Summary: AU. A "faerie" tale with elves, vampires, and reincarnation. Draco's a transfer student who arrives at Hogwarts during Harry's seventh year, trying to fulfill a promise made nearly a hundred years ago. But what is this promise and does it have to do with Harry? D/H!
Shamera
It was only after lunchtime and after Ginny had gone off to her Herbology class that Harry finally got to talk with Ron and Hermione. They had been heading up towards Charms before Harry suddenly remembered that he still hadn't done that short essay for Charms. Then he also remembered that he didn't have to go to classes that day.
"Hold up, you guys." Harry was rummaging in his bookbag, hoping against all hopes that yes, he had somehow done his homework in his sleep. His two best friends halted in their conversation, stopping in the middle of the corridor and glancing back at him curiously.
"Something the matter, mate?" Ron asked as he watched Harry grimace when reality finally hit him.
"Uhh…" Harry started, "Professor Dumbledore already excused me from classes today. I forgot to tell you this earlier, but I'm going to be taking a trip tomorrow… so I'll need to go pack…"
"A trip?" Hermione asked, her voice suspicious. "Does this have something to do with Voldemort?"
"Something like that…" Harry murmured under his breath, but then smiled when he saw his friends stare at him. "Only partially. Ehh… think of it as… we're going to find something that might be able to defeat Voldemort!"
Gah. That sounded like a horrible excuse.
"And you're going alone?" Hermione asked. They had gone through things like that before, of course. Not to the extent that Harry should have to leave school (they always did say that he was safest at Hogwarts) but there had been periods of time where Harry had been tutored by one or more professors for training. Harry never thought of it as special treatment. It was something that he had to do, so they were preparing him for it.
"Not really." How could he tell them that he was going with Draco?
Harry fidgeted nervously under their stare.
"Are the professors going with you?" Hermione continued to ask, slightly concerned by Harry's uncertain response. "You should be left alone… especially when Voldemort is still at large. There are professors going with you to look for whatever it is, right?"
Umm… that was something that Harry didn't think would be happening. Headmaster Dumbledore certainly made it sound like he and Draco were going there alone… although he did state that they would meet people there. How was he going to explain this to his friends, though?
A dim idea in the back of his head told him to just tell Ron and Hermione everything. They were bound to find out sooner or later, anyway. They always did, after all.
But then there was the thought of Ron blowing up knowing that he was going with Draco… with no escorts.
Harry didn't want that to happen. He remembered when Ginny had wanted to go with Seamus on a summer trip- and he really, really did not want a repeat of that episode. Poor Seamus still cringed anytime Ron was too close to him.
And Harry's feelings towards Draco were tenuous at best. He didn't want Ron to scare the blonde off.
It was only after a little while that both Ron and Hermione figured out the answer in Harry's silence.
"Harry?" Ron prompted. "What's going on?"
Harry's mind whirled. His best friends were starting to look suspicious now, as Harry twisted the strap of his book-bag in his hands. Damn it. He never was good at lying, so he usually stuck to half-truths if he could. That way, it was never a lie.
"Professor Dumbledore gave me the day off," he explained, trying to sound casual, "so that I could pack for a trip that he's sending me on tomorrow. The professors won't be accompanying me, but I'll probably have a full escort when I get to the planned destination." He attempted a weak smile. "It's just another one of those 'foil Voldemort's plans' annual thing."
His best friends didn't look fooled.
"There's something you're not telling us." Hermione stated blatantly. But she was forced to stop talking when a quiet shrill rang in the air, and her eyes went wide before she pursed her lips. "Fine. We'll leave you be since we have to go to Charms. But I expect to get a full explanation from you after class. Don't even think about going anywhere before we get the full idea of where you're going, who you're going with, how long you'll be gone, and how to contact you while you're there."
"You method of traveling and why you're going would be preferred as well." Ron added, making Harry chuckle nervously before the dark-haired boy realized that the redhead sounded quite serious.
Harry blanched. "You make it sound like I've been grounded."
"You don't come back safe and sound- you will be." Hermione promised before she dragged Ron off to their class.
Harry could only shake his head after them.
