Title : I'll show you mine…

Fandom : Harry potter

Genre : Slash, angst. (slightly AU maybe)

Pairing : so far, Draco/Justin Finch-Fletchley/Neville

Note : Companion to "I thought you cared" (lyrics from The cranberries, analyse. )

Summary : Neville wonders what it's like to have friends; Justin and Draco have to share a compartment on Hogwarts express because they both have some issues with their respective housemates…

Eleventh part

Close your eyes

Close your eyes
Breath the air, out there
We are free, we can be
Wide open…

It's strange how quickly friends can turn into enemies and how easily enemies can sometimes turn into friends.

If someone had come to me, two weeks ago, claiming I would somehow end up cradling a trembling Draco Malfoy in my arms in front of both Dumbledore and Professor Snape, I would have most likely laughed at them dismissively…

But somehow, it almost seems like a natural thing to do now, as we both wait, frozen in anticipation, for Madam Pomfrey's verdict.

"It's alright…" I whisper softly, patting his back soothingly in a vain attempt to calm him down. "Draco, he'll be okay, I'm sure."

He doesn't even seem to hear me…

"I'm going to kill him…" he growls dangerously, fingers tightening on my thigh as I calmly sit him down on the couch next to me.

"Draco… calm down" I pry softly.

Thanks to Dumbledore's legendary persuasion skills, Lucius Malfoy was sent back where he came from for the time being with a throbbing headache (probably due to the obliviate curse Professor Snape cast on him after we left) and a broken nose. And strangely enough, I feel relatively safe now, sitting barely a few feet from my former worst nightmare.

But something in Draco's behaviour makes me uneasy.

He's thinking hard, his elegant features contorted in a mask of worry, anger and confusion.

And it doesn't fit him the way it did before…

That's probably what disturbs me the most. In two weeks, I've been forced to acknowledge a new facet of his personality.

Just a haunted little boy he is, really…

"Snap out of it, Draco." I frown, unwilling to let him think about this whole situation too much for fear he would suddenly turn back into the sadistic little lunatic he was.

Don't analyse
Don't analyse
Don't go that way
Don't lead that way
That would paralyse your evolution

The door leading to the Hospital Wing opens with a little crack and Madam Pomfrey steps out, looking tired beyond belief.

And to my utmost surprise, instead of jumping up from the couch, Draco leans a too little closer into my embrace, as if afraid of suddenly be left alone to face the truth.

Feeling strangely calm, I reach for his pale hand on my knee and squeeze it reassuringly.

"Will he be alright?" I ask the Mediwitch, trying to not let my anxiousness get the better of me.

Squirming slightly, Draco follows her every move as she crosses the room, wiping her wrinkled forehead with an old handkerchief.

"Yes, he will…"

Lalala, this greatest moment
Lalala, the strangest day
Lalala, the greatest love of them all

)))))))))OoO(((((((((

Releasing a relieved sigh, I slump down on the bed next to Justin and reach for his paler, slender hand.

Standing awkwardly in a corner of the room, Draco stares as I start stroking the back of that hand tenderly.

"God, Jus'" I moan. "You scared us to death."

"Speak for yourself, Longbottom." Malfoy groans weakly, wincing as I start brushing my fingers against Justin's cheek.

Choosing to ignore him for the time being, I gently push a few strands of dark brown hair out of the Hufflepuff's forehead, marvelling at how relaxed his features are when he sleeps, at how beautiful he truly is.

Smiling softly, I sigh again.

Maybe it's true then, what Malfoy said about me.

Hopeless lovesick…

The way I've been following him around, they way I kept glancing at him, looking for him wherever I went.

The way I've grown to crave his company…

For you I open my eyes
To the beauty I see
We we will pray,
We we will stay
Wide open

Still wincing, Malfoy takes a few hesitant steps towards the bed and throws me a furtive glance, gauging my reaction as he cautiously sits down on the other side of the bed.

Amused by his undeniably uncharacteristic behaviour, I reach out to squeeze his pale hand again with a reassuring smile.

And it's all the approval he needs.

Shaking slightly, he awkwardly reaches out to place his hand on Justin's chest, tears of confusion rolling down his handsome face.

For you I open my eyes
To the beauty I see
We we will pray
We we will stay ...together

)))))))))End of Eleventh Part(((((((((