Harry was staring blankly at the tranquil black of the Great Lake. He couldn't stop thinking about Snape's words. Had he been endangering Draco? But how? And what it had to do with his mother? And why did he have to learn Occlumency? So important that his detention was dismissed.
"I'm beginning to welcome the benefit of this bond," Draco's calm voice startled Harry.
Harry turned his head to look over his shoulder.
"How did you know I was here? Wait, ugh, of course you knew," Harry returned his eyes to the lake. Then he processed what Draco had said to him. "So, I take it that I have to learn Occlumency first before I know what bond we are having? I don't want to ask how you can control it already."
"Wow, I think the bond transferred some of my intelligence to your brain, too, Potter." Draco moved to a big tree beside Harry and carefully lay against the trunk. "And stop mentioning about our bond in case someone hears about it."
For a while they stared at the lake in pleasing silence. The Hogwarts was still deserted that hour. No other students wasting their Saturday noon by the lake except for the infamous Slytherin and Gryffindor arch-enemy teens.
"What did the old coot want from you?" Draco's quiet voice brought back Harry's mind from his random daydream.
"Hm?" Harry turned his head to the right, looking at Draco. He laid his head on his knees. Both arms embracing his folded legs.
"By the Grand Staircase landing?" Draco said while observing Harry's nonchalant posture.
"Hmm…oh that. Nothing. Just…" Harry shrugged, earning raised eyebrows from Draco.
"What training?" Draco pushed his body against the tree to straighten his posture.
Harry became alerted at once at the sudden interest and rigid pose of the Slytherin. But then he remembered that Draco and his mother were keeping distance from Voldemort. So, Draco's not the lunatic bold evil's spy anymore, Harry reminded himself.
"Training for the battle against Voldemort and his minions, of course," Harry looked at Draco in the eyes without emotion, then turning his head back to the lake.
"Why didn't you?" Draco sounded angry. "Too busy mourning your lost by the lake? Weekend days off? Need your beauty sleep?"
Harry was startled by the sudden change of Draco's voice.
"Malfoy, there's nothing I want more than to get rid of Voldemort. I fought him since the first year and have always been until now. I fought alone, by the way. I carried out everybody's demand and expectancy to fight him, all by myself. Did you know that? Oh yes of course they always told me to be brave and kept advising me on how to face him. I even went full on training this year, you know. Almost every day," Harry was standing before Draco by now. His emerald eyes staring intently at the cold silver ones.
There were so many other things Harry wanted to tell the tall blond of how tired he was of all things happened in his life. How he wanted to stop. But he could only gulp and took several deep breaths. Dumbledore used to care about him. But the more he met the great wizard, the more Harry felt like he was only being used and the old wizard's affection was not genuine. And Harry kept letting him because there was nobody else willing to spend their precious time to look after him.
Harry sighed heavily. "Let me be tired for a moment, Malfoy…"
Draco was staring at Harry with his wide eyes. No words exchanged for a moment. Then,
"Library. Don't be late. Your Occlumency lesson with me tomorrow after breakfast. And be careful in saying his name next time, Potter. The name has been jinxed with Taboo." And Draco strode back toward the castle without waiting for Harry's reply.
~o~
The lesson with Draco was awkward that morning. Harry felt uneasy and self-conscious of his blabber yesterday. While Draco seemed equally uncomfortable with Harry. It was a two-hour discomfort lesson and as soon as it ended, they dismissed themselves from the library in haste. Each walked separately toward their respective destinations.
The next week was no better for Harry. Dumbledore always found his way to have Harry on his trainings. Having no energy or will to do his homeworks, Ron gave Harry an understanding look and offered him his own messy homeworks for Harry to copy. Harry smiled in gratitude to his best friend while receiving disapproval glares from Hermione. Draco, Harry noticed, seemed to avoid him the whole week. That, or something else was occupying the blond's time.
It was on Friday afternoon, when Harry was walking toward Professor Slughorn's quarters to pass Dumbledore's message to said Advanced Potions professor, that he was stumbled upon Draco and Snape in one of the deserted dungeon's hallways. Stealthily Harry hid himself in a dark alcove nearby.
"Maybe I should just kill him!" Draco seethed angrily.
"Calm. Down!" Snape audibly shoved Draco against the cold wall with each sharp word.
"He sent me Mother's hair! How can I calm!" Draco sounded frantic. "He said he would wait until this term ends! But—"
"You know the Dark Lord has very thin patience! You've been stalling far too long on your tasks." There was a long pause. A troubled shuffle of fabric. Then Snape's voice became strict as he said next, "What have you done?"
"I couldn't take a chance of letting him hurt her more," Draco spoke with voice like when he was in defense state.
"Draco," Snape sounded alarmed. "What. Did. You. Do."
"I let him in." Draco's voice broken, "He's in the manor."
Harry didn't know what happened next. There was a very long pause. He wanted to look but afraid of being caught eavesdropping. He heard a sob. Malfoy. And then sounds of footsteps that announced the departure of the Slytherins from the hallway.
After waiting for a minute, Harry stepped out of the alcove. He was stunned by the discovery of the Malfoys situation and Voldemort's current residency. Who did Draco want to kill?
The next day Harry had his first Occlumency training with Snape. As always, Snape was being difficult and hateful the whole time. He wondered if Dumbledore knew about his training with Snape. When Harry asked this, Snape told him that he had informed the headmaster about this training but under the reason of avoiding Voldemort from penetrating his mind.