Draco took a deep breath before he whispered the password to the lady guarding the Gryffindor dorms. Despite him knowing that the password was correct (he had to thank his exceptionally sharp hearing and Longbottom giving it off by accident for that), the vampire thought for a moment that the portrait was not going to let him in. The lady dressed in pink seemed to stare at him suspiciously, pursing her lips and contemplating on whether or not to allow him entrance.
Knowing that the portrait was only doing its job, the Slytherin waited patiently for her to inspect him before reluctantly opening up the door to the Gryffindor rooms.
"Just make sure that you don't disrupt anything in there." She warned him as he passed. "Or you're never coming in again- and the Headmaster will be informed."
Not knowing how to respond, Draco ignored her, sharp grey eyes darting around the red and gold room to look for the boys' dorms. He didn't want to accidentally go up the girls' rooms and set off the alarms, now, did he?
He was glad that the dorms were empty at the moment, as it seemed that everyone either had class early that morning, or they were out doing something more productive than staying inside their dorms during a sunny day. Gryffindors certainly weren't like Ravenclaws or Slytherins…
Having decided which staircase to go up, Draco touched the walls near the stairs tentatively, trying to find the magical energy that had been so uniquely Emerald. He had tried that before many times… but had never been able to find one to match Emerald's magical signature. Now that he found Harry, he should be able to sense the other boy, though…
Still no magical signature that matched Emerald's.
Reaching the seventh year boys' dorms, he pushed through the door that had been kept unlocked, still pondering as to why he couldn't sense Harry. Had his memory of Emerald's magical signature faded during the years and he had been searching inadequately the entire time? Or maybe it didn't work because Emerald was still asleep inside Harry?
The dark-haired boy in question startled as felt Draco's presence, immediately spinning on his heels and pointing a wand menacingly at him. Those wide eyes were hidden by the green glasses that Draco heard Hermione had conjured for him. The tinted glass hid any emotions that Draco was sure Harry would normally never be able to hide.
The vampire held his hands up passively, smirking just the slightest bit. "Jumpy today, Harry?"
Harry narrowed his eyes at him before relaxing the dueling stance he had taken. "You startled me."
"I'll have to remember not to do that, then." Draco said amiably. "If that's always your reaction to being startled."
Green eyes watched the vampire smile at him, before settling on the bag he had been trying to pack. Harry resisted the urge to give out a huge sigh and just plop down on the bed, and maybe screaming into the pillow. Instead, he sat gingerly on his own bed covers, eyeing Draco warily.
Draco took the liberty to come a little closer, sitting down on the bed next to Harry's. (Hmm, Harry thought absently. Must not tell Ron about Draco's little visit.) The Slytherin looked at the large bad for a moment before commenting, "You won't really need anything for the trip."
Deep down, Harry knew that Draco was right. He never needed anything much besides his wand and perhaps an emergency portkey. It wasn't like he was moving house or something… but packing certainly gave his hands something to do so that he could keep his mind blank. The Gryffindor boy knew that all the packing he did would be undone by himself before dinner came around. It was just something to do, that was all. Just like occupying himself at the Dursley's.
"Is there something that you needed?" Harry asked, unsure of what Draco was doing in his dorm.
The vampire's eyes followed Harry's slightest movement for a few moments before he shook his head. "I just wanted to see how you were doing… how you would be handling this. You don't seem very shocked about everything."
"I'm not." Harry responded surly. "It's hard to be shocked when you're me." It was true, after all. Being 'Harry Potter' meant that he had just about anything and everything happen to him. Most of the information he had dealt with in his life was unpleasant (with the exception of finding out that he was a wizard… except that information might be unpleasant if he thought of it in retrospect… after all, it was then that he learned Voldemort had murdered his parents and was after him next, and that the fate of the wizarding world rested upon his shoulders. Yes. Harry supposed that he had dealt with more shocking information before) and he had never really been shocked before.
With the exception of finding out about the prophecy in fifth year. But Harry accounted that to shock over Sirius's death, and not shock that he would die if he didn't defeat Voldemort. Deep down, he had already deduced the answer to his fate, anyway.
"Yes." Draco replied, still holding the green eyed boy under his scrutiny. "I… seem to forget that at times."
