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Chapter VI A gentle breeze blew across the lands surrounding the Malfoy Manor, sweeping Draco's hair into his face, a long, blond tendril tickling his nose. He brushed it away quickly with one hand, tucking the strand behind his ear. Harry cleared his throat, shifting around a little from where he sat on the ground next to the Slytherin, then fidgeted some more, picking at the grass. Draco spared him a short glance, but Harry looked away, his eyes tracing one of the many garden paths leading into the hedge maze. Draco sighed. "You know, I think in order for this whole, 'we need to talk' thing to work, somebody really needs to say something," he offered, still staring at Harry. The Gryffindor finally looked at him, chewing a little on his bottom lip. "Yeah, I guess we do," Harry agreed. He stared at Draco some more, waiting for him to start. The Slytherin was apparently not being very forth coming. "You should go first," Harry said. "I mean, it was your idea to talk." "Fine," came Draco's exasperated reply. "So, you know what's going on, correct?" "Yeah." Harry started to pick at the grass again, but Draco quickly grabbed his hand in his own, stopping the movement. "Cut that out," he said, either not noticing or choosing to ignore Harry's blush as the taller boy looked intently down where their hands connected. "And say, 'Yes,' not, 'Yeah.' Good Lord, Potter, were you raised in a barn or something?" "A cupboard, actually," Harry snapped, pulling his hand away from Draco's, irritated with the boy's condescending attitude. Draco raised an eyebrow, but let the comment pass. "At any rate," he continued, "you know about the reflected spell." "Yes," Harry said peevishly, drawing out the 's' at the end. Draco nodded, an action which only made Harry more annoyed. "How did you find out about it?" Draco asked. "Was it something you and your friends put together with the dreams?" Harry shook his head. "No. I kinda overheard you talking with Snape and--" "'Kind of,'" Draco interrupted, "and 'Professor Snape.'" Harry ground his teeth, resisting the urge to throttle the smaller boy. "Fine! I kind of overheard you talking with Professor Snape and Madame Pomfrey when you were in the hospital wing." "I didn't see you there." Harry rolled his eyes. "Well, I was invisible at the time, obviously," he snapped. "Obviously," Draco remarked dryly, hiding his curiosity with great skill. "Well, since you know about the spell, then you know about the bond between us, and you know there is nothing we can do about it." "I know." Harry looked back at the ground, his face filled with remorse. "And it is all your fault, of course," Draco finished, smirking a little. "Ugh! I KNOW!" Harry shouted, reaching up a hand to pull at his hair. "You don't have to remind me! God, for someone so beautiful, you can be such an ASS!" Draco looked up at Harry, startled, who looked back at him, apparently just as shocked by what he'd said. A small laugh settled in around Draco's chest, but he wasn't sure if he should let it out. Was this funny? It felt like a joke. At the same time, Harry started to look as though he'd like to dig a large hole in the ground and crawl in it, so maybe it wasn't a joke at all. "Ah," Draco finally managed. "So, this opens a whole other barrel, now then doesn't it?" Harry groaned and buried his head in his hands. "I guess it does," Draco finished. "It's just this... dream... stuff!" Harry replied after a moment, his voice muffled by his hands. He looked up a Draco, waving a hand in his general direction. "I mean, look at you! You don't ever look like this in real life! This is all some funky perception of yourself and it's messing me up!" Draco gave himself the once over and shrugged. "I don't look any different, as near as I can tell." Harry gave him a very pointed look. "Since when do you wear leather?" he asked moodily, gesturing to Draco's pants. "And that shirt is so tight, it might as well be painted on. Let's not forget to mention your hair, all long and... shiny." "Well, you've just obviously never seen me without my robes on," Draco replied easily, getting real delight out of watching the Gryffindor squirm. He reached up a hand to run through his long, blond hair, pulling down a piece from the top, crossing his eyes a little to look at it. "Plus, my hair has always been this shiny." He flipped the strand back and gazed at Harry impassively, who was currently giving him a strange look. "What?" Draco asked. Harry blinked slowly before responding. "You wear leather pants under your robes?" Draco smirked. "Wanna find out?" "'Want to,'" Harry corrected. "Not 'wanna.'" Draco shot him an amused glare. "Ass." Harry smiled. * * * * * * "Pinch of powdered marrow root," Severus muttered, tossing the powder into the bubbling cauldron, the mixture turning from a volatile red color to crystal clear, the liquid smoking slightly. "And forty minutes at