Disclaimer: See chapter 01 for full disclaimer.
Thank-you list: to Alice, my beta reader, blaccangell (Sorry. I haven't found the time to read your story yet. But good luck with it!), El-Gilliath (thank you. It's been tough. I've been feeling very sick lately. But I hope it's nothing.), Dulce Psycho (/hands tissue/), Dieu Anonyme, Auctoritas, Vanice, Anne, GCandTKandFF.Nobsession, riverswebb7 (I'm still not sure what happened... But basically, someone hacked through all my stuff and I had to create a new email account and abandon the other. This has really affected me. But I'm still not giving up my stories.), dagitab (wow! Best author in the world of fanfiction! Thank you!), Viridiana (I'm not giving up yet. I like HP too much. Thank you for being supportive!), DemonRogue, SporkadelicAsh, SilverDragon1610, Ariverrunsthroughphoenix, Mariposa (I have given up on yahoo groups. I have a forum now. Click on my bio and you'll find the link!), Meghan036 (thanks for spreading the word!), LoireLoa (I hope whoever did that to me finds peace in his/her troubled soul), danielle, Silver Salamander (lol! I hope you're still alive to read this!), Black Mirror, MimiTaylor (Don't cry! Here's the new chapter!), ruperts-a-honey, Courtney (I hope the chapter is long enough!), josi, wilkinson's girl, RitaMalfoy, kikis (thanks! Find out Harry's reaction to the whole thing in this chapter!).
Chap. 46 – Negotiations
The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, now Harry's, was in uproar.
While Severus explained the truth about Draco, Bellatrix and Lucius to a very angry Harry, Sirius had a heated discussion with his mother's portrait in the hallway. Between Mrs Black's shrieks of 'Why aren't you dead, you piece of scum?' and Harry's shouting of 'He lied to me, that damn bastard! And you! I should have never trusted you!' Severus felt a very bad migraine coming on. He knew it would only get worse from that moment on since he had yet to tell Harry about Johnson Smear and his past as Draco's abusive lover.
Severus was worried about Draco, but he didn't think Lucius would do anything drastic to his son. Yet. Although Lucius was a sick bastard, Draco was his only heir. Then again, Lucius had allowed Smear to torture Draco.
Severus sighed. He felt guilty enough for letting Draco face Lucius alone without Harry reminding him about it every two seconds. But what was he supposed to do? He knew how important it was for Draco to deal with that particular matter on his own. He had tried to explain this to the Gryffindor brat also, but would he listen? No.
Harry's enraged speech was getting on his nerves. That and Mrs Black fight with Sirius would soon make him lose his mind for good.
"Sirius!" Severus shouted. "Would you please shut that damn portrait up?"
"I don't know how!" Sirius shouted back. "Why don't you come here and help me? Do you think I enjoy hearing this hag? I know I'm a masochist for marrying you, but listening to my mother screaming in my ears is much worse than having to put up with you in a very bad mood!"
Severus grunted something. Mrs Black cried about what she had done to deserve such an ungrateful son, who was also a bloody fag on top of it all.
Harry, who had been pacing frenetically around the living room since Severus had begun to explain the situation, ran towards Mrs Black's portrait, pointed his wand at her and cast the spell that Draco had taught him. In a few seconds, Mrs Black was put to sleep and the house went silent.
But that truce didn't last long. Harry quickly went back to the living room to continue his flaming speech about Draco's imprudence and Severus' lack of balls.
"Why did you let him go to Malfoy Manor if you knew Lucius' intentions weren't good?" Harry asked for the tenth time, making Severus really consider the possibility of hexing him.
"I already explained it to you, Potter. I won't bother anymore."
"You should bother, you bastard!" Harry attacked him, not afraid of Severus' murderous look. "You should have stopped him! You should at least have followed him!"
"Clearly, you don't know much about a Slytherin's pride," Severus retorted. "Draco didn't want me to go, Potter. He wanted to deal with Lucius alone. You go and try to stop a Slytherin!"