Harry's breath caught slightly from where he was sitting next to Draco. Was this an admission? Was this Draco's way of saying that he didn't remember the boy next to him was Harry Potter? Had he been in any other situation, Harry would have been glad of that. He had always wished to fall in love with someone who would not love him for his name… someone who could at times forget who he was and only know that they loved him.
But the situation now was too different. Draco could mean that he only thought of Harry as Emerald, as a beautiful faerie prince who was good and kind and could do no wrong.
Harry was not a good and kind person who could do no wrong.
"I forget that your life has held so much danger before." Draco continued before Harry could try and read too much into the earlier statement. "I had wished… hoped, actually… that I would find you in time to protect you from everything. I wanted to give you a perfect life."
A perfect life, eh? Harry snorted. "You'd have to have been there before I was born."
The serious moment seemed ruined as Draco tilted his head and grinned at Harry. "I was there before you were born… remember? I was there so far back that I knew you in a past life."
Surprised at how nonchalant the vampire was being, Harry couldn't hold back a rough bark of laughter- the type of laughter that wasn't there because a situation was funny, but because you thought it was too damned ironic for someone up in the heavens not to be getting a good laugh. "And I guess you found me in this life, huh?"
You found my heart again after the war, battered as it was. Find me again, my love.
Draco wasn't sure what he could say. He remembered the last words that Emerald had said to him, and he had dreamt of the day he would fulfill that request. And watching those green eyes, watching that familiar sparkle and gleam which the boy next to him smiled tentatively, Draco wanted nothing more then to be able to love this boy forever.
"Yes." He breathed. "I guess I did."
He had wanted to find Harry and protect him all his life, but now Draco realized that he had not had Emerald to himself all their lifetimes either. He had met with Emerald shortly before the war, and it was after the war that they had realized how much they needed each other.
"What are you thinking of?" Harry inquired, reaching out a hand to tuck Draco's hair more firmly behind pale ears before he withdrew, not knowing whether that action was appropriate when he was trying to distance himself from the Slytherin until they could get everything worked out. Harry wanted Draco to want him for him… not because he was famous Harry Potter… but not because of a past incarnation, either.
But Ron had said that Draco deserved a chance to know Harry. And Ron was right, as always. Harry really hadn't given the blonde much of a chance to know him. But even having said that, Ron would kill Draco if he knew that Harry was leaving with him. Alone.
"I was thinking about how much I love the sound of your voice." Draco responded, only encouraged by the brush of red that stained Harry's cheeks after that comment. "How… although the sound of your voice is different, the way you speak: the tones and dynamics… they're still the same as before. I was wondering how come I didn't notice that." The pale vampire reached out to clasp the hand that Harry had brushed his hair with before, and pull it close to his heart. "And then I was wondering… how I didn't notice your familiar mannerisms. You have the same grace… the same movement. Sometimes it doesn't show when you're on the ground… but I've seen you fly before, and I was thinking about how I should have notice that exceptional fluidity in your skills."
"Mannerisms don't make a person, Draco." Harry said softly.
"No, it doesn't." Draco agreed. "But I know with all certainly that you are the missing part of me I've been searching for. Just like I know that your favorite color is green… not the Slytherin green that promotes so much pain in your eyes… but the first green of spring to indicate that life is coming back after the harsh winter. And I know that you long so desperately for your family and that you have an extraordinary skill in Herbology you hide to make your friends feel better. I know that you eat your food in a clockwise manner, putting all the vegetables on the right side of your plate so that you could rid of that faster and then eat something you really wanted to.
"Like I know you never had trouble gaining respect from animals, whether it is that they want to kill you or help you. That you'll always sleep curled up on the left, but always wake on your right side. Be it the big details or the little ones, I already know them."
"And you got all this… from observing me the last few days?" Harry asked on bated breath.
Draco smiled, covering Harry's hand with both of his own. "Partially, yes. But most of it is because you're much more like Emerald than you think. I remember all that from when I used to observe my prince… and every detail I'm remembering fits perfectly with you."
Harry blinked. Every detail I'm remembering fits perfectly with you.
With… you.
It wasn't Harry that fit into Emerald's perfect image, but rather, the other way around.
The small Gryffindor felt the start of a wide smile coming on, and leaned into the other boy, leaving his hand on Draco's chest, but covering the entangled hands with the side of his neck, resting his face against Draco's shoulder, shifting so that he would be turned against the skin of Draco's neck.
