WOW. I think I got 12 reviews for the last chapter. I could never have expected that kind of response - I'm not used to having over 4ish per chapter anymore (my writing's obviously not as good as when I did WiaSaD XD) Thank you all so very much. There are two more chapters after this, and the drama isn't over yet! ;)

By the time December rolled around, Sebastian had grown. Harry, on the other hand, had not. Every time he tried to eat more than a certain amount, his brain would scream at him not to carry on. He was trying so hard to eat and to learn how to look after Sebastian, but it wasn't working. At first, everyone had thought that he was just being difficult as before, but now, as they saw him attempt to choke down a slice of bread before he went back watch Pomfrey take care of his son, it became realised that something was seriously wrong. Hermione sat with him every other day, bringing his homework. There was really no point now, as it was an unspoken fact that Harry was too behind to catch up, and he would have to repeat the year.

"Harry, just one more bite, then we can stop."

"Please, Hermione, I've tried! Look – I've eaten a whole one already…" Hermione thought it was pathetic what her friend had been reduced to, a stack of bones and skin, everything angles. She remembered when it used to be pleasant to hug Harry. Now she'd rather hug a corpse, it felt so similar. She put down the fork, a sad piece of pancake drooping off the end.

"Harry, you can't go on like this. Seb needs someone to look after him, and you need professional help. You have to give Madame Pomfrey the authority to look after him more fully." Instantly, his face screwed up. Hermione sighed inwardly. So many people had tried to have this conversation with him and failed.

"She doesn't understand what he needs! He likes to be fed at a certain time and he needs to be turned every now and then. Only I can do that for him."

"That's wrong, and you know it is. You're barely strong enough to get out of bed in the morning, let alone look after a growing baby. It's not you that feeds him, or you that turns him, it's Madam Pomfrey. You weren't even pregnant long enough for the birth canal to form. Harry, you need help for your... disorder, and – "

"I'm not anorexic! Only girls get that, how many times do I have to say?"

"Harry, you know that's not true. There's nothing wrong with having this problem, okay? But Madam Pomfrey says you have to get treatment or you're not going to last a lot longer. Your kidneys are failing, as you well know, and there's no point in treating it with potions when it will only get worse anyway." Harry's face scrunched up, and she knew she wasn't going to get any more out of him on that subject, so she changed the topic to one she knew would get a rise out of him.

"I told Draco Malfoy everything yesterday." Harry's head shot up, and he looked at her accusingly.

"Why? How could you do that to me?"

"You two have unfinished business, and plus, I wanted to give him a piece of my mind. It was after your date in Hogsmeade that this all happened; I haven't forgotten." Harry blinked. She'd been trying to tell Draco off? But Draco didn't do anything – it was him who'd ruined everything! But before he could speak, Hermione got her things together to leave. Before she left, she threw a comment over her shoulder.

"He'll be coming over in about ten minutes." Harry stared after her in horror.

When the knock came, Harry had worked himself into a state. He'd rearranged the room a few times, but had had to stop when he got dizzy. He'd tried to force down some more food and some of an orange. After running out of things to do, he'd taken to combing his hair, trying to tame it, and checking and rechecking on Sebastian from the doorway. Since that first day, he'd been unable to take more than a few steps into the room, unwilling to do anything that would cause his son harm. While he'd told Hermione that he always held his son, the truth was that he only part of his son that he'd touched was his hand, and he could count the number of times he'd done without having to resort to toes. It was just that every time he gained the confidence to, his son would turn or move, and he'd lose his nerve. Sebastian was still so fragile… of course it wasn't safe for Harry to attempt to hold him yet. He was only following his head this time around.

"Come in," he called uncertainly. The door swung open, and Draco stepped into the room, holding a bunch of flowers and looking uncertain and nervous. It made Harry happier to know that he wasn't the only one with reservations about this meeting. Draco stood awkwardly in the doorway for a moment, before coming in to sit on the chair by Harry's bed. He fiddled with the ring on his finger for a while before actually looking at Harry's face.

"I'm so sorry I walked away." Harry had not been expecting an apology. He'd been expecting Draco to spit in his face and tell him he'd got what he deserved. His silence gave Draco encouragement to carry on.

"I wish I had stayed to listen to you speak that day, Harry. It would have changed so many things… Now that I know the whole story, I'd like to try and make it up to you." Harry could only nod dumbly. Draco coughed; evidently what he was about to say was hard for him to get out.

"Maybe you already had the problem, but I feel really bad for encouraging you that day. You looked nice slim, it's true, but now… now you look skeletal. That Healer, the one in charge of you, says there's a hospital that specialises in problems like yours, eating disorders and all that. It would really mean a lot if you went there. It's your decision when you go, and for how long, but…" Harry began to speak, but a finger on his lips stopped him.

"As a little extra incentive other than getting better, I'd like to ask you something." Draco fumbled in his pocket and brought out a small black box. Harry couldn't believe what he was seeing. Could it be?

"In this box is the Malfoy engagement ring. I would like to ask you to bond with me." Harry finally found his voice.

"We went on one date!" Draco flushed.

"I know, but… this would be beneficial for both of us! I really like you, and I can't think of anyone I'd rather be with… And you need the stability of your own family. If we were to marry, you'd have that…" He trailed off. Harry still wasn't convinced. He really liked Draco, but he didn't love him, not in any sense of the word.

"That's an incredibly selfless reason, Draco. But… we're not in love." Draco gave him a tender look.

"Maybe not now, but many couples aren't when they go into it. It's only through shared experiences that people fall in love. Who says that you can't be married first?" Harry laughed dryly, but Draco wasn't finished.

"And, to be perfectly honest, that's not my only reason." Draco looked around the room vaguely. "Childhood illness. I can't actually father children at all. I'd carry them, but that's not allowed in my family contract. If I did, I'd lose everything. But it also stipulates that I have to have a child by my twenty-first birthday. So far, I've been desperate to find some way of getting around it. No such luck. However, while a child that I adopt does not usually count as an heir, if I marry their parent, it does." Harry nodded. He saw it now. This was more of a business arrangement with the hope of a happy ending. Draco saw his hesitation.

"Even if we fell out, I would never turn the two of you out of our home. And while I could not promise to divorce you if you found love, I would certainly find some way to accommodate it." Harry still didn't know, and he shook his head confusedly.

"Harry, please."