Draco POV

Sitting in the middle of where the vault had been was a large, very old, gilded mirror. Words lined the edges of the mirror, 'Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi'. We had found it, the mirror or erised. I reached for Theo, but the sides of the vault hovered in the area, closer now and moving towards the mirror again. It would close soon and we didn't have time to waste staring into the damn thing. I wasn't going to let him touch that vault again and Granger would touch it over my dead body.

"Reducio."

The mirror shrunk until it was so small that it could fit into the palm of my hand. I pocketed the trinket, thankful for the pockets in my swim shorts, and we watched the vault snap back in place around nothing.

I turned to ask Theo what he saw, but he was shaking, staring at anything except the vault. He had been screaming when he touched it and he still looked shaken, hurting. I wanted to fix the pain I could see in his eyes.

"Take my wand. Get me away from the vault," he said, sounding like he was forcing the words out. His fingers clinched into fists after he thrust his wand into my hand. It finally made sense. The vault called to him, drew him in. That was why he touched it, why he had ignored my attempts to stop him. I didn't feel it, but I had the dark mark. Maybe it didn't call those branded by dark magic. I wasn't going to stick around to be sure.

Roughly, I grabbed Theo by the arm. He kicked and fought. In response, I used all my force, dragging him across the stone floor towards the water. I cast the bubble and diving charms for us both and shoved him underneath the water. When he was submerged, I saw the tension leave his shoulders.

"Thank you," he said, the sound muffled by water.

I didn't reply with words. I simply grabbed his hand and tugged him along the tunnel. We needed to get back to the surface and as far away from that bloody vault as possible. Of course, it couldn't be that easy. Not for us. When we came to the mouth of the cave we were unhappily greeted by a crowd of merpeople. Fuck.

A trident was placed at mine and Theo's throats.

"What are you doing in our lake?" One of the creatures asked, in an almost hissing voice.

"Just swimming. We're headed back to the school now."

The trident dug harder into us. Theo winced and I swallowed hard. I'd talked myself out of many things in my life, but I wasn't sure how I would talk myself out of this. We were in the middle of the damn lake at the tail end of November. My best option was arrogance. Fake it until you make it.

"Will you get that damn thing off his neck? Headmistress McGonagall won't appreciate you injuring her students." I saw the blood coming out in a cloud from Theo's neck and I panicked. I thrust my arm out, showing the faded dark mark, hoping it held some sort of fear for the merpeople. "Do you have any idea who you're fucking with?

The crowd only moved in closer. Bloody Hell.

I readied myself for a fight, tightening my hand on my wand. A jinx almost made it past my lips when a a large figure came into view. The merpeople's attention turned to the giant that swam beneath the water. The giant immediately started swatting at them, thrashing in the water before swimming for the surface. Theo and I both followed its lead.

We rushed for the surface, avoiding the large arms and legs and fighting the pull of the water as the current shifted around the giant. By the time we surfaced my arms and legs ached. There was a loud wailing noise coming from the creature.

"Hagger! Hagger!"

The half giant Hagrid sat in a boat not far off from ours. He stopped rowing towards our boat when he saw the giant panicking. The merpeople squealed above the water, a sound that made Theo and I grip the sides of our ears while we continued to tread water. I watched Hagrid pull out a flute from his coat. He began to play something that made the merpeople stop their attack and the giant stop screaming. Oh, thank Merlin. Theo and I both uncovered our ears, making treading water a million times easier. The merpeople swayed in the water to the music he played. He stopped after a minute or two.

"Go on now!" Hagrid called out and the merpeople dispersed. That's when he finally saw Theo and I climbing into the boat, popping our bubble charms and shooting off drying spells. "What were yeh two doin' in the lake?"

"Draco wanted to do one of those polar plunges. I tried to talk the dumb git out of it," Theo replied. He'd always been so quick with that wit of his.

I chose to stay silent. Hagrid and I didn't exactly have the best relationship after what had nearly happened to his hippogriff. I hadn't seen him since shortly after the battle, before my arrest. Headmistress McGonagall had made the announcement at the beginning of the year that the Professor of Magical Creatures would be joining us for the second semester.

"You two are lucky I keep my flute to play music for Grawp while he bathes and that he was due for a bath since I just got back from Romania," said Hagrid. "Merpeople don't take kindly to folks this far into the lake. It's a right good thing they like music, otherwise you'd have gotten yourselves killed."

"And we are extremely grateful. Aren't we, Draco?" Theo asked, nudging me in the arm.

