"Is he alright?" Regulus asked, his voice laced with a bit of concern as he spoke to his cousin over the floo. "He's exhausted and seems a little warm. But, other than that, he is okay. I don't think he'll be able to attend his lessons for the next three days or so." Narcissa replied, her own features tight with worry. "Thats alright, Narcissa. How did he fall ill?"
"I don't know, Regulus. He was fine yesterday morning. It was only in the evening did he start feeling a little unwell." She said. "Mmhm. Well, I hope he gets better soon. Is it alright with you if I pay him a visit? Even Sirius?"
"Yes, its perfectly fine." She said and they ended the call. Although the Black brothers and Narcissa had never been on good terms, they were trying to be civil for Draco's sake. And they were clearly making progress. Narcissa had stopped casting condescending looks at the two of them and altered her tone as well.
Regulus went back to the dining room where Sirius and Harry were having breakfast. Joining them, he loaded his plate with some food and turned to his brother. He knew that Sirius had heard him since the living and dining rooms were adjacent to each other.
"I think I'll go and see him later in the afternoon." He said. "Okay. I'll try and if come as well. Because if there's one thing I know well is that children tend to get absolutely miserable when they're ill. Right Harry?"
"Hey! I was never miserable." Harry protested. "Sure you weren't. You were simply bubbling with energy. Anyway, what's your plan for the day?" The man asked. "Actually, Hermione, Ron and I were thinking of going to Hogsmeade today. I wanted to ask you yesterday but it slipped my mind. Can we go?"
While those pleading green eyes instantly melted Regulus, Sirius had become a master at resisting that face. But since it was the summer, he relented. "By yourselves? I don't have any issues with you going, but be careful. Don't wand—" No sooner had the words left his mouth than he found himself with an armful of boy. "Thank you!"
"Harry, I'm not finished." But the excited pup had already left the table to floo call his best mate.
Half an hour later, Sirius had finally gotten Harry to listen. "Don't wander off, have fun and most importantly, stay safe. Is that clear?" He raised an eyebrow at his son, doing his best to look stern but failing to do so. "Yes, sir." Harry puffed his chest out and gave Sirius a mock salute. "Can I go now or do you need to continue your overprotective super-dad talk?" He asked with a cheeky grin.
"Careful, kiddo or I might just change my mind." He said. Laughing, Harry gave his father a hug, said goodbye to the two brothers and was off for the day. After that, both Sirius and Regulus also left for work.
"Darling, Sirius and Regulus are here to see you." Draco heard his mother's announcement and was surprised by the joy that shot through him. "Hey kiddo." Regulus' familiar greeting only made him smile wider. He immediately closed the book that he'd been reading and tucked it away.
"How are you feeling?" Sirius asked, slightly concerned."I'm bored and bored and bored." He grumbled. His own father had never bothered about him even when he'd been sick. This had made him overplay things just to gain the man's attention. It had never worked. This time, he was plain honest.
"I know, Draco. Don't worry though. You'll be back to normal in a few days." Said Sirius. "What happened anyway?" Regulus inquired. The man placed a hand on Draco's forehead, checking him. "Well, you are a bit warm, mate. A mild fever I suppose. You look a little down as well."
The concern and worry stirred something odd inside him and he felt that familiar lump in his throat. He shoved it down and shrugged. "I don't know. I think the food must've had something in it." He said.
"So anyway, once you get better, I have a whole new set of spells for us to work on." Regulus said, grinning excitedly. He couldn't wait. "He can try them all out once he gets better. For now, he could do with some rest." Narcissa's voice came from the door.
"Yes, Mother. I will lie here until I'm bored to death. Happy?" Draco inquired, rolling his eyes. The woman suppressed a smile before telling him to rest.
After a while, Sirius stood up. "I need to get going. Got to get back and make sure the men aren't slacking off." He said with a grin. "Ah yes. Boss mode on. I think I'll stay a while." Said Regulus. "Is that okay with you, mate or do you need to sleep?"
