Chapter Twenty-Eight
Severus opened his eyes with a snap. The last thing he remembered was running toward Harry as his son flew forward like a blazing arrow to meet the Dark Lord head on. Remus had been on his left, his hair loose and wild, and his eyes glowing. The werewolf had howled when they watched Draco collapse. Everyone else was standing around, too shocked to move. Everyone had expected a duel, a long drawn out battle. Not that Harry would catch fire and grapple with the Dark Lord before exploding.
He shook his head hard. There was no time for rambling thoughts! He had to focus! He opened his eyes. Didn't he do that already? He lay where he had fallen. Grass and dirt was pressing into his face. He could hear moans. He could see dark shapes on the dewy… Wait. He could see? He sat up with a gasp. The sun was rising!
He looked around. The Death Eaters were still unconscious, but the Aurors were stirring. His arm… It felt odd. He clumsily pulled up the sleeve and then he was capable of nothing more than sitting there and staring. His arm… Ever since he had turned his back on his duties as a spy he had put his mark literally on ice. It ached always, dull and persistent, as the Dark Lord fumed at his betrayal. But it was always there. Not even the isolated ice spell had numbed the pain.
Merlin, his arm! It was flawless… white skin, smooth and soft, and not even a freckle. The Dark Mark was gone completely. Not even when the Dark Lord had been defeated fifteen years ago when Harry was a baby had it disappeared completely. He tried to lift his arm to see it better. He couldn't. He tired to wiggle his fingers. Nothing…. Okay. He could deal with that. He would have preferred not to have lost his arm, but he was still glad the Mark was gone.
The Aurors were groaning and beginning to sit up. The Death Eaters still haven't moved an inch. He suspected that the loss off the Dark Mark would keep them out for a long time. Fortunately for him, he had his on ice and he had a very strong unconscious desire to be aware. Harry! Finally remembering why he so urgently couldn't lay down, Severus struggled to his feet.
His body felt oddly hung. His limbs felt disconnected from him and every little movement had to be done consciously. Bend that muscle, contract that one. He teetered, but his eyes were already searching the area of the field where Harry and the Dark Lord had come together. He was freezing and cold mist curled and twisted over the dead grass and dark soil. It blanketed the dead, dieing, and unconscious and completely obscured his view of where his son should have fallen. And Draco. Merlin, Draco…
He groaned and took a few steps. He felt like a toddler and snarled with impatience at himself. His feet crunched, but that was normal. It was late December and snow… Snow… Why could he see grass and soil? Where did the snow go? He looked around, bewildered. There it was. To the side of the castle and inside the forest, but every where near him the snow was gone. Not melted, not shoved away, just gone. He shivered, but determined not to think about it now. Later. Later when he had Harry and Draco.
He came up on Hermione and Pansy. His face paled and he hoarsely called for help. He got a noncommittal yell in return and took that as affirmation. He kept moving. His sons. He had to get to his sons. The mist parted and he saw someone moving. He tried to lift his wand, but couldn't. He could only keep moving forward.
He could see Harry. The man blocked his view of most of him, but Severus could see his head. It lolled to the side, his eyes completely closed and the lids bruised faintly. His hair was limp, as if it were soaking wet. The man turned his face to look over his shoulder and Severus saw it was Remus.
"Severus." The werewolf lifted Harry into his arms. The teen hung limp, his limbs heavy and still. He didn't so much as twitch. Remus turned and faced him, "I'm going to take him to the Infirmary."
"Breathing? Wounds?" Severus couldn't take his eyes off of his too thin son. He was so small, so fragile…. So very powerful.
"Yes and none that I can see. He smells of pain, though."
"Remus…" Severus began, but abruptly cut himself off. He knew he was about to faint and he didn't want to clue his lover in on his weakness. He didn't want Remus to delay a second getting Harry to Poppy.
The werewolf nuzzled his cheek as he passed and Severus stood stiffly until he was sure Remus was too far away to come back to him, and then he staggered to the side. A flash of white caught his attention and he managed to stumble through the few steps that separated him from Draco. He could sense Remus' magic on him. Healing spells. He sucked in a harsh breath as he looked over the injuries his strong Slytherin son had suffered. This time he was able to get his wand up and he began to chant healing spells. He got off three before the blackness snapped closed on his mind.
