Chapter four.
/Parseltongue/
When Harry awoke he found himself lying, naked, in front of the fireplace. He groaned quietly as he sat up and discovered he had a pounding headache and most of his muscles were beyond sore. Harry staggered into the bathroom and turned the shower on; he stepped under the hot spray and moaned. He scrubbed the sweat from his body using with the bar of soap he found on the shelf and then used it on his hair.
After his shower he wrapped a towel around his hips and ventured out into the main sitting room again to search for his clothes, which he found all over the place, in tatters. His glasses were on the floor in front of one of the armchairs and he quickly put them back on.
It was then that the metal door swung open and Pomfrey came in with a change of clothes and a pair of fancy black shoes. "Well I see you haven't made much of a mess" she said as she flicked her wand at the remains of Harry's clothes and they disappeared "I suggest buying new clothes next Hogsmeade weekend, Mister Potter." She handed him the pile of clothes in her hand and smiled. "A house elf brought these to me last night."
Harry thanked her and she left with a nod, he quickly threw on the faded jeans and the long-sleeved t-shirt that had a Hungarian horntail in flight on the front. He looked down at the miniature beast and it puffed out its chest proudly. The shoes were actually the ones he wore at the Yule ball, he didn't think they went with the casual clothes he was wearing but shrugged and transfigured them into a pair of dark green muggle converse. Then he joined the Medi-witch in the infirmary. "Are you feeling alright Mister Potter? No sickness?" Harry shook his head and then winced "just a headache" he groaned as he rubbed his temples. Pomfrey chuckled and then gave him a headache reliever "that's to be expected, now off to the great hall with you!" she said as she took the empty vial from Harry, smiling sadly she watched him run from the infirmary.
The great hall was empty except for a handful of grumpy Ravenclaws and a couple of Hufflepuffs. Harry sat in his usual place somewhere in the middle of the table, facing the rest of the hall and made up a bowl of porridge with honey.
Ron and Hermione entered the hall shortly after and Ron sat as far away from Harry as possible without being too far to listen to any gossip. Hermione smiled in way of apology and Harry shrugged, he had expected as much from the red head after the events the other day but he didn't expect Ginny to sit next to him, so close she was practically in his lap.
She turned to him and smiled sweetly "morning Harry" she said in a voice that she must have thought sounded sexy but actually sounded like she smoked too much. "Morning Ginny" he mumbled into his goblet of pumpkin juice. "Where were you last night?" she asked and Harry could have slapped himself. 'of course Ginny would notice' he thought to himself, Ginny Weasley could have been Harry Potter's personal stalker with the amount of time she spent following him around and now that she had mentioned it Hermione was staring at him in realization, like she hadn't actually noticed that he hadn't been at the Gryffindor dorms for at least two nights.
"I was at the infirmary" Harry mumbled around a spoonful of porridge. He knew he wouldn't get out of this by lying now that Hermione was involved. "Whatever for?" Hermione asked beating Ginny, who was now glaring at Hermione, in asking. "Just a little accident, nothing to worry about!"
"Two nights Harry, why where you in the infirmary for two nights?" Hermione asked lowering her book and Harry saw Ron grimace beside him. If ever Hermione would stop reading her book you knew you were in trouble.
Harry sighed "I fell down the stairs whilst I was out after curfew, McGonagall found me and gave me detention, I had to help Madam Pomfrey in the Hospital wing and we finished really late so she let me borrow one of the infirmary beds for the night." Harry hoped to Merlin that his lie had been believed and when Hermione nodded and stuck her nose back in her book he gave a mental cry of victory.
"Oh Harry you must be so tired!" Ginny said as she leant on Harry's shoulder, he groaned quietly and looked around him for help his eyes caught furious silver ones and he pleaded with his eyes for Draco to do something. Draco smirked and Harry could have cried when the Slytherin stood and strolled towards the Gryffindor table. Harry actually sighed when Draco stopped behind him.
"Hey she-weasel selling yourself out again?" he sneered and Ron shot up from his chair "take that back Malfoy!" he yelled and the rest of the great hall fell silent as they watched eagerly for the fight to unfold.
"No, I don't think I will" Draco smirked and Ron pointed his wand at the blonde's face "take that back or I'll hex-"
"Mister Weasley put your wand away this instant!" McGonagall yelled shrilly as she stepped between the two "Mister Malfoy, back to your table. Mister Weasley you shall attend Detention tonight with Professor Slughorn!" Ron groaned and then left the great hall, stomping and pushing past a group of second years who had just come through the door.
McGonagall shooed Draco away and Harry mouthed a 'thank you' at him. Draco grinned cheekily and mouthed 'Coward' back and then he went back to his table where Blaise and Pansy began questioning him.
"I hate him!" Ginny growled from her spot beside Harry, her cheeks were flushed red and her hands were clenched around a spoon. "Why didn't you say anything, Harry?" She asked as she dropped the spoon and pasted a fake smile on her face "about what?" Harry asked distractedly as he read through the Quidditch section of the Daily Prophet.
She made an irritated sound and grabbed his arm; he looked at her "about what? Harry a Slytherin just insulted me; your girlfriend!" she growled the last two words and Harry frowned "I don't remember asking you out."
She smiled hesitantly "but you love me right?" she asked, confusing creasing her forehead. "Like a sister Ginny, nothing more."
Harry was aware of all the people watching them and he wished that he could have started this conversation somewhere more private. "What do you mean harry?" Harry sighed and rubbed his hands over his face "I'm sorry Gin, I really am but I see you and all of your family as the Family Inever had. I can't love you the way you love me!"
"But I love you!" she argued and Harry groaned "my whole family and most of the wizarding world expects us to marry, my father has even given us his blessings!" tears were glistening in her eyes now and Harry felt a pang of guilt clench his heart "Ginny, you are a very attractive girl, smart, funny and I'm sure there's someone else out there better for you." He said gently but she shook her head stubbornly.