"No, stay. Or the boredom will drive me insane." Draco replied. Sirius didn't miss the way the boy's eyes lit up when Regulus had decided to stay. Those two were definitely growing on each other. "Okay. Get well real soon, kiddo."
"Will do, Sirius. I don't think I can stand my mother's hovering any longer." He said. The man laughed and left.
Draco would never admit it but he was secretly elated when Regulus had decided to stay. The man needn't have stayed, but he had. Because he wanted to. His father had never been concerned. As long as he didn't get in the way, it was okay.
"So, what do you do after training? It's a big house, surely, you would have to do something to keep yourself from going crazy." Regulus remarked casually as he settled down more comfortably. Draco shrugged, not really sure what to say. He didn't do anything much.
"I don't know. Blaise, my best friend, comes home every two days or so." The boy replied. He suddenly felt embarrassed. Other than Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott, there was no one else who was his friend. "Mmhm. Sirius mentioned two other boys; Crabbe and Goyle. And Harry said something about this girl, Poppy or something?"
Draco stifled a groan at the mention of this 'girl'. "Pansy." He corrected. "She won't leave me alone. She's the epitome of annoyance." He said. "I don't usually see Crabbe and Goyle over the summer." He admitted. It felt great to a light conversation with someone. "Annoying is she? Trust me, I've dealt with my share of annoying girls, even Sirius has." Regulus said, chuckling slightly at a particular memory.
"So, Sirius also tells me you're on the Quidditch team? Seeker? Now that's brilliant, kiddo. I didn't make the school team until third year." Draco inwardly winced when he heard the hint of pride in Regulus' voice. He didn't deserve it. "Was." He admitted quietly, dropping his gaze. "I'm sorry?"
"I was on the school team. I quit." It was true. About a week ago, he had written to Marcus Flint, Slytherin Quidditch captain and had resigned from the team. "What? Why in the world would you do that, Draco?" Regulus was confused as well as surprised.
Now for the hard part. "The seeker's spot; I didn't— I didn't earn it. My father bought me a place on the team. He sort of bribed the entire team with the Nimbus 2001." He took a deep breath, forcing himself to continue. "And the worst part is, I never said anything. I just wanted to be on the team so desperately. I let him do what he wanted." Shame washed over him when he confessed.
He didn't know why he had said all this to Regulus but he just had. When the Granger girl had said that everyone else was on the team because of their own talent, the words had cut deep. So, he had lashed out at her.
He watched Regulus carefully, trying to read the man's expression. "Kiddo, no one blames you for wanting to be a part of the team. Nearly every student dreams of playing for their house. You can't blame yourself for Lucius' actions. They were in no way your fault."
"He was disappointed, Regulus." He said. He still remembered the aftermath of his first Quidditch game. His father had been livid with him. The verbal lashing he had received that day had kept him awake for several nights.
"Then he is an idiot who didn't know what a brilliant son he has. If he had half a brain, he would have been bloody proud of you. I know I'm proud of you." The words warmed Draco more than he could have imagined.
"Tell you what, the Quidditch trials come up this year, you try out. When you make the team, you and I will go somewhere to celebrate. How's that sound, mate?" It hadn't escaped Draco's notice that Regulus had said when and not if.
"It sounds brilliant." He said, hoping that he sounded stronger than he felt. "Great. Now, you get well soon and I'll see you in three days or so. Okay?" Regulus said, staring at his watch. "I will."
"Awesome. Get better, kiddo. Take care." Regulus moved to leave but after only a moment's hesitation, he reached out and squeezed Draco's shoulder warmly. "Bye, Draco."
Three days later:
"That's it, you're doing wonderfully well, Draco. Just hold it a little longer. Can you do that?" Sirius asked as he observed Draco's performance with a pleased smile. Small beads of perspiration had gathered on the blonde's forehead, but other than that, he was fine. The boy nodded and focussed on the spell. They had just started practicing representational magic. Nothing dark of course, but it was a little taxing.