So, Dumbledore didn't know about his "bonding" with Draco. Somehow that pleased Harry.
A moment later Harry felt like his head being stabbed and then suddenly he found himself being manhandled by Snape. The older man had his fist on Harry's brown T-shirt.
"Did you tell anyone about it?!" Snape asked, eyes staring fiercely at Harry. Seeing Harry's confused look, Snape asked again, "Did you tell anyone about Draco's situation?"
Draco's situation? Oh. Snape found out he eavesdropped them yesterday. Damn, he should master Occlumency soon, Harry cursed mentally. Why Snape called Malfoy by his given name?
"No," Harry answered. "What does Voldemort want from Malfoy?"
"None of your concern," Snape hissed, with a thread behind his voice. "Next Saturday, same time same place. Now leave!"
Harry left Snape's office, still wondering why Snape called Malfoy in the first name basis. Were they more than just student and teacher? Oh, to think of it, they seemed to have special relationship. But Harry shrugged it off. Maybe it's just because Snape was the Head of Slytherin House.
~o~
It's been four days now. Harry's attempts to speak with Draco alone had always failed. It was Tuesday night and Harry didn't see Draco at dinner in the Great Hall. It's almost eight, a schedule for his training with Dumbledore. Harry excused himself from the Gryffindor table and went out of the Great Hall. He ignored Hermione's reminder of his training with the headmaster which would be held in ten minutes. Harry pulled out his Marauder's Map from his warm jacket's pocket. He smirked when he spotted the blond at the courtyard.
Harry walked out toward the courtyard only to find Draco was engaged in heated conversation with Blaise and Pansy. Harry waited for almost fifteen minutes before finally they finished talking.
"Malfoy!" Harry called out, causing the blond to pause his steps. He saw Draco nodded to his best friends and the other two Slytherins continued their walk, leaving Draco with Harry.
"So, how are you?" Harry asked wrong-footed. Draco raised his eyebrow. "Er…right. Um… Iheardaboutyourmotherandvoldemort," Harry spoke fast, his hand scratching the back of his neck.
Draco furrowed at that and he seemed to process Harry's word slowly. Then, four seconds later, it seemed to dawn on the blond's head and he grabbed Harry's T-shirt.
"How did you know?!" Draco tensed. His face was a combination of frightened and anger.
"I—I was heading for professor Slughorn's quarters when I walked by the hallway where you and Snape were, uh, talking last Friday," Harry explained.
Draco was silent for a moment. He didn't release his grip on Harry's T-shirt though. And Harry was trying to guess what was the blond thinking.
"How come I didn't feel your presence that time?" Draco's voice was flat and Harry didn't like it. When Draco spoke in monotonous tone, he sounded dangerous. Or venomous, like snake. Voldemort had a giant pet snake. Harry shuddered at the thought of a giant snake resided in Malfoy's manor.
"Maybe the bond is fading?" Harry offered an answer. Draco gave him withering look. "Ooor I was wearing my Invisibility Cloak and it blocked my magic signature?"
Harry saw glints in Draco's eyes.
"Where did you get it?" Draco asked, finally releasing Harry's T-shirt.
"From my father," Harry rolled his eyes. He thought he had told him about that. Or hadn't he?
"Where did your father get it?" Draco asked irritatedly.
Harry shrugged his shoulders in answer.
"Do you mind if I see it again?" Draco asked again.
Harry blinked. Then something crossed in his mind.
"Are you planning to sneak into your manor and kill Voldemort?!" Harry asked incredulously. Harry saw the twitch on Draco's face. Harry's jaw dropped. "Are you bloody kidding me?!"
Draco opened his mouth but no words came out of it. Then he closed his mouth and opened it again and closed it again. The perfect imitation of a goldfish.
"I can help you with that," Harry blurted. And then he laughed at Draco's expression. The blond's eyes went so wide, eyebrows rose so high and his chin was tilted up so high he looked ridiculously like a rooster choked on chili pepper.
"Don't play a joke on me, Potter! He has my mother and I'll do everything to save her!" Draco fisted Harry's T-shirt by the collar, became serious again.
"I know, Malfoy." Harry put his hand on Draco's wrist to stop Draco from gripping his shirt too tight and high. "And I want to stop him, to stop all this chaos. I'm tired, you know. So, if this is a way worth the try to get rid of Voldemort, I am willing to take the chance and do it."
Draco seemed to take Harry's word into consideration.
"Maybe we should check it first. See if your theory is right," Draco said cautiously.
"Yeah, sure. Let's take the cloak then?" Harry said timidly. It felt so strange that he and Draco were going to cooperate in killing Voldemort. Ten months ago, Harry believed that Draco was the lunatic bald wizard's follower. Now, they were conspiring to overthrow that lunatic bald wizard.
Harry started to walk toward the Gryffindor Tower and motioned the Slytherin to follow him when a call for his name was heard. Harry groaned when he saw Hermione and Ron were moving fast toward him.
"Harry, where have you been? Professor Dumbledore is waiting!" Hermione stopped before Harry and Draco.
"'Mione, can I just skip the training tonight? I don't feel like I have the energy for it right now." Harry pleaded.
"Harry, are you in your right mind? You must come for training! You will fight You Know Who and you—"
"Will rest when he needs it. If he said he's tired, then he's tired!" Draco cut Hermione's sentence. Then he took Harry by the upper arm and steered him away from the Gryffindor girl and the ginger-head boy toward the Gryffindor Tower. Harry only glanced sideway at Draco and allowing himself to be dragged by the taller boy.