"Well, you're one. You ought to do it! Besides, that's just bullshit! You just didn't want to get involved. You failed him!"
"Oh, please! Don't come talk to me about not getting involved! I was the one who rescued Draco from a miserable life! I saved him! You have no idea what he went through, what he had to endure in the past."
"What are you talking about? What happened to him in the past that was so horrible?"
Severus sat down on the couch and sighed tiredly. Should he tell Harry everything? The boy seemed eager to know more, which meant that he had already pondered about it. Severus knew that Draco wanted to be the one to tell Harry about Smear. But Draco wasn't there. It was important that Harry knew the whole truth. It would put his love for Draco into a very hard test, but a necessary one.
Without dwelling on it too much, Severus tossed yesterday's newspaper towards Harry. As Harry scanned the article, Severus prepared his ears to hear more shouting, but was surprised to hear nothing at all.
"What is it, Harry?" asked Sirius worriedly.
Severus stared at Harry and his heart softened a little. Not for the first time in his life, he felt sympathy for the boy. The hot-tempered Harry, who had come through the door spitting vengeful words, became deadly silent. His cheeks, which had been of a vivid shade of red just a few moments ago, were now very pale.
Severus could only imagine the boy's feelings. Harry was probably in a terrible state of confusion and betrayal. Severus only hoped that Harry's love was strong enough to surpass those things because Draco needed all the love he could get. And if Harry wasn't able to see that, then he didn't deserve Draco.
"Harry?" called Sirius worriedly, standing next to his godson and reading the newspaper over his shoulder. His eyes widened, and he exclaimed, "What the…! What are they talking about? Severus!" Sirius looked at his husband in search for a reasonable explanation. "What's this? Draco was a…?"
Severus sighed. "Male prostitute? Yes, for a short period of time." Harry went even paler. Severus had the impression that he was about to throw up. Sirius gasped.
"The article tells only lies about what happened to him, though," Severus went on. "Potter, you must understand that… Potter!" Severus shouted to wake Harry up. "Did you hear me? Charles Hagen's article is a piece of crap! Draco didn't sell himself because he wanted to. His ex-boyfriend forced him do it. Johnson Smear, the one who attacked him recently, was very charming in the beginning of their relationship, and he was able to lure Draco into his web with his smooth-talk. At the time Draco was going through a rough phase. The wizarding world had given his back to him because he was a Malfoy. He couldn't go back to his parents' house, nor did he want to, because they couldn't accept him being a homosexual. And the Muggle world was alien to him. Draco was raised to despise the Muggles. He didn't know anything about them. So Draco thought of Smear as his salvation. Unfortunately, Smear showed him what hell really felt like."
Severus waited for some reply, but Harry remained mute. It seemed as if the life had been sucked out of him. Neither Severus nor Sirius did anything to comfort him. Sirius did try it, but Harry just shook his head in a clear refusal.
"Keep talking," Harry finally said it in a low, hoarse voice.
Severus admired his courage.
"Draco was too young at the time. He was scared, alone and desperate. Then Smear came along promising him the world. He only bought it because he was eager to feel another human being's warmth and tenderness. But he wasn't stupid. He soon realised that Smear wasn't a good person. He tried to leave and that's when his problems really started. Smear became violent and abusive. He locked Draco up and then made him sell himself to a few of his richer clients. You see, Smear ran a brothel in Knockturn Alley. Draco was his most precious merchandise."
Harry was feeling nauseated. He wanted to tell Severus to stop talking because he didn't want to hear anything anymore. But his mouth was sealed. He knew he had to listen to the whole thing no matter how painful it was. So he just let Severus continue.
"Draco didn't give in so easily. He fought as much as he could. Smear began to drug him to make him submissive."
The words ripped Harry's heart apart. He felt out of breath.
"Severus… That's enough," said Sirius worried about his godson's pallid complexion.
"No," Harry said, not knowing how he found strength to say that. "I need to know everything."
