Chapter Twenty-Seven

Trapped

Nothing made him feel more alive than being twenty metres above the ground, on his Nimbus 2000 with his left hand gripping the black handle as he flew over the small forest behind Malfoy Manor.

Well, maybe Granger's kisses. And the sounds she made when she...

'Stop thinking about that.'

Draco shook his head, tilting his broom and going up a few more metres. The sun was setting over Wiltshire, blanketing the sky in orange and violet colours.

The cool air ruffled his hair and he closed his eyes, breathing in deeply.

Freedom. What he had wanted so badly since the moment the Dark Lord had branded him as one of his followers, and what he had yet to get.

Even though he was no longer in Azkaban, he still felt trapped.

At least on his broom, he felt as free as a bird. He should have been back on it long before now.

Draco heard the sound of fluttering leaves and grinned, swooping down into the trees and flying through them.

Having such good hearing was one of the best things about being part Veela, and it was a great advantage.

His grin widened as he saw the snitch. It was zigzagging in front of him, twisting through the branches and trying to escape.

He let go of the broom handle and leaned forward, trying to pick up a little more speed. His shout of joy echoed through the forest as his fingers closed around the little golden ball.

It was a relief to know that, after more than two years without getting on his Nimbus, he still was a good seeker.

Draco ascended again, leaving the trees behind him, and turned his head as he heard Dark's screech. The eagle owl flew up beside him, staring at him with her big orange eyes.

"What about a race, Dark?"

The owl folded her wings, descending at great speed, and Draco followed. They swooped back down into the trees, losing themselves in the branches.

Everything seemed to stop when he felt a sharp pain in his chest.

'No.'

Draco choked, losing control of the broom and falling through the air.

He hit several branches and saw black dots as his body hit the ground. All the air left his lungs and he felt like he couldn't breathe.

'Damn it. I need my wand!'

Draco lay on his side, trying to catch his breath.

"M-Minsy."

The elf appeared at his side with a crack, screaming at the sight of him lying on the ground.

"Master Draco!"

Something wet was dripping down his forehead and the pain in his right leg was unbearable, but Draco didn't look down. He suspected that what he would see would be too unpleasant.

Minsy took his hand and he gasped as they both appeared in the main hall of the manor. The elf forced him to lie flat on the marble floor and held up her hands, which glowed with a bluish light.

Draco let out a sigh of relief as he felt his wounds begin to close.

"Thank you."

Minsy nodded, looking him in the eye before snapping her fingers. He felt a knot in his stomach as the elf disappeared, but she reappeared a few seconds later holding his mother's hand.

Narcissa blanched at the sight of him, crouching down and drawing her wand.

"Draco! what happened?"

He sighed, shaking his head and wincing as the movement made everything start to spin. Draco closed his eyes tightly, concentrating on his breathing.

"Rinny!"

Another crack.

"Yes, Mistress?" said the elf.

"I need you to bring all the pain and bleeding potions you can find in Draco's study. And his scar balm as well."

Draco opened his eyes just to see the little elf vanish into thin air. He tried to speak, but his voice was barely audible.

Narcissa closed the wound on his temple and looked down at him, lowering her wand.

"What is it, son?" she asked worriedly, leaning closer so she could hear his whispers.

"M-my broom."

Narcissa snorted.

"You could have died and all you can think about is your bloody broom," she hissed, pointing her wand to the wound in his leg.

Rinny reappeared and the two elves finished healing the bruise on his chest. Draco took a deep breath, closing his eyes and sighing as he was able to do so.

"The broom is fine, Master. Minsy left it in the hall wardrobe," the elf murmured, concentrating her magic on the wound on his shoulder.

His eyes snapped open again.

"Granger."

"What about Hermione?" Narcissa asked, uncapping a vial of red liquid and raising it to his lips.

He drank it, grimacing at the bitter taste of the blood-replenishing potion.

"Granger is not well. I'd never felt anything like this before, it was really painful. It still hurts," he muttered, rubbing his chest.

Narcissa offered him another potion and Draco sat up very slowly, taking it in his hand and drinking the entire contents.

His headache disappeared instantly and he wrinkled his nose at the sight of a small pool of blood next to his right leg.

