Disclaimer: I do not own any characters created by J.K. Rowling.
Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoy the update! Also, please bare in mind that this story is a bit of a mixture of scenes in the movie, as well as actual segments from the book, so lets not get hissy about what bits were 'real' or 'not real'. It's a mixture.
Update: All I know is that my pain is a neurological problem. I'm hoping it's just a cluster of nerves getting tweaked the wrong way. Fingers crossed an MRI comes through soon :(
B x
Chapter Twenty-Five
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"It's not going to work."
"You don't know that until we try."
"For the last time, I said 'no'."
"Frankly, I don't really need your permission."
"You need me to hold the door open for you though."
"You're a snarky little sod, you know that?"
"I guess it's a family trait."
"Don't kid yourself, kid."
"I'm not a kid! I'm taller than you!"
"Shut your face, everyone is taller than me!"
"What the hell is going on in here?" Remus growled, the deep sound echoing in the kitchen. The scene that greeted him was Draco and Sirius both leaning over the kitchen table; Draco's cheeks were pinking a little while Sirius looked almost unflustered in his loose muggle pyjamas.
Both men shut up the moment he appeared in the doorway.
Neither answered him.
"Well?" he snapped.
"Sirius wants to eavesdrop on my therapy session this afternoon and I told him no."
"How would you eavesdrop? Doesn't she sound-proof the door for privacy?"
Sirius scoffed and rolled his eyes, "I was planning on going as padfoot. Draco can claim I'm a therapy-dog."
Remus rubbed at his eyes. They were so sore. Teddy was starting to teeth and his constant fussing meant that Remus was up all hours of the night trying to soothe his son to go back to sleep for a few more fitful hours. It didn't help that there was a full moon on Saturday night. He could feel it itching all over his skin.
"Sirius why on earth do you think that would work?" he asked as he settled Teddy into his highchair.
"Give me one good reason why it wouldn't?"
"Because we're not teenagers and this is highly risky."
Sirius looked affronted as Remus turned his back to them and started preparing Teddy's breakfast, idly flicking his wand at the kettle so he could make a mug of black coffee.
"Are you for real?" he snapped. "It's been months and any improvement Draco has had, hasn't been thanks to this woman! I just want to make sure that he's getting the help he deserves!"
"Excuse me, I'm standing right here!"
"Sirius, she is a professional," Remus replied in a tight voice as he buttered a slice of toast. "Let her do her job. Besides, it's your week teaching. You cannot take the afternoon off and loiter around outside waiting for Draco."
Sirius opened his mouth to protest, but Remus help up his hand to silence the man behind him.
"Don't even think about arguing with me, Black, or I'll rip that moustache right off your face."
Draco's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. The remark had been so scathing, so biting he physically felt their sharpness jabbing into his chest. When he glanced back at his cousin, he couldn't hide his amazement that the man took a moment to glower at the back of Remus' head, but soon his entire persona softened into something resembling a human being.
"You're right," Sirius conceded, a muscle in his jaw ticking. "I'll go get myself ready."
With a sweep of his velvet robes, he was out of the kitchen, his feet padding up the staircase. Sitting back down, Draco frowned over at Remus, his eyes moving to the calendar hanging up just to the right of his shoulder.
Oh.
Realisation dawned on him; it was a full moon this week. At least his dear cousin knew when to lose a battle with some dignity left.
Remus continued to make himself something to eat, taking deep, measured breaths in through his nose and out through his mouth. He needed to calm himself. Teddy had already been dropped off to Andromeda's the previous morning, so that he was kept away from the business that surrounded the full-moon. He came to sit at the kitchen table, opposite Draco.
"I always feel like shit whenever I snap at him," he sighed, raking a hand through his messy hair. "I know he only wants what's best for you. He just always goes to the most extreme solution."
Draco offered a small smile. "Honestly, I appreciate that he wants to look out for me. I just … I honestly don't know that Dr. Lisa is doing much for me."