"NO! I want you Harry Potter, no one else will do!" Harry was beginning to lose patience and he turned to face the youngest Weasley "I'm gay Ginny, now get over yourself!" he growled quietly so only she could hear and then he got up and made his way to the transfiguration classroom, leaving the distressed wails of Ginny behind him.
Harry was the first student to get to transfiguration and McGonagall smiled at him when he entered "How are you feeling Mister Potter?" Harry returned the smile and put his bag on his desk "oh you know, so-so. Oh and Professor, you gave me a detention last night" Harry said simply and McGonagall nodded in understanding "of course Mister Potter." Harry sat in his seat and got his Transfiguration text book out ready just as a commotion in the hall caught both of their attentions "who is it now?" McGonagall mumbled and then a shout answered her question.
"HARRY JAMES POTTER, YOU'RE IN FOR A WORLD OF HURT!" Harry stood when a red-faced Ron marched into the room with Hermione and Ginny trailing behind him. Hermione was trying to pull him back but with his bigger size he was just dragging her along. "What's the matter, Ron?" Harry asked and then fell back with a cry when Ron's fist connected with his jaw.
"Mister Weasley you will cease this behaviour at once, or you will have a week's worth of detentions!" Ron ignored her and towered over Harry who was still sprawled out on the floor holding his aching jaw. "You broke my little sister's heart!" He let Harry stand but then made to punch Harry again, Harry dodged back in time and the meaty fist flew through empty air.
"So help me Harry, when I get my hands on you!" Ron then proceeded to chase Harry around the classroom, he wasn't using his wand so Harry knew he didn't want to do any permanent damage, or he had just forgotten that he was a wizard in his rage, but Harry didn't want to get punched again. "Ron, wait! I can explain!" Harry yelled as he dodged another fist it missed his head but Ron's other fist hit him in the stomach, he gasped when the air was knocked out of him. Ron punched him in the stomach again and Harry fell to his knees.
"My sister not good enough for you huh?" he kicked Harry in the head and Harry saw stars. He could hear faint screaming through the ringing in his head but before he could make sense of the shrill words he felt another kick hit his stomach and he gasped again. He was gradually losing it. That same feeling that he felt at Care of magical creatures was slowly creeping up his spine. Another kick to his chest had him biting his lip to keep in the pained cry and the fang that had lengthened pierced through his lip. He was used to beatings, got them all the time at the Dursley's but he wasn't used to the rage that was burning through his body, urging him to attack, to cause his attacker injury.
The attacks stopped abruptly and when he opened his eyes he saw Ron on the floor beside him; frozen. He gingerly looked up to see McGonagall pointing her wand at the Weasley. She was breathless and looked at the red-head with wide, disbelieving eyes. "class is cancelled, Miss Granger please gather some people to take Mister Weasley to the hospital wing, Mister Potter come with me!" and then she swooped out of the room.
Harry shakily got to his feet and coughed, he swayed and grabbed the nearest table to steady himself then he slowly left the classroom and as he passed Ginny he heard her whisper "you deserve this." And those three words were like an arrow through his heart.
McGonagall stopped a few hallways away in a deserted corridor "take deep breaths Mister Potter." She said when she turned to him "why?" Harry wheezed "look at your hands" she said simply and when Harry did he found thick black, wickedly curved claws in place of his bitten fingernails. They stood in the corridor for at least ten minutes while Harry breathed. Eventually the claws shrunk back into normal human fingernails and Harry sighed.
"I'm sorry Mister Potter but after today's incident I cannot let you stay in the Gryffindor dorms," she said as she began walking again, Harry hurried to follow "normally you would get two choices; your own dorm or be placed in a different house, unfortunately during the war the guest rooms were destroyed and they were never rebuilt so you will have to be placed in another house."
"I have no problem with that Professor." Harry mumbled and McGonagall sighed "there is one other problem Mister Potter, every house is full except for..." she glanced at Harry out of the corner of her eye and grimaced "Slytherin."
They stopped to wait for a staircase to move into position and Harry frowned "oh" McGonagall rested her hand on his shoulder briefly and then cleared her throat "exactly, it will only be temporally until we can find somewhere else of course." They descended the stairs once they stopped and Harry sighed "I don't mind Professor, the Slytherin's haven't been as hostile this year, I'll just have to put alarms around my bed at night" He joked and McGonagall chuckled. "You have my permission to take a break from the rest of your classes today Mister Potter, so I suggest you get some rest. You look like you need it."
They parted ways with a stern 'go to the infirmary' from McGonagall. Harry's shoulders slumped when she disappeared around the corner and he pulled the marauder's map from his pocket, un-shrunk it and murmured 'I solemnly swear, I am up to no good' he checked the infirmary and only saw Madam Pomfrey's and Neville Longbottom's dots.
Neville was on an infirmary bed and Pomfrey was in her office, Harry thought it safe enough to go and so he turned on his heel and went back the way he had come. He passed few Gryffindor's on the way back and none of them hexed or insulted him. 'Gossip's slow today' he thought as he passed a couple of third years.
Neville was asleep on one of the infirmary beds when Harry arrived, his feet dangling off the end. He knocked on the Medi-witch's office door and waited patiently for her. When Pomfrey opened the door she gasped "Mister Potter, what happened?" she ushered him towards a bed and Harry explained what happened whilst she applied paste to his bruises. "Well I never, what a riotous boy." She huffed as she put the lid back on the small jar "put some of this on again before you go to bed." She handed him the jar and then healed the hole in his lip "how is everything else?" she said as she waved her hand, indicating his whole body.
Harry shrugged "fine" she nodded and patted his shoulder "off you go then" Harry hopped off the bed and caught sight of Neville again. "What's wrong with Neville?" he asked as he stood at the end of the taller boys' bed. From what he could see Neville looked fine, there were no bruises, cuts or scrapes. No blood or puss, no warts, no injury of any kind.
"Ah, well during Herbology he was gassed by some plant and it knocked him straight out. He should be waking up soon." And as if he had heard them talking about him he began to stir. His eyes fluttered open and he groaned before rubbing at his eyes, Harry knew how harsh the lights in the infirmary could be. "Ah, finally awake Mister Longbottom? How are you feeling?" the Medi-witch asked as she waved her wand about his head.