His mother followed his gaze and vanished it with a wave of her wand.

"What did you feel?"

"Sadness," Draco replied, rubbing his chest where he still felt a great emptiness. "An immense sadness."

One of his hands was trembling and he clenched his fist in an attempt to control his anxiety.

Narcissa pursed her lips.

"She's still in Australia, isn't she?"

Draco nodded and Dark landed beside him, flapping her wings gently and hooting to get his attention.

"It would take you several days to return, Dark. And I don't know where exactly she is to call her using the Floo Network. Besides, that would be an international call. It would require Ministry approval and that would also take a few days."

The owl clicked her beak in annoyance.

"I can't help her. I'm useless," Draco groaned, clenching his jaw.

Granger was too far away.

Draco remembered what his father had hidden when the Dark Lord first started living in the manor. Perhaps...

"Are there any of the portkeys that father hid in his study left?" he asked, glancing sideways at her.

Narcissa frowned.

"None of those illegal portkeys are of any use to you. They lead to Italy and the south of France."

He snorted loudly, trying to calculate how many hours it would take to fly there and whether his body would be able to handle the journey.

His mother guessed his intentions.

"If you leave the country, they'll put you back in Azkaban."

Draco gritted his teeth.

"I can't go with her," he gasped, holding his hands to his head and tugging at his blond hair in frustration. "I can't go with her, Mother!"

"Calm down, Draco! I'm sure Hermione's fine," his mother replied, holding his arms.

The two elves watched them sadly. They both liked Granger, and Draco knew it.

"No, she's not okay," he murmured under his breath, shaking his head. "Something very bad has happened."

Narcissa sighed.

"When did she tell you she'd be back?"

"Tomorrow."

His brow furrowed as he remembered one of his conversations with Granger.

This is a telephone, Draco. Muggles use them instead of owls and I love it. It's much faster, though it doesn't work if there's magic nearby.

"Muggle telephones," he muttered, standing up suddenly.

His mother looked at him as if he'd lost his mind.

"Telewhat?"

"Potter... Potter has one. I have to go," Draco insisted, trying to put his weight on his right leg.

Yes, he could walk.

"You should rest for a few hours, Master," Minsy suggested, her eyes full of concern.

"I'm fine," he grunted, shaking his head as Rinny stepped in his way. "I said I'm fine!"

The two elves jumped, startled.

"Draco!" Narcissa shouted, giving him a look that could cut stones. "Control your temper."

He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to ignore the tingling his whole body felt.

It wasn't a good idea to transform now and scare the elves even more.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, glancing sideways at Rinny.

The elf gave him a small smile.

"Minsy and Rinny forgive you, Master Draco."

Draco rolled his eyes, turning away.

"You need to stop calling me master," he growled as he walked as fast as he could towards the main fireplace.

Potter's surprised face was the first thing he saw as he emerged through the Grimmauld Place fireplace, engulfed in green flames.

"Malfoy?"

"I need to speak to Granger," he announced, shaking out his Slytherin team shirt with a hand to remove the ash.

Potter's eyebrows disappeared behind his fringe.

"What?"

"Your Muggle phone. Give it to me," Draco demanded, about to lose what little patience he had left.

Potter stood up, walking over to a hanger with several coats. He pulled out the phone Draco had seen him use more than once and held it out in his direction.

"Why?"

"Stop asking questions, Potter."

Draco stared at the small screen of the Muggle phone and his brow furrowed.

'Shit.'

"Do you know how to use it?" Potter asked, cocking his head to the side.

He grunted, grimacing. The buttons had numbers, arrows and strange symbols on them, and he had no idea which ones he needed to press in order to call Granger.

"It doesn't work here. We need to get out of the house," Potter commented, taking it out of his hands and waving his wand, causing his Quidditch uniform to change into jeans and a jumper. "Much better," he added in a mocking voice, stepping out into the hall and opening the front door.

Draco followed, muttering a curse under his breath. They crossed the pavement and Potter sat down on one of the park benches in front of Grimmauld Place.

He pressed a few buttons on his phone and held it out to Draco, who sat down next to him.

Draco held it to his ear, not quite sure if it was the right thing to do.

Potter sniggered, holding the phone with his fingers and turning it around.