"At all?"
Shrugging, Draco said, "Yeah I've eased into living with you guys and come to terms with a few other things but … talking about the war? I just don't need to relive it. Not right now. I just want to try and graduate from school before anything else."
Remus nodding in understanding. "I get it. You're finally free of that bastard, you should be allowed to choose what you want to deal with for the time being. Merlin, knows you've had enough people dictating what you do, think and say for long enough."
Draco hummed in agreement.
"I'm so glad I don't have to go into work this week," Remus continued. "I loathe Valentine's day."
"Oh? Why is that?"
Sharp amber eyes snapped open. "You never had to deal with James sodding Potter bemoaning his love for Lily and waxing lyric about the shade of her lips. It was nauseating!"
Draco was suddenly assaulted with the image of a dwarf tackling a twelve-year-old Harry in the hallways and singing the most grotesquely barbaric poem to him in front of all the student body. He cringed. "Yeah, I have a feeling I know what you mean."
"Do you want me to come to your appointment with you?"
Draco frowned, "I … don't really know. Why would you want to come?"
Remus frowned, "I just thought I'd ask. Otherwise it's just me and Harry for the afternoon."
"What's the matter, Lupin?" Draco grinned. "Can't handle an eight-year-old?"
"I handled Sirius Black for half of my life," Remus grinned back. "I can handle Harry blindfolded."
Both men continued to eat their meals in a comfortable silence. Said silence was shattered when Sirius came trotting down the stairs dressed in his pressed pinstriped robes whilst adjusting the clasp at the front. "I'm very tempted to ask Minerva do promote inclusivity by having Muggle Mondays at work," he grunted as he pinched his finger on the ornate clasp. "I hate wearing robes."
"You know the robes are a suggestion, not mandatory," Remus called out.
"Would you rather I go to work in my dressing gown?" Sirius shot back.
"Forget I said anything."
Sirius gave up on the clasp and raked a hand through his hair. "I should be back around five tonight, unless I give that Tippet brat a detention."
Remus rolled his eyes and pushed himself to his feet. It took just that little bit more energy to do so, Draco noted, as the tawny haired man hopped up the steps and stood in front of Sirius. Towering over the older man, Remus took the clasp in hand and swiftly latched it into place. "There, now you actually look decent."
Sirius scoffed before reaching for Remus' hand and giving it a squeeze. "I'll try not to be late."
"Off with you," Remus made a shooing gesture with his hands, his cheeks flushing the faintest shade of pink. "Better now be late! You'll set a bad example."
"Then they really shouldn't have hired me!" Sirius called back.
The roar of the floo resounded from the lounge and then the house settled back into its peaceful state. It lasted for all of ten minutes before a series of soft thuds was heard from upstairs. Harry was awake.
"Let the day begin," Remus grumbled stepping back down into the kitchen and flicking his wand at the kettle.
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~0~
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The plant always moved.
He had been coming to see Dr. Lisa for the better part of a year now and he knew the office set-up like the back of his hand. The cream walls always seemed as though the sun was lighting them up, the shelves and windowsills were bright white and always dust free, and the oak floorboards were always freshly waxed and shining. The certificates were framed behind her on the wall, and the plush sofa he always sat on looked fresh and unused whenever he sat upon it.
All except for the sodding potted plant; it was never in the same place twice.
Shooting a glare at said plant, Draco closed the door behind him and settled onto the pristine sofa, like he usually did. Auror Buxley was sat in the waiting room just beyond the door. Remus was at home with Harry working on some rudimentary magic incantations for children. A luxury Harry had never had, growing up with muggles.
Dr. Lisa greeted him from her chair opposite the sofa as she always did, her quill and notepad in hand and her hair swept up into an elegant bun at the nape of her neck. "Good morning Draco," she smiled. "How has your week been? Would you like a cup of tea?"