"I think we've heard enough, Harry," Sirius replied. "What more do you want? The details?"
"No, of course not! But I know there is more. Right?" Harry looked at Severus with such piercing eyes that the older man almost quiver.
"There is," Severus said, averting Harry's eyes.
What he had to say now would demand too much of him. He also needed to prepare himself for the possibility of being attacked by Harry. The raven-haired man would certainly be furious at him for letting Draco meet Lucius alone when he knew that Lucius was responsible for those atrocious acts of violence.
"What I'm about to tell you was what hurt Draco the most. He found out later that his parents had paid Smear to violate him repeatedly as a way of curing his disease. They thought that Draco would surely go back to the Manor after experiencing something like this. But the opposite happened. Draco swore never to see them again." Severus gave a hollow laughter. "How I hated Lucius when I heard about this. I didn't think he was capable of doing something like that to his own son… Draco was destroyed when I came to his aid. I thought he would never recover from the pain and humiliation that Smear made him experience. But Draco is strong. He managed to heal himself faster than I thought he would. I left him with the Weasleys for a while. He got better by the day. He even found himself a career. I'm very proud of my godson, Potter. And if you hurt him even more I'll make you suffer."
Severus' last words were emotional and threatening. If Harry dared speak ill of Draco, or even think bad of him, Severus would defend his godson as if Draco was his flesh and blood. But his hard countenance softened once again when he saw silent tears running down Harry's cheeks.
Harry looked devastated, but Severus noticed that his eyes were flaming dangerously. He prepared himself for the blow that he knew was coming to him. And he wasn't wrong.
"YOU! HOW COULD YOU? When you knew Lucius had done such a terrible thing to his own son! How could you let Draco face him alone?" Harry shouted, going for Severus' throat. Sirius held him back quickly. Although he understood Harry's pain, Severus was his husband. He would have the pleasure of torturing him later.
"LET ME GO, SIRIUS!" Harry struggled to escape Sirius' firm grip without any success. "I can't believe you're on his side!"
"I'm not on his side. But please, calm down! You won't help Draco like this! You need to get a grip!" Sirius tried to appease him. "Severus was wrong, but he did try to stop Draco! You heard him. Draco was determined to go no matter what."
Harry's eyes glowed with fury. He glared at Severus and Sirius. "Okay. I know how stubborn that idiot can be."
Severus wanted to add a 'look who's talking' comment, but decided to stay quiet. Harry was at his limit. The wrong sentence could make him lose his grip on his magical powers.
"But I still think you were wrong," Harry finished, making a huge effort to hold back his anger.
Severus knew that very well. He knew he had failed his godson. He deserved Harry's fury and more. The only excuse he could give was that he hadn't done anything yet because Sirius had told him to wait for their arrival. Not that Severus needed their help. He just thought it was the right thing to do since neither Sirius nor Harry knew exactly what was going on in Draco's life.
"Take me to the Manor," Harry ordered.
"I will. But Potter… There's something I must know."
"What?" Harry snarled.
"Do you love Draco?"
The question took Harry by surprise and confused him for a moment. "Why are you…?"
"Do you?" Severus insisted. The answer to that question was very important.
Harry gulped. "Yes."
"Even though you know about Smear and the rest?"
Harry nodded without quivering. "It wasn't his fault, right? Good thing that Smear is dead. I'd have killed him otherwise."
Severus believed him. "I just asked because Draco has suffered enough."
"Snape, Draco and I have a complicated past, so I can't promise you that I will never hurt him. He hurt me by not trusting me enough to tell me about what had happened…"
"You don't understand, Potter! Can't you see how difficult it is for him to keep such a secret from you? He…"
"I don't care!" Harry interrupted him. "That's between Draco and me. What matters right now is to find out what Lucius did to him. The rest can wait."
Severus agreed, even if against his will. He didn't like to receive orders from Potter, though. "Okay, then. I'll take you to the Manor. I will back you up."
