CHAPTER TEN
[Someone to Stay]
Warning: Lots of dialogue.
DRACO
For the second time, the two of them were running away from the muggle house as fast as their wobbly knees would take them. But this time, they had a nearly fifty pound trunk balanced between them while angry, magical cats and maybe evil government officials chased after them. Draco dearly hoped this wasn't becoming a habit.
He briefly wondered what the hell that woman had been feeding those cats to run so fast. And why did she carry them in a wagon if they can perfectly find a scent home. Because he's sworn they've gone at least a mile haven't lost them yet.
"Stop!" Draco yelled in between breaths."Stop it! I have an idea."
Harry slowed to a halt beside him. He looked even worse for wear. Draco remembered The boy's bruised ribs and winced at the thought. "Well, what is it?" He wheezes out with a hand on his side.
"We're wizards."
"Okay, yes, your point?"
Draco rolled his eyes and grabbed the wand right out of Harry's hand. It felt warm in his grip, like it was made for him. Harry's eyes widen and he jumped up trying to grab it from where the taller one was holding it above his head. "What the hell Malfoy, give it back! What are you, four?!"
"Merlin's beard Potter, calm down! Since you aren't going to do anything yourself, might as well take it upon myself." He set the trunk down on his side and the brunette begrudgingly did the same. "Where's your broom?"
Harry frowned "Are you an idiot? We can't carry the entire trunk and two people on one broom. That's outrageous. Plus, someone will see us!"
"Can you just listen to me for once?" Malfoy hissed, "I know what I'm doing."
Harry's eyes lingered on the wand in Malfoy's hand. They narrowed slightly, but decided to trust Malfoy seeming that he had no other choice.
The broom barely fit inside. It was fit in at an angle and he had to yank it a couple times for it to break free. He has about to reclose it when Draco saw him hesitate. Harry slowly reached inside and grabbed a soft silver cloak.
"We don't have time to worry about you're horrible fashion choices right now, Potter. Grab the broom and lets go."
"Malfoy…"
"Yes?"
"You have to promise not to tell anyone about this."
Draco raised a curious eyebrow. "What, are we breaking more international wizarding rules tonight?"
"Merlin Malfoy. You really are impossible to hold a conversation with."
He was about to protest when Harry dropped the broom and wrapped the grey-ish cloth around him. He bit back his surprise. His entire body was just...gone.
Of course he had seen magic like it before. What were wizards if they hadn't already figured out how to disappear already? But those cloaks had to be coated with spells and only lasted a day or two.
"Well that solves one problem I guess."
"I'm already on my second strike from the Ministry. Last time they didn't even hesitate to try and snap my wand. Dumb-," he looked at Draco's disapproving face, "Well I wouldn't be here right now without him. But we can't rely on him right now. So whether or not you like it, we're on the run until this whole thing gets sorted out. "
"Oh no, not we. I didn't do anything."
"You're an accomplice Malfoy!"
"I didn't even want to show up here!"
"And do you really think they'll believe that?" Harry rolled his eyes. "Or are you going to wait until your father bails you out?"
Draco grit his teeth. He didn't say anything though because he knew Potter was right. He didn't even want to go back himself. But he knew eventually he'll have no choice. The mark on his arm was growing hotter with every day that went by. Voldermort's alliances were everywhere. Any moment someone could turn around and turn him in. Wasn't he just going to endanger Harry even more?
"So until then..." Harry lifted his hand. Draco had to blink twice to understand what he was seeing. Harry was holding out his hand. For him. It was a handshake. Something in his stomach twisted in a sickening sense of Déjà vu. "Truce?"
It occurred to him that it must be a daydream. This was redemption. Something he dreamt about since for the past three years and tore him apart piece by piece in the process. Is this what Bramble had mentioned?
"Draco? Did you miss the part where we don't have much time, or…?" His hand was still hanging there, slowly pulling it back as if he was realizing a mistake.
Everything Draco's father had taught him about not acting desperate flew out the window. He quickly grabbed the hand. It was warmer than he expected, just like his wand.
"Deal. Truce."
Harry's eyes widened just slightly as his hand fell back to his side almost to say, 'well I didn't think I'll get this far'. His eyes raced back up to Malfoy's whos grey ones were staring right back at him.
"You understand what that means, right?"
"As stated earlier, I'm not four." He scoffs.
"Right…So can you give me back my wand now?"
"Nope." He said, popping the 'p'.
"What? Why?!"
"I still need to shrink the trunk, idiot." But there was something in the air as he teased Harry this time. A genuine smile fell on both of the boys face's.
"And why can't I do that?"
"You're horrendous at size charms. You nearly destroyed the entire classroom in third year."
"How the bloody hell do you know that?"
"Please, everyone knew."
Draco pushed Potter out of his way and glanced at the trunk. With a flick of his wrist the entire thing was shrunk down to the size of his palm. He bent down and pushed it inside his trouser's front pocket.
"Careful! I have my potion's stuff in there and I don't need Salamander hearts all over my stuff."
He was about to continue when he rustling from a nearby bush startled the both of them. Harry cursed and started to mount his broom. He threw the cloak at Draco to start wrapping it around them.
It had been forever since Draco had ridden a broom with someone. He thinks maybe when he was nine and wanted to impress one of his father's business associates came over with their child he had wanted to impress them. Even then he wasn't on the back of the broom so it didn't really affect him. Only now did he realize how close you had to first he had tried to sit on the edge, but once they were up in the sky that was completely forgotten. He had wrapped his arms around Harry's wait faster than he Weasley could say 'bloody hell'.