boil." He turned up the heat then sighed in satisfaction, running a hand over his tired eyes. It was his longest break yet since he'd started working on the Wolfsbane potion. Too bad he had to grade some papers written by his startlingly inept students. "Severus!" The Potions Master jumped, nearly knocking over the cauldron in front of him. He steadied the concoction, then spun around, glaring eyes filled with fury. "Dammit, woman, don't you ever knock?" he growled. Professor McGonagall glared back at him, completely unfazed by his anger. "Explain yourself, Severus!" she barked. "I'm too tired to play guessing games tonight." Severus rubbed at his eyes, then walked past the irate woman, back into his main study. "Tell me what's ticked you off so I can get on with my life!" "Oh, don't pretend you don't know," Minerva snapped, her high-heeled shoes clicking on the stone floor as she followed him. "I know you like to disfavor my House, but honestly Severus, seven hundred and fifty points?!? Not to mention the fact that the entire House is up in arms, rumors flying about that half of my Quidditch team may not be allowed to play in the game the day after tomorrow! Now tell me what's going on!" Severus collapsed in his chair, trying to ward off the headache he could feel building behind his eyes. "It's complicated and needs to be fully discussed with you, the Headmaster, and myself," he told the older woman, meeting her eyes with some difficulty. When she got snippy like this, he often had flashbacks to when he was in her class. It could be very unnerving. "I'll arrange a meeting with him for us tomorrow. For now, you'll simply have to trust me that the punishment more than fits the crime committed by those five." "It's so petty of you, Severus," Minerva continued ranting, "trying to sabotage my Quidditch team all the time." "I don't give a damn about Quidditch!" Severus exclaimed, leaping from his chair and slamming his hands down on his desk. Minerva took a startled step backwards, surprised at his outburst. "There are far more important things at stake! Your precious little Gryffindors are living in some kind of fantasy world! They have no regard for the consequences of their actions!" "Since you're being so unreasonable, I suppose we will have to discuss this with the Headmaster tomorrow," Minerva huffed after recovering from her initial shock. She looked shrewdly down at the large stack of ungraded papers littering the Potions Master's desk. "You obviously have quite a bit of work to do." "So kind of you to notice," Severus replied dryly, retaking his seat and pulling the first paper off the stack. Minerva sniffed and turned on her heel, stomping out of the room, slamming the door behind her. "Bitch," Severus muttered, then picked up his red-ink quill and got to work. * * * * * * Harry walked quickly, trying to keep up with the fast moving blond as he skillfully navigated his way along the Manor grounds, the only light coming from the half-filled moon, the pale glow barely showing the way. "Will you slow down?" Harry asked. Draco glanced back, but kept moving. "I don't know how long this dream will last. I could wake up at any minute." He jumped nimbly over a tree stump in the path, Harry nearly falling on his face. "We might not get back to the Manor again and there's a few things I'd like to show you." Harry rolled his eyes, but managed to keep the pace. "Here," Draco said, stopping short, Harry slamming ungracefully into his back. Draco looked back at the taller boy and smiled. "What do you think?" "What do I think about..." Harry started, then stopped, his eyes going wide behind his glasses. "Wow." "My thoughts exactly," Draco said, looking out on the large field before them. There were horses, maybe twenty or so, Harry couldn't tell for sure. They were hard to see, their rich black coats blending in with the night around them. They pranced along the field, soundless in their movements, their red glowing eyes shinning like beacons in the dark. Two small colts moved close to them as they played, forelegs rising in the air as they pushed each other about. Harry felt a smile tugging at his lips, delighted at the apparent joy and freedom the horses obviously felt as they ran about the field, no fences keeping them bound. "So these are the Nightmares," Harry stated. Draco nodded. "They're beautiful." "'Demon' doesn't always mean 'bad.'" Draco turned, giving Harry a pointed looked. "Neither does Malfoy." Harry looked down at Draco's eyes and nodded. "I'm getting that." He looked up again, then pointed behind Draco's shoulder. "One of them is coming over here." Draco turned back around. "That's Mel." He walked over to the large mare, who shook her head silently and nuzzled Draco's neck, her hot breath making little puffs of steam in the air. Draco patted her back, then gave Harry an odd, but very appealing, smile. "Want to take a ride?" he asked. Harry took the double entendre for