"I don't need back up. I can handle Lucius Malfoy with my eyes closed."
Severus made a face. "You and Draco really deserve each other… You're both stubborn and block-headed…"
"Harry, we're going with you," said Sirius resolutely. "That's settled. So let's move, people! We have a rescue to perform."
"You'll stay, Sirius," said Harry and Severus in unison.
Sirius stared at them incredulously. "Like hell I will!"
"Nobody knows you're alive, you prick!" Severus exclaimed. "Didn't we agree to keep this a secret? You know there are still people out there that would love to kill you."
"I won't let my godson face this alone! I'm not you!" Sirius attacked.
Severus grunted. "You're such a… Did you forget that your recklessness in the past was what made you fall through the veil? You didn't help Potter back then! You only brought him pain! When are you going to learn, Sirius? And I'm not just saying that because I want to hurt you, but because I won't stand to lose you again."
Sirius' eyes flickered. He got near his husband and held him in a tight hug. "Severus… I love you too, you old bat."
On one hand, Severus felt uncomfortable for displaying such a pathetic scene in front of Harry, but on the other he had missed Sirius too much to care about what the brat thought. It was the first time Sirius touched him since his arrival.
Far from thinking that the scene was pathetic, Harry was deeply touched. It made him miss Draco even more.
"Sirius, you can come if you want," said Harry, making Severus throw him a dark look. "But you and Snape will wait for me outside the Manor."
"You're acting just like Draco," Severus pointed out with a grimace.
Harry had strength to smile. "I guess that's why we're soul mates in the first place."
Severus returned the smile. "Okay, Potter. Let's rescue your lady."
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Harry expected to find many wards around Malfoy Manor, but surprisingly he found none. The whole place looked quite deserted with the exception of a house-elf named Trinity that didn't seem to notice Harry's presence at all. Trinity was scared enough of Hermione Granger and her SPEW speech.
Harry was very surprised to see her. Snape hadn't told anyone else about Draco.
"Hermione!" Harry called out.
Hermione turned around and smiled broadly when she spotted her friend.
"Harry!" She ran towards him and gave him a quick but tight hug. "We missed you so much! When did you arrive?"
"This morning, after a long day's journey. I didn't expect to meet you here. So you already know…"
"No, she doesn't," interrupted Lucius from the top of the spiral marble stair. "I invited her here to discuss something related to Draco. She doesn't know that I hold him in my possession."
Harry clenched his fists. He wanted nothing more than to point his wand at Lucius and hex him until the next century. All the rage he had felt while hearing about what that monster had done to Draco was multiplied by a hundred. But before crushing Lucius the way he wanted to, he needed to find out where Draco was locked up.
"Hermione, this monster kidnapped Draco!" Harry said between his teeth. "And I'm here to get him back!"
Lucius sneered. "I'm actually very glad to see you, Potter. Or should I call you my son-in-law? Won't you give your new Papa a hug?"
"Only to stab you in the back," snarled Harry.
"Ah! You're already talking like a Malfoy! I'm touched," Lucius smirked.
"Cut the crap, Malfoy! Where's Draco?"
"He's in his room, and he says he won't come out," said Hermione, to Lucius and Harry's surprise. "He's being an arse for a change…"
"How do you know?" Lucius asked her.
"Contrary to what you believe, sir, I do know what's going on. Draco called me to tell me that he wouldn't be showing up to work because he was being kept captive in his parents' house. He was also drugged, I could tell. His voice seemed too slow for my taste. Of course, since he has extensive Auror training, he knows how to fight the effects of the drug and escape from his golden prison. But surprisingly, he doesn't want to. He says he needs to stay and figure out what your plans are."
"He called you? What else did he say?" Harry asked anxiously.
"Well…"
"Nonsense! How could he have called you? I confiscated his wand!" Lucius exclaimed.