Neville groaned again "like I have a heard of hippogriffs stampeding around in my head!" he mumbled and Pomfrey clicked her tongue "Mister Potter could you get Mister Longbottom a headache reliever, you know where they are?"
"Yes, Madam" Harry answered as he entered the Medi-witch's office and grabbed a small vial of the potion from the cupboard and then rushed back into the infirmary, he handed the vial to Neville who drank it quickly "that's better" he sighed and then smiled at Harry. "Hey, Harry what you in here for?" He asked and Harry huffed out a puff of air "Ron and I had a little disagreement."
Pomfrey clicked her tongue but said nothing as she ushered Neville out of the bed so she could straighten the sheets. "What was the disagreement about?" Neville asked as he climbed off the bed "I'm sure you'll find out about it from Ron" Harry said as he ran his hands through his hair "I'd rather hear it from you" Neville said seriously.
Harry laughed humourlessly and slumped onto the bed that Pomfrey had just neatened up "I refused to go out with Ginny and he took it personally, I'm not going to date somebody I don't love just because the wizarding world expects it!"
"There's nothing wrong with that Harry" Neville said and then Pomfrey stood in front of her with arms akimbo "neither of you are injured, I want you out of my infirmary, get to class!" Harry and Neville grinned at each other and left quickly.
The rest of the morning went by quickly for Harry and when he went to the great hall for lunch McGonagall stopped him outside the door "your belongings have been moved into your room in the Slytherin dorms. The password is loyalty; I hope I don't have to remind you to be civil?"
"Of course not Professor" Harry confirmed with a small smile and McGonagall nodded once. "Enjoy your lunch Mister Potter."
"Thank you Professor" Harry waited outside the hall for a moment after McGonagall had entered, mainly to calm his frayed nerves. He knew that news of his and Ron's fight would have spread around the school by now and he was hesitant to face the accusing stares.
He considered not going in and instead having his lunch in the kitchen with the house elves who, he was sure, wouldn't neglect him with demands of what he should or shouldn't be doing as the saviour of the wizarding world but he knew that he would have to show himself to the rest of the school sooner or later. Although he would rather it be later.
Making his decision Harry took in a deep breath before slowly letting it out and pushing open the massive doors. As soon as he did all eyes turned to stare at him and an almost dead silence spread throughout the hall. Harry swallowed nervously before making his way over to the Gryffindor table, he sat at the end and every one close to him shuffled away earning an irritated huff from the saviour.
The hall broke out into quiet murmurs as he started eating; he ignored them and focused on his food it was then that his owl landed in front of him with the daily prophet tied to her leg. He felt guilty buying a new owl after the war but Wynne was a very loyal and loving owl. She was a Bengal eagle owl, an elegant and beautiful bird and Harry loved her just as much as he loved Hedwig.
"Hey there girl" he murmured as he relieved her of her load and fed her a bit of bacon, she hooted consolingly before taking off and flying back out of the high window she had come in from. Harry watched her go before he turned back to his paper and frowned. On the front page was a picture of Surprise, surprise; him.
The picture was one of him shaking the minister of magic's hand. He had awarded with some medal and the minister had offered him a career as an Auror, Harry had declined. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life fighting the bad guys.
It wasn't the picture that had him standing up in anger; it was what the article said;
The Boy-Who-Lived, Bats for the wrong team.
By Rita Skeeter.
Earlier today an Anonymous letter was sent to me at the daily Prophet concerning Mister Harry James Potter, Saviour of the wizarding world and every woman's dream man, according to the Witch's weekly.
The letter had many interesting facts about our Saviour but the one that was most fascinating to me was that Harry Potter, vanquisher of the dark lord is, in reality, a very gay man. The letter also revealed a very shocking secret. According to our Anonymous sender Mister Potter had an unhealthy obsession with the former Deatheater; Draco Lucius Malfoy.
Harry stopped reading and slammed the paper down onto the table making a few of the other Gryffindor's jump in surprise. He glared at Ginny because she was the only person he had told and she smirked back. Growling, Harry stood and left the great hall as quickly as he could, shoving past a group of Ravenclaw's on his way.
He travelled down into the dungeons until he got to a portrait of a huge black snake with golden eyes /Sstupid Gryffindor iss losst!/ it hissed and Harry smirked. For some reason, even though he no longer held a part of Voldemort's soul inside of his scar (which had disappeared after he had 'died' that night), he could still speak Parseltongue.
/Good afternoon Ssnake friend/ he hissed back and the snake's head shot up /ah you musst be the greatss Harry Potter, this one hass heard about you/ Harry frowned and scratched the back of his head /that one knows thiss oness name, may thiss one know that oness name?/ The snake shook its arrow shaped head /thiss one hass no name, thiss one doess not need a name/ Harry smiled at the snake's stubbornness. /will Ssnake friend bid this one enter?/ He asked instead of arguing with the snake.
The snake looked thoughtful for a moment before he nodded his head slowly /thiss one requiress the ssecret wordss next time/ Harry grinned and agreed before the snake opened his portrait.
Harry walked in slowly as he admired the elegance of the Slytherin common room. The room he was currently in was neat and orderly, the floor was clear with hardly a speck of dirt. There were no windows, except for the huge floor to ceiling ones which looked into the murky waters of the lake. Instead greenish lamps lit the room giving it a relaxed feeling. There was a huge fireplace at one end of the room and in front of it were low back black and green sofas. It was the complete opposite of Gryffindor tower and Harry thought he could like living there.
He wandered about for a bit, searching for his room. When he found it he was in a daze, almost every room he had been in had at least two expensive items and a wardrobe full of the latest, luxurious clothing. Each room was decorated differently and he found that one Slytherin really liked the colour red, whom? He did not know.
