Disclaimer: No owny.

Warnings: Bunches of stuff happens.

Chapter 4: What the Fuck'd You Expect? (Against All Authority)

DMHP

Draco woke up the next day feeling like total and complete shit. He ached all over; even his fingernails hurt. He soon noticed, though, a warm presence behind him. He slowly reached behind himself, as not to strain any sore muscles in his arms, and poked something soft and squishy.

What is this? Draco's question was soon answered when a soft grunt came from whatever, or now, whoever was behind him and a hand swatted his hand away.

What the fuck? Someone is spooning with me! But who? It took a few moments for it to click, but when it did, Draco was floored.

Harry! Harry Potter is spooning with me? What sick and twisted world did I wake up in? Draco carefully got up as not to disturb the sleeping boy behind him, and realized he couldn't walk at all well. Ah, shit. Damn my legs and their lack of use! Why does my life have to suck so much? With that last thought, Draco tumbled to the ground, undoubtedly waking up the Golden Boy.

"Wha?" came the mumbled question from the raven-haired boy. Harry's eyes quickly settled on the lump of person that was Draco Malfoy, sprawled on the floor beside the bed.

"What happened?" Harry asked, sleep swiftly leaving his system. "Why are you on the floor, Dr…Malfoy?" What should I call him? Draco or Malfoy? Hmm…well, he did call me Harry last night and I, in turn, called him Draco. I guess I'll call him Draco from now on…

"What does it bloody look like?" Draco said, anger dripping from his words. His frustration and rage was mounting with each second. "My fucking legs don't want to cooperate!" He waved fiercely towards his legs, trying to prove his point.

"Oh…well, what can I do to help?" Harry said, really unsure on how to handle a pissed off Draco with useless legs.

"How 'bout you fucking help me up!" Draco nearly screamed, anger, and now some embarrassment on having to fend for help, rolling of him. Harry quickly got off the bed and hoisted Draco up.

Harry then picked Draco up completely, and carried him to one of the armchairs by the fireplace. Needless to say Draco was very stunned at the action and soon was on the verge of killing the Boy-who-lived for what he did.

"You didn't have to bloody carry me! I could've managed! I just needed minor help in getting up off the floor! That's all!" Draco was shaking with embarrassment, which he preferred to call rage, for pride's sake.

"Sure, Draco, you could have walked all the way across the room mere days after nearly dying…" Harry said with sarcasm, and rolling his eyes. Draco heard the tone of Harry's voice and saw his eyes. Draco was pissed.

"Don't you dare roll your eyes at me, Potter! I could've easily walked across the room without you being a bloody knight in shining armor and sweeping me across the fucking room instead!

"Stop being so fucking heroic, Potter, I don't need your goddamned help!" Draco gave a death glare towards Harry as he finished. Harry was a bit taken aback by the blonde's rage, but quickly responded with a hint of rudeness. "Fine. Prove it."

"Prove what?" Draco asked, growing nervous.

"You say you can walk across the room, walk across the room. Show me your magnificent leg capabilities, dear Malfoy." Well, I can't very well call him Draco after him shouting Potter at me. So better to stick to Malfoy.

Draco sat there for a few moments, pondering how to respond. "Fine, I will." He finally said arrogantly, nose in the air. As Draco stood up his legs were shaking like there was no tomorrow. He clutched the arms of the chair with all his might, trying to steady his legs. After a bit, Draco attempted the first step.

He almost instantly fell to the ground, his legs giving out under all the weight.

Harry watched Draco as he shook with frustration at failing the task at hand but soon came to realize Draco wasn't shaking with just frustration anymore.

He's crying. He's crying his fucking eyes out! All because of me! I'm such a prick! Why did I have to pressure him into trying to walk, knowing he'd fail miserably? C'mon, he almost died just a couple of days ago! How harsh can I be!

Harry rushed over to Draco, but thought twice before touching the boy, remembering what happened the other times. "Draco? It's alright. I didn't expect you to be able to walk. Don't be upset."

"How could I not be upset?" Draco screamed out between sobs. "I can't walk one fucking step!

"I'm so fucking weak! I'm always so fucking weak! Why can't I be stronger?"

Harry was stunned. What does he mean? He can't possibly be this upset about not being able to walk right after he almost died! There's definitely a shitload of emotional issues tied up with this, and I don't know how to handle it. Maybe I should get Snape…

As Harry stood up to go get Snape, Draco pulled him back down, enveloping him in a bone-crushing hug. "Please don't leave me, Harry! Just…stay….hold me?" Harry was once again, stunned. But he shook it off for Draco clearly needed someone just to hold him for a while.

