~ Dungeon ~

Draco was distressed.  Harry was still lying on the stone floor, pale and out of breath.  He was clutching Draco's hand like a lifeline and kept babbling about the pain.  Poppy was assessing the situation and Draco didn't like the worried frown that had settled on her features.

"We can't move him," she said quietly, obviously not wanting to alarm Harry anymore than she had to.  "He's gone into premature labour.  We'll have to deliver the baby right here."

"What?" Harry yelped.

Draco's eyes widened anxiously.  "Are you sure?  It's not the most sanitary of places."

"It will have to do, Draco," the witch said, reaching for the buttons on Harry's trousers.  "I'll have to cast the spell to ready Harry for the birth now."

As Poppy deftly removed Harry's trousers, both Poppy and Draco were alarmed to note that the crotch was steadily being soaked with blood.  Albus entered the room, his usual twinkle replaced by worry.

"What happened?" he asked Draco.

"He slipped and fell.  Poppy says he's gone into labour," Draco said, trying to stay calm and strong for Harry.

"Oh dear," Albus said.  "Is there anything I can do to help, Poppy?"

"Yes, please ask Hermione to join us and get some supplies from the Hospital Wing," Poppy said quickly.  "We need a pillow to support Harry's head, some sheets and the box of potions I have on my desk.  Thank goodness I prepared them well ahead of time."

Albus nodded and quickly left the room. 

"Everything's going to be alright, isn't it, Poppy?" Harry was asking, his face frozen with fear.

"Of course, dear.  Everything will be fine.  Just do as I say and you and your baby will be fine," Poppy said soothingly.  Harry's expression softened as a considerable amount of fear left him.  He closed his eyes and sighed, resting his free hand on his stomach.  They knew that the next contraction could occur at any time so Harry had been instructed to rest as much as possible in between them.

Draco watched Poppy's face closely and could see in her eyes that although she had reassured Harry that everything would be alright in the end, she didn't necessarily believe it.  Harry needed to be calm or things would get worse.  Draco felt a stab of fear lodge in his chest and stay there.  This was far from over and nothing was certain until the baby was delivered and Poppy's eyes lost that troubled look.

It was only just starting to dawn on Draco that he could quite possibly lose Harry forever.  Draco took a deep, fortifying breath, gripped Harry's hand a bit tighter and gently started stroking Harry's forehead as he thought.  Of course, in the two years Harry had been missing, Draco hadn't known if he would ever see him again, but he had never truly lost hope that Harry would somehow find his way back to him.  The trouble was, Draco had assumed that the reason Harry left was a psychological one, not a physical one.  A pain cut deep inside his chest as he admitted to himself for the first time that he could have and should have done more to save Harry.  Sure the investigator hadn't been able to find anything, but Draco firmly believed that he and Harry were soulmates.  Surely he would have been able to find Harry if he'd actually made an effort (or if they actually were in fact, soulmates, an annoying little voice insisted).

Tears stung his eyes but he refused to let them fall.  He would be strong for Harry now, get him through this difficult time and then he would figure out what he was going to do.  The fact was, perhaps he wasn't good enough for Harry.  He certainly hadn't been a good husband when Harry had needed him the most.  Draco hated the thought but he couldn't seem to get it out of his mind.  Harry would most likely be better off without him.  Draco's face was a picture of despair as he grappled with the idea of leaving Harry. 

Others entered the room but Draco ignored them all as they prepared Harry for the birth.  He continued to brush the hair away from Harry's eyes, trying his best to provide the support that had been missing from Harry's life while he'd been gone.  It was with a start that he realised that Harry's eyes were open and gazing back at him with a bewildered expression.  Draco wiped the desolate look from his own features and forced a reassuring smile on his face.  Harry did not look at all reassured, in fact, he looked downright wary. 

"Draco…" he started to say before he tensed up and started screaming. 

Draco was horrified to see Harry in so much pain.  It was one thing to listen to Hermione scream in the next room but it was a totally different thing seeing the person you love screaming obscenities at you.  His respect for Ron increased ten fold.  The redhead had endured ordeal twice. 

Suddenly it dawned on Draco that he had volunteered to have their next child.  He had actually been eager for the experience.  Oh Merlin, what was I thinking? Draco wondered. 

"Arrrrrrgh," Harry screamed.  "I swear to god, you bastard, you are definitely going through this hell within the next two years."

"We can talk about that later," Draco said, trying to quell the defensive feelings that naturally sprang to life in response to Harry's bitter tone.

"No, we'll fucking well talk about it now," Harry spat out between groans.  "I did this for you, because I wanted to make you happy after such a horrible few years but it suddenly occurs to me that perhaps there was someone else who was worse off during that time."

"Who?"  Draco asked a touch fearfully.  The anger emanating from Harry was unprecedented.  It seemed that Harry had been holding a lot of his feelings back and now they were all tumbling out.

"ME!" Harry screamed.  "You at least had freedom and Daniel and Ron and Mione.  I had nothing and no one and you didn't even try to find me."

Harry collapsed back against the pillows, which had been placed behind him on the stone floor.  He looked worn out already and Poppy had said that he was only dilated 6 centimetres and he needed to be 10 centimetres before he could start pushing.  At least the contraction appeared to have stopped.  Until the next one.

"We…we did try-" Draco tried to explain before he was cut off.

"No you fucking well didn't," Harry replied, heatedly.  "I asked around.  That investigator you hired.  He's a bloody idiot according to the people I talked to.  He has no idea of how to conduct a proper investigation."

Draco gulped and glanced at Hermione (who was helping Poppy: she was the only one Harry trusted).  She looked equally sympathetic and guilty.  She had been the one to hire the investigator and then convince Draco that he should give up on Harry based on the report.

"I'm sorry," Draco said, knowing that it wasn't good enough.

Harry obviously thought so too as he snorted but didn't bother replying.

TBC

A.N.  Thank you so much to Lady of Arundel.  I was completely stuck with this chapter and it didn't seem to want to go anywhere, but your comments reminded me that Draco hadn't really redeemed himself.