He sat on the unmade bed in the room he guessed was the one he was to be sharing and sighed. His trunk was sat on the floor by the end of his bed, he waved his hand and it opened, another wave and his wardrobe opened. He inspected the inside and found that it was bigger on the inside. "I love magic" he murmured as he snapped his fingers and his clothes began floating over to the wardrobe and hanging themselves on the hooks.
He arranged his books by hand and lovingly caressed the cover of each book before placing it on the shelf; reading was his favourite thing, after flying of course. He could lose himself in a good story, be someone different whenever he wanted and he didn't have to worry about the consequences.
When he was done unpacking he grabbed a book, sprawled across his bed on his stomach with a pillow under his chin and read while he waited for the Slytherin's to return.
He heard the chattering of Slytherin's just as he was finishing his second book. He sighed, placed the book next to him on the bed and stretched, his muscled groaned after so long of laying still and he moaned at the delicious feeling. The door swung open and Draco walked in, he didn't notice Harry lounging like some cat on the other bed and he walked straight to his bed and turned his back to Harry and began to undress. Draco was pale ivory, all over, once his robes and shirt had been peeled off, revealing a smooth and muscular back and strong arms, Draco turned and Harry stared at the practically hairless body except for a pale shadow trailing down from his navel, which Harry followed with his eyes.
His eyes trailed back up the chest to look at the Slytherin's face but his eyes froze on his chest where three ragged scars taunted him. He had given the beautiful Slytherin those scars and he whined quietly, it was then that the blonde noticed him. His head shot up and he stared, surprised at Harry.
"What are you doing here, Harry?" the Slytherin asked as he tried to subtly hide his scars by putting on a clean shirt. Harry shrugged and rolled onto his back, his head hanging off the side of the bed "McGonagall said it's too dangerous for me to stay in Gryffindor tower, so I've been moved here." Draco sat next to him on the bed and looked down at him "why is it too dangerous?" He asked, frowning and Harry sat up and stared at him incredulously. "You mean you haven't heard?"
"I heard you and the Weasley had a falling out" he said as he tucked a lock of Hair behind Harry's ear. The blonde hissed when he found the bruise on his lover's jaw. "Did he hit you?"
"Multiple times" and then Harry smiled gently, mainly to reassure his Slytherin "but most of the bruises are healed." Draco pulled Harry into a tight embrace and sighed deeply. "The other Slytherin's will keep an eye on you outside of the dorms." Harry shook his head and turned his face into the blonde's neck "I don't need protection" he mumbled and a rumbling chuckle vibrated up Draco's throat "I'm sure you don't Mister Saviour but it would put me at ease."
Harry didn't argue instead he nuzzled his nose against Draco's neck "I've always hated that title" he murmured. Harry felt a vibration travel through Draco's chest as he chuckled "then I won't call you it." Harry pressed a gentle kiss to the Slytherin's collar bone "we should get to sleep." Draco agreed and Harry quickly snatched some pyjamas from his wardrobe and retreated into the small bathroom. He locked the door after him and quickly began to strip off his clothes; he caught a glance of himself in the mirror and frowned.
Harry hated his body; he wasn't vain, far from it. In fact he was very self conscious of his body with good reason; his body was covered in multiple different scars, some from the war but most from living with his relatives.
Harry ran his fingers over one very obvious scar on his chest; freak it said, his uncle had carved it into his chest when he was fourteen after a burst of accidently magic. Just below was another scar, a burn scar. The wrinkled skin was hideous and Harry ran his hand over it as he remembered how it was made; his aunt had pressed a heated metal spatula to his abdomen because he had burnt their breakfast.
Harry looked at his many other scars and felt an indescribable disgust at himself, he looked down at his arms; at the vertical scars lining his arms from wrist to elbow joint, the scars he had made himself. He considered making more but sudden knocking on the door startled him from his dark thoughts. "Hey hurry up Harry; I need to brush my teeth!" Draco called from the other side of the door and Harry hurried to pull on his grey sweats and long sleeved black T-shirt. He cast a quick full body glamour just in case and then quickly brushed his teeth before unlocking the door and admitting Draco entrance.
"Took you bloody long enough" Draco moaned as he barged into the bathroom and began gathering hairsprays and face creams.
Harry left him to his nightly routine and climbed into his new bed he moaned at the softness of the mattress and pillows and was surprised to find the bed already warm, a charm that was forever active in the Slytherin dorms. He drifted off to sleep listening to Draco's gentle humming.
A soft hand trailed down the side of his face, leaving behind it a path of fire. A set of lips caressed the skin beneath his ear before travelling down his neck. Blonde hair brushed against the sensitive skin left in the wake of the lips, sending shivers down the entire length of his body. The other person let out a hushed laugh, amused by his reaction.
Before he knew it, a strong hand was on his chest, pushing him down to a soft surface. The other person hovered above him on their hands and knees.
"Potter…"
The voice was soft and playful. A glint of white flashed in the darkness, the hint of a smile. A hand grabbed a hold of his shirt and lifted. He shifted enough for it to be removed. The same hand then went to his belt, undoing it swiftly. Before he knew it, his trousers were laying next to him. His exposed skin was immediately covered in goose bumps.
The other individual sat up on their heels and removed their own shirt. A flat, pale chest was exposed. In a quick, agile movement, the trousers followed, landing with his. His heart began racing.
Two large hands trailed down his chest. His back arched as jolts of pleasure ran down his spine. The fingers stopped at the band of his boxers. His breath hitched noticeably, and that was taken as approval. The fingers gripped the elastic and pulled. His body was now entirely exposed.
"Potter…"
The voice was different now. It hissed his name coldly and it made him shiver for a completely different reason. He was no longer lying on a soft bed, but chained to a wall, his naked body rubbing against the cold stone painfully. He tugged on his chains with a growing panic and frantically searched the small cell he was in; it was empty except for a stall with a lit candle on.
There was a figure standing in the shadows and he called out to him hopefully. A cold laugh echoed in the cell and the figure stepped forward into what little light the candle was giving out. Voldemort grinned at him; his black robes swirling around his feet in a gentle breeze.
The snake faced man grabbed his jaw in a vice-like grip which sent throbbing jolts of pain through his jaw, he hissed as a wand was dug into his neck.