"Yes please," he learned early on that saying yes to a cup of tea, was a code that his week had been a good one. Accepting the cup from where it levitated over in front of him, he took a sip and let it warm him. "My week has been good. I haven't had any nightmares for almost a month now."
"That's definitely progress," she smiled gently. "How have things been with Harry aging?"
"He's been fine. We cope with the change as much as we can, and he settles down reasonably quickly within the first day or two of the month."
"And how are your homework assignments going?"
"My professors seem to like where my grades are at the moment, and are waiting for me to give the go ahead to start practicing with my wand again."
"I see," she made a note on the notepad. "Have you been practicing with your wand? I understand you've had it for two months now?"
Draco nodded, "I have."
"And the practicing?" she pushed.
"I've done a few spells here and there," he replied, his jaw tensing. He took a sip of tea, willing it to calm him.
"Are your guardians helping you to study?"
"They've … offered."
"And you've not taken advantage?"
Draco shrugged stiffly. "They already do so much for me. The least they deserve after a full week working with snotty teenagers, is to not deal with another one when they get home."
"Admirable as it is that you're giving them some breathing space, but I don't think they would have offered if they didn't mean for you to take some advantage of it," Dr. Lisa countered, her lip twitching up at the corner as her quill scribbled across the notepad.
Draco set the cup of tea down on the coffee table between them. He was beginning to get that prickly feeling at the base of his skull that he wanted to walk away from the session. He drew in a deep breath, trying not to draw her shrewd gaze to him as he scrubbed his palms down over his thighs.
"I just don't really want bother them right now. They have Harry and Teddy and work. I can take care of myself."
"Very much like you did during the final battle?"
Damn, she went there.
Again.
It was like a cut to the jugular.
Closing his eyes, he ground his back teeth together and levelled his gaze at her. "I'm not going to talk about that."
"Draco, you'll need to open up about this at some point. The more you push against it, the more you will suffer from it."
"Then I will deal with it when it becomes a problem."
"Draco, look at me."
He dragged his eyes up to her face yet again. She was pretty in a minimalistic, pristine sort of way. The glint in her eye was what unnerved him. She set the notepad down, the quill bouncing between her fingers as though she were just waiting for his mouth to open again.
"You cannot continue to repress these memories. What your parents did to you in your time of need is abhorrent." She set the quill down at last. He was close to snapping the thing in half. He felt an ugly flush creeping through him. His fingers were inching into fists in his lap. "They just left you there, in the middle of a battlefield and made no effort to show that they cared about their only child."
"I've had enough of this," he ground out, standing to his feet and sweeping his hair out of his eyes. "I am sick and tired of listening to you belittle my family. Consider this our last session." Turning away from her, he marched across the office and wrenched the door open.
"Draco, your family didn't love you, you need to accept this to improve your chances of a better future." She hadn't raised her voice, but her words were cutting enough to penetrate through the angry red haze that had flooded his brain.
Pressing his lips together, he swallowed his anger and slowly closed the door to the waiting room. It clicked into place, echoing in the heavy silence. "What did you just say about my parents?" he bit out.
"They are emotionally distant, and they warped your mind into believing that Voldemort was the way your family would come out on top."
Letting out a cold, agitated laugh, Draco shook his head and turned back to face Dr. Lisa. "You have literally no idea what you're talking about."
"Draco -"
"Oh, I think you've said enough. Especially considering you've been talking absolute skrewt-shite since I've started coming here." Sweeping the few stray hairs from his eyes yet again, he glowered down at his therapist. "During the battle of Hogwarts my family and I were second on Voldemort's target list. As soon as Potter was dead, we were going to be next. That bastard had destroyed my father's wand and my mother had given her wand to me after Potter had stolen mine at the manor. They were defenceless against that lunatic. Do you know what my mother did in the forest? She LIED! She lied to his face -one of the most skilled Occlumens in the WORLD -to make sure that I was alive.
