As soon as Draco returned to his dormitory, he sent Harry that message. There wasn't much point, as he wasn't going to be giving much information away, but he had already agreed to it.
It was Snape. he typed, pausing whilst thinking of how he could word it. Not long ago, a few weeks at the most. He used the Sectumsempra spell on me. I could tell you why but there wouldn't be much point so I won't. Let's just say that I did something wrong - something punishable. Most would say I got off lightly. Anyway, I deserved it. I wasn't allowed to visit the hospital wing - it hurts all of the time, I suppose the desired effect. This is probably why I looked like I was about to cry - having your flesh ripped open does hurt something terrible. Having to function without having wounds treated hurts even more. Harry, I think I want to talk to you more often, would that be OK by you? You seem like a worthwhile change from my own house and I'd appreciate it greatly. - Draco"
He typed in Harry's username before sending it off. It was all quite strange really - sending an owl would probably have done the job just as well. At least this way there's no chance at all of interception from anybody.
After the "message sent" sign popped up, Draco leant back gingerly against the wall. He hissed as the slashes made themselves known.
---
It all clicked into place and made perfect sense. "I see..." Harry mumbled. He wondered if the wounds had been cleaned or even crudely bandaged - infection could easily set in and cause even more problems. It was nearly time for the evening meal, he made a mental note to speak to Malfoy again afterwards.
As he read over the message again, he took in the fact that Malfoy actually wanted to talk to him. In the beginning, he seemed like nothing more than trouble, but today something seemed different.
---
"What business did you have?" Hermione questioned as they sat down in the Great Hall. Harry shrugged in response, hoping she wouldn't question further. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that she wouldn't be impressed by his new friendship.
"Nothing very important, it's all sorted out now." Truth be told, nothing was sorted out. Harry still had a hundred more questions he wanted answering by Malfoy.
Thankfully, she left it at that.
He looked over at the Slytherin table; Draco was sitting with his back towards them, the wounds conviniently concealed beneath his robes. Nobody would be able to tell that there was anything wrong, but as Harry was looking for traces of pain, the fact that Malfoy was slightly hunched over jumped out at him.
---
After they had eaten, Harry rushed to catch up with Slytherin, though not quite sure of his reasons. "Malfoy!" he shouted, biting his lip as he realised people had actually turned to look at him.
Draco kind of laughed nervously before grinding to a halt. "Harry, Hey." he with a tight smile.
"Uh..." Harry began, winging his words. "Do you want to go for a walk?"
"A walk? You asking me out on a date, Potter?"
"No!" he exclaimed, putting his hands up in defense. "No, I wasn't. I was just wondering if you wanted to talk about anything. Y'know... get to know each other a bit."
Draco shrugged, "Not tonight. I'm tired and my back hurts," he said the last part quietly. "I'll be happy to join you tomorrow though?"
"I was also wondering if you'd cleaned and bandaged your back," Harry added. "I know the wounds looked pretty deep and to get them dirty would be terrible,"
"Well, I can hardly reach." He muttered, confirming Harry's suspicions that the wounds had been left totally untreated. "Give me a hand if you will."