"You forgot to confiscate his mobile phone," said Hermione triumphally. "You know, that little Muggle device… Oh, wait. You don't know. You've been in jailed. Not only that, but you also don't really care about anything Muggle, right? Good for us. Thanks to your ignorance, Draco was able to contact me without using magic! Talk about irony!"
Harry smiled. He had never felt so proud of her cocky attitude as he did now. Lucius, on the other hand, seemed quite pissed off.
The older Malfoy frowned. "Don't get so overconfident, mudblood. I still have the upper hand. Draco is in my possession, don't forget that."
"And you don't forget that we're still watching you. You might have bought your way out of Azkaban, but there are still people in the Ministry who truly believe in justice and are just waiting to get their hands on you again. If I were you, I'd be very careful," she said without wavering. Harry felt like kissing her. "Why did you invite me here?"
"Actually, you were my second choice. I only called you here because Potter seemed to have been out of reach. I needed you to pass him my message. Now that he's here, I don't need you anymore. You don't know how painful it is to dirty this walls with your presence."
"It is your family who has dirtied these walls, not her!" Harry exclaimed angrily, pointing his wand at Lucius. "Now bring me to Draco!"
"Why? You heard your mudblood friend. Draco wishes to stay," said Lucius with an unpleasant smile.
"I don't care! I'm taking him with me. Don't try to stop me, or you'll feel my anger," Harry threatened.
"Strong words. Are you ready to kill me for my son? Do you love him that much?" Lucius asked.
"Yes!" Harry answered without hesitation.
"Oh, but then you'd be tossed in jail," Lucius pointed out.
"I'll testify in his behalf," Hermione quickly said. "I'll tell the court it was self-defence."
"Hmmm…" Lucius caressed the top of his cane thoughtfully. "Indeed. But I've already set in motion a defamation campaign against Potter and Draco. I saw the Daily Prophet's poll. People are highly against their relationship. Plus, they think that Draco is trying to take my place and control my empire, which means that Harry Potter is also involved in this horrible scheme. If you kill me, your friends might help in absolving you, Potter, but the public will be against you. You'll be treated like a criminal. The funny thing about people is that they have such a short memory. You'd think that they'd be forever grateful to their hero for vanquishing the Dark Lord. But once prosperity comes, people tend to forget about the bad things of the past. They act as if nothing has ever happened. That's people for you, Potter. They won't go easy on you, not even for killing a criminal like myself." Lucius stopped to savour the effect of his words on both of them.
"What do you want?" Harry asked between his teeth.
"Like your friend says, there are still people against me at the Ministry. The ones who are by my side are hesitating to extinguish my sentence completely. I want my freedom, and I want my name cleaned."
Harry frowned. "So? What does that have to do with me?"
"I want you to help me with The Wizengamot. Use your influence to free me more quickly."
"What? No way!" Harry almost laughed madly. Did Lucius really think that he could pull off something like that with The Wizengamot? Even if that was possible, he would never do it.
"Not even for Draco's sake?" Lucius said, playing the devil's advocate. "I'm disappointed. I thought you loved my son."
"I do! But…""You'd rather choose what's right, what's just," Lucius cut across him with a snigger. "That's so honourable of you, Potter. You'd rather sacrifice your love for the good of the nation. It's very poetical. I feel tears in my eyes."
Harry clenched his fists. Just casting a spell on Lucius wouldn't do for him. He needed to use physical force, even if only once.
"I don't know people from The Wizengamot," Harry snarled. "I have no influence what-so-ever on the Ministry."
"Very well then." Lucius stood up erectly and sniggered. "Draco stays. To be honest, whatever your answer is I win, Potter. I do want my freedom back. But to have Draco to myself again is quite a reward. It is something that I've been looking forward to ever since I was imprisoned. I was too lenient on him before."
Harry gasped at such preposterous lie. Lucius only smiled as he continued, "While in prison, I kept thinking that such a stubborn person like Draco needs to be held on a very strong leash. I got to the conclusion that what he needs is to have his memory altered. I haven't tried that yet. Maybe I won't be able to cure his homosexuality, but I will make him forget you."