Once complete, Draco lowered his arms and turned to Sirius. "I want to do another one." He eagerly said. "Absolutely not. You've just gotten better and too much of magic in one day can cause exhaustion. I don't want you to pass out the moment you get home. Tomorrow, we can try some more."
Draco groaned but he didn't argue. He was starting to learn that Sirius had a firm mind. It was nearly impossible to convince him otherwise once his mind was made up. "Alright. But we'll try it tomorrow. You've promised." He stated, grinning slightly.
"Yes, kiddo. Tomorrow. Now run along." Draco gave Sirius a backhanded wave and went up the stairs.
He was just about to floo home when he decided to go meet Regulus. Sirius had said that the other man was in his study, working on some cases. A week ago, he'd been given a tour of the house and had been duly impressed. He arrived at the study where he saw Regulus at the desk, going through many parchments. Although the door was wide open, he knocked nonetheless.
The man looked up and his face broke into a genuine smile. "Hey, mate. Great to see you. Come on in. I was just going to come down and say hi. So, how was training?" It was a simple question and yet, it made Draco smile. He was doing a lot of that these days. Smiling. "It was interesting alright." He replied, sitting down.
"So, you done with your holiday homework?" Regulus asked. "Yeah, finished it long ago." He'd done it as another attempt to gain his father's acknowledgment but like all others, it had failed. "That's brilliant, kiddo. I never did my homework until the last week before school."
A little later, Draco stood up. "I think I must go. I told Zabini he could come over and mother won't be happy if he gets there before me." There was no particular reason on his part to meet the man. He just liked being around him. No matter what happened, Regulus never judged Draco.
After the boy left, Regulus was about to pull out another case when: "DAD! This book is trying to kill me!" The shout was loud enough to be heard all the way from the library.
Harry struggled to climb up as the huge book came at him, the pages snapping together like jaws. He's already lost one of his shoes and very nearly his foot. He's tried to run out, but it hadn't worked. He had come down here to pick up some books for his Herbology essay but then he'd accidentally opened this one instead. The Monster Book of Monsters. It really was a monster.
He was currently standing on top of the table, throwing random books at it, hoping to 'knock the book out.' But so far, he'd knocked over two chairs, another table, a shelf full of books and managed to crack his glasses. The book had almost bitten his hand off.
The library was a total mess. His father was going to kill him. String him upside down by his ankles and feed him stale broth for a week. Sirius was going to be furious. But, this wasn't his fault. He picked up another thick encyclopaedia and threw it at the monster. His aim was horrible. It hit the vase on the mantelpiece above the fireplace.
Last resort: "DAD! This book is trying to kill me!" He threw the first object he could lay his hands on—a candlestick— at the book, hoping that the heavy metal could slow it down. Like an idiot, he had forgotten his wand in his room —not that his wand would've helped— so now, he had been defeated by a book. A man-eating book but a bunch of bound pages nonetheless.
"Pup? What are you—" Harry then saw his father come inside. The man noticed the mess, the book which was snapping towards him and his son standing on the table with a thick leather bound journal in one hand and in his other hand, he held his... shoe? The boy's eyes were wide and the man found the look on his pup's face totally adorable. Sirius shoved his hand out and froze the book in place. Easy.
The library was super messy. "Harry, what in the name of Merlin are you doing?" He swallowed his amusement and levelled the boy with a stern look. He only hoped his eyes didn't give him away. "Er... thanks for rescuing me?" Harry put on his one shoe and got off the table.
"That book was trying to devour me. I had to save myself." Even as he said it, Harry felt like an idiot. "What were you sound here in the first place? You rarely come into the library." Sirius said as he gently pulled Harry's broken glasses off his face, repaired it and slipped it back on. "Homework." The boy mumbled.