…
Remus carried his lover into the Infirmary. Ministry medi-witches and wizards were rushing about, tending the wounded. The five Hogwarts students who had signed up to learn healing instead of training with the DA were proving their mettle as they competently moved with the professionals. He dodged them all gracefully as he made his way to the back corner where Harry and Draco already lay, receiving attention. Remus gently placed Severus in the bed next to the two teens and straightened tiredly.
The battlefield was a mass of confusion. Death Eaters still lay unconscious, ripe for the picking, but the Aurors who were dazedly getting back to their feet realized that magic wasn't working consistently. Some spells fizzled, some had their power amplified three fold. One Auror tried to levitate a Death Eater and shot him almost five hundred feet in the air. The Death Eater died upon landing. But that was okay. He was the one who attacked Hermione and Pansy when they were retreating to the school.
The point was, they were forced to do everything manually and no one was quite up to par, making the task of rounding up all the Death Eaters and imprisoning them in the school (magic within the walls worked fairly well, though sometimes even here spells went awry) that much more difficult. They also had to get those who needed more specialized attention into the Infirmary. No one was willing to do anything about Voldemort's smoking, charred, and mangled corpse as of yet.
Remus was the strongest one there. He had to help with the tasks. He knew it. But he hated it with all his heart. He wanted to stay with Harry, Draco, and Severus. He wanted to be there to hear the prognosis. What if something turned for the worse while he was gone? But he couldn't abandon the others in need. Harry would not have allowed it. Severus might if it meant helping his sons, but Remus knew they were in good hands. He could do nothing here except watch. So he turned and left.
…
326 Aurors and adults (including the Hogwarts staff and parents) battled the Death Eaters and Voldemort during the Hogwarts attack……. 39 died while fighting…… 22 died in the Infirmary while the nurses and doctors tended to them…… 49 of the survivors suffered wounds that would affect them for the rest of their lives.
21 students (including Draco) fought…… 4 died (5th year Colin Creevey, 6th years Justin Finch-Fletchley and Daphne Greengrass, and 7th year Geoffrey Hooper) – all on them before they could receive medical attention…… 13 of the survivors suffered injuries that would linger for years, if not for the rest of their lives.
Poppy left the injured Aurors, adults, and staff up to the Ministry medi-wizards and witches, but the injured students she took care of herself with the help of Dennis, Luna, Padma, Susan, and Greg. Almost every single one of the children who went out to battle was injured in some way, but thirteen cases were very severe and required all her attention.
Cho and Seamus were both blind and resting. Both of them still had their eyeballs, but neither could see at all. The eyes were so very delicate and healing them would take very careful work and potions. Their treatment would have to wait until she had more time to devote to them. Other than that, they suffered mild burns, scrapes, and bruises. Denis was in charge of them.
Parvati and Anthony were being watched over by Padma and Luna. Both suffered severe head trauma. They did the best they could for the brain swelling and fractured skulls. Parvati also had severe burns on her back and Anthony had broken his hip. Both suffered other mild scrapes and bruises, but those had been tended long ago.
Ernie took all her skill to save. He had massive organ failure, but she had finally got him stabilized. He also had deep cuts on his face and arms. He would have to take potions weekly to keep his organs working correctly and would have to watch what he eats and drinks. Terrence suffered under a hex that caused him to have a heart attack. He was stable now, but his heart would forever be fragile after this. Right now Susan was watching them, making sure their conditions didn't worsen.
Five of the students had missing limbs that had to be re-grown and Hermione's arm had been so torn and bent out of shape under the inverting curse that they had to cut off her arm at the shoulder for her to re-grow. Terry and Ron both lost their wand hands. Zacharias was hit with the same spell, but it took his arm to the elbow. And Pansy's right foot had been sliced clean off.
