Pulling Him Up

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CHAPTER TEN: TRUST
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Draco's mind had been blessedly quiet for the past few nights, but its tranquillity was shattered with the echoes of Harry's words. The latter had openly admitted that he had missed Severus, and Draco was confused, angry and torn all at once. Then he felt guilty and looked past the unconscious wizard to watch Harry.

It was confusing. He was jealous because he missed Severus as well, and that he was of a mind that Severus was his first. He was confused, because Harry had given him affectionate looks when he was resting. He found that he liked having those emerald eyes on him, especially when they're dreamy and soft, with just a hint of a smile.

He shook his head gently to clear his thoughts and licked his dry lips. Suddenly, Harry stopped and Draco looked at him inquiringly.

"I think I heard something," Harry whispered and wriggled his eyebrows at the greasy-haired wizard.

Draco snorted derisively - Harry looked ridiculous doing that.

"... obnoxious Gryffindor..."

He blinked. That had definitely come from Severus. "You must feel very special, Harry. He even grumbles about you in his sleep."

"... Slytherin brat..."

An affronted expression dawned on his face and he sniffed disdainfully. "A brat indeed, Severus," he remarked sarcastically. He glared at Harry when the Gryffindor chuckled.

Severus was quiet and had remained so after they had passed the hospital wing. However, Draco turned slightly cold when his eyes met with the school nurse's. He looked away quickly.

"He finally did it," Madam Pomfrey observed. "It's a good thing that the two of you had brought him up instead of putting him in his dungeons."

Draco sensed the nurse's mood change slightly. Before he could apologize to her, for hexing her nights earlier, she spoke,

"I don't blame you for what has happened, Mister Malfoy."

He still felt guilty but maintained his silence.

They entered his room and at Harry's instruction, he lifted Severus' legs and laid the Potions Master on the divan.

"Move out of the way and let me examine him," Madam Pomfrey instructed and he stepped aside.

"He'll be all right, won't he?" he asked with a worried frown.

The nurse ignored him for a moment as she checked the unconscious professor. When she completed the brief check-up, she straightened and looked thoughtfully at him.

"He needs to rest in bed for two days at least. His blood pressure is a little low, but he'll be fine after he consumes his potion." Madam Pomfrey smiled slightly. "I shall inform the Headmaster that Severus is unfit for duty for the next several days."

"Mister Malfoy, sir?"

A house-elf holding a hefty tray looked up at him.

"Your dinner and Mister Potter's, sir."

Draco nodded and watched as the creature placed it on the desk. He turned and looked as Madam Pomfrey checked Harry's shoulder. He noticed that the school nurse had a puzzled frown on her face.

"Well, your wound is healing rather nicely." The witch poked her finger at the joint of Harry's shoulder and arm. "I'm going to give you a salve - apply it every morning after you shower and before you go to bed. I also want you to do rotating exercises on that arm."

"All right," Harry responded.

Madam Pomfrey went out to get the medicines and Harry moved over to the desk. Wordlessly, Draco sat down and lifted the lid off his plate. He and Harry ate their meal quietly. Well, Draco tried to eat, but for some reason, he could not even eat half of his venison.

"It's okay, Draco. Don't force yourself to eat," Harry said softly, and relieved, Draco put down his fork.

Another house-elf appeared, this time with a small tray with vanilla ice cream.

He perked up and looked at Harry hopefully. That ice cream looked appetizing to him.

"I'm sure you won't get into trouble since it's not chocolate," Harry said with a small smile.

Draco smiled a little in response and lifted the small bowl. He lingered on his dessert and ignored Harry's little smile of amusement.

Madam Pomfrey returned with a small basket and she waved Harry over to Severus' side. Draco listened intently as she instructed Harry about the potions that Severus needed to take, and sniggered when the nurse also gave him a note.

"Please make sure you read the instructions very carefully, Harry."

Harry blushed and muttered, "I will try."

"Now you need to give him one spoonful of this."

"But how? He's asleep." Harry frowned.

Draco tilted his head to one side as he heard the nurse whisper something too soft for him to catch. Then Severus groaned and he watched as the Potions Master writhed in bed.

"Let me sleep," Severus growled sleepily.

"You have to drink something first," Harry said and coaxed Severus into a sitting position.

He wanted to watch Harry care for Severus but then Madam Pomfrey approached him and checked him while he finished his ice cream.

"Something has to be done about your appetite," the nurse mumbled. Draco sat still as he locked eyes with her. "You seem to be fine, but looks can be deceiving. Do you feel distracted?"

"Abstracted will be more accurate," he said quietly.

"I see." Madam Pomfrey stared at him seriously. "If it helps, lad, talk to Harry." After the abrupt and mysterious advice, Madam Pomfrey went back to check on Severus and patted Harry's shoulder with approval before leaving.

