DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything to do with Harry Potter
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Tap tap tap tap tap tap
Draco sat slumped back on one end of the couch, his thumb drumming agitatedly against his phone which was balanced on his leg. Hermione sat next to him, her leg bouncing nervously. Everyone sat in a sort of semi-circle in front of the TV, trying to focus on a movie. No one said much of anything.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap
Hermione grabbed Draco's hand in irritation. "Will you please desist?"
"Will you?" he snapped back. She let go of his hand and repositioned herself, sitting on her previously jiggling leg.
Draco flipped open his phone to check his clock for the millionth time. 57 minutes had gone by. He snapped the phone shut with an annoyed huff. How long does it take to tell the weasel to get lost?
"Let them talk," Hermione whispered. "Knowing them, they'll just have gotten to the point now."
Draco sighed and put his phone in his pocket. He crossed his arms and stared at the moving images on the TV screen, trying to take his mind off it. It wasn't working. Hermione gave him an apologetic look and patted his leg reassuringly. He thought about shaking her off and telling her to leave him alone, but he realized that he didn't care. He just wanted Harry back in the room.
Half an hour went by. Seamus and Susan were busy in the kitchen making various snacks for everyone, as it seemed that going out to dinner was not happening. Dean was beating Neville at a game of Wizard's Chess. Hermione was silently flipping channels while Draco stared off into space.
"Sure been out there a long time…" Dean said quietly, turning to look at the window. Hermione glanced over at the window briefly, then focused on the TV again. By now it was too dark to see anything and no one really wanted to interrupt whatever was happening out there anyway.
"Hey, at least they're talking," Neville added optimistically. "Not like last time."
Draco blinked as he came back from his wandering thoughts and looked over at Neville.
"What do you mean, 'last time'?" he asked suspiciously, eyes narrowing.
Hermione forgot about the reality show she found and turned her attention toward Neville too. He looked confused.
"Well, you know, the last time Ron accidentally hurt him? I don't think they've ever spoken to each other about it. Did he not tell you?"
The hard expression on Draco's face gave Neville his answer. Hermione quickly shut off the TV to listen. He had everyone's full attention now.
"You mean Ron's done something like this before?" Susan's small voice carried over the dead silent room. Neville nodded.
"Fourth year. After Harry's name was called out of the Goblet of Fire. Remember?"
A few nodded. Draco's icy stare never shifted from Neville's face as he continued.
"Well he was pretty pissed off about the whole thing so that night, before Harry had come back from talking with Dumbledore 'n all them, Ron put a spell over all Harry's stuff. He made it so when Harry came back, his stuff would kinda like attack him. But, well you know Ron and spells. It didn't really work out exactly the way he planned. He didn't mean for Harry to get hurt, he just wanted to get some sort of revenge on him, I guess, for being one of the TriWizard competitors. But when Harry walked in, all his stuff went crazy on him, stabbing him and cutting him up something terrible. Ron stopped it as fast as he could, but Harry looked pretty gruesome."
The only sound that could be heard was Draco breathing hard through his nose. He was gripping the cushion he was sitting on so hard that his fingernails almost went through the fabric.
"And how do you know all this?" he spat through clenched teeth. Neville went pale in fear that Draco might attack him.
"I-I was pretending to sleep when it happened," Neville stuttered. "Ron told me a few days later anyway. Needed someone to talk to. I'm sorry, I thought Harry would have told you!"
Draco stood up so fast, Hermione jumped. She stood too, grabbing him lightly by the wrist.
"That was a long time ago, Draco. I'm sure they've put it far behind them."
He glared at her and yanked his hand back. He started for the door when Neville got up in a panic.
"It was just an accident! He didn't mean for anything like that to happen! Just like this time! Ron never meant to hurt Harry, honest!" Neville was trying to block his path, but Draco shoved passed him easily.
"Piss off, Neville." He shot acidly. Don't make me kill you too.
He stormed toward the door and ripped it open, jumping over the four steps and landing steadily on the sidewalk. When he looked up, he stopped in his tracks.
They were gone.
Draco just stood in the middle of the sidewalk, staring at where his love and the weasel should be. He couldn't move. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't feel anything except his sudden emptiness slowly filling up with absolute rage. Everyone had gathered on the top step, not entirely sure what was going on. Hermione ran down the steps behind him and gasped in disbelief.
"They're gone…and they took my car!" she shouted in annoyance.
Draco pivoted and sprinted into the apartment, pushing Seamus and Neville aside who were blocking the doorway. They exchanged worried glances before joining the others on the sidewalk.
"What do you think happened?" Dean muttered in amazement.
Seamus shrugged and gazed back at the open door. "Dunno. But whatever's going on, someone's gonna pay."
They shared a grimace, wondering what Draco was doing and how long it was going to take to convince him not to go out and find Ron in order to kill him.
BOOM!
An explosion followed by the shatter of glass sliced sharply through the midst of their silence. The huddle of bodies jerked in reaction and Hermione let out a high pitched cry of surprise. She grabbed Neville's arm as a thin mist of smoke could be seen snaking out of the ajar door. They all were about to run inside to help Draco when a voice stopped them all in their tracks.
"What the BLOODY HELL was that?!"
Five faces turned to face up the sidewalk as Harry jogged out of the shadows.
"Harry?" Hermione exclaimed, her eyebrows furrowed in utter confusion.
Seamus cut in before Harry could say anything. "Where were you?" he demanded.
"I just…I just went for a walk." Harry answered, lowering his head a little. His eyes were visibly red and puffy from crying.
Hermione's face became soft and sad. "Oh, Harry…" she began, but Susan grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the apartment. That seemed to snap everyone back and remind them of what just happened.
They flew up the stairs and into the apartment, the smoke alarm going off with all the smoke hanging around the ceiling. Seamus whipped his wand out from his sweatshirt sleeve and flicked it at the madly beeping device. Harry called Draco's name, but there was no answer. He found the closet door open wide, and he looked at it for a minute.
Is something missing?
He decided to let it go and went straight for the bedroom, whose door was hanging off the bottom hinge and had light wisps of smoke coiling out of the entry way. Harry stepped cautiously into the room, his jaw dropping at the damage. Nothing existed in the middle of the room except a thick black burn mark that stretched in a gigantic circle. All of the furniture in the room was smashed up against the walls of the room, broken and, in a few cases, burnt. One of the three windows had been completely smashed. Draco was nowhere in sight.
A thought crossed Harry's mind and he forged through some of the debris before coming upon what appeared to be the remains of their bed. The bottom of the frame was somewhat in tact. Except…
The board is gone.
Harry shoved his hand down into the open space where he had stashed both their wands after the fight with Ron. His fingers closed around one…two…no. Not two. Only one wand was there. Harry grabbed the remaining wand and ran back to the closet. He searched around coats and other objects before dropping to his knees in anguish. He realized what was missing from the closet. Draco's broom, his Nimbus 2010.
He was going after Ron. And there was no way Harry could catch him now.