Harry Potter and the Coming of the Dragon Ch. 15

Harry woke to the feeling of stiff sheets and the heady aroma of potions. Having no memory of Snapes classroom having beds he could only assume he had again found his way to the hospital wing. The boy concentrated, trying to remember how he could have arrived this time. It wasn't quiddich, nor had he run into any of the Slytherin goons. Stretching in bed he felt a twinge in his shoulder and he remembered.

They had been in the forest... Bethany was in mortal danger... The rescue... He and Draco running from those horrid, spidery Drow... Draco! The boy jerked up and nearly fell from the bed as he was hit by a wave of dizziness. Two gentle hands caught him, however, and guided him back against the mattress. Squinting up he looked into the eyes of professor Dumbledore.

"Good morning Harry," the old man began. "It's good to see you feeling better." Before the boy could ask the headmaster continued. "You've been under Poppy's care for two and one half days my boy, tomorrow will be Christmas Eve. We found yourself and young master Draco unconscious in the woods quite some distance from where you retrieved Bethany. It was frightfully cold, if it hadn't been for Professor Silverhearts tracking skills..." The man waved his hand as if to erase his chain of thought. Behind him, Harry noticed, was the elf lord standing quietly. Dumbledore continued, "It is good to see that everything turned out alright, though we would be interested as to how you arrived there."

The boy shook his head trying to clear his thoughts. "We had to run, there were these Drow but their bodies were like giant spiders..."

"They're called driders." Broke in the elf lord. "Drow cursed and enslaved by the demon that they worship. We followed their trail and yours but all trace of them vanished just before the glade we found you two in. Do you know what happened to them or how you escaped?"

The professor was staring at him intently; instinctively Harry redoubled his mental shields. "No sir, the last thing I remember was running though the woods with Draco... excuse me, but where is he? I would think he'd be in the infirmary as well... He's alright isn't he?" His voice suddenly became anxious.

The twinkle in the headmaster's eyes seemed to dim and his face took on a more serious cast. "Mr. Malfoy survived your adventure in the woods just as you did but his recovery has been somewhat... complicated."

The boy dragged himself back to a sitting position, refusing help as he swayed dangerously for a few moments. Slowly his vision cleared and the room stopped spinning, pulling himself to his feet he turned back to the man, "Where is he?"

Dumbledore stepped closer, trying to place a calming hand on the boys shoulder. "Harry, you've both been though quite a lot these past few days and Draco isn't quite himself... Your friends are keeping watch over him in the Gryffindor tower but I think it would be best if you didn't..."

Harry knocked Albus' hand away and glared at him. "What you think is best?" The boy's eyes hardened to nearly murderous intensity. "What you thought best left me trapped with abusive relatives for ten years and sends me back to them every summer. What you thought best was to give me the minimum of information and place me into situations every year I was at Hogwarts that put the lives of my friends and myself in danger. What you thought best helped drive my godfather to the point of recklessness that resulted in his death!"

The boys voice had risen and become more enraged with each 'you' till he was nearly screaming and had actually forced the old wizard to take several steps backward. With a scathing look worthy of Snape himself the boy turned, marched across the room and stopped for a moment at the door. "Tell you what Professor, do what's best and just stop interfering in my life!"

The boy hurried towards the portal to the Gryffindor common room he felt a small pang of regret for what he'd said to the headmaster. The old man did have the best of intentions but Harry also knew that he would manipulate and sacrifice whatever it took to reach his goals. He'd tried to avoid the old man and his manipulations after his blow-up in the headmaster's office that last spring but it seemed that some confrontations were unavoidable. Something was seriously wrong with Draco and he was going to help him no matter who stood in his way.

"Password please Harry," The Portrait of the fat lady hung above him, a cherubic smile on her face.

"Polaris Major." The boy replied.

The fat lady shook her head, "I'm sorry dear it's been changed, and you'll need to see your head of house or the headmaster..."

Harry's eyes began to glow a soft green as his anger rose. "Let me pass, my friend is in there and he's hurt. You know I'm a member of this house so let me in!"

The portrait shook her head, "I'm sorry dear but professor Dumbledore...AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" The woman screamed as with a furious gesture from Harry the portrait was ripped from the wall exposing the portal beyond.

Inside the boy found the common room empty except for a very startled Ginny Weasley and the holiday decorations. Harry had a lot of bittersweet memories. His first real Christmas he'd ever had was shared with Ron his first year, getting the firebolt from his godfather his third year, all the celebrations after winning at quiddich and even the quiet evenings with Ron, Hermione and Draco. It all flashed through his mind for a moment then he turned to Ginny with glowing eyes.