He was tortured by the evil snake faced man for what felt like hours until eventually the man grew bored and drew back. He hung there gasping breathlessly and watched in fear as the man stripped himself of his robe. Voldemort was pale, sickly so and his skin looked slightly scaly; It reflected the light from the candle like a snakes would.
Voldemort approached him and the boy chained to the wall flinched back in fear when two cold, scaly hands ran down his chest. The hands gripped his waist tightly almost painfully. His mind went blank. All he felt were those hands, he concentrated on the flickering flame of the candle so he wouldn't focus on what he knew would happen next.
His ankles were pulled up and forced to wrap around a slim waist. He was taken quickly but it didn't ease the agonizing pain, he was being ripped apart continuously, every thrust caused a new burst of pain. Voldemorts hot, moist breath on his neck made him shudder in revulsion.
He screamed and Voldemort laughed. He sobbed and pleaded for it to stop but it didn't. He clenched his fists, his blunt, bitten nails digging into the soft skin of his palms, leaving crescent shaped cuts.
Voldemort tensed and grunted as the hardness inside of the small boy throbbed violently. The dark lord spilt his seed into the abused hole; creamy white mixing with ruby red. The boy's legs were dropped and he hung there, his eyes blank and his breathing shallow.
The snake-like man dressed and left, chuckling darkly. The candle went out and the boy was left in the pitch black, there were hands on his shoulders suddenly, shaking him and he struggled, screaming again, fearful that Voldemort had come back.
Harry's eyes snapped open and he sat up quickly almost head butting Draco who was stood over him with a scared expression on his face. Harry looked around in a panic, his wand aimed at any potential threat, the dream of his most feared memory still holding him. "Harry?" Draco said quietly, afraid that any noise, no matter how quiet, could set Harry off on a defensive rage.
The raven haired teen turned to his Slytherin lover slowly, his eyes were still slightly glazed over from sleep but they cleared quickly when they landed on Draco's face. "Harry, you were screaming. What happened?" Draco demanded and Harry's eyes filled with fear.
Voldemort is dead that will never Happen again.
Harry put his head in his hands and began tugging at his fringe. Draco pulled his hands away and his thumbs began absentmindedly rubbing small circles on Harry's wrists. "What's wrong, Kitten?" Draco murmured and Harry looked up at the blonde confused.
Draco blushed prettily and shrugged "a nickname, because of your Animagus" he smiled slightly "Panther didn't really sound right."
Harry giggled quietly and sighed "I like it... Dragon" Draco blushed again but there was a small smile on his face, then he became serious "are you going to tell me what happened?" Harry ducked his head and chewed on his lip. "It was just a nightmare." Harry mumbled nonchalantly and Draco sighed "you were screaming Harry" he said again and Harry whimpered. "Please tell me Kitten, it will help if you talk about it."
Harry shook his head, he couldn't tell Draco about the dream. He was soiled, impure and Draco wouldn't want him if he knew, he would leave and harry wouldn't be able to live if he lost his mate along with everyone else, wait... Mate? Did he just refer to Draco as his mate? But he had no creature inheritance... oh, the werewolf. Harry had forgotten about that catastrophic accident.
Harry looked up into Draco eyes and something, somewhere inside him sparked to life and practically purred. "You're my mate" Harry mumbled so quietly that it was barely above a whisper "pardon?" Draco asked thinking that Harry was trying to tell him about his night terror.
"You're my mate" Harry said louder and Draco's eyes widened in surprise. They sat in a shocked silence for a moment before Draco took in a sharp breath "your mate, me?"He asked with a slightly croaky voice, Harry nodded and Draco coughed "are you sure?" Harry nodded again and Draco looked away quickly.
Harry felt a sense of dread start to build up. 'He's going to reject me' he thought and he looked down at his hands with tears in his eyes but he refused to cry "you don't have to be with me if you don't want to."
He said loud enough for Draco to hear and the blonde teen's head snapped around to stare at him "I know most people wouldn't want to be with me if they knew what I was."
"Of course I want to be with you Harry!" Draco cried. He cradled Harry's face with his hands, forcing the smaller teen to look at him "but do you really want to be with me, the ex-Deatheater?" Harry grabbed Draco's hands quickly, his eyes wide with understanding, his mate wasn't rejecting him! "That doesn't matter to me Dragon you should know that, I love you. Nothing and no one will ever change that!" Draco stopped breathing and Harry pulled away in surprise, he had just said the forbidden word, the word that keeps breaking his heart.
He promised himself he would never use that word but he just had and now he would be rejected for sure. Before Draco could even gather his thoughts Harry was running for the door, Draco jumped up and caught him before he could escape. Draco expected him to struggle but instead he went stiff and refused to move or even look at Draco for that matter, his eyes were scrunched closed and his fists clenched at his sides.
Draco studied him in silence for a few moments and then sighed; he saw Harry flinch and enveloped him in a tender hug. The smaller teen relaxed slightly and then tensed back up again "what's wrong Harry?" Draco asked gently and Harry shook his head stubbornly. Draco tightened the hug and asked again.
Harry let out a sob that racked through his whole body "I said the forbidden words."
"Forbidden words?" Draco asked confused and Harry sobbed again as tears began running down his cheeks. "I love you, they are the forbidden words, every time I say it to someone they hurt me or someone kills them, so I promised myself to never say them again and I just did!" Harry held onto Draco's night shirt like a life line, his knuckles white from the grip.
Draco waited until Harry was more composed and when his gut-wrenching sobs turned into uncontrollable hiccups he lowered his mouth to Harry's ear and kissed it gently "I love you too," He whispered gently and Harry froze, the Gryffindor's head slowly lifted and he stared at Draco, his eyes were a tornado of emotions; fear, wonder, hope and love were just a few of the most noticeable ones.
His green eyes flitted over the pale face, searching for any sign of a lie and when he found none a wide, ecstatic, grin stretched over his face and Draco was captivated with the beauty of his mate.