The trick with re-growing limbs was that it was incredibly painful. No pain-potion or numbing spell could be cast because it would interfere with the healing, so the patient had to suffer many hours of continuous high-level pain. Most patients would come out of the healing insane. That was why some wizards and witches chose to live with the loss of the limb instead of trying to re-grow it.
But she wouldn't have any of her children go through life like that! So she and Greg sang, held, and gently washed the victims faces with cool rags as they suffered, doing everything they could to blunt the pain and keep their minds from shattering. Terry and Ron had collapsed unconscious after fourteen agonizing hours, but their hands were returned to them. Pansy's foot had healed after seventeen hours and Zacharias' arm stopped growing back after twenty hours. And Hermione… Poor Hermione had to suffer twenty-seven hours. None of them had woken yet, so she didn't know if their minds had survived the healing.
Now that Hermione was through the process, she could return her attention back to Harry and Draco. She had cast diagnosis spells already and deemed them stable enough to wait. They would need all her attention and now that the other students were taken care of, she could give them that attention. Greg offered to help her, but she waved him back over to the six who slept deeply after re-growing their limbs.
She looked down at the unconscious teens and felt tears burn her eyes. So much had happened to them and now this! It wasn't fair! She would bear their hurts a hundred times to spare them further pain if she could. Shaking herself, she focused on her job. She was just tired or she wouldn't be so emotional now.
"Can I help?"
She turned and found Severus standing there. He looked drawn, but his eyes burned with strength. She noticed that his left arm hung limp by his side. "They couldn't fix the nerve damage?"
"There is a potion, but it will take a few doses to begin working."
"How long did they project the healing would take?"
"Seven months and full use of my arm may not ever be possible," he answered evenly.
She looked for distress, but found none. He was too focused on the boys to be bothered with his own hurts. "Where is Remus?"
"Sleeping."
"You should rest as well," she frowned.
"I've had sleep in the last forty-eight hours since the battle ended. Have you?" He spoke gently, but his eyes sparked with vicious intent. He wouldn't allow her to push him away.
She sighed. There was no withholding the truth now. "I'll guide you in working on Harry first. When you have it, I'll move on to Draco." He nodded. Poppy gestured to the chair by Harry's bed and he settled into it, poised and ready. She fetched another for herself and sat in it with a tired sigh. Severus watched her expectantly and she straightened.
"He has suffered no physical wounds, but his magic…. It's in mangled knots. The channels in his body are broken or burnt. We'll have to untangle and smooth the magic and rebuild the channels in the rightful place. It isn't exactly difficult, but it is very tedious and will take many, many hours to finish. You start at the heart and work your way outward. Ride along my consciousness and magic and watch me work. Then I will supervise you to make sure you have it right."
"Very well," Severus said softly and dropped into her mind.
Poppy turned her eyes to Harry and cast a long spell. Suddenly they were both inside Harry's magical being. Severus winced. The damage was extensive. Slowly, carefully, Poppy began to correct and sooth the tangled, seething, painful mess. Severus watched her every move. She was right. This would take a very long time. Weeks, maybe months. And Harry wouldn't wake until they finished, and if they made even a small mistake they could cripple his power, even make him a squib.
…
Four hours later, Poppy withdrew and left Severus behind. She blinked and realized Dennis was standing patiently next to her with a high-calorie meal. She smiled at the boy, he was holding up heroically even though his brother had died, and set to eating it. Dennis smiled back and returned to his patients. Poppy ate slowly, resting and gathering her strength. She wouldn't be able to last much longer without faltering. After the first step of healing Draco, she'd have to rest.
"Poppy? How are they?"
"They will be fine, Remus," she assured him with steel in her voice, daring him to tell her it was hopeless like the other healers had. The werewolf bowed his head in understanding and she stood. "Severus is doing what he can for Harry, but it is delicate work and even the smallest mistake will be disastrous. Give him an hour more and coax him back to us to force him to rest."
"Yes, ma'am." Remus smiled sweetly, but his eyes were haunted.