what it was and couldn't say 'yes' fast enough. * * * * * * Ron tossed and turned in his bed before letting out a sigh of resignation, throwing off his covers and sitting up. Neville's snoring sounded louder than usual to Ron's tired ears and he barely resisted the urge to throw a pillow in his general direction. Instead, he pulled back his curtains, sliding out of bed, knowing sleep was a long way off. Walking as softly as he could manage, he tiptoed over to Harry's bed, lifting the curtain, hoping his usually insomniatic friend was also awake. Ron frowned, looking down at Harry. He actually had a ~smile~ on his face, looking oddly peaceful and happy. Harry was known for terror-filled nights, You-Know-Who, Dementors, and such usually driving him to fits halfway through his sleep. It would figure the one night Ron couldn't sleep, Harry seemed to be having a very nice dream. Squashing down the selfish urge to shake his friend awake, Ron let the curtain fall back into place, then walked out of the dorm room, deciding to crash out in the common room until morning. Skipping over the trick step, he walked into the room, blinking at the bright light hitting his eyes. Fred and George were already camped out in the room, the fire burning brightly in the grate. They looked up as Ron entered, nodding as one, silently offering him a place on the long sofa next to them. Ron gratefully sat down, watching the flames dance in their stone home, pleased that he wasn't the only one awake, but annoyed that he was awake at all. "So," he began, "you guys couldn't sleep either?" "Nope," George said. "The waiting is..." "... really driving us crazy," Fred finished. "I know what you mean," Ron agreed, used to the twinspeak. "I mean, if Snape wants to get us, why doesn't he just do it already?" Fred and George shrugged together, not having an answer. Ron let out a moody sigh. "This sucks," Ron said after a moment. "It sure does," replied twins. The three of them fell silent, watching the fire dance until morning. * * * * * * Harry let out a tiny laugh as Draco pulled Melpomene out of her gallop, his hands tightening around the smaller boy's waist as the Nightmare fell into a trot, then stopped, overlooking a high cliff, a Muggle town far below in the distance. Harry shook his head, feeling his hair settle back as neat as it ever got. He leaned forward, resting his chin on Draco's shoulder, a little breathless. "That was wonderful," he said simply. "I have to get one of these." Draco chuckled, leaning back into Harry's embrace, his eyes on the town. "She's a fine horse," he agreed, "very easy to control." "What's that?" Harry asked, nodding his head in the direction of the town. "Ffestiniog," Draco replied. "It used to be a slate quarry town, part of the country Gwynedd before becoming part of Wales. The Manor is actually located in the Snowdonia National Park." "I'm surprised you live so close to Muggles," Harry remarked. Draco shrugged. "Funny thing about Muggles - they're everywhere." He twisted around in Harry's arms and met his eyes, giving him a brief smile. "They can't see the Manor, or us, or anything that happens there. I suspect some of them know we're here, but they can't be bothered to do anything about it. We leave them alone, they leave us alone. It's worked for over two-hundred years." Draco shrugged again, then turned back forwards, nudging Melpomene around to make their way back towards the Manor at a slow gait. "It must have been amazing, growing up here," Harry said as the horse skillfully navigated the rocky ground. "I suppose," Draco replied. "I didn't get to leave the Manor much as a child - I rarely spent anytime on the grounds." Harry blinked in shock. "What? Why?" he asked. Draco sighed. "My father has enemies, Harry." The bigger boy jerked a little at the sound of Draco using his first name, the only time he'd ever heard him do so. "I wasn't allowed to leave my parents' sides, even within the Manor walls. I was warded into my bedroom every night. If ever we had to go anywhere, I had to be accompanied by Mother, Father, or Severus." "Severus? Professor Snape?" "Well, he is my Godfather, after all," Draco said, glancing back at Harry and giving him a wry smile. The other boy looked positively floored. "Your Godfather!" Harry exclaimed. "I didn't know that!" "Few people do," Draco said with a chuckle. "It's better that way." He grew more serious before continuing. "Remember that day you saw me at the robe shop in Diagon Alley?" he asked. Harry snorted. "Of course I do. That was the day I decided I didn't like you." Draco smirked. "Yes, well, I should probably apologize for that. You see, that was, I think, the first time my parents had ever left me on my own. They were both off buying the rest of my supplies so we could get out of the city and back to the Manor as quickly as possible. I was frightened." "Don't you think your family was over-reacting a bit?" Harry asked him, a little