He felt Draco stiffen just slightly underneath him. "Harry?" the Slytherin asked, and the dark haired boy could feel the rumble in the taller boy's chest as the sound came out. Pale hands withdrew for a moment before wrapping themselves around the Gryffindor.
"Shut up." Harry murmured, his tone belaying the harsh words. "Shut up and just… be here."
Draco had already said what Harry needed so badly to hear. It was something that Harry could now put to rest so that he could concentrate more fully on the battles ahead of him. On the trip he would take tomorrow, on the plans to defeat Voldemort before the Dark Lord could kill him. Those words had eased something inside Harry's soul that he had not know was tensed.
The arms around him tightened for a moment to reassure the small boy, and Harry began thinking of how he would get through the next day… or heck… even today. How was he going to tell Ron and Hermione about this impromptu trip?
Harry chuckled against Draco's neck, and he could feel the others boy's confusion as he said:
"Ron's going to kill you."
It was nearly dinnertime when Harry and Draco emerged from the Gryffindor tower, much to the curious glances of the random student that had wandered the halls at that time and seen the two of them together. Draco had laughed when he realized what Harry had meant by the statement, but humored the other boy and promised to stay away from his friends until the green eyed Gryffindor had a chance to calm his best friends down.
They tended to be a bit… overprotective, he tried to explain with a straight face, not wanting to sigh in the middle and let Draco know how exasperated he was with them. It was not something that he was overly proud of, but it was glad that his friends cared so much.
Just not used to it. Probably would never be used to it.
Sitting down at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, Harry waited anxiously for his friends to arrive, wondering distantly what Ginny got on her Herbology project. He really hoped that the plant was disposed of in one of Professor Sprout's various greenhouses. Locked up, maybe? Just far, far away from anywhere he was.
Harry shuddered slightly at the memory. He couldn't believe that Ginny would chose to do a project on such a vicious plant.
More and more food began to appear on the tables as more and more students were dismissed from their classes to go to dinner. There had been a few surprised glances that Harry was at the table that early, especially without his other two best friends, but no one commented on it. Harry, for his part, was watching the doors to the Great Hall with rapt attention, trying to figure out how to phrase things without Ron protesting too much to Harry going off with Draco.
Honestly. Harry made a face at himself. Even in his thoughts, his phrasing made it sound like they were going to elope or something.
Ron's voice was what Harry heard the first, and then Hermione's, arguing back about one thing or another. Harry couldn't see even the heads of his best friends' long after he could hear them. The dark haired Gryffindor watched with amusement as the other two of the Gryffindor Trio came to sit with him at the table, still arguing about whatever it was that they so disagreed with.
Luckily, they hadn't asked for his opinion on it yet.
"Yeah, they act just like an old married couple, alright."
Harry turned to his other side and smiled as Ginny sat down as well, plopping her book bag under the seat so that she wouldn't be scolded for putting her things on the seats and no one would trip over the long straps of her bag.
"Good evening, Ginny." Harry greeted pleasantly, making sure to sound extra cheerful to make Ron and Hermione sound immature with their fighting. "How was the rest of your day? Did you get a good grade in Herbology?"
Ginny grinned back, catching on to Harry immediately. "I had a great day. I'm not sure what Professor Sprout will give me for my project grade, but she did say that she had never seen the species of plant quite so large before. I think that's a good sign."
"Oh, good." Harry commented absentmindedly. "I don't suppose she'd just leave it in the Forbidden Forest?"
Ginny's grin grew wider. "Why? Hope to encounter it again when you go wandering off?" she teased.
"No, I hope that it'll be eaten by one of the acromantulas."
"Spiders don't eat plants, Harry." Hermione piped in as she set a textbook down on the table so that she could eat. "Spiders drink blood, you should know that."
"Although by the way it was acting, it sure seemed warm-blooded to me." Ron joined in, snickering at Harry for a moment.
Harry tried to give Ron a hate-filled glare that Snape had given him more than enough times for him to learn it, but somehow managed to come short as the redheaded boy started chortling with laughter.
"You still haven't told us about where you're going yet." Hermione inputted calmly from where she had served herself a generous helping of lamb stew.
Right. That.