"You had it upside down," he explained with a chuckle, his green eyes full of amusement. "Do you hear the beeps?"

Draco nodded and Potter relaxed his shoulders, leaning back against the bench and watching the Muggles strolling through the park.

After two more beeps, Draco held his breath as he heard a female voice in his ear.

"Hello, Harry."

It was her.

"Granger?"

"Draco?"

Her voice sounded very surprised.

"Yes. Hello."

"Hi," Granger replied, letting out a long sigh. "I didn't know it was you. Are you with Harry?"

His lips curved upwards. It was wonderful to be able to hear her voice even if she was thousands of kilometres away.

"I can hear you."

Her soft laugh made him smile even wider and all the tension he'd been feeling left his body. She was safe.

"That's how the calls work, Draco. Even if we're far away we can still talk."

Draco tugged at his bottom lip with his teeth, looking at Potter out of the corner of his eye. He seemed a little worried too.

"Are you all right?"

"What?" she asked. "Oh, I see. Did you feel anything?"

"Yes."

Granger took a few seconds to answer.

"I thought you wouldn't notice anything, being so far away."

Draco snorted, rolling his eyes.

"It doesn't matter where you are, Granger. Your emotions and mine are always going to be connected."

"Yours?"

'Fuck. Shut up.'

"We'll talk about that another time," Draco mumbled, cursing himself inwardly for revealing that detail to her. "What happened?"

"My parents didn't react as I expected," she said, sighing again. "They don't like what you've done, and they're afraid to live in a house built with magic."

His heart shrank.

Didn't they want to come back?

"But..."

"I'd rather not talk about this now, Draco," Granger cut him off in a trembling voice.

Draco sighed, closing his eyes. He didn't want to make her cry.

"You're feeling better now, right?" he asked, rubbing the centre of his chest.

The emptiness was still there but the pain wasn't as intense as when it first appeared.

"My parents have helped me calm down, but I don't know what to do," Granger admitted quietly. "I feel lost right now."

Draco swallowed. Her voice sounded too sad.

"Come back."

The smile that Granger must have had on her face appeared in his mind as she talked.

"I want to spend more time with my parents first, try to talk to them again," she replied, lowering her voice. "I'll be there tomorrow."

"I can't help you from so far away," he mumbled.

Potter was still staring at him with his arms crossed and a frown on his face.

"You're already helping me, Draco," she added, and a new feeling rose in his chest. One that spread throughout his body, filling him with warmth. "Thank you for caring so much about me."

Granger felt happy again, and it was all thanks to him.

"You have nothing to thank me for. Let me remind you that I'd still be in Azkaban if it weren't for you and your mania of wanting to help others," Potter cleared his throat and Draco shot him a glare. "Yes, Potter, I owe my freedom to you as well," he muttered.

Granger laughed again.

"Hey... Do you think you'd still be alive?" she asked in a whisper.

The muscles in his shoulders tensed as he remembered the loneliness and cold he'd felt while he'd been locked up there, and how weak he'd been when they'd taken him back to London.

"I would have died a few days later," Draco replied in a deep voice.

"You should have told me from the beginning, Draco. I could have got you out of there much sooner."

He heard a strange sound on the other end of the phone. A seagull?

"I never thought you would give me a chance."

He could almost feel Granger's lips curving into a small smile.

"I never imagined anything could happen between us either. My idea was to help you survive and find a way to break the bond."

Draco swallowed.

"And you don't want to break it anymore?"

"No."

That was the best thing he'd heard since Granger confessed that she was falling in love with him. Draco grinned, though his smile faded as he glanced at Potter and saw that he was smiling too. He stood up abruptly, walking down one of the paths in the park to get away from him.

"We should have another date tomorrow."

"Okay, though if we're going to talk about my parents I'd prefer it wasn't in public."

"Then it's going to be impossible to get rid of Potter," Draco complained, glancing back and frowning as he saw him walking a few metres behind him. "He wants to know what happened to you, too, and he's chasing me."

"Don't worry. I'll have breakfast with him tomorrow at the Ministry and tell him all about it," she said with a giggle.

"Do you want to be alone with me, Granger?" Draco asked, arching an eyebrow.