"When I saw Potter was alive, I ran right past that bastard and gave Potter my wand. In that moment, the only thing that mattered was that he was alive, he was going to win!" he let out a shrill laugh. "In the scramble of Potter getting away, I hurried deep into the castle. I was a bigger target now, I needed to stay hidden until everything had died down. They were running around trying to find me, with no wands, targets to both sides, just so they could find me!"
He could feel tears burning in his eyes. So, what if one or two had escaped? Who gave a shit if he was seeing red and magic was thrumming through the room, vibrating the frames on the walls?
"They had no way to defend themselves from anyone in that battlefield, but they did it anyway to make sure I was safe and alive! That was all that mattered to them! So, don't you dare -DON'T. YOU. DARE. -say that my parents didn't love me!"
The glass in the frames cracked and shattered across the room.
Dr. Lisa's glasses chipped.
She flinched away from him as the coffee table splintering in half brought him back down to Earth. He shook the anger off like a grubby cloak, and raked a hand through his hair, his breathing heavy and ragged. He glanced around the room, his limbs trembling. Fuck, Auror Buxley was outside.
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
Turning away from Dr. Lisa as she backed away from him, he was out of the door in an instant, froze as soon as Buxley's eyes landed on him.
"You done, then?" Buxley asked, setting aside a book he was reading.
Draco nodded stiffly, averting his gaze.
"Alright, let's get you home then. You okay to side-along, you look pale?"
"I'm always pale," Draco replied hollowly.
"If you vomit on me, you can pay for the cleaning bill," Buxley smirked, cocking his arm for Draco to take ahold. He did as he was told, the sickening tug on his navel ending his nightmare with Dr. Lisa.
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~0~
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Harry tried to pay attention to what Scooby-Doo was saying, but it was difficult to enjoy it when Draco hadn't come out of his room at all since, he had seen his Doctor. He had looked very white and shaky as he signed a piece of scroll the Auror had given him. He'd barely spared Harry a glance before he'd hurried up to his room.
He had eaten his dinner and Daddy had even been really nice and given him chocolate ice cream. It was a little too cold for ice cream, but Daddy had insisted that it was Moony's favourite.
The ice cream was gone now, and he could hear Moony and Daddy in the conservatory. When he'd gone to the toilet, he had seen Daddy had lit tons of candles all over the shelves and windowsills. There were thick fuzzy blankets on the chairs and several boxes of chocolates. He knew that at the end of the week, Moony would change into a werewolf. It still scared Harry a little about living with a werewolf, but Moony was always so lovely to him, and he took good care of baby Teddy.
There was no way that Moony was dangerous.
Besides, when Daddy taught him how to become an animal as well, then they could all stay up all night and play around together. He wondered what sort of animal he would be. He liked the idea of being a bear or a lion, but he also thought he would like to be a dog, like Daddy.
He couldn't help but frown thoughtfully; what would Draco be if he could be an animal?
Harry, personally, thought that Draco was far too pretty to be anything small or sneaky like a fox, even if he was good at finding Harry. Maybe he would be a type of bird? Like an owl or an eagle?
"I should go and ask him," Harry said to himself. "Maybe we can watch a movie to cheer him up."
Grabbing his stuffed dragon -Poppy -Harry hurried up the stairs and crept along the landing until he was at Draco's door. Pressing his ear to the door he heard nothing from the other side; Draco didn't seem to like music much. He preferred to do a lot of reading. It seemed a little sad. Whenever Draco caught Harry staring at him, he'd give a smile, but it was never a happy smile.
Chewing on his lip, Harry knocked on the door.
Silence.
He knocked again. "Draco, are you sleeping?"
He was just about to knock again when there was a sigh from the other side of the door. Floorboards creaked and then the door inched inwards. Draco's pale face frowned down at him. Had Harry woken him up?
"Are you okay, Harry?" Draco asked, his voice a sleep gruffer than usual.
"Yes …" he fiddled with Poppy's wings. "Did I wake you up?"