Harry took Draco in his arms, beginning his recent tradition of rubbing soothing circles on the boy's back. After about ten minutes, Draco's sobs subsided. Draco looked up at Harry with a red, tear-stained face.

Harry wiped the tears off the Slytherin's face, not really knowing why, but nonetheless his hand was found sweetly wiping away the evidence of Draco's breakdown.

Silver eyes met green and to the two boys it seemed as the world itself had stopped. Everything had melted away except one another. They slowly leaned in towards each other, never breaking eye contact.

Right as the last centimeter between them was dwindling, none other than Severus Snape came billowing in from the fireplace. The two boys leapt from each other, which didn't work at all well for Draco, with his powerless legs and all. Harry managed to bolt a few feet, but rushed back as he saw Draco struggling to stay up.

Harry caught Draco right as he was about to hit the ground. Draco then hobbled over to an armchair with the assistance of Harry. Snape gaped at the spectacle before him, completely confused by what was going on. He expected both of the boys to be asleep, for it was just past six in the morning.

Snape stood there slackjawed for a few more moments until he snapped back to reality and began to explain his presence. "Hello Draco, Potter. Sorry for stopping by so early, but I was going to administer some healing potions to Draco while he was still sleeping.

"As I see that Draco is very much awake, and I am now unable to give him the potions, resulting in my lack of need to be here. But before I go, I would like to inquire what you boys are doing up so early, it's far too early for a teenager to be getting up. So what, praytell, happened to you both to cause such an early start to your day?"

Draco and Harry exchanged glances, not really sure what to say. They couldn't say how Draco had woken up with the two spooning. And they couldn't share the fact of Harry waking up due to Draco falling out of the bed they were sharing. It simply would not do.

"Well, you see Professor, we just woke up. Nothing out of the ordinary. Is it really that early?" Harry said, subtly attempting to steer the conversation away from the happenings of that morning.

"Yes, it's just past six. But don't think I didn't notice you trying to change the subject. Now, what happened this morning? I saw you two sitting on the floor together, and I know that is not typical behavior for you two. So, explain."

Before Harry could respond, Draco cut in. "Sev, this is what happened. I woke up this morning and as I tried to stand, I found my legs not wanting to work. So I fell over, waking up H-Potter. He helped me over to the chair, where I tried to stand again, but fell to the ground once again.

"I got a bit…frustrated after that, and what you walked in on was Harry," Shit I called him Harry, "calming me down. Is that a satisfactory enough answer for you, dear godfather?"

"Thank you for the explanation Draco, I was simply startled to see you both up this morning, and sitting on the floor together was even more shocking. Now, I have to go back to my office to grab some different potions to give you Draco, but once I return, I'd like to sit down and talk with you, if that isn't to much to ask."

"No, not at all, Sev. Of course we can chat. Now run along and go get me some potions to gulp down." Draco appeared very lighthearted and carefree as he said this, but Harry could see the panic in the depths of his eyes that he was unable to hind behind his mask.

As Snape flooed back to his office, Draco crumbled, sinking into his chair. "Ohfuckohfuckohfuck! What if he asks about what happened to me? What am I going to tell him? I can't talk about it! Not yet…"

Before Draco could continue his meltdown, Harry sat down in the same chair and wrapped the panicked boy in his arms, calming him down. "It's alright. Everything's alright. You don't have to tell anyone anything yet if you don't want to. I'm sure Snape will understand if you don't want to talk about it yet."

Draco relaxed, calmed by the words the raven-haired boy whispered in his ear. Draco was about to melt completely into the caring hug, but remembered Snape would be returning again.

Draco did not want to be found in the arms of Harry twice in one day, no matter how much he craved to be in said arms. Draco grudgingly released himself from the hug. And not a moment to soon, for mere seconds after ending the embrace, Snape came swooping back into the room, potions in tow.

"Now," Snape said, "Before we can talk, Draco, you'll have to take these potions. They're basic healing potions, really, but they should help you considerably in regaining your strength." Draco complied and managed to choke down the foul potions, already beginning to feel better only minutes after downing them.

"How are you feeling Draco?" Snape asked as he plopped down in the overstuffed armchair that sat across from his godson.

"I feel like shit, but not quite as bad as before. I'm much better considering all the injuries I've had. Is it normal, Sev, that I can't walk, though? Because I've tried, I've really tried, and I can't take one single step…" Draco responded, growing more upset over his failure to walk; he barely managed to hold back the tears welling up in his eyes.