incredulous at what he was hearing. "I mean, what 'enemies' can your family possibly have to produce that kind of reaction?" "Oh, let me think," Draco said sarcastically. "The Aurors, the Deatheaters, business associates, Ministry opponents, just to name a few." Harry fell silent for a moment. "How did they threaten you?" he finally asked. Draco didn't answer right away. "It's not important," Draco said softly. "My family kept me safe and nothing ever happened. Originally, I was supposed to go to Durmstrang, but Mother worried it would be too far away if something were to happen, so I ended up at Hogwarts instead. Plus, Severus is there, so it made my parents feel even more secure about my leaving home." "It must have been strange, living like that." Harry reached up a hand and brushed Draco's hair back over his shoulder as the Manor came back into view. Draco led Mel back to the field where the other Nightmares still hung about, then dismounted gracefully off the large animal, giving Harry a hand as he slid off her back. "No stranger than living in a cupboard," Draco quipped, patting Mel's hind flank, letting her run back to her herd. "Besides, that's the price you pay for living in high society." "Well, at least this explains why Professor Snape got so angry when he found out about us cursing you," Harry replied, sighing and running a hand through his hair. "I've never seen him that furious before." Draco gave Harry a little grin. "What punishment did he give you, aside from the points taken away, having to apologize to me, and the detentions?" "He wants to take away Hermione's prefect status and remove the other four of us from the Quidditch team." Draco nodded, suddenly remembering Hermione's pathetic plea to Severus after she'd sort of apologized to him. "I don't suppose you can convince him to relax the punishment a little?" Harry asked him, eyes hopeful. "Not a chance," Draco replied with a shake of his head. "Severus has always been a little high-strung, for good reason. Once he's set his mind on something, it's near impossible to get him to change it. But, the Quidditch issue and Hermione's prefect status will have to be discussed with Professor McGonagall and the Headmaster. Maybe cooler heads will prevail." Harry nodded in resignation, knowing that was the best he was going to get, then paused, furrowing his brow. "Have you told him about us?" he asked, mildly alarmed. Draco looked at him as if he'd lost his mind. "Are you serious?" Draco almost laughed. "That man has enough on his plate to deal with as it is. I'm certainly not going to bother his with something like this, something he can't fix. Besides, he's been so busy making the Wolfsbane potion for Mr. Lupin, it would be cruel to further burden him." Harry's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Remus is coming to Hogwarts?" he asked loudly. Draco gave a noncommittal shrug. Harry clapped his hands together, resisting the urge to jump up and down. "Do you know if Snuffles is coming with him?" "Snuffles?" Draco asked, confused. "His dog," Harry clarified. "A big black dog?" "I don't know about that," Draco responded, "but I'm sure Sirius Black will be tagging along. Is that who you're referring to?" Harry nodded. "Yes, that's..." he stopped, eyes going wide as he looked at Draco. "Wait, what did you say?" Draco let out a small laugh at Harry's expression of disbelief. It was a rather cute look for him. "I'm not stupid, Harry," he said. "You think I don't know everything about you and everything about this school? I didn't spend my entire childhood living in constant fear and waiting just to leave myself vulnerable now." "Oh, God," Harry said, looking as though he might faint. "You didn't tell anyone, did you?" "Of course not," Draco replied with a roll of his eyes. "Give me a little credit." "Good," Harry said in guarded relief. He started to say more, but the world around them started to shift dizzily. "I think we're starting to wake up," Draco told him. He gazed at Harry, his eyes unreadable. "This has been... nice," he ventured, "being able to talk to you without all the problems that usually accompany it." "I suppose it is a good thing we can get along," Harry agreed. "We're in this together, whether we like it or not," Draco said. As the world began to dissolve around them, Harry couldn't help but think this might not be such a bad thing. He awoke with a smile on his face. A/N: Finally, we're getting somewhere! Next chapter: Tensions continue to rise in the Slytherin House, Lucius Malfoy makes an appearance, and the meeting with Dumbledore finally takes place! Oh, and Ffestiniog is a real city in Wales. I looked it up, liked the name, checked out some pictures on their travel webpage, http://www.ffestiniog.org.uk , and figured, what the heck? prologue, part one, part two, part three, part four, part five, part six, part seven, part eight, part nine, part ten, part eleven, part twelve back? |