He mulled on the witch's words but Harry's actions caught his attention. An expression that bordered on exasperation and amusement became evident on his face as he witnessed the raven-haired teenager making sure that Severus was comfortable. When Harry stepped back to study the figure asleep on the divan, Draco's eyes scanned Harry's back and wished he could run his hand along the wizard's spine. It looked beautiful to him for some reason.

"Do you think we should change him into sleeping robes?"

The abrupt question made him jerk in his seat. Draco looked sharply at Harry, who stared back at him thoughtfully.

"So, what do you think?" Harry asked again.

Draco contemplated the idea. "He is expected to stay in bed," he agreed. "But he might hex you when he wakes."

"But if you're the one who does it, he won't," Harry said with bright, green eyes.

"I doubt it. Who do you think will be the first person he tries to snap at? You or me?" Draco questioned him as he stood. While Harry muttered and swore at him, he searched for a respectable sleeping robe and transfigured it to fit Severus.

Draco stood back and simply studied Harry's hands as they peeled Severus' clothing one by one. He winced, more each time, as Severus' body revealed the scars hidden by the robes.

"He can heal, can't he?" Draco walked up to the couch and looked down at Severus. Somewhat unconsciously, he trailed a hairline scar gently. "Why do you suppose..." His voice trailed away as he contemplated the answer.

"You understand, don't you?" Harry looked at him with a gentle smile stretched upon his lips.

Draco stared at Harry dubiously. "I don't know ... but..." He studied an ugly scar near Severus' navel. "That could have been mine," he whispered.

"Severus, even if he's irrefutably a git, he's not greedy," Harry said softly.

Draco frowned slightly in thought. "So, he does not take this Healing ability of his for granted?" He watched Harry nodding in silent agreement.

"That and he believes each mark he bears is a reminder of those people who he can heal." He fell silent and to make up for it, he helped Harry to redress Severus in his modified sleeping robe.

A few hours later, Draco was ready to go to bed. Harry had just showered and was applying the salve Madam Pomfrey had given onto his shoulder. Watching Harry massage his sore shoulder was making him drowsy and soon, his eyes were fluttering close with the need to sleep.

"Draco?"

He blinked at the soft call and lifted curious eyes on Harry, who looked lost and troubled.

"I have to ask you this, Draco," Harry said with the same, desperate voice. "How can I help you?"

He responded by asking Harry a question. "Why? Why do you even want to help?" he asked quietly.

Harry looked seriously at him. "I just do, Draco. I can't help it - the need to help you. I just..." Harry's expression fell.

Hesitantly, Draco reached out for Harry's hand. "Just stay here," he whispered. "With us." Harry blushed and stared at him with unblinking eyes. "That's enough help."

After several minutes of complete silence, Harry curled his fingers with Draco's.

"That is relatively easy to do," Harry answered with a grin. "I'll stay."

Without a change of expression, Draco smacked Harry's face lightly with a pillow. "I was serious, Harry."

Harry spluttered indignantly. "So was I! You didn't have to do that!"

Draco dreamt that night, and his silent question 'What am I afraid of?' haunted his dreams. Random dreams quickly degenerated into The Nightmare.

It's just a dream. A nightmare. It won't happen again. It's not real.

However, the figures in his dreams changed, and they looked familiar to him.

No... He turned cold.

Don't do this to me...

In his dream, he broke into tears.

No, Harry ... please ... not you...

However, the familiar face continued to leer cruelly.

"I'm going to feel great pleasure taking you," a silky voice drawled.

Harry had been sitting at the edge of the divan and was studying Severus' face when he heard a noise.

"No ... please don't..."

He stood up immediately and went to Draco's bed.

"No ... not you, Harry. Please, don't do this to me..."

Harry felt that unspoken fear unfurling deep inside him. "Draco?" He sat on the bed and touched Draco's temple. The Slytherin did not respond and continued to mumble and whimper. He was not able to stand Draco's agonized expression and so he shook the dreaming teenager until silver eyes started to flutter.

When Draco woke and stared at him with huge, grey eyes, Harry let out a sigh of relief. That however, quickly turned into a howl of pain as Draco pushed him off the bed.

He landed badly, and saw stars for a moment. When he managed to sit up, he dimly realized that Draco was crying.

Why do I keep thinking that I gain more injuries in a week taking care of Slytherins? Harry thought inconsequentially. He stood up and saw the shivering form under the blanket. Ignoring the pain in his back, he clambered up the bed and sat on his heels.

"Hey," he said softly as he tugged at the blanket. "Draco?" He gazed at the huddled form. "It's just a dream," he whispered, and carefully turned Draco to him.

Their eyes met, and Draco started to cry harder and he kept muttering 'I'm sorry' repeatedly.