Poppy couldn't spare any of her energy to comfort him. Draco needed her more. She went to the blonde as a prisoner would their execution. Draco's condition was by-far the worst she had ever tackled. But she would heal him! She cast a spell and nodded, satisfied that his six broken ribs had healed completely. The slice on his side and the poison had been taken care of, as well. The severe burns on his leg were still healing and would for several weeks more. There would be faint scarring, but not bad enough to hinder movement.
What really terrified her was the broken spine and spinal cord. Bone she could fix easily, but nerves… and especially the ones in the spinal cord…. She gritted her teeth and armed herself with eight different potions and her wand. She would heal him. She would. And that was all there was to it.
…
"Severus, come back to me, love." Remus brushed his lips against the man's soft hair and was rewarded by Severus blinking rapidly and turning his face so that he could look up at him. "You need to rest. Come on. Harry will still be here and you don't want to make a mistake." Severus looked like he was going to protest and Remus shook his head firmly. "No. Poppy told me to stop you after an hour and it's been three."
"Three?" Severus raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Yes. Now come eat and keep me warm while I get a few hours of sleep." Remus smiled and tugged his love to his feet.
"Have you been to the Ministry?"
"I have," Remus nodded and led them down to the dungeons. "The Death Eaters are all in well warded rooms, isolated from each other. Each is being interrogated thoroughly."
"How is Albus handling being Minister?"
"He is doing better at it than Fudge." Remus laughed.
Severus found himself smiling, "Well that's not difficult."
"The Dark Lord had several weapons with him the night of the battle, but never got around to using them. He was waiting until he got to the front doors of the castle, I guess. We wouldn't have survived had he used any of them." Remus shuddered and leaned closer to his mate. "Albus has set as many Aurors and specialists as he can spear into dismantling them."
"Did he say what they would do?"
"Do you really want to know?"
Severus thought about it and decided that no, he didn't.
"How is Harry?" Remus opened the door and they stepped through.
Without discussing it, they both moved over to the fire place and summoned the table over so they could sit in front of its warmth and in its light while they ate. They settled next to each other and Remus listened to Severus describe the dire magical condition Harry was in. When Severus finished, he asked about Draco. No one had told him anything about him.
Remus sighed and lowered his fork, "Severus, his spine was snapped about midway. The spinal cord was broken. He's paralyzed from about his ribs down."
Severus paled and leaned back in his chair. His eyes were huge dark tunnels, horrors were passing before him. Remus flew from his chair and knelt by his love, holding Severus as he sat there, numb and immobile. He crooned into the Potion Master's hair and kissed his temple again and again. It took several minutes for Severus to break free of his shock.
"No," he whispered. "No. It can't be true."
"I'm sorry," Remus cried softly. "But Poppy is confident she can heal him. She's devoting all her time to him right now and no one else. She even allowed the other students to be handled by the Ministry healers. He will heal."
"Crippled. Oh, Draco, no. Not Draco." Severus buried his face in his hands and shook.
Remus held to him tightly, crying softly into his love's shoulder all the while.
…
It was Christmas morning, Wednesday, December 25th 1996, four days since Harry Potter destroyed the Dark Lord. Poppy woke after only six hours of rest and prepared to continue working on Draco. She'd started healing his spine about twenty hours ago and she still had a very long way to go. She stepped out of her office and was halfway across the Infirmary when the doors opened and a jubilant Greg came hurrying toward her.
"They're awake! Pansy, Terry, and Ron woke and they are speaking! They seem okay! They're going to be okay!"
Poppy bustled him to the door and they practically ran to down the hall to the private rooms that the more severely injured patients were given. Sure enough, she entered the room to see Ron sitting up and talking slowly and haltingly to the medi-wizard tending to him. He jerked as they came into his peripheral vision, but then he was smiling at Poppy.
The other two were the same. They flinched at any sudden movement or sound, but they were coherent. The slow speech and lack of concentration should grow better with time. They would heal. She felt such elation at the news that she actually kissed Greg. The boy turned beat red, but laughed with her. This was wonderful!
