be placing herself in peril if she did not toe the line. Most people got taken in by Dumbledore's white hair, twinkling eyes, and bright robes but not Ginny. In fact, she saw him as kindred spirit-they were both very kind when they got their way; otherwise, they could be more ruthless than any self-proclaimed dark lord.

Being the stronger of the two, Dumbledore had the upper hand. Although it irked Ginny that she was being forced to do nothing about the situation, she knew that she would end up on the winning side since her interests aligned with the old man's this time around.

'Not to worry though, Harry is not going anywhere.' The old man assured, and Ginny believed him entirely. She had no way of knowing it, but Dumbledore was sure that young Miss Ginevra Weasley could as yet gain the Mrs Potter title she desired so much. All would be revealed in time though.

'Thank you, sir.' She said and stood up, knowing that it was time for her to take leave. 'I will let you know if I notice something.'

Dumbledore nodded his head in acceptance of her unvoiced apology. Good, he did not need a chasm to form between Harry and his friends or the order for that matter. There was more than Voldemort at stake, and he was not willing to be in bad terms with Harry especially if what he had begun to suspect was true. He had caused some damage by implying that the Malfoy boy would not survive the war and while he knew it would not be easy, he needed to start rebuilding his relationship with Harry.

Harry needed to trust him. Dumbledore thought as his old wrinkly fingers ran lightly over the letter that contained his summons for the International Confederation of wizards meeting. Harry simply must trust him again!

To be continued…

A/N: Hello everyone. I am finally back with a new chapter, and this one is longer than any of my previous chapters; I hope you will all enjoy it.

I have tried to include the perspectives of various people in this chapter and by doing that, I hope you will get a bit more insight into their character.

Thank you for the reviews, favourites, and follows. Please review some more and let me know what you think. I will upload chapter twenty-seven as soon as I can, preferably next week on Thursday. Until then, keep safe.