Disclaimer: The characters and places and stuff belong to JKR. But for now, they are at my mercy. *evil grin* I'll return them as soon as I'm finished…maybe.
This is the sequel to "What Is Happiness?" To understand this story, you must first read that one. It is located at http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=946096
In this chapter: Remus tries to find out what happened, and Happy birthday to Harry…happy? We'll see.
~~~
Harry didn't sleep that night. Remus stayed in the room with him, meaning that Remus didn't sleep, either. The next morning, he left Harry with Sirius and went to Snape Manor.
"What brings you here, Remus?" Severus wondered. He eyed the dark circles under Remus's bloodshot eyes and commented, "You look like you had a rough night."
"Stayed up with Harry all night," Remus sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "He wouldn't sleep... Where's Draco?"
"Oh, he's somewhere around here. I'm not sure exactly where. He likes to wander around the house at night, and you never can tell where he'll fall asleep."
"Did he tell you if anything happened between him and Harry last night?" Remus wondered. Severus shook his head.
"No, but he did seem a little upset when he came home. Why? Does that have something to do with Harry not sleeping?" Remus nodded.
"Apparently, they had a pretty bad fight. I heard Kayla screaming from Harry's room, and when I went up there, Harry was sitting on his bed, shaking and staring at the fireplace. He wouldn't tell me anything; wouldn't say a word at all, actually. I tried to guess what was wrong, and when I asked if he and Draco had a fight, he started crying and wouldn't stop for three hours. When I left this morning, he was crying again, but he still wouldn't talk."
"Merlin... It must have been a pretty bad fight," Severus commented, softly. Suddenly, he pointed his wand at his throat and said, "Sonorus." His voice instantly magnified so that it could be heard through the entire house. "Draco, come to the living room!"
After a few minutes, the blond-haired boy padded into the room, wearing only his pajamas and looking exhausted. His eyes narrowed when he saw Remus, and he turned to leave, but Severus stopped him.
"What happened with you and Harry last night?" Severus asked. Draco shrugged his shoulders, causing Severus to speak in a tone of warning. "Draco..."
"We had a fight," Draco sighed, simply. "I left. End of story."
"What did you fight about?" Draco shook his head.
"I'm not telling you that. It's between me and him. You are not involved."
"When my son won't speak or sleep, and when he cries and shakes for three hours non-stop, I become involved," Remus told him, sharply. His voice softened a little. "Draco, if you'd just talk to him, if you two talk about what happened, I'm sure it can be--"
"I've tried talking to him!" Draco snapped. "I've tried helping him! But I can't pick up the pieces of broken Harry Potter anymore, especially when he won't talk to me about anything! When he wants to talk, he knows where to find me. It's up to him. Until then, I'm going to try to pick up the pieces of broken Draco Snape, something I've been neglecting while I've been trying to help him. Until he wants to talk to me and tell me what in the bloody hell is going on inside that head of his, I'm gone."
With that, Draco exited the room. Severus gave Remus an apologetic look and was about to speak, but Remus held his hand up, shaking his head.
"Don't apologize for him. He's right, he has been neglecting himself. The results of their fight may not be good now, but maybe they will be later."
Severus nodded his agreement, and Remus left through the fireplace. Sirius greeted him with a kiss, and Remus wrapped his arms around his husband's waist, laying his head on Sirius's shoulder. Sirius gently rubbed his hands up and down Remus's back.
"I sent Kayla and Sean to visit Albus until suppertime," Sirius told Remus, softly. He kissed the side of his head. "Harry's upstairs in bed, but he still won't sleep. How'd it go on your end?"
"Not too good," Remus sighed, and he explained to Sirius what Draco had said. Sirius, in the end, was furious.
"So he just abandoned him like that?!" he exclaimed. "What the hell is that about? Harry needs him, and he just left!" He dropped down to a chair, and Remus stood behind him, massaging his shoulders to calm him down.
"Shh, darling," Remus murmured. "I have a feeling that, sooner or later, this will be good for them. It will give them both time to think and to sort their feelings out. They've never had that time, and they've needed it. It will all be fine in the end."