"You sick bastard!" Harry shouted, furious. "You can do whatever you want with my bloody reputation! I don't care! But I'm taking Draco with me today. Try to stop me if you can! I want nothing more than to beat you up!"
The green eyes sparkled with a fury that made Lucius quiver.
"I won't kill you, but I'll torture you enough that you'll wish you were dead," Harry threatened.
Lucius gripped his trembled hands on the head of his cane.
"If I were you I'd let Draco go without further ado," suggested Hermione. "Because once Harry loses his grip, he's quite unstoppable…"
"Draco wishes to stay," Lucius stated.
"I doubt that," Harry said.
"All you have to do is help me, Potter. Then Draco will be yours again, and I'll leave you two alone."
"Or…" Harry pointed his wand at Lucius without wavering. "I could just stupefy you, take you to the Ministry, and charge you for kidnapping your son and threatening not only a civilian but also a member of the Auror Headquarters."
Lucius gripped the top of his cane harder. "So that's how thing will be…"
"Yes. That's exactly how things will be," Harry snarled.
"And you don't care if anything happens to Draco…" Lucius pointed out viciously.
"If you do anything to him, I swear I kill you without any mercy!" Harry shouted with anger. "You have a choice. Give up and I'll spare your life. But I won't go easy on you if you keep using your own son as a shield."
Lucius smiled wryly. "Very well, Potter. You give me no choice but to do something that I should have done a long time ago."
In a fast movement, Lucius took his wand out of his cane and cast a spell on Harry's direction. Although Harry was out of shape, he was able to deflect it a second before it hit him. Hermione sought shelter behind a large Greek pillar, while Harry went hiding behind the opposite one.
The entrance Hall of the Malfoy Mansion turned into a battlefield with spells flying all over the place and sparing nothing in their way. Lucius didn't seem to care about the consequences of his actions. He was too blinded by hate and wanted nothing more than to finish Harry off.
"Draco will be so pleased when he finds out that you don't love him at all, Potter," shouted Lucius, throwing a spell on Harry's direction. The ray of light hit the wall close to the front door and opened a big hole in it.
"This has nothing to do with my love for Draco, you bloody bastard! I do love him! And I'll fight for him until I don't have any energy left in my body!" Harry shouted back, casting a spell towards Lucius and hitting a big portrait at the top of the marble stairs. The old man in it ran away to another portrait screaming.
The arrival of Sirius and Severus staggered Lucius for a moment.
"What is this? A ghost?" he asked with a frown.
Sirius smiled dryly. "Indeed. I've come back from the dead to haunt you!"
Severus pushed Sirius to the side before he could be hit Lucius' spell. Harry grunted something. Severus scowled at him.
"What? How was I supposed to keep him away?" Severus asked.
"Well, you should have! Hermione and I have things under control here!" Harry said.
Severus looked around and sneered. "Yes, I can see that. You're handling things so well that the house is being destroyed."
Harry thought about replying, but Hermione's scream caught his attention.
"Hermione!" he shouted. "Are you hit?"
"I'm ok!" she assured him from the other side of the hall. "Just a scratch… A damn scratch…"
"Bugger!" Harry sighed. "We are four against one and yet we can't take him down!"
"There's that. And there's the fact that you're the Great Harry Potter," sneered Severus. "To think that you were the one who defeated Lord Voldemort…"
Harry made a face. He knew he was out of shape without people having to tell him.
"I propose that we all attack him at once," Sirius suggested with eyes filled with excitement.
Severus and Harry stared at him with a frown.
"What?" Sirius asked, annoyed by their looks.
"You're hopeless, Sirius," said Severus. Sirius just shrugged.
"All right, Potter! Here's what I'll do!" shouted Lucius all of a sudden. "I'll run away, and I'll take Draco with me. You'll never see him again. How's that? Do you still refuse to help me?"
"You aren't going anywhere!" Harry bellowed.