"You love me?" Harry asked and his hands hovered over Draco's face afraid that if he touched him he would disappear, although Draco's hands were placed quite securely on Harry's hips. "Say it again?" Harry asked breathlessly and Draco smiled affectionately, he kissed the tip of Harry's nose "I love you".
"Again?" Draco kissed his temples "I love you."
"I love you so much" the blonde mumbled against the tan column of Harry's neck, he nibbled the delicate collar bone and then left another kiss mark symmetrical to his first one. "Love you, Kitten."
Harry was panting harshly now and Draco lifted his head, he leaned in until their lips were almost touching and whispered it once more before he devoured the smaller boy's mouth. Draco nibbled and licked at Harry's mouth before gently pushing his tongue into the unresisting mouth; he tasted every inch of the moist cavern and moaned quietly when Harry's tongue began to return the favour.
They pulled apart and rested their foreheads together, panting, their breaths mingling they were both in a state of arousal but they didn't go any further instead they both climbed into Harry's bed and drifted off into blissful sleep.
Draco awoke slowly and grumpily, he was not a morning person, everyone who knew him would agree. The first thing that registered in his hazy mind was the two green eyes staring up at him. "Morning" the eyes said and Draco replied sleepily. The eyes giggled and something rather large and warm wiggled against his side. Draco looked down and realized it was a body and from what he could feel this body was very well formed, all firm muscle.
Draco ran his hand down the hard stomach and frowned when it twitched "erm, Draco" the Slytherin ignored the voice and continued moving his hand down until he got to an interesting piece of anatomy that was standing up to meet him. He ran a finger along the length and heard the voice gasp, another hand grabbed his and he looked at the offending appendage in confusion.
"let go" he grumbled, a rumbling laugh filled his ears and he found himself looking up for the source and he collided with those gorgeous green eyes again and being more awake then he was before he noticed the face surrounding those eyes and he blushed "sorry" he mumbled as he pulled his hand away from Harry's crotch. "Oh I don't mind Draco; I just really need to use the loo." Harry said cheekily and then stumbled out of the bed and toward the bathroom, clothes following behind him from his closet, he closed the door behind him and Draco frowned, was he not allowed a sneak peek?
Now that he was fully awake, Draco slowly clambered off the bed and stretched, his back popped and he groaned in satisfaction. He collected his toiletry bag and laid some clean robes out on his bed and waited for Harry to finish.
Harry walked out in the same sort of clothes he usually wore; a black and white striped, long-sleeved t-shirt that was too big, it hung off one shoulder to reveal unblemished, tanned skin. There was something about the bit of skin that put Draco on edge but he couldn't place why. It felt like something was missing, like there was meant to be something on that piece of delicious looking skin. Draco stared at that bit of skin for a moment before shrugging and putting it off to ask Harry about later.
He had blue, faded and ripped jeans on his legs and Draco supposed they were styled like that but they were too long and held up with an old black leather belt. On his feet were some old, banged up sneakers.
Draco sneered at the peasant like clothes and scoffed "those Muggles had no idea what they were doing, next Hogsmeade weekend; I'm taking you clothes shopping!"
Harry smiled and pulled on his school robes, he had bought himself a few new clothes before the start of the school year but he thought he didn't deserve to wear anything but his cousin's old second hand stuff. A thought that had been beaten into him by his uncle.
Draco entered the bathroom and kept the door slightly open so when he turned the shower on steam drifted through the crack. Harry decided he would go wait for him in the common room so he threw his textbooks in his backpack and grabbed a book to read while he waited. The common room was empty when he got down there but after he settled on one of the black armchairs Slytherins began emerging from their rooms, they were chatting loudly until they caught sight of Harry.
An uncomfortable silence filled the room and distrust emanated from the Slytherin's in almost visible clouds. Pansy and Blaise pushed through the crowd; Pansy was mumbling about manners and not blocking hallways that are in use. Blaise on the other hand smiled at Harry "morning, Potter" at the sound of his name Pansy turned to glare at him "what in Merlin's name is a Gryffindor doing in here?" she yelled and Harry saw Blaise wince.
"Yeah, maybe I should have announced this last night," Blaise mumbled, he was the Slytherin's head boy this year. "Announce what Zabini?" Pansy growled and the Italian boy smiled apologetically "Potter's going to be living in the dungeons for the rest of the year?" he finished as a question when Pansy's face began turning red. "And you didn't think it important to warn us before we had to face his ugly mug!?"
"We all know you don't think he's ugly Parkinson!" Blaise replied angrily, standing chest to chest with the shorter girl who turned even redder, because of anger or embarrassment? Harry didn't know.
"Whatever so he's kinder hot, doesn't mean I wanna have to share a room with a bloody Gryffindot!" Blaise growled "get over it Pansy, he's staying! It's already been agreed!"
Harry looked between the two as they stared angrily at each other and got up, he put his book in his bag, after dog-earing his page, and cleared his throat to gain the attention of the room. The Slytherin's glared at him, everyone except Blaise, and he smiled weakly "please don't argue, I don't want to be a problem."
"Oh, saint Potter. Of course we'll do as you say!" Pansy said sarcastically and bent in a mock bow. Harry looked at her with hurt and surprise in his eyes. "Erm..."
"Why don't you do everyone a favour and go jump in the lake!" Pansy growled and Harry reeled back at the venom in her voice. "DON'T TALK ABOUT MY MATE LIKE THAT!" everyone spun around and stared at a seething Draco Malfoy "don't talk about him like that you blast ended-skrewt!" He growled at a blushing Pansy.
"Your mate?" someone in the crowd asked and Draco's eyes widened, he looked to Harry who shrugged and smiled slightly "but you don't have any creature blood Draco" Blaise stated, his brow furrowed in confusion and then his eyes also widened and he looked at Harry in understanding "but he must have!"
Draco sighed and made his way further into the room so everyone could see him "yes, harry is my mate and yes he is the creature but it's not up to me to tell you what!" Draco looked at Harry with an eyebrow raised and Harry nodded. "Now he's going to tell you but I have a few things to say before he does!"