Pansy woke next, around one in the afternoon. She was mute, but her eyes were intelligent and she nodded yes and shook her head no to communicate. She was also jumpy, but she wasn't insane. Zacharias woke in the same condition as Pansy five hours later, and at midnight Hermione woke. She had several panic attacks, but as long as only one person was in the room with her at a time and the lights were kept dim she was able to talk, though her words were slurred.
They would all recover! Their re-grown limbs would always ache after being overused and because of the cold, but they would recover! It was the best Christmas gift anyone in the castle could have asked for.
…
Two days later, Remus woke in his bed and passionately kissed his mate awake. Severus opened his eyes and glared. Remus laughed and climbed out of bed. Severus could hear his bones pop and winced. "Full moon tonight?"
"Yes. I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, sometime."
Remus dressed carefully, trying not to aggravate the pain growing in his joints. A knock came on the door. Severus snarled and threw on his clothes and muttered a spell that straightened them. Remus snickered behind him, but was ignored. He threw open the door, "Yes?"
"Good morning, sir," Luna Longbottom smiled brightly up at him. "I just wanted to let you know that Anthony and Parvati finally woke from their comas. They are both coherent and intelligent, but we think that Parvati has suffered permanent memory loss. She thinks she is ten years old. They don't know if she'll be stuck in this childlike mentality or if she will mature over time. Anthony remembers everything and functions well, but when he is overly stressed or emotional he is struck completely mute and will sometimes have seizures. Overall, considering their injuries, they've healed magnificently, but both will still need continual care. Parvati has her healer twin, so that's no problem, and Anthony has his parents here."
"Thank you, Luna," Severus growled. Did this girl ever shut up?
"Yes, thank you," Remus said with honest sincerity. "We are very happy that they woke. I know Poppy was afraid the coma might be permanent."
"Yes. We are all very happy. Now only Harry and Draco are left to wake up and we'll all be back together." She curtsied and skipped down the hall singing.
"If that girl wasn't such a good healer…"
"But she is," Remus kissed his cheek. "Eat before you return to Harry. And don't fight Poppy when she tells you to rest."
Severus glared at him and Remus left, leaving laughter in his wake.
…
Severus was in the Infirmary when Remus came staggering in Sunday afternoon. Greg and Susan rushed over to him and got him in a hospital bed. The werewolf assured them he would be fine, he just needed to rest, but they weren't having any of it. Severus smirked in the background, eating a late lunch, and thoroughly enjoying watching his mate suffer the mothering the blasted wolf constantly subjected him to. Remus growled at him playfully.
"Good. I'm glad you're both here." Poppy walked over looking very drained and tired. She spent every waking moment working on Draco. Severus was doing the same with Harry, but it wasn't nearly as hard as Poppy's task so he was holding up a bit better. "I've had Draco in a healing sleep since he's been brought in here, but it's not healthy for him to be forced unconscious for so long. I'm planning on bringing him around tomorrow morning and leaving him awake for twenty-four hours. He'll be in pain and forced to wear a body-bind, so he won't be happy. I'd like it if you two were there. If he's handling things well, maybe we can even have his friends come up."
"That would be wonderful." Remus smiled at her.
"Good," she repeated and stood there, blinking.
"Maybe you should rest," Severus murmured. "You'll do Draco no good if you make a mistake due to fatigue."
"I would hardly make a mistake!" Poppy huffed.
"Come on, Madam Pomfrey," Susan said sweetly as she took the medi-witch's arm. "I've got your bed ready and I'll wake you in a few hours. Professor Snape is impossible on his own. You don't need to set a bad example."
Poppy sighed, "Yes. Yes, you're right."
The men watched the sixth year mother the almost fifty-four year old matron. Severus smiled darkly and Remus chuckled. Greg smiled with them and cast a warming charm on the hospital blankets bundled around Remus. "Is there anyway I can talk you into getting into a bed yourself, Professor Snape?"
"No," Severus glared at his student.
"Come on, Severus. I can tell you haven't slept since I've been gone." Though his words were light, Remus' eyes were firm. "Take a nap. Harry will be here when you wake and I know you want to be rested to talk to Draco tomorrow. You don't want to worry him by looking so horrible, do you?"