"Fine! Your wish is my command. I'll… Ugh!"
They heard a loud 'thump', and the Mansion went quiet. Harry frowned. Carefully, he glimpsed at Lucius and saw him with his face flat on the floor at the top of the stairs. He had been hit. He looked at Hermione wondering if she had been responsible for stunning him, but his friend seemed as confused as him.
He looked at Lucius' body again and spotted Narcissa Malfoy elegantly dressed in a silky light blue robe embroidered with small diamonds, carrying her wand in one hand and a suitcase in the other.
She tossed the suitcase carelessly towards Harry's feet and said, "You'll find enough evidence against my husband in that suitcase to put him behind bars for a long time. In exchange, I want to be left alone. And I want Lucius' memory changed so he won't ever find out that I was the one who betrayed him." She turned to Hermione. "I expect you to make good use of those papers. Don't disappoint me. I don't want to see Lucius in this house again for at least sixth years." Then she turned to Harry again. "As for you, Draco is in his room. Take him away. I don't want him in this house anymore."
"Why are you doing this?" asked Hermione, curious.
Narcissa sighed, upset. "Not that it is any of your business, but I got used to be in charge while Lucius was in prison. Let's just say that I got tired of being ordered around. I have my own agenda now. Besides, he killed my sister. I'll never forgive him for this."
"Fine by us!" Sirius exclaimed, ignoring Narcissa's shock to see him and running straight to where Lucius was laying to bind him.
"You're alive!" she exclaimed, disgusted.
"Yes, dear cousin, I am alive." Sirius grinned.
Hermione, who had been deeply stunned to see him as well, went to stand beside Sirius after she had got over from her original shock. She would ask Harry about it later. Her work came first.
"I'll do what you say," Hermione said to Narcissa. "But not before checking if that suitcase is really full of evidence or if it is nothing. I'm sorry, but I'll have to take you to the Ministry with me. I promise you, though, that Lucius won't know you're there, or that you've helped us."
Narcissa didn't seem very pleased with that arrangement, but since they were four against one, she agreed. "All right. But I will not be placed into one of those dirty cells!"
"So you'll leave us alone," said Harry, looking at her. "You promise that once Lucius is thrown in jail again you will disappear and never bother Draco again?"
Narcissa's cold blue eyes that reminded him so much of Draco's when he was still a spoiled brat pierced through him. "Yes, Potter, I promise you. Draco ceased to be my son the moment he gave into his primitive urges. He's all yours. Trinity will show you the way to Draco's chambers."
The house-elf bowed his head at the sight of Harry. The raven-haired man still glanced one last time at Narcissa before following Trinity through the endless corridors of the Mansion.
"Be careful, Harry!" warned him Sirius.
"I will," Harry said.
He didn't face any problems along the way. Trinity took a golden key from her rags and unlocked the door of Draco's room. Then she bowed again and left Harry alone.
Harry's heart beat faster at the sight of Draco sleeping soundly on the bed. He fought against the urge to take him in his arms and squeeze him tightly. Draco looked so fragile that he feared he would break him in his despair to feel him. He sat next to the blond and stroked his face tenderly. His fingers tingled as they get to touch Draco again. He had missed that perfect smooth skin so much. Leaning forward, he placed a soft kiss on Draco's lips. Draco's eyes opened slowly.
"Harry? Is that really you? What are you doing here? What happened?" Draco asked dizzily.
Harry placed another kiss on his lips. "Don't worry my love. Everything is ok now. I've come to take you home with me."
TBC…
A/N: I haven't written chap. 47 yet, but it's on my list of things to do. I'm planning on finishing the story before Christmas, but I can't really promise you anything. I've been having problems with my health. On top of that, I also have a very important exam at the beginning of December. So, I ask all of you to be patient again. In the meantime, please leave me a review! How was the chapter? Personally, I like how I've portrayed Lucius. Next chapter I'll work better on Harry and Draco's reunion. And that's a promise!