"I went to Dumbledore this morning," Harry began, keeping his voice low so that it would most likely be lost in the murmurs of the crowd unless someone was listening to him specifically, "And apparently Voldemort's going after this weapon of mass destruction so I have to get to it before he does."
"Well, that's definitely not your usual training." Ron said, sounding just a mite disturbed. "It sounds like something you'd come to me and Hermione for."
"Yes, it does." Hermione agreed, not bothering to correct Ron's grammar. "It sounds like something we should come along for."
"Yes. I think we should go with you." Ron said adamantly, and Harry rolled his eyes, realizing that there was another reason for Ron being so firm about running headfirst into danger.
"What about NEWTs?"
"You're much more important than a few tests, mate." Ron put in quickly.
Hermione gave her boyfriend a dirty look. She really should have realized by then that he was so enthusiastic because he wanted to escape her heavy study sessions. "Ron! The NEWTs will be a very important part of your life! This is the last big test that goes on our record before graduation, and it just might define who you'll be when you're older! You should care more about it- especially when it's only two months away!"
"Are you saying that Harry isn't more important than your tests, 'Mione?" Ron mocked outrage. "How could you even insinuate such a thing?" He made sure to put an emphasis on the word that Hermione herself would have liked to use frequently. Harry could only guess that Ron had said that to sound smarter, but the redhead somehow made the statement sound more sarcastic instead.
"I never said that," Hermione sounded slightly insulted. "Besides… these end of year adventures we have always end up with one or more of us in the infirmary. So we can use that time to get down to studying our material. We have a lot of things to cover, after all!"
Harry made a face at the aspect of spending time in the infirmary. And Hermione had made it sound so nonchalant… as if she honestly had no qualms about herself or her best friends getting hurt. Quite a change from the younger Hermione. "Are you saying that the near-death experiences we all had at one point or another now makes good study time?" He asked dubiously.
"I'm not saying that it's good to get hurt all the time." Hermione amended. "But it's certainly free time that we can use to our advantage! Think about it… it'll certainly give us an upper hand to have all those hours to review over material!"
Oookay. Hermione really had lost a few of her marbles. It certainly sounded like she was looking forward to getting hurt so that she could have time to study instead of attending all the class review sessions (which the bushy haired girl had dubbed as 'useless', especially since there was so many people who needed remedial help that the professors really couldn't cover the hard topics that really needed to be covered.).
"Ehh… that's okay, Hermione." Harry tried to reassure her, not at all liking the idea of being sent to the infirmary just so he could study. He tried to smile at her, but knew that he failed when he saw Ron's expression for 'she's crazy!'. "You guys don't have to come with me. Draco's coming with me."
Yes. If he and Draco were the ones to go, then Ron and Hermione wouldn't get hurt. That meant that they wouldn't be recovering in the infirmary with him, and it meant that Hermione couldn't force him to study the entire time.
Harry realized that his thoughts had gotten quite morbid when he started agreeing with Hermione of how the adventure would end up with a trip to the infirmary.
Poor Harry should have realized something was wrong when he didn't hear a protest from his best friends, but it took him a while before he could look up at them, so lost in thoughts was he. When he did, though, the twin expressions of shock made Harry realize that something was wrong.
Hermione was the first to snap out of it.
"You don't want us to go with you… but you're going with Draco?"
Um… uh-oh.
continued on chapter 10
Authoress' Rambles: Sorry about spending so much time without a chapter, and spending so many words trying to ensure that Draco loved Harry as Harry. But I once read a Gundam Wing story which changed my entire outlook on romance stories when the main character stated that he didn't want to fall in love because it was fated, but because he had fallen in love. I don't know. My phrasing is awful, but it really made me think. Is it really that romantic to be destined together? Doesn't putting the idea of fate and destiny behind love sound kind of... final? Like neither of them had a choice in that matter? I know you don't have a choice in who you fall in love with, but...
Anyway, ignore me. Sorry for having this chapter out so late. Life's been pretty hectic, the weather's getting way too hot, and I haven't been feeling well lately. :X The worst thing is that I know I shouldn't eat or drink anything cold, but it's been so hot lately that I can't help it, so now I'm paying the price for it. ~_~;; Arg. Definitely not feeling well. Hope you guys liked this crappy chapter.