"Where is he?" The girl couldn't even speak, just mutely pointed up the stairs to the boy's dorms. Not sparing a second Harry rushed up the stairs in search of his friend.

Taking the steps two and three at a time he came to the sixth year landing quickly. Pausing at the door he listened, he could hear slow breathing. Silently opening the door he took in the room at a glance. There were four occupants of the room, three of them, Ron, Hermione and Professor Snape, were asleep in chairs around Harry's bed. The fourth sat in the centre of his bed, arms around his knees and his blond head bowed. He was slowly rocking and mumbling to himself incoherently.

Padding silently across the room he stood at the bedside studying his friend. What could have happened that Draco would come to this? He stood pondering for several minutes when he noticed Professor Snape watching him. The potions master stood and led Harry from the room. "Mr. Potter... Harry. Thank Merlin you're awake. He's been like this since he woke up two days ago. This is the only place other than at your side that we could put him without a bout of hysterics. He's convinced himself that you're dead and it's his fault."

Snape looked terrible. His eyes, normally narrow and angry were sad with dark circles under them. New lines had appeared on his face and he looked like he hadn't changed his clothes in days. Harry gently squeezed the mans arm, "let me try to get to him." Re-entering the room he sat down on the bed in front of the other boy. "Draco? Draco, it's me, it's Harry." The blond boy continued sitting and rocking as he had since Harry arrived. Growing more worried the dark haired boy grabbed his friend and shook him gently. "Come on Malfoy, talk to me... Snap to..." Still the blond Slytherin refused to respond.

Harry's voice suddenly took on a much harsher tone. "Come on you slimy git, What's the matter? Can't face the world without your goon squad? Talk to me damn it! Roused by the harsh words Ron and Hermione woke to see their friend shaking Malfoy violently. Both started to attempt to restrain their friend but were stopped by Professor Snape, who looked ready to put a stop to the boys attempts himself.

As they watched, Harry continued his verbal assault. "So this is the Mighty Slytherin prince... princess maybe. Are you going to let a mud blood Gryffindor speak to you like that? I know... since you've given up we'll just dig a hole and drop you in..." Draco blinked several times, the taunts finally starting to register somewhere in his mind. "We'll get a nice stone and it'll read 'here lies the amazing bouncing ferret, a disgrace to his entire famil...." Before the boy could finish, Malfoy's face turned as purple as Vernon's on his worst day.

Grabbing the other boy by the shirt he pulled him down and rolled over so he sat on Harry's stomach with his fist raised. "Sod off Scarhead!"

Harry waited to see if he would be pummelled before the Slytherin came back to himself but his worries were for nothing as the blend's eyes finally focused on his friend. "Harry?" The boy never had a chance to speak, one moment he was being held down for a beating and the next he had been pulled up into a bear hug that was threatening to cut off his air supply. "Oh Merlin Harry... I thought you were dead!"

The boy continued for several moments until his godfather interrupted him in a slightly bemused voice. "Draco, while I'm sure you're happy to see Mr. Potter but if you don't release him I'm afraid that shade of grey that he is turning may become permanent."

The boy loosened his hold on Harry but didn't release him. Great racking sobs escaped from where the blond had his head buried in the other boy's shirt. They eventually found themselves stretched out on the bed again, Draco asleep in his arms. The dark haired boy was feeling the pull of sleep himself when a shadow crossed his vision. Professor Snape held the edges of the canopy the sharp edges of his face softened by emotion. "He hasn't slept since... Thank you Harry." the man closed the drape leaving them alone on his bed and the boy fell asleep with his friend's head on his shoulder.

The Gryffindor opened his eyes to see a shadowed figure sitting on the edge of the bed beside him. "I've made an utter fool of myself haven't I?" Harry propped himself up on his elbows. "Dray?"

"I thought you were dead." The blond wouldn't look at him, just stared at his hands folded in his lap. The dark haired boy got up and sat beside him. "You were bitten you know." Harry winced as the reminder sent another twinge through his shoulder. "The drider venom... it's lethal,"

The Blonds voice became unsteady. "When you fell I..."

"Hold on a moment Draco." Casting silencing spells around the bed the dark haired boy asked his friend to go on. Taking a ragged breath he did.

"When you fell I pretty much lost it. The dragon woke up, for a moment anyway. I killed the last two driders without even trying. When I turned to you, your face was already pale and I panicked. I tried to heal you, I figured I must have that power too but I couldn't focus. When you stopped breathing..."