He hated seeing Draco like this. You don't deserve this, he thought in a mixture of anger and sorrow. He closed his eyes briefly and glanced at Severus, who still slept. It was a good thing that the older man was asleep and was not witnessing this. Harry was certain that Severus' health would worsen if he saw Draco breaking down again.

He took a huge, deep breath and hauled Draco up, so that the silver-haired boy could cry on his shoulder. Harry started to murmur softly in Draco's ear, and hoped that it would calm Draco.

It felt like an hour had passed before Draco stopped crying.

Harry lifted Draco's chin and stared deeply into the pair of stormy-grey eyes. "Tell me of your nightmare, Draco."

But Draco shook his head violently and the Slytherin's eyes started to glimmer with tears.

"Draco, please. I need to know." Harry ran his fingers in Draco's hair and looked at the pale face pleadingly. "I have to know."

"I can't," Draco whimpered. "I can't."

"Please."

"You know what happened to me," Draco whispered.

And I wished that you hadn't had to experience that. "Yes." Harry stroked Draco's cheek. "I know. Why did you push me away?"

Draco's face crumpled into an expression of pain and distress. "You ... Severus ... them..."

Harry wanted desperately to run and never looked into Draco's anguished-filled eyes. However, he did not. He took another deep breath. "Severus and I, replaced your attackers?" Draco nodded slowly. "I will never do that, Draco," he said softly. "Never," he repeated with conviction. "Severus will never do that you."

"How can you know that?" Draco snapped, his voice sounding almost hysterical.

"Because I know he loves you!" Harry swore himself mentally for shouting back at Draco. He tried to tone down his anger.

"You are not he, so do not assume that he does." Draco gazed at him fiercely.

"That is true but it does not erase the fact that I do know." Harry did not want to argue about the issue so he simply embraced Draco lightly.

Draco allowed himself to sag against Harry's strong and comforting figure. Severus loves you. Not me, he thought sadly.

"Draco?"

He did not answer until a minute had passed. "What?"

"Please. Trust me," Harry whispered in his ear.

Trust.

Harry pulled away again. Tiredly, Draco raised his head and he was shocked to find tears streaming from the corners of emerald eyes.

"Draco, please be strong. I need you to trust me on one thing." Harry's voice cracked with emotion. "I will never hurt you like that. I'll never do that to you."

He wanted to curl back into himself but Harry's eyes and arms somehow prevented him from doing so. "I don't know," he whispered.

I don't know if I can trust anyone ever again.

"I don't know," he whispered again.

"I'll never do that to you."

"I don't know." He closed his eyes and felt Harry's arms circling him and holding him tight.

Inside his mind, all sorts of voices were clamoring and demanding to be heard. They were all reasoning out why he could trust Harry.

"Excuse me! This is Harry Potter, hello! One wizard who would go through nine hells to help a friend!"

"He is honorable."

"Use your common sense, you Slytherin brat!"

Draco fell asleep while his inner debate continued to disturb his mind.

He woke up the moment he felt alone, or more specifically, he woke up the minute Harry's strong, comforting and protective arms left him.

No... Sleepily, he made a grab for Harry.

"Ooophf! Ouch."

Draco sighed and curled his arm around the waist of the body lying on top of him. Something clattered noisily beside his head - it sounded like stones falling on each other.

He turned his head lazily, and opened an eye. He saw a green velvet pouch in the clutches of Harry's fingers. "What's that?" he asked sleepily. He watched as Harry poked the opening of the pouch with two fingers and widened the hole.

"Here - pick one," Harry mumbled.

"Huh?" Draco, puzzled, thrust his hand inside the pouch and rummaged around. His fingers touched something that felt like pebbles. Then he felt a peculiar tingling on one of the pebbles and retrieved it from the bag.

Draco shifted on the bed and looked sleepily at Harry's face. The Gryffindor looked expectant and embarrassed at the same time. Draco raised an eyebrow and wondered why, but decided not to look at the matter thoroughly. He liked the feeling of Harry on top of him and knew that he should not think about anything else, in case he did something that would embarrass them both.

Finally, he looked at the pebble and blinked. It was not a pebble but a rune stone. He blinked again as he studied the X-shaped symbol in gold.

"I am the Rune of Trust."

"What in the hell?" Draco gasped, and stared at the speaking stone incredulously.

"Have faith in those who are trying to help you. Trust, so that you may heal your wounds."

Draco gazed hard at the rune, which glowed softly.

"With trust, comes love for the trust, and with it comes happiness. Trust in yourself."

The words of the rune echoed loudly in his mind and he stared blankly at Harry. "I'll try."

Harry smiled, and Draco flushed slightly. He should stop giving me those affectionate looks.

"I'll try and learn to trust you," he said softly. " I know that you will never disgrace me like that."

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To be continued on Chapter Eleven