"I suppose you're right," Sirius muttered, "like always." He stood and gave Remus another kiss. "Go to bed for a few hours. I'll keep an eye on Harry."
After Remus went up to their bedroom, Sirius transformed into Padfoot and went upstairs to Harry's room. He jumped onto the bed and curled up next to Harry, nuzzling his cheek and whining. Harry turned over to face Padfoot and cuddled up to him, sniffling and wiping his eyes. The two stayed still for a while, and then Padfoot transformed back into Sirius, who now held Harry in a comforting embrace. Harry buried his face in Sirius's shoulder, but he still didn't speak.
"Oh, Harry, it's okay, kiddo," Sirius murmured, stroking his son's hair. "Everything will turn out fine, you'll see... Do you want to tell me what happened?" Harry shook his head. "All right. You don't have to. But if Daddy and I can do anything to help, just let us know. We'll always be here for you."
~~~
Several days later was July 31, the day of Harry's birthday party. Things weren't looking good when Remus woke Harry up that morning. Sure, he'd been sleeping lately, but he still hadn't said a word. Whether it was because he didn't want to speak, or because his brain was messed up again, nobody knew.
"Harry, the Weasleys and Hermione are here," Remus told him, softly. Harry sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes before reaching for his glasses. He gave his father a hopeful look, and Remus's eyes dropped. "No, he's not here. And Severus and Katie apologize, but they won't be able to make it today. Katie isn't feeling well, and Severus doesn't want to leave her side, just in case." Harry sighed, but he still climbed out of bed. "There's a good lad. Come down when you're ready."
Half an hour later, Harry walked downstairs and entered the living room, where he was greeted by four Lupin-Blacks, nine Weasleys, and a Granger. He glanced around at the faces, then sighed inwardly and gave everyone a small wave.
"Hello, dear, happy birthday," Molly greeted him. Harry nodded his thanks and sat on the sofa between Sirius and Remus. Sirius leaned over to whisper in Harry's ear.
"Do you think you could try talking at least a little today?" Sirius asked, gently. "I know you're still upset, but it's your birthday, and you deserve to have fun." Harry shrugged his shoulders and laid his head on Remus's shoulder.
"Maybe Harry would like to open his presents," Arthur suggested.
Remus handed Harry a gift wrapped in blue paper, but just before Harry began to open it, someone entered the room through the fireplace. Harry froze when he saw Draco standing in front of him. The blond looked slightly tense and nervous as everyone stared at him.
"We thought you weren't coming," Sirius commented, glaring at him. He was still angry about what Draco had done to Harry.
"Um... Mum and Dad had to go to St. Mungo's," Draco explained, quietly, as he averted his eyes from Harry's gaze. "Mum's having the baby, and they think something's wrong, so they didn't want me there. So I thought I'd come over here and give Harry his presents, and..."
His words trailed to an end, leaving the room in silence. Sirius was about to speak again, but Harry held a hand up to stop him and stood, motioning for Draco to follow him into the second living room. The two boys sat on a couch, and neither spoke for a moment. Finally, Draco took a breath.
"I'm so sorry," he said, quietly. "I completely overreacted about everything. You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to. If you don't want to talk about anything that happened, or anything you're thinking, you don't have to. If you don't want to make love, we don't have to. I shouldn't have gotten angry about you not talking. I shouldn't have tried to push you into anything... I shouldn't have left you. I'm so sorry."
Harry stared at his hands in his lap for a moment. Then, when Draco began to rise from the sofa, Harry began to speak quietly.
"You scared me." He looked up at Draco, who stared back. Draco sat back down when he noticed how sad and vulnerable Harry looked. "That's why I wouldn't say anything. You sounded-- You were so angry. It scared me." Draco inhaled sharply at these words, and he cautiously wrapped his arms around Harry, who welcomed the embrace.
"I'm sorry I scared you," Draco whispered. "Merlin, I've always said I'd protect you, and here I was the one hurting you... I'm so sorry, Harry..."
"Don't apologize," Harry requested. "I forgive you. I know you don't want to hurt me. I know you love me, and I love you." He laid his head on Draco's chest. "I want to talk about things--everything. Soon. But not today."
"Soon," Draco agreed. "But for now, I believe we have your birthday to celebrate."