"It's perfectly expected for you to be unable to walk for the next few days, because your injuries were extremely severe. Draco, you almost died. Keep that in mind. You're doing so much better than we could've imagined; don't get down on yourself. You'll heal in time. Be patient."

Draco smirked (with a hint of a smile) at his godfather, touched by the sincerity in his words. But Draco knew what was coming next, and he was on the verge of yet another breakdown.

"Draco…what happened?" Snape asked, concern surrounding each word. Draco stared at the ground for a while, now using all his control to force back the tears threatening to fall.

"I'd…I'd rather not talk about it…" With that Draco stood up, trying to make his way to the bathroom, when he remembered he couldn't walk. Draco crashed to the ground, emitting a pained cry as he fell. Then, Draco lost it. All his tears came rushing out, his sobs nearly screams.

Snape tried to help his godson, but to no avail. Next up, Harry. Harry tried and tried to get Draco to calm down, but it wasn't going to work. Not this time. Harry rubbed circles on Draco's back, whispered soothing words in his ear, and even hugged him right in front of Snape, but nothing would calm the boy.

Harry stood up, defeated, whispering more to himself than Draco, "What happened to you? What caused you so much pain?"

Draco, surprisingly, responded. "What the fuck'd you expect! You found me in an alleyway nearly dead, but thought I would have no fucking emotional problems! I almost died! I almost fucking died!

"After going through all that shit the whole summer, of course I'm nearly crazy! When I'm tortured all fucking summer, I can't help but be a little fucked up! Oh, god no…" Draco realized he had revealed the events of the summer. He had been tortured. All summer.

Harry and Snape were stunned, but after that, Draco was shut like a vault. There was no getting through to him. He had already revealed too much. So Harry and Snape told Draco (really unsure if he heard, though) that they were going to go downstairs to the pub for a while so Draco could be alone.

Harry returned around midnight, when he heard the sobs die down. He tried to return much earlier, but ended up getting beat up by a hysterical Draco. He decided not to risk another journey up to the room until he was pretty sure Draco was asleep, or at least a calmer than before.

When Harry entered the room, he saw Draco passed out on the floor, right where he was hours ago when he collapsed. Harry made his way to the sleeping beauty, but realized he shouldn't move him, for it would be sure to raise hell if Draco awoke during the process. Harry decided to make the floor more comfortable instead. He gently put a pillow under the blonde's head, and covered him with a blanket.

Harry felt horrible. Why was Draco tortured? And who tortured him? What happened? What the fuck happened? Harry took a quick shower, before slipping into bed, succumbing to a very restless sleep.

The next couple weeks were uneventful. Harry, Snape, Dumbledore, and Madam Pomfrey helped Draco return to full health, if not for a few sore joints and minor bruises and cuts.

Harry and Draco remained civilized, but since the night of Draco's breakdown, Draco became somewhat cold. He didn't show many emotions, and if he did, he quickly ran to the bathroom to calm down in private. Draco withdrew into himself, never letting anyone in. He hadn't talked to anyone about what happened during the summer.

That left what was said on the night of Draco's breakdown eating away at both Harry and Snape. He didn't care; he didn't want to talk about what happened to anyone. He couldn't.

September first came along, and Harry and Draco headed out to platform 9 ¾ making sure to separate before anyone noticed them walking together. That would be all too shocking for bystanders. School started normally, Harry meeting up with Ron and Hermione and the rest of the Gryffindors, Draco meeting up with Blaise, Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle and the remaining Slytherins.

Harry and Draco soon slid back into their old routine of fighting and cursing each other. They forgot the summer's events, keeping their well known hate/hate relationship just that, full of hate.

Harry hadn't told anyone of what happened during the summer. He didn't tell anyone about Draco, and didn't even tell Dumbledore what Draco said during his breakdown. Harry, however, had his own demons to battle. He knew Dumbledore was wondering what happened at the Dursley's and would be asking him about it soon, but Harry forced the thought from his mind.

Everyone was oblivious to the pain the two boys were going through, except Snape and Dumbledore, and even they were a bit scared of confronting the boys. Harry and Draco quickly hid behind their masks, and acted as if nothing had changed. So that's how it was. Everything seemed to be the same at Hogwarts.

And everything was as it had been for the past six years between the Boy-who-lived and the son of a Death Eater, whom many expected to soon become a Death Eater himself, though Harry knew otherwise.

Everything was normal, that is, until one fateful night.