The easiest of tasks were difficult for Draco and everyday I would find another thing he couldn't do, or couldn't remember. 'Harry? What's orange juice?', 'Haaaarrrryyy, (mewling again) 'I cant I can shave!' 'I cant write…' It was rather disconcerting, how he could do huge mathematical problems, but not even shave his stubbly face, which ended with me doing it for him whilst he fought away sobs at his incapability to do even the simplest of things.

It was nice though, to teach him about muggle life and for him to accept, without major criticisms of what I was telling him. His favourite things with the muggle world was the music, which he would sit listening to over and over, eventually going through each song in my vast music collection.

I started to toughen up my attitude towards feeling anything about Draco too. It was hard, especially when he would come skipping downstairs singing in the morning and looking at me wide eyed and happy, a big smile gracing his face and the bags under his eyes fading but I knew to fall for Draco would end with me hurt, and there were things with Draco that always got me sunk into him knowing if I continued with the actions made I would end up hurt.

So yeah, he was getting so much better as the summer rolled out and the first tinges of winter came about the world. Because I no longer worked, we spent most days sitting at home reading or teaching him things he had forgotten and soon the book collection was running thin. I had read him Tolstoy, Orwell, Poe and Wilde and his thirst for the literature stood prominent over most things. Occasionally I would catch him reading himself, his brows furrowed with the rolls of intelligence refreshing his abused mind and his hands tentatively turning pages like they were precious.

One morning I walked into my study to yet again see Draco reading alone happily, his small body tucked under the blanket I kept by the sofa. He looked up to me from the book and smiled before looking back down at the page of the book. "I was thinking about getting a tattoo someday…" He said with his eyes still on the book. Intrigued, I raised my eyebrows.

"Of what?" I asked curious, almost ignited inside when he looked happy at the enthusiasm I showed.

"Not sure. I'm afraid they might hurt though…" He turned a page, biting the inside of his cheek.

"They don't!" I squeaked, forgetting that mine was the one thing people didn't see of me.

"You have one?" He asked, finally looking up from his literature. I nodded, bashful for a few moments, "Of?"

I showed him the tattoo on my left buttock. I felt so ashamed of doing it for a moment, but then again for once Draco didn't wilt away like a dying flower. "Its nice," He commented after I pulled my trousers back up to my hips and I smiled knowingly.

"Its made you want to get one even more, hasn't it?" I asked amused and he nodded like I expected him to. "Come on then, lets go!" I pulled him up off the sofa and towards the door by his pale hands. He protested by pulling away reluctantly, but my grip was firm and I won out in the end.

"I have no money Harry!" He whined in the doorway which made me grin like a Cheshire cat.

"But Draco," I started matter-of-factly, "You do! All this work you have done for me, did you not expect me to pay you?" I hadn't actually thought of it before, but then again he wouldn't know that. I needed him to do things he wanted to do, it was the only way to bring him from the shell he called the past. I calculated an amount in my head as to how much he should have by now and the sum came to a fair amount. "And because of all that money you own, you're taking me out to lunch!"

"How much do I have?" He asked timidly.

"How much do you want?" I asked, avoiding the question as I knew he would protest when I told him how much I actually had just set aside for him.

"Harry!" He whined and I gave in.

"Come on, take my arm and we will aparrate there, okay?" He nodded, like a small child.

But my heart didn't flutter at those up-cast eyes anymore…

Dearest readers, Wonderful reviewers and Fantastic friends,

I know this is short! It's a bit of a filler until… well I can't tell you. Check my homepage for clues! First person who guesses wins something… or maybe not!

Ashes of all your Stars