The boy stopped, suddenly unable to catch his breath. Harry grabbed the boy's chin and turned him so they could gaze into each other's eyes. "I'm right here Dray, you must have saved me right?"

The Slytherin jerked to his feet and began pacing frantically. "I didn't, I was about to lose it completely. It was like a fire building up inside me. It would have taken out the forest, possibly Hogwarts as well but then she was there and all the fire drained out of me."

Harry looked confused. "She? Who, Draco?"

The blond shook his head, "I don't really know. I'm not really sure it was even a girl, just a feeling. All I saw was a fuzzy silhouette inside the glowing shape of a dragon... She kept called me brother and said it wasn't my time yet. She set the forest right and got rid of the driders, put me to sleep and obviously healed you. Harry... there's another one and she's very much awake."

The dark haired boy sat thinking furiously. "What do we do now?" Draco stopped and turned to his friend. "Harry, so much has happened to me this year... my father, the dragon, you... I can't think about it right now... Harry can't we just go and see my father?" The boy paused a moment before coming to a decision.

"Yes. Lets get out of here; we'll tell Ron and Hermione and see if we can't get a lift from Alec. Come on." Both boys left the dorm and headed for the common room not noticing the figure hiding in the shadows of the hallway.

The two boys came tearing down into the Gryffindor common room to find Ron and Hermione snuggled together on the couch asleep. "You know we could scare them near to death right now," Draco said quietly, "But I guess that wouldn't be right since they've been taking turns watching us both the last few days..."

The other boy nodded, "Leaving a note is out as well, Hermione would curse us into oblivion... we'll just have to wake them."

"Actually," said Hermione tiredly as she cracked an eye open to look at them, "You already did when you made that mad dash down the stairs." The Sixteen-year-old girl gently untangled herself from her still-sleeping boyfriend and hugged Draco and Harry to her. "Merlin! You gave us such a fright. Are you both alright?"

"Yes, we're fine." Said the raven haired Gryffindor, "Draco and I will be going to Headquarters, he wants to be with his parents for Christmas. I want to tell you all of what happened... Though maybe we'd aught to wake up sleeping beauty over there so we only have to tell it once."

After several minutes of coaxing and a silencing spell to protect their privacy, Ron was sleepily leaning against his girlfriend as they explained the events of three days past. He was wide-awake by the end of the tale, nearly trembling... "So there's more of these drider things then?"

The blond Slytherin said in his best deadpan, though he was hard pressed to keep the grin off his face, "I'd bet on it... they could be in the castle even now."

Hermione quickly broke in to help change the subject. "Well, I think I may be able to explain Dobby's reaction to you Draco, though it's going to mean even more difficulties in keeping your secret."

"Why would he be so afraid of him?" Harry asked. "He's known Draco all his life.

"But he didn't know him as he is now... Harry, house elves used to be this worlds high elves, just like Lord Silverheart. I did some research when I started S.P.E.W. House elves used to be powerful and bigheaded, they treated the other races like they were slaves. A powerful being," she glanced at the blond, "became angry at their arrogance and cursed them to become house elves and spend the rest of eternity serving others until they could learn selflessness."

"So because of this curse," Draco broke in, "They're connected to me somehow and can recognize me now that I'm in touch with the power?"

"That'd be my guess."

"Well what about the other one then," asked Ron, "The girl Dragon you think you saw in the forest."

"Aasterinian, I'd suspect." Said Hermione and then Draco added,

"I'd agree, we know from what we've read that there are five dragon 'gods' and their father IO. Of the five, we've accounted for Bahamut, the shining one." self consciously tapping his chest, Chronepsis, the dragon of time and faluzure, lord of decay are both male. Tiamat despises her brother and wouldn't come to his aid. Aasterinian, however, is the Messenger of IO, her realms are chaos, pleasure and learning through play. Not only would she be the one likely to have intervened, but would have thought it great fun."

"So the question is," said Ron, "what do we do now?"

Harry stood up. "We go home for the holidays, that's what. Nothing is going to change in a week and Draco really needs to spend some time with his parents. Will you be coming with us or back home to the burrow?"

"Well that's just it Harry, We've been staying at headquarters since last summer, With Kreacher gone, Dumbledore wanted mum to stay on full time keeping the place up."

"Wait a minute," the dark haired boy said, "What happened to Kreacher? If he goes to Voldemort..."