He looked around at the other Slytherins with hard eyes "no one will harm him in any way once you find out the truth, you will not complain and if I find any one being unpleasant to my mate then you are going to wish you had never even had the thought!" he glared at his classmates one final time before looking to Harry and nodding.
Harry swallowed the sudden lump in his throat and stepped forward "A couple of nights ago I made the mistake of taking a walk on the grounds, as most of you probably know it was a full moon on that night," A couple of the older Slytherin's eyes widened in understanding and they backed away slightly causing confusion in the others around them. Harry smiled kindly at those Slytherin's and then carried on.
"Draco was with me also," a few gasps echoed around the room and Harry ducked his head "a werewolf attacked us and I fought it as my Animagus to give Draco a chance to run but unfortunately I was bitten during the fight. I know most of you aren't going to be comfortable living with me down here but I ask you to please bear with it until I can find other arrangements." Harry looked out at the sea of people and saw a mix of many emotions but his hope grew slightly when he saw sympathy in some of those eyes.
They were all silent for a moment before Blaise looked at his silver pocket watch and announced that they were late. The Slytherin's rushed out the portrait door leaving only Harry, Draco, Blaise and Pansy standing in the common room. Pansy glared at Harry before walking out of the Portrait with her head held high.
Blaise placed his hand on Harry's shoulder and grinned "welcome to the snake's den, Potter." Harry smiled weakly "call me Harry."
"Only if you call me Blaise!" he nodded and all three of them walked to the great hall together. When they entered the hall everyone went quiet except for a few people who murmured quietly but all eyes were on the odd trio. Harry tried to swallow the sudden lump in his throat but only succeeded in coughing, but the sudden sound had the students in the hall turning back to whatever it was they were doing before Harry had walked in.
Harry sat next to Draco; nerves slightly frazzled, and piled his plate with pancakes and then began to drown them in syrup. Draco grimaced at the doughy, sticky mess and put together a fried breakfast for himself. "You sure you're going to eat all of that?" Draco asked and Harry paused in his cutting to stare at Draco who struggled to defend himself "it's just I've noticed you haven't been eating very much lately!" he blushed brightly and stared down, determinately at his breakfast.
"Thank you for noticing" Harry mumbled with a small, sweet smile on his lips "not many people do and yes I will be able to eat it." And with that said Harry began to eat his bite size pieces of syrupy pancakes.
Draco cut his fried egg in half just as a loud screeched alerted him to the arrival of the post, he caught his bundle out of the air and snorted when Harry missed his and it bounced off his head, narrowly missing his sticky food by a few centimetres. Harry blushed and sorted his letters into two piles. One of which was quite tall but he pushed it aside in favour for the two he hand in his hands. "Who are they from?" Draco asked quietly and Harry shrugged "I don't know... fans?" Draco gaped at the pile "you get fan mail?" he asked incredulously. "Why the sound of surprise?" Harry asked cheekily as he tore open the first letter.
His eyes skimmed the letter and once finished he rubbed his hand over his face "what's wrong?" Draco asked as he tried to read the letter. Harry passed him the latter and sighed "Mrs Weasley, apologizing for the way her children acted." Draco sneered but didn't say anything.
"Who's the other one from?" Draco asked and Harry looked at the seal "I'm not sure" he checked it for hexes and when he found none he carefully opened it, half expecting something to jump out and attack him. When nothing did he carefully read the short note and froze.
He sat like that for a moment, completely rigid and his face blank. A wind started to build up in the hall and everyone looked around confused. Even McGonagall was looking slightly worried at the teachers table. The wind got so strong that it almost blew several people off of their seats. Harry stood slowly, the wind seemingly not bothering him, and he walked over to Gryffindor table with the aura of a killer.
When he got to Ron the wind died and everyone went quiet as they realized what had happened. Harry was glowing, it was an eerie sight and out of the corner of his eye Draco saw McGonagall stand, several other Professor's following her lead as they quickly made their way towards Harry before something severe happened.
Harry was standing in front of the smirking Weasley completely stock still. The redhead faltered for a moment, his smile melting away into slight fear.
Ron had seen Harry have one of his episodes and he knew not to cross him when he was angry.
The redhead stood quickly, planning to run before Harry came back but he was too late and Harry's arm shot out and back handed Ron across the face, the resounding crack echoed throughout the hall, sending him slamming onto the Slytherin table. Pansy screamed as the jug full of pumpkin juice was tipped over and its contents were splashed all over her.
Ron scrambled off the table and looked at Harry who apparated right in front of him, Harry kicked his ex-best friend to the floor and glared down at him with glowing wolf eyes. "Is that really what you think of me Ron?
After all this time? After everything we've been through together?" Harry growled as he towered over the other Gryffindor.
Harry straddled the redhead's waist and fisted his hand in his hair and pulled Ron's head up, the Weasley grunted in pain and reached up to claw and pull at the smaller teen's hand. "I might have the money and fame, but I'd trade it for a family like yours any day!"
Harry pulled his fist back and punched Ron square in the face, the crack of his nose breaking echoed around the room and made half the hall flinch. It also shook everyone from the shocked trance they were in and as the punches rained down on Ron his friends tried to pull Harry off of him, with no success.
McGonagall's stunner ricocheted off of Harry's wandless shield and hit a random student in the watching crowd; some of the students giggled but then went silent after a glare from the headmistress. Draco shook himself from his shocked trance and ran towards where Harry and the Weasley were brawling.
Harry was snarling at the prone figure of the red-head; using his claws now instead of his fists. Draco jumped at his Gryffindor lover but was thrown back by an invisible force. "Harry, stop!" he called hoping that, like during care of magical creatures, the sound of his voice would stop him. It didn't.
Draco tried to grab him again and as he got closer he slowed, Harry's magic was thick in the air. It felt like he was wading through a deep swamp. The closer he got to the two Gryffindor's, the harder it got to move.