"Um no …" Draco scrubbed his hands down over his face. "Did you want some company?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't want to bother you if you're busy."
Shaking his head, Draco stepped out of his room and stretched his back. "I'm not busy, kid. I was just having a nap." He gently nudged Harry towards the stairs, and they walked down together towards the lounge. "Where's your dad?"
"He's doing something for Moony for Valentines day," Harry said, plonking himself down on the sofa.
"Ah I see," Draco settled down next to him. Scooby-Doo was still playing. "Have you eaten?"
"Yeah, Daddy made us all dinner while you were napping. He said there's more in the fridge."
Draco nodded, propping his head up on the arm of the sofa. They watched in silence and Harry definitely preferred sitting close to Draco compared to sitting by himself. Hugging Poppy to his chest, he leaned a little so that he was leaning against Draco's shoulder. It made him feel warm and comfortable knowing that Draco wasn't pushing him away, despite clearly not being in the mood to deal with other people.
"Draco?"
"Mm?"
"Aren't you going to eat some food?"
"I'm not really hungry."
Harry frowned, plucking gently as Poppy's squishy horns. He could feel Draco's magic thrumming dully around the room. It seemed to dampen him own emotions. He shyly glanced up at Draco before furrowing his brow in thought. It must be that time of the month where everyone got sad. Shuffling off the sofa, Harry padded out of the lounge. Draco continued to stare vacantly at Scooby-Doo. He wasn't even watching it. That was a shame, because this was a funny episode.
Poppy clutched under his arm, he edged towards the conservatory. The door was ajar and there was a small box of chocolates on the small table near the door. As he got closer, Sirius and Remus' voices drifted out into the quiet of the hallway.
"-Still cannot believe you've done this for me," Remus chuckled as Sirius poured some more whiskey into a tumbler. "And on Valentines day? You hate these holidays?"
"Yes, it's sickening how over-priced chocolate becomes on World Wide Love Day," Sirius rolled his eyes.
"So why go through the trouble?"
Sirius gave Remus a patient look. Honestly, it was a miracle he didn't pull a muscle not rolling his eyes. "I know how much you love chocolate," he answered softly, stretching his arm along the back of the loveseat they were sat on. Remus hummed, leaning his head sideways to rest it on Sirius' arm. Sirius mirrored his movements. "I also know how much you're going to need all of this in the next few days. I just wanted to be prepared."
"I'll send you my dentist bill," came the dry reply.
Sirius chuckled, lazily clinking their glasses together.
Harry felt his cheeks blush as he watched his Dad's hand sliding through Remus' hair. Sneaking the box of chocolates out he hurried away before the two grown-ups did anything gross, like kiss!
Hurrying off to the kitchen, Harry set a tray with two tall glasses of strawberry milk and the small box of chocolates before carefully walking up the steps to the hallway, the tray balance precariously between his hands. He'd had to leave Poppy on the tabletop but needs must!
Draco needed cheering up and Harry was determined to do so!
Draco still hadn't moved from where he'd slumped onto the sofa twenty minutes ago. When the door creaked, Draco shifted his head and cocked an eyebrow when he saw Harry shakily bringing the tray over to the coffee table.
"Oh, kid, what have you gone and done now?" Draco shot the kid an almost-smile. His plan was working!
Feeling flushed, Harry ran his hand through his hair, messing it up, and shrugged a shoulder. Why did he suddenly feel awkward now? "I just thought you needed cheering up. Daddy always gives Remus chocolates when he's sad, so I thought maybe chocolates would cheer you up again."
At Draco's barely changed expression, Harry faltered.
"Did … did I do something wrong?" he worried his bottom lip.
"No, no, no, no," Draco sat up a little straighter and reached out. Harry let Draco take his hand and pull him over a little so that he was standing in front of the older boy. He felt his cheeks blushing as those bright grey eyes stared into his. Draco reached out and brushed Harry's fringe from his eyes. "You're very sweet, Harry."