"He won't Harry," said Hermione, "Professor Lupin, He purposely locked himself inside the house without the wolfs bane potion during a full moon... There wasn't really that much left the next morning. If it's all right, I'll be coming as well. When I wasn't able to come the other day my parents wrote and sent their regrets, as they were off to stay with some of our family in France.

"It's settled then, everyone get packed and meet back here in fifteen minutes," said Harry, "Ron, will Ginny be coming with us? I remember seeing her in the common room yesterday when I came in."

The red haired boy shook his head with a grin. "She said she had a load of work she had to finish and she'd never find a moments peace surrounded by us but she'll be there in the morning for presents."

Fifteen minutes later, carrying their baggage they all trooped through the common room and out into the hallway Harry stared at the portrait hole with a questioning look. "It fell off yesterday," Ron explained, "no one is sure how but the fat lady is hiding somewhere in the castle and they cant get the portrait to go back on the wall, it's like the thing is jinxed." Harry carefully avoided their eyes as they trooped towards Dumbledore's office. Hermione broke the silence, asking, "What about Alec? Shouldn't we stop and say goodbye to him? He stayed behind with the rest of us when you were unconscious."

Brightening at her words the raven-haired boy nodded, "And we can check to see how Bethany is doing."

The long trek up to the Silverheart tower went quickly as all were curious about the well being of the girl rescued days before. When they arrived they found, rather than a portrait or suit of armour guarding the entrance, there was an open archway with a capstone of two silver crescents arranged to resemble a valentines heart. Entering they discovered a common room that looked to be taken from a scene in 'Lord of the Rings.

The walls were lined with tree-trunks, each connected to the other by stucco. Artworks were spaced about tastefully; each one organic and almost seeming to move when you weren't watching. There were comfy chairs, and a fireplace, but above it was a portrait of two men standing in a field in front of their mounts. One of the men was obviously Lord Silverheart. The other, a short, stocky man with a fiery red beard and hair shot through with grey stood with forearms clasped in a warriors handshake with the elf. Behind Silverheart was a huge golden Griffin, its wings twitching and nipping nervously at the shoulder of the elves leather armour. Behind the other man was a grey and white mottled Pegasus, nervously pawing the earth.

"That was at the Grand Tournament, the year of the Silvery Moon..."

The group jumped as one, not expecting to be addressed as they studied the painting. Behind them Lord Silverheart himself was staring at it, though his thoughts were obviously far away. "I believe I was four hundred and sixty-three that year, Galan had just turned one hundred and ten. He was old for his kind but his mother had been a human and his father a dwarf. We didn't compete that year, it wouldn't have been fair." the man smiled to himself, "we'd become too good to enjoy it anymore. You'd have liked him, he was born a peasant but he clawed his way up to become the king of Hannon's hold with thirty wild grandchildren."

Jayxom shook himself out of his reverie... "So what brings you here on Christmas eve?

"We've decided to go and see Draco's father and we wanted to wish Alec a merry Christmas, possibly ask him if he wanted to come along..."

Silverheart smiled at them warmly, "I'm glad to see you all getting along so well. He's up in the boys dorms, packing to go home for the holiday, though I'm sure he'd be glad to see you."

The friends gathered their things and followed the elf lord's directions. On the second level the found a twelve year old carrying a pile of presents easily taller than he was who directed them towards an open door down the hall. Entering they found Alec stretched out on his bed, fully dressed, his bags packed and ready to go. Upon hearing their entry the boy's eyes opened and he leapt from bed.

"You guys are alright! You had me worried when you wouldn't wake up!" He said punching Harry lightly on the shoulder. The two boys quickly outlined their adventures after the Alec had gated out with Belinda and asked what had happened after he'd left.

"I got her back here alright and Jayxom had one of the older boys port her back to Davens. Then when he, Dumbledore and I came back to look for you guys nobody was there. We split up and I found you guys unconscious where you fell."

Draco broke into his story at that point. "Alec, there was something else. Someone came to us after Harry was hurt, and healed him, stopped me from causing a fat mess too before I fainted. Did you see anything?"

"No," the boy replied, "Whoever it was, she must have left before I arrived."

Harry picked up a picture from his the boys bedside table. "Who's this then?" The Gryffindor boy held a picture of Alec and another boy at a water park, both laughing, effectively distracting everyone but Hermione who was giving the curly haired boy an odd look. "That's James," he said in a tender voice, "I'll be going to see him when I'm home too." He paused, seeing the look of comprehension on Harry's face and asked guardedly, "You don't have a problem with that do you?"