"Wretched wolf," Severus sneered, but did stand and get into the bed next to his lover.
Greg smiled and dimmed the lights in the room. He would have heated the Professor's blankets, but didn't quite dare. He wanted to live to see another day, after all.
…
Draco slowly came awake. At first he thought he was still held prisoner by Voldemort. His back hurt badly and the pain shot down his hips and into his legs in steady throbs. But he heard Severus calling to him and he knew he wasn't. But he couldn't move. His body was held completely immobile; he couldn't even turn his head. At least he knew he had control over his facial expressions because he was scowling. He opened his eyes and yes, he was in the hospital wing. Pomfrey, Severus, and Remus were standing close to him so he could see them without moving his head.
"Why can't I move?" he croaked and scowled deeper at how week he sounded. What was wrong with his voice?
"You have suffered a very severe back injury, Draco. Moving would only make it worse. You've been held in a healing sleep for a week now while Poppy tended to you," Severus answered. "Are you in pain?"
"Yes," Draco hissed.
"Here, Mr. Malfoy. Drink all of this." Poppy brought a vial to his lips and he obediently swallowed. In seconds, the pain diminished from hot spikes to a dull ache.
"Better," he admitted. "Water?"
Remus placed a glass of blessedly cold water to his lips, "Close your eyes when you've had enough."
Draco remembered the battle. Images were returning to him, horrific ones. He had been too numb during the fight to be affected, but now… now he felt sick. If he wasn't spelled, he knew he would be shaking. As it was, sweat beaded up on his forehead and soon drenched his face. The glass was gone. Had he shut his eyes? Yes. Good, he didn't want to drown. Someone was murmuring in his ear. It was soothing and he couldn't find the strength to be disgusted with himself as he broke down and wept. Merlin, the battle had been awful.
When he calmed, he saw that Poppy had left and only Remus and Severus remained. They leaned close to him, so close that he could feel their body heat, and he was grateful. The room seemed to big suddenly and he felt protected and safe with their warm bodies pressing close. But he was a Lord and he couldn't retreat for long. So he closed his eyes and asked for more information.
"Where is Harry? What happened?"
"Harry's right next to you," Remus said soothingly, brushing Draco's hair from his face. "He destroyed the Dark Lord with a powerful killing strike. The backlash had the whole school unconscious for hours, but it also tangled his magical system horribly. Severus is working on soothing it and getting it flowing again. For now, he's in a coma. His body was in too deep of a state of magical shock to wake."
"When will he be better?"
"A few weeks, perhaps," Severus murmured. "Sometimes the healing goes smoothly and sometimes it is difficult. It's hard to predict when I'll be finished."
"And me?"
"Your case is very fragile." Severus clasped Draco's hand. It didn't move in his, but he knew his son would feel it. "It will take three to four months for your injury to heal. But Poppy projects that you will be released from the body bind in three more weeks."
Draco felt his heart sink as he realized what that meant. "My spinal cord was broken."
"Yes," Remus said tearfully. "But you are getting better. Draco, you will heal from this."
"How far up?" The blonde ignored him. He was a realist and he knew spinal cord injuries were almost impossible to fix.
"Just below your ribs," Severus said softly.
"Where's my mother? Has she been informed?"
"Draco…" Severus couldn't continue.
"Narcissa died, Draco," Remus pressed his lips to the boy's cheek. "I'm sorry. She was covering the retreat of the Aurors and DA to the East. A pocket of Death Eaters swarmed toward the back of the group and she ran out to meet them. She killed four of the seven before she fell."
"Who?" Draco choked. "Who killed her?"
"Quintus Lestrange," Severus answered. "He's been captured and will be executed on the 6th of January."
"What's today?"
"December 30th. Next term of school has been cancelled to celebrate and recover from the war. The Minister also died in battle and Albus has taken his place. He is busy rebuilding the Ministry and calming the public and won't be able to act as Headmaster. Minerva has been elected the new Headmistress and will have to find professors for Charms and Astronomy. Professor Flitwick and Sinistra, both died. The students and parents are all recovered enough to return home by the 1st, and those patients who aren't healed are going to be transferred to St. Mungo's. Hogwarts will be closed until August of next year."