"Is that good?"
"That's excellent," Draco gave a weak smile. "Thank you for cheering me up."
Harry couldn't stop his own smile. "So, it worked?"
Chuckling, Draco nodded. "Yes, it worked."
Harry threw his arms around Draco's neck and hugged him. "I'm glad!" he mumbled, muffled into Draco's shoulder.
Draco took a deep breath of Harry's sharp, sugary sweet scene and gave him a big squeeze. It was like they were burrowing as close to one another as possible, squashing out all the bad energy. Finally stepping away, Harry handed Draco his strawberry milkshake. They sat on the sofa side-by-side, drinking strawberry milk and taking bites out of the chocolates, trying to determine which were the best ones -a few coconut flavoured ones were tossed to one side -as they watched a few more episodes of Scooby-Doo.
Draco even laughed when Shaggy had to run from the headless man!
It was perfect until …
"Alright kid, time for you to head to bed. Your dad will kill me if he knows I let you stay up so late."
"I don't want to go to bed," Harry pouted. "Please just one more?"
"No," Draco smiled. "Come on, let's say 'goodnight' to your Dad and Remus, okay?"
Harry pulled an agitated face but didn't kick up much of a fuss as Draco pulled him up to his feet, turned off the TV and ushered him out into the entryway. Turning the lights off as they went, Draco and Harry walked along to the conservatory. Draco stopped in the doorway; Remus and Sirius were slow-dancing, the candlelight catching in every dark curl, every whisker, and every scar. Yet, the serene smile on Sirius' face as he leaned his head on Remus' shoulder -Harry couldn't remember seeing his Dad that happy when he hadn't been the direct cause.
"Draco?" he whispered, tugging on the blonde's sleeve. "Why are they dancing like that?"
"That's how couples dance," Draco murmured.
"Oh," Harry glanced back up at the two men, slowly swaying together; Remus had one of Sirius' hands clasped over his heart. "Draco? Did your parents ever dance like that?"
The question came out of nowhere. Draco licked his lips and tried to think back to the happier moments of his youth. Had his parents ever danced in such an uninhibited way? Had they swayed together by candlelight? Did Lucius ever kiss the top of his wife's head as they moved to and fro?
"I … I don't know …"
Why did it hurt to say such things? Why was it like a knife to the heart to think that Dr. Lisa had been right; that there was no real love between his parents, or his family as a whole? It made him feel ill.
"Can you dance, Draco?"
"I uh … Yes, of course I can," he cleared his throat and shook the bad thoughts aside. "Mother and Father always made sure I had the best etiquette at all our dinner parties. It isn't proper of a Malfoy not to dance in public gatherings."
"Oh …"
"So … Yes, I can dance."
Harry nodded for a moment before running a hand through his hair again. "Can you … s-show me how to dance?"
"I -what?"
"I never learned. I don't think I ever do … Do I?"
"Not very well, as I recall."
"Then you have to show me," Harry grinned. Turning away from the crack in the door, Harry took both of Draco's hands in his own. "Show me, show me!"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Fine. Can you reach your hands onto my shoulders?"
"I … um …" Harry tiptoed up and just about grazed Draco's shoulders with his hands. "Hmph! No, I'm too short."
"That's okay. Come up here," Draco lifted Harry just enough to wriggle his socked feet under Harry's smaller ones. "There, now you can dance on my feet."
Harry giggled and felt his cheeks grow warm. "Did you dance this way with your dad?"
"I did once or twice," Draco admitted, trying to suppress a smile. Oh, if only the world knew! "Now, hold onto my shoulders."
Harry did as he was told. Draco moved his feet a little awkwardly as first as he tried to adjust to carrying Harry's weight on them, but soon they were swaying slowly to the music that was gently oozing out of the gramophone in the conservatory. It felt nice to have his face leaning against the blonde's cosy jumper; he could even feel Draco's heart thudding quietly somewhere underneath.