Sirius summoned the book and raised an eyebrow when Harry glared at the book and took a step back. The Monster Book of Monsters. "This is a different kind of a book, Harry. You're supposed to sort of lightly stoke it before you open it. And why did you pull its belt off?"
"The belt was covering the title." Harry replied sheepishly. "Harry James, the library is completely thrashed. If you start now, you'll probably be able to finish it before lunch." Sirius shrugged casually, expertly hiding his grin.
Harry's jaw dropped and he stared at the man disbelievingly. He'd definitely expected some sort of consequences but to clean the whole place? Absolute nightmare. "You want me to clean this? Dad, you've got to be joking. I'm the victim, here. That book assaulted me." Harry protested. "It even took my shoe!"
"I can see that. I'm surprised you managed to save your clothes." Sirius smirked. That's when Harry noticed the playful gleam in his father's eyes. "You're not angry?" He asked. Sirius finally dropped the act. "How can I be? This is just hilarious, kiddo. If you're going to do this every time, I think I'll start locking you up in the library. Oh and the look on your face! Priceless!"
Sirius burst out laughing, unable to hold it back any longer. He then set the entire place back in order with a single wave of his wand. The books rearranged themselves correctly, the table was righted and returned to its original position, the chairs went back to their respective places, the vase was restored along with the candlestick and even Harry's shoe came hopping back to him.
Magic never failed to impress Harry. He watch with undisguised awe as the room returned to its former state. Sirius inclined his head towards the door. "Come on, you little scamp, let's get out of here before you break anything else."
Harry watched his father walk out and followed him. Grinning mischievously, he broke into a run, jumped onto Sirius' back and insisted that the man should give him a piggyback ride to his room. Smiling fondly at the boy in his arms, Sirius did so without complaint.
"Potter, you're being dramatic. It's highly annoying so I suggest that you shut up." Draco said, trying to focus on the book in his hand. He really didn't want to listen to how the other boy nearly got killed by a book. "I'm not being dramatic, Malfoy. It really tried to bite my foot off. I'm lucky to have survived."
Draco smirked and shook his head. Over the past few days, the two boys had managed to develop an odd sort of friendship. They still argued sometimes, but that hatred was gone. Harry found that without the arrogance and snobbishness, Draco was actually a decent person, while Draco had realised that it was easy to get along with Potter once he let go of his jealousy and anger.
While they weren't best friends, you certainly couldn't call them enemies anymore. "How fortunate for you, Potter." Draco replied, smiling wryly.
"What are you still doing here anyway? Your training ended an hour ago, Malfoy." The question didn't contain any spite. "I'm avoiding my mother. She wants me to go with her to visit some old lady."
Draco replied, not taking his eyes off the book. "But wh—"
"Potter, if you don't stop asking questions, I will break your jaw." Draco snapped, losing patience. Harry however, appeared least bothered by the outburst. "Jeez, wonder what's gotten your wand into a knot." Harry suddenly got up and pulled the book out of Malfoy's hands.
"Bloody hell, Potter give me—"
"Oh shut it. You're in my house, so I call the shots. I happen to be incredibly bored right now and I wish to do something other than watch you read. Come on, let's go play some Quidditch before I die of boredom." Harry said, grinning widely. "We'll get my Dad and Uncle Reg to join in."
"I don't have a bloody broom Po—"
"You can borrow one of ours. We've got loads of them. Now come on." Draco decided to accept Potter's invitation after all. He could do with some Quidditch. He put on an expression of great reluctance and acquiesced, although he was glad that the other boy had offered. "Fine, lets go."
"Brilliant. Now get off your behind and come on." Rolling his eyes at Potter's energy, Draco stood.
"Oh and Malfoy, watch the language, or my father will hear about this," said Harry with a mischievous smirk.
Draco was shocked for a second before he let out a small but genuine laugh and followed Harry out of the room.
How was it? Harry and Draco are finally friends! I was so happy when I wrote this. I know it's taking me longer to update, but a million thanks to you guys for being so incredibly patient and wonderful.