The noise of the hall became a muted buzz and all Draco could hear was the sound of flesh hitting flesh. Draco grabbed Harry's arms and pulled him back, they both stumbled to the ground and Harry spun to snarl in Draco's face.
The blonde boy could see the wolf in Harry, his eyes were a glowing green and fangs protruded from his lips. His jaw had started to elongate and his ears had started to point.
Draco cradled the raven-haired boy's face in his hands and stared determined into green eyes "calm down, Harry" another growl ripped from the Gryffindor's chest and Draco glared at him. "Don't give me that, Mr big bad wolf, you need to calm down."
Draco pointed down at the motionless figure of the Weasley beside them "you almost killed him Har and you've scared half of Hogwarts to death."
Harry looked down at his ex-best friend and whined, Draco could feel the magic around them fading away and he sighed. "I'm sorry" Harry mumbled and then, for the second time, Draco witnessed his Animagus transformation and then, for the first time ever, Draco witnessed a fleeing Harry potter.
McGonagall quickly quietened every one and soon they were all seated and were eating again. Draco spotted the note Harry had read before his outburst and read it.
You're a self-satisfying coward that always gets what you damn well want. You get all the glory because you're the boy that wouldn't fucking die! Watch your back you fucking fag!
Draco glared down at the hate-note and Blaise leaned over to read it also, he scoffed and glared in the direction of the Gryffindor table.
"Better keep that, we'll use it for blackmail material." Draco nodded and pocketed the small slip of paper "now what should we do to get back at them for our little Harry?" Blaise mumbled to himself.
After the war Harry and Blaise had reached a silent agreement and Blaise had even come to like the self-sacrificing Gryffindor especially after he had heard the golden trio discussing Harry's sorting. Well more like the Weasley yelling at Harry for being a 'snake in disguise'.
Blaise had found himself respecting the Gryffindor. He had lost so much yet he kept up a cheerful mask. Oh Blaise could see right through this mask, being a master of the art himself, he could see the anguish and the fury and he sympathized with the green eyed saviour. "Nothing, I think he's gotten what he deserved" Draco mumbled and out of the corner of his eye he saw Blaise pout "but I won't stop you if you if you be subtle about it and don't mention what you're going to do to Harry." He said a signature Slytherin smirk on his face.
The sun was setting, the sky bleeding a brilliant orange. Every single Slytherin was out searching for the elusive Harry Potter.
Draco watched his fellow Slytherin's running, yes running, about Hogwarts grounds. Rustling through bushes and climbing up tree's "keep looking; it's still not safe for Harry!" Blaise yelled and the Slytherins nearest to him nodded and ran off.
Draco stood a few metres from the edge of the forbidden forest, his eyes carefully scanning the shadows for any sign of a panther. "We're going to find him, Drake" Blaise comforted as he draped his arm over the blonde's shoulders. The blonde Slytherin sighed and shrugged off his friends arm "I'm not too sure" he mumbled, still staring determinedly at the forbidden forest.
"You think he's in there?" Blaise asked disbelievingly "would he really be that foolish?" Blaise glanced at the gloomy forest and then back at the blonde who was staring at his fellow Slytherin with one eyebrow raised. "Yeah, you're probably right" he concluded with a nod.
"There's nothing we can do until he decides to come back." Draco murmured dejectedly and with one last longing look at the forest he turned on his heel and trudged back up into the castle.
Harry stood crouched in the shadows under a large bush and watched Draco as his eyes searched the forest. A shiver cascaded down his spine when the silver gaze roamed over his hiding place and when he turned away Harry let out a quiet whimper. Harry had wanted to be found, he had wanted to know what it felt like to know that there were people who still cared enough for him to not give up on him.
He huffed quietly when all the other Slytherin's followed their prince back into the castle and the young Animagus decided to chase some rabbits to pass the time, he didn't want to go back just yet because he knew that when he got back Draco would be there to scold him.
After his rabbit chasing episode he collapsed in a heap next to a small bubbling stream. As he relaxed he listened to the beautiful sounds of unicorn song.
Their singing was so calming that he soon found his eyelids too heavy to keep open and after a quick debate he decided he had been away long enough and as he slunk back up to the castle he hoped that all the Slytherin's were asleep.
The exiled Gryffindor skidded to a stop at the portrait leading to the Slytherin dormitories and gazed up at the large snake in the frame. Harry sat in front of it and opened his jaws in a cat-smile.
/Hello again Harry Potter/. The snake hissed and the Animagus snorted, sitting on his haunches and tilting his head curiously /good evening snake friend/ the panther hissed and Harry was pleasantly surprised; he had never tried speaking Parseltongue whilst in his Animagus.
The snake nodded once and then shifted his coils. /Password?/ Harry snorted and stood again /loyalty/ he murmured and crawled through the portal once the portrait had moved.
He crept through the common room, his paws making no noise and bounded up the stairs to the boys dormitory. The door to his and Draco's room was ajar and he squeezed through the crack. He looked towards Draco's bed to find it occupied by the sleeping blonde.
He jumped onto his bed and began arranging his blankets into a nest of sorts "Lumos" Harry spun at the mumbled words and then clamped his eyes shut as he was blinded by light "sorry" was murmured and Harry opened his eyes again to see an angry looking Draco Malfoy sitting up in his bed. "Where were you?" Draco asked only cringing slightly when he realized he sounded like an angry housewife scolded her husband for being late.
Harry leapt onto his Mates bed and began gently rubbing his head under Draco's chin, huffing comfortingly. Draco's resolve shattered and he reached up to scratch between the panther's ears. "Not gunna change back?" The Slytherin asked and Harry's ears flattened against his skull. "I'll take that as a no?"
Harry slumped heavily into his Mates lap, purring loudly. "You big kitten" Draco teased before bending at the waist and burying his face in the fur on Harry's neck. He sighed and then flopped back onto his bed and cancelling his Lumos. "Good night Harry" he mumbled sleepily, his hand still massaging small circles into the spot behind the Panther's ear.
Harry huffed a goodnight back and closed his eyes as his mates hand slowed and eventually stopped in its massaging.
TBC.