"I will not be taken to St. Mungo's!" Draco snarled, tears still falling from his eyes. Oh, his mother, his beautiful brave mother. They hadn't always seen eye to eye, but she always loved him. And they were coming to an understanding. For that chance to be taken away! He was furious! He was sorry. He just wanted to go back to sleep.
"No," Severus' hand settled gently on his head. "I want to take you home. Poppy said she will come and stay with us to continue your healing and oversee your physical therapy. Harry will come of course, and Remus and I."
"Home." Draco's throat closed up. "Yes. I want to go back to Malfoy Manor. There is plenty of room for all of you, and I have to take control of the family again."
"Yes," Severus agreed.
"How many Malfoy's came to Hogwarts to fight?"
"Two," Remus answered. "Donovan Malfoy fought with the Aurors, and Jewel Malfoy helped with the healers."
"Both 3rd cousins." Draco sighed. "I'll have to find out what the rest of the family was doing while all this was happening."
"Probably protecting their businesses," Severus offered. "Only the ruling branch of the family is at all aggressive. Most Malfoys are businessmen only."
"True." Draco's eyes darkened. "I just hope I don't learn that some of them were secretly financing the Dark Lord."
"If so, you will deal with it. For now, you should rest. We'll be back in Malfoy Manor the next time you wake and we'll deal with it then." Severus straightened. "Would you like to see your friends? They very much want to see you before they return to their own homes."
"Yes. After I eat," Draco stalled. He didn't want to see them when his mind was still churning with grief and anger, and he definitely didn't want them to see him being fed like an infant.
Thankfully, Severus nodded and left him and Remus alone. Draco was glad. He loved his father, but he wouldn't feel comfortable with him feeding him. Remus, on the other hand, was kind and Draco knew he would never think poorly of him for this weakness. It took almost two hours to eat all Poppy wanted him to and Remus cleaned him up. Now he was ready. He still couldn't believe his mother was dead.
"Draco!" Vince came hurrying over with Greg on his heals.
The blonde smiled at them, "How are you two?"
"Fine." Vince stood close so Draco didn't have to strain his eyes trying to see him. "I'm just glad it's all finally over. Did you know that the Dark Mark completely disappeared this time? The Dark Lord's really gone."
Draco closed his eyes tight and smiled, "That's really great, Vince. We won't have to worry about him anymore."
"How are you feeling?" Greg asked softly. "Are you in any pain?"
"No." Draco opened his eyes and gave a lopsided smile. "They tell me I'm going to be fine, and you know I'll fight this until they're right."
"We know," Vince grinned happily. "Pansy's getting better, too."
"Pansy." Draco's eyes went wide. "How is she?"
"She lost her foot and had to re-grow it. She still flinches a lot, but she's getting better. They think she'll be fully recovered in a couple months. Her mother even got her a beautiful silver-handled cane to use when her foot aches."
"That's great."
"Daphne died," Greg said softly. "And Terrence suffered a heart attack, but he's recovering."
They stood silently for a few moments. Draco couldn't believe the price they all had to pay for the destruction of that sick Monster. It was almost too much. "How's Harry?" Vince asked.
"He'll be just fine," Draco answered sincerely and he thought, maybe they would make it through all this.
…
Draco spent the rest of the day with his friends and family. He had three meals and gave Severus instructions about their move to the Manor. When the twenty-four hours were up, Poppy spelled him back into sleep. New Years arrived and Hogwarts slowly emptied. Severus and Remus secured both boys and they took a magical carriage to Malfoy Manor, neither teen was able to travel any other way until they were healed.
Augustus Malfoy, Lucius' favorite cousin and Draco's 2nd cousin, was there with his wife, son, and daughter to welcome them. Elizabeth was four years old and Kenneth was twelve and attended Beauxbatons, but all three of the European Magical Schools had shut down to celebrate the demise of Voldemort.