But now that they were soaring through the sky, the cloak wrapped around them, Draco could enjoy the night sky. He tilts his head downward, seeking lights that flash, the red and white in the deepest of blue skies. For a moment he is still, feeling the cool air, breathing in a steady rhythm. Then there they are those crazy passing stars, flying high above him he just can't get enough.
He's never actually seen London at night. The city spread below him, and the world suddenly felt so wide and free that he wanted to jump. Lights glittered everywhere just like stars dropping to the earth, huge and small buildings collided in a mixture of shadow and geometry, tiny vehicles rushing along tangled lines of streets creating twisting threads of light - they all intertwined together in a magnificent mess of dream. He was amazed Muggles could create something so beautiful without any help of magic.
"Malfoy, are we still going back to the Inn?" He yells, his dark messy hair rippling through the air.
"Obviously, where else would we go?"
"I don't know, you're rich aren't you? Don't you have like a safe house or something?"
"Yes, many. But I prefer the inn. I thought I thought I told you that?"
He's silent for a moment and all Draco can hear is the wind rushing past his ears. Eventually, he speaks up. "I thought your parents didn't like her?"
Draco spits a wad of blonde hair out of his mouth. "They don't."
"So they don't know about the inn?"
"Nope."
An uncomfortable silence settled over them. Draco looks over Harry's shoulder. Harry looked hard in thought.
"We won't be able to stay there forever. They'll find us eventually."
"We only have a couple days left until Hogwarts."
"Oh they'll definitely find us before then. They're mad at trying to get rid of me."
Draco bites his lip deep in thought. He couldn't believe he was about to do this. "Well there is one…"
"Well?"
It was supposed to be his escape if he ever needed to runaway. It was a flat he had bought with when he was fourteen with a quick confundus after his family had taken what his father called a 'vacation' called Colmar Alsace in France. (He hadn't know for certain, but as he thought back to it he was pretty sure he was recruiting new death eaters.) It was the closest he had ever felt to paradise his whole life. He was planning on moving there as soon as he graduated Hogwarts. Did he really want to share this with Potter of all people? He could tell Granger, or Weasley even. Then who knows after that.
But he swallowed his doubt. They were on a truce.
"I'll tell you when we get there. For now, just hurry up."
Harry leaned forward, edging the broom to its max.
"Oh for the love of-" Bramble set down her tea cup in a rush and came running to the doorway where the boys stood. Her small frame nearly tackled them where they stood. "I thought I told you to come back unharmed!"
Draco winced when she grabbed his hand and examined it. They were beginning the bruise under all the dry blood. His ring finger was misshapen just enough to make you wonder if it was broken and the cut on his face was turning a patchy yellow.
"I'm fine, Bramble. It's just a couple of scratches."
"Oh too hell with that."
She let go of his hand and went to check over Potter as well. She nodded happily when she saw that he was unharmed.
"No offense Madam-"
"Bramble."
"No offense Ms.Bramble, but may I be excused? I have to send a letter."
Draco looked at him oddly for a moment as the two exchanged a nod. He ran up the stairs leaving them alone.
"Draco, what happened!" She says when he's out of earsight. "And why in Merlin's name are you all bloodied up!" Draco looked down at his feet as she dragged him away into her quarters. "I'm going to send Narcissa a letter, you stay right here-"
"No!"
She looked taken aback for a moment. "Honey, you need to tell me what's going on or I can't help you."
"I can't bramble. I just can't. But whatever you do, don't tell them that I'm here."
She looked at him sadly, but moved forward to cup the of his face in her hand. "Let's just get you cleaned up, yeah?"
Draco shook his head as he stared back into her innocent eyes. Something ticked inside his brain. He couldn't do this to her.
"I- I think I can do it myself...Thank you though.
He turned around and walked back up the stairs.
Harry was tieng his letter to his owl as he opened the door. He turned around quickly, startled. "Jeez, knock first."
He ignores him. "Who's the letter for?"
"Remus, one of my godfathers. If anyone knows how I'm going to get out of this mess it's him." He gives the owl a treat before she starts to flap her wings and fly out the window. "And even then, I don't want him to worry about me when they find out I've gone missing. I trust him not to tell Dumbledore."
Draco nodded understandingly. His hand traveled to his pocket and took out the doll-house size trunk. Harry watched him carefully as he carefully placed it on the floor between them. He went to go grab the Gryffindor's wand from the nightstand.
"Can I?" He asks remembering the other's hesitance the first time. Harry gives his a short nod which he takes as a yes.
'Engorgio!" He shouts. It's form shifts for a miniscule second before transforming back to its original state. Even Draco is impressed by himself by how perfectly it turned out.
Harry immediately runs over to it to see if anything's cracked. A sin in relief tells him there isn't.
"I wonder if…," Draco had ever done this before. He didn't know if there was a charm on it to repel it or, but…
"Accio wand!"
He waited. And waited. But nothing came. Of course he shouldn't have gotten his hopes up. It was probably too far away to summon anyways. Even then, his father most likely locked it up as soon as he realized he was gone, knowing it was going to be one of the first things Draco would do. He would need to go back to the manor if he wanted his wand back.
"You're going to have to wash the blood off if you want me to help you with those cuts you know."
Draco rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I know."