She snorted.

"You don't?"

"You already know the answer," he replied, turning and waiting for his stalker to catch up. "I want one of these phones, Potter. Go buy me one."

He gave him a dark look.

"I'm not your servant, Malfoy."

"I don't know where I have to go or how much Muggle money is needed. I'll pay you back later."

Potter folded his arms, eyebrows raised, and Draco clenched his jaw.

"Please," he added through gritted teeth.

Potter's face softened and he nodded with a smirk.

"All right," he said. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"

Draco snorted through his nose, keeping silent as he watched him walk away to one of the streets lined with Muggle shops.

"Bloody Potter," he growled under his breath.

"You should try to be a little nicer to him, Draco. I don't like you treating him like that."

Her voice had lost its warmth. Draco sighed, sitting down on the nearest bench.

"I know, but it's not easy. It's been so many years of hatred and I still find it hard to believe that we're getting along now."

"Is it the same with me?" she asked.

"No. You're different, Granger," he admitted, shaking his head. "Besides, I barely said a word to you at Hogwarts, maybe once or twice a year. But with Potter... it was much worse with him."

"You're right," she agreed with a sigh. "You hated me too, but from a distance."

"Just like you hated me."

"I told you I don't think I ever really hated you, Draco. I felt pity for you."

"Pity?" Draco repeated in confusion. "Why?"

"I thought you were like that because of your parents, and I wasn't wrong," Granger replied. Shame and regret formed a lump in his throat. "And in sixth year you were so... you looked so bad. Like you were sick."

Draco tried to smile. He liked that she was one of the few people who had noticed his change in attitude that year. That meant she had been watching him, even if it wasn't for the same reasons as the rest of the girls in his year.

"Don't tell me you cared about me that year, Granger."

"Dream on, Malfoy," she said, snorting loudly.

Draco heard the distant laughter of several kids.

"Where are you?"

"Walking in a park in Melbourne," Granger took a breath, releasing it very slowly. "I needed to get some fresh air and calm down."

"I'm glad you're better," he replied, clenching his free hand. "It was... it was very painful, what you felt."

"Their reaction... I think they broke my heart, Draco."

He felt the blood freeze inside his veins.

"Is that what it feels like to have your heart broken?"

"I think so."

'Fuck.'

He never wanted to feel anything like that again.

"I hope it never happens to me," he mumbled under his breath.

He heard a mocking laugh from Granger.

"Do you think anyone could break Draco Malfoy's cold heart?"

His brow furrowed at the question.

"Yes. You."

Granger took her time to reply.

"I won't."

"You don't know that."

"I..." Granger sighed. "I love you, Draco. And I don't want you to suffer anymore."

"I don't think I'll ever get tired of hearing you say that," he commented with a grin, making her laugh again.

"International calls are very expensive. We should hang up," Granger suggested.

"Hang up?"

"Finish talking. You have to press the button with the red symbol on it."

"And then I won't hear your voice anymore?"

"No."

Draco worked his jaw. He didn't feel like doing that.

"You'd better hang up."

Her laugh was very soothing.

"See you tomorrow, Draco."

"See you."

Draco pulled the phone away from his ear as he heard several beeps. He stood up and, glancing around, saw Potter approaching him with a small box in his hand.

"Your first phone, Malfoy. Congratulations."

Draco rolled his eyes as he held the cardboard box.

"How much did it cost?"

"About thirty galleons."

"I'll give you fifty. Granger says international calls are expensive."

Potter twisted his lips to the side.

"There's no need, Malfoy."

"I insist," he said, opening the box as they walked and looking down at the rectangular phone inside with interest. "Will you tell me how it works?"

Potter chuckled. He opened the door to his house and stepped inside, motioning for Draco to follow him.

"I'm going to make some pasta and Ron's coming in half an hour. You can stay for lunch with us and I'll show you how to use it."

Draco wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"A meal with Potter and Weasley. Perfect."

Potter rolled his eyes.

"When are you going to start calling me Harry?"

"Never."

"Well, I think I'm going to call you Draco from now on."

"Whatever, Potter. Show me that pasta you are talking about, I want to see if I can do something to make my Italian ancestors not ashamed of your cooking."