As they days passed, Severus learned that Margaret Malfoy, maiden name Glory, a pureblood family from France, was a very sweet and hospitable woman. She couldn't be more of Narcissa's opposite if she tried. She was a perfect meek hostess and loving mother. Augustus was handling business for Draco until he was back on his feet, so to speak. He was a cold man, but honestly didn't covet the title of Lord and Head of the Family. He was too loyal for that, but he wasn't going to coddle Draco either.
When Draco was brought awake after another week of treatment, the man sneered if Draco ever showed weakness and his cutting wit derided Draco if any of the teen's decisions were lacking. Liza, as the little girl was called, adored Harry for some reason. Whenever she was allowed to come see her cousin Draco when he was awake, she would ask him all about the sleeping Prince in the next room. Draco would smile and tell her fantastic tales about Harry. Kenneth, on the other hand, was more interested in Draco. He'd pester the blonde with question after question about the battle and Quidditch. He went mute around Severus and Remus, however. Margaret assured them that he was just shy with people outside the family and would warm up to them eventually.
…
Draco slept another week, and a day before he was to be woken again and even released from the body-bind, Severus finished sorting out Harry's magic and repairing his body's magic channels. Severus fell out of the trance and opened his eyes, excited. He stood and brushed Harry's hair from his face, all the while calling him to wake up. Emerald eyes slid slowly open, his face going through too many expressions for Severus to guess what he was feeling or thinking.
"Dad…" Harry croaked. Tears welled up in his eyes and his face settled on distraught.
Severus held him as he sobbed and shook. He rocked him tenderly and didn't even look around when the door opened. He could spare no attention. Warm arms enveloped him and he knew it was Remus. Feeling sheltered, Severus allowed the tears to come and he hid his face in his son's soft black hair. Harry's broken cries were just too much to bear.
"Draco…" Harry cried. "Draco!"
"He's in the next room, Harry," Remus said gently, but Harry began to struggle and panic.
Severus scooped Harry up into his arms and carried him into the next room. Poppy was sitting beside the blonde's bed in a healing trance, her fingers and wand twitching and dancing over his body. She came around however when Harry began to wail at the sight of the unconscious blonde.
"He's alive, Harry!" Severus promised. "He's just sleeping while Poppy heals him!"
Harry's wail softened and he even stopped crying. Face soaked and eyes haunted, he reached for his love and Severus looked to Poppy. She sighed, "Go ahead and lay him next to him. Draco's well enough for me to remove the body-bind." Severus did as he was told and laid his son next to Draco. Poppy murmured the spell to release the immobilizing spell and canceled the healing sleep spell.
…
Draco opened his eyes and was immediately aware that he could move his arms and head. Then he became aware of the warmth and weight against his side and turned his head. His eyes found Harry's, dark and wet, and his heart leapt into his throat with joy. It had been almost two months since he had seen his little love and that had been too long. Merlin, he had missed his Harry.
"Baby?" His hands came up and cupped the precious face before him and Harry's beautiful mouth curled into a gentle smile.
"Ray… Don't leave me. It's so dark without you."
Draco pulled him firmly forward and kissed him hard. Harry tensed before melting into the kiss and wrapping his arms around Draco's neck. They kissed until their lungs burned and Harry was engulfed from the inside out as wave after wave of fierce joy, love, and relief flooded him through his bond to Draco. He knew as long as Draco was there, he'd be fine. The darkness wouldn't be able to hurt him as long as Draco shone so bright.
Draco broke the kiss and Harry laid his head on the blonde's shoulder, trembling. Draco met the eyes of his father and the nurse. "Thank you," he said. He knew they would understand what he was grateful for as he tightened his arms around his love. Poppy smiled tearfully at him and nodded. Remus hugged her, grinning from ear to ear. Severus just smiled, his face and shoulders relaxed for the first time in weeks. Yes. They would make it. They would be just fine.
The End
A/N: Well, what do you think? It made me cry, that's for sure. Please review and let me know what you think of the story as a whole. This is the first one I've ever been able to finish.
A/N2: I have a poll on my Yahoo Group about a possible sequel. Please go there to let me know what you think.