He was really happy he could cheer Draco up.
"Well, well, well, what have we here?" Sirius' voice drew the boys out of their little moment.
Draco froze, his face paling as Sirius lounged in the doorway looking adoringly at them both whilst Remus leaned over the brunette, ducking his head slightly so as not to knock against the doorframe.
"Draco was showing me how he used to dance with his Dad," Harry beamed brightly.
"Oh, is that so?" Sirius sent a wicked grin his cousin's way before extending his hand. "May I cut in?"
"What does that mean?" Harry frowned.
"It means your Daddy wants to dance with you," Draco said, slipping the small hands into Sirius'.
"Oh, okay."
Sirius gave Draco's shoulder a squeeze before Harry carefully shifted over to step up onto Sirius' feet. The sudden loss of weight less Draco feeling cast adrift and the sudden ache he felt made him feel cold all over. He stepped back until his back bumped into the doorframe. Remus reached up behind him and gave him a one-armed hug as they watched Sirius shuffling about to Celestina Warbeck's number one hits.
"Did they ever do this? Before … you know …" Draco trailed off, his voice barely a whisper.
Remus' ears picked up on his quiet tone. He nodded. "One or twice, when Harry was learning to crawl and be a little more independent. Of course, it didn't help that he would also dance like this with James, hoping for a monkey-see monkey-do sort of scenario."
Draco watched the light shining over his cousin; this man had gone through Hell and back, literally and figuratively, and still was able to smile? How could a man, thought so far beyond redemption, be teaching his godson to dance on his feet in his old family home? How could he have a newly rekindled love watching on as though it was the most natural thing in the world?
This was the real Sirius Black, the kind, loving, wildly eccentric man who had so much love to give and was denied almost everything in return. Yet he continued on, spurned by his own rebellious nature -and he was happy.
That was where Dr. Lisa was wrong about Draco; she thought he was cold, stoic, and emotionally detached from everything because of his family and how he was raised. Only Harry Potter had gotten him so frazzled that he'd just missed out on scoring perfectly on his exams.
Draco knew how weak he was. He wasn't a killer, even Dumbledore and Snape had known that. He had taken the Dark Mark to protect his Mother, to give his Father some hope that maybe -maybe -he could be the one to help rebuild their reputation, or at the very least, to keep them alive.
Draco wouldn't have gone through the pain and agony if there was no love between them. That scabbing black mark on his arm was proof enough of that.
Hot tears began to prick in his eyes. He brushed them to one side. Remus drew in a long, deep breath. "You're sad, I can smell it," he mumbled, love enough so as not to disturb Sirius or Harry. "What's on your mind?"
"My parents. Mainly my father. How he's rotting away in that hell-hole." He sighed, "I'd say he deserves it but …"
Remus squeezed his shoulder. "I know. It is hard. It's a lot to come to terms with."
Draco nodded, "I think I'm going to head to bed."
"Do you want some company?"
"No -thank you. I just need to sleep." He forced a small smile, before slipping away through the shadowed hallway.
.
When he got to his room he changed into loose pyjamas and crawled into his bed but wasn't able to go to sleep straight away. It wasn't until after midnight -when everyone else had gone to sleep -that he reached into his desk drawer and removed his wand. It thrummed between his fingers, but still felt a little alien to hold it. Stroking his thumb along the wooden handle, Draco pointed it at his desk and breathed, "Accio pen and paper."
The objects stuttered a little, but eventually hobbled through the air before dropping onto his lap. He sat there for ages, staring at the blank page before he started to write. Once written, he stuffed the letter into an envelope and set it on his bedside cupboard.
The word 'Father' was printed on the front.
When Draco drifted off to sleep, it was to the phantom feeling of small feet dancing on top of his own, and the sugary smell of chocolate and cinnamon teasing at his nose.
A/N: Did I rot your teeth yet?
Please leave some lovely reviews!
B x