Harry smiled, "Of course not, just threw me a second, we were going to ask if you wanted to come see Draco's father with us but if you've got plans..."

"I do for Christmas but I could come by on New Years if that's alright."

"It'd be great, so we'll see then?"

"Definitely." They were interrupted as a heated bout of whispering broke out between Ron and Hermione.

"But Herm, I just don't get it why would Harry be thrown by somebody going to see one of his mates on Christmas, we do it all the time!"

"Really Ronald you are clueless!"

Quickly pushing everyone out of the room Harry called back "See you then!"

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In the Gryffindor common room a lone-cloaked figure threw a handful of powder into the fire. "Master, I have news..."

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Harry and Draco stood uncomfortably in front of a bedroom door at twelve Grimmauld place. They'd left Ron and Hermione downstairs in front of a fire, as they'd gone up the stairs they heard Ron's voice, "Wait, going to see his mate on Christmas... you don't mean he's a..." any other words the boy might have said were muffled under a barrage of pillows. Now at the door to his father's sick room, the blond boy seemed more frightened than he'd ever been. Harry grasped him by the shoulder, "I'm right here." The young Slytherin straightened his shoulders and knocked softly on the door.

Narcissa Malfoy opened the door a moment later though Draco was hard-put to recognize her. Gone was the manicured and coiffed ice queen he had come to know growing up. Now before him stood a woman in a simple dress, with her hair pulled back in a bun and more wrinkles on her face than should have been present on a woman ten years her senior. She paused, truly seeing him for the first time and took his hand with unshed tears in her eyes. He could see she wanted to take him in her arms as much as he did but years of etiquette demanded restraint.

She led them both into the room and to his father's bedside. He had changed since the boy had last seen him. Unable to eat on his own he had grown gaunt and wasted. His long platinum white hair had lost its lustre and his eyes were sunken. Draco staggered and would have fallen if Harry hadn't guided him to a chair. They sat for a long time just watching his father, each boy trapped in his own memories of the man.

Harry looked down and saw a man who had tricked Ginny Weasley into taking Tom Riddles diary in his second year, had gotten Hagrid thrown into Azkaban at the same time. In his fourth year he'd played a role in the Deatheater attack at the quiddich world cup and had been first of Voldemort's faithful followers to arrive after his resurrection. Harry remembered mostly, however, the attack at the department of mysteries and how he had helped in his godfathers demise. He felt the anger rising up, threatening to overwhelm him until he looked up into his friends stricken face.

The Blond boy was no longer pining for a stricken father, he was beginning to grieve his loss, and from the looks of the man it wouldn't be much longer. "When I was six he bought me my first real broom. I was so proud, though I could barely stay on it. All the time he was telling me what I was doing wrong, how to do it properly... I was his shadow for the first ten years of my life, and even after, when we were at Hogwarts, everything was to please him... I'd of just once liked him to tell me that he was proud of me or that he worried or even just that he cared." He looked up at the dark haired Gryffindor. "I envy you sometimes Potter, your father died when you were too young to be hurt by him, he died trying to save you. All my memories with my father are of disappointments."

"Do you realize he wasted his entire life following a half blood maniac with dreams of godhood because of his pureblood pride? God! I wish I could go back, make him see... I wish.... I wish he was awake, and we could start over..."

The Slytherin slumped down into a chair beside the bed, and buried his face in the covers, too weary at that moment even to keep his head up. Draco's breathing slowly started returning to normal and he felt a light touch on his shoulder. "Not now Harry."

"Draco." The voice was quiet and dry, almost a whisper.

Draco's muscles tensed up and he said again, "Harry?"

"My s..son." Slowly raising his head he realized he was looking at his father's own tear streaked face. "S...so.... Sorry."

"Lucius!" The near scream had come from across the room as Narcissa realized where the voice had come from. Mother and son crowded the bedside as their family was reunited. Molly ran up to see what the commotion was about and ran to call for Madame Pomfrey.

The house went into an uproar and everyone was running around with smiles... Except the boy who slipped past everyone and went into the darkened room that used to be his godfathers... he sat in the shadows and mourned that he was the only one doomed to be without a family.

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Ok kiddies, this is the first fan fiction I ever wrote. I've reposted it at the request of a few of my readers that remembered it. Currently it is on HOLD at chapter 15 due to some difficulties I had with the plot. The rest of the story, however is in my head and may one day finish it unless I get a lot of reviews demanding that I start working on it again sooner. J