Wrapped in my robe, I nodded my head, and tried my best to give a smile. Hagrid didn't look convinced. The giant pulled a trident out of his chest and chucked it into the water. It splashed and he grabbed the bloody holes. It reminded me of the battle. So many giants had died that night and even though Grawp had saved us inadvertently, he had saved us none the less. The magical world didn't need any more dead giants.

"Is he okay?" I asked and Hagrid narrowed his eyes, looking confused.

"'I reckon he'll be alright, but I suggest yeh two stay out of the lake. I can't say I'll be around next time." I wasn't sure if his words were meant to be a threat or just factual.

"Well, we should get going," Theo said suddenly. The giant looked at him and waved, then back to Hagrid.

"Hermy?" The giant asked.

"No, Grawp. These two ain't no friends of Hermione. We'll invite her to the house later so yeh can see her."

Ah, there it was. The sharp tone in his voice was obvious. Yeah, that was definitely a burnt bridge I was going to have to rebuild. Hagrid was going to be one more person to push Granger away from us. I had changed and I needed to start putting work into proving it, especially to people that were close to Granger. Hagrid was the best place to start. I sure wasn't starting with that dipshit Weasel or Saint Potter.

"Thank you for your assistance, Grawp," I said. "You too, Professor."

Hagrid looked practically dumbfounded at my words. It's not often that I thanked someone, and I couldn't remember a time that he would have heard it. Grawp waved goodbye as Theo cast the spell to thrust our boat back towards the castle.

I didn't pull the mirror out of my pocket until we were back in our room where I was sure we could be alone.

"We did it," said Theo, taking the small mirror from my hand and examining it. It was too small to see anything in the reflection and the warming spell was wearing off. Both of us were starting to shake from the cold. A celebration would have to wait. Theo's lips were nearly blue.

"We need a shower," I said. A smirk pulled at those blue tinted lips of his. "And we have to meet that Ravenclaw girl in an hour."

The smile turned to a pout that tugged at my heart strings. It was a teasing expression, but I remembered too clearly what he looked like sobbing less than an hour ago and his eyes spoke of that darkness still. I grabbed the mirror from him and placed it on the bedside table before I kissed him, long and hard and full of promises. We'd accomplished a monumental task today, but it had come at a price. I obliged him when he tugged me into the shower and when we stepped into the water I took him in my hand, pressing him against the wall. He tried to grab me in return and I swatted his hand, separating our lips so that I could suck on his neck, his collarbone.

"But what about you?" He asked, panting as I stroked him- hard and slow while the bathroom filled with steam

I was usually a needy lover, seeking out orgasms like a fiend, even when Theo used me, but all I could see was Theo's frightened expression in that cave. This wasn't about me. It was about him. I wanted him to know how much I cared for him, that I would always be there to ease his pain and bring him pleasure, that he never had to pout or beg or bargain or fight for my affection. I shook my forehead against his shoulder

"Just relax. You're always so good to me. Let me take care of you."

His body softened beneath my mouth as I continued my assault with my teeth and lips- sucking and nipping at skin.

"Fuck…Draco."

He grunted as I slammed my abs against his, sandwiching my hand around his cock between us. His hands clasped my shoulders and dug into my back, his left leg lifted to wrap around my hip, his foot digging into my arse. The more I stroked, harder and faster, the louder he moaned. My own cock was hard between his thighs and it made me damn near dizzy. I wanted his cum more than my own. I wanted his satisfaction and release.

"Cum, Theo. Don't wait for me, don't worry about me, or think about me. Just feel my hand stroking you," I paused in my talking to leave open mouth kisses along his neck so that I could whisper into his ear. "Feel my lips and body. It's all yours. Show me how much you care for me by letting go."

With a final shout of my name, he shuddered, gouging my back with his short nails while he coated our stomachs in cum.

"I love you," he murmured in his post orgasmic bliss, resting his head on my shoulder. I felt his tears, the shaking of his chest.

"I know," I said, kissing his neck softly. I nuzzled into him, breathing in the steam as I let him cry his silent tears without judgment. When he stopped squeezing me so tight, I stepped back and kissed him a final time, letting him stand and turn away from me. I helped him wash his hair and body in silence. I watched his demeanor shift when we got out and dressed. That dark expression was gone, replaced by determination and love and joy.

He was the first dressed, the first with wand in hand, and the first to grab the mirror. The smile he gave me when he tossed me my wand was the biggest I'd seen in a long time. I'd made him happy…me.

"Let's do this," he said.

I rubbed unconsciously at the mark on my chest, where my heart felt close to full. All that was left was a Granger shaped hole.