My Last Breath

Harry was standing outside the front door of Hagrid's hut. He took a deep breath in an effort to prepare himself before he knocked. It had been almost three years since Harry had come face to face with Hagrid. They had kept in touch through letters, but Harry had never visited him, and Hagrid was in no state to travel. Hagrid had been badly hurt during the war and the injuries would be with him for the rest of his life.

Harry heard slow footsteps nearing the door and, before long, Hagrid was standing in the doorway. Harry gasped at what he saw. Hagrid's face was very scarred and he had no use of his left leg. He leaned slightly to the right in the doorway, and it took him a moment to register who had knocked.

"Harry!" Hagrid bellowed before throwing himself onto Harry's shoulder. Harry's knees buckled under the weight and both men fell to the ground. Hagrid was sobbing, "I can' believe yer here!"

"It's good to see you too, Hagrid!"

After Harry had left Draco alone in the room, he laid awake thinking. Draco was haunted by Harry's inquiry about his scars. He was scared for the first time in his life about what Harry Potter would think of him. At Malfoy Manor, no one was around to care about what he did. No one had ever noticed the scars that started appearing on his body.

Draco slammed his fist into the wooden nightstand. Why did no one care that he was cutting himself? How could they not notice? He had started cutting himself about two years ago. At first they were not deep enough to leave scars. But eventually, the scars stopped fading. He had kept them hidden for a while, but when he discovered that no one would give a damn, he started cutting in more visible spots.

Draco was the only person to ever understand why he kept doing it. It felt good to scar his beautiful body. It was something his father couldn't take away. Every scar made him feel one step closer to owning himself. It was also a comfort to know that if he damaged his body enough, his father wouldn't want him anymore. He could be free.

He sighed and stood up. After the room stopped spinning, he made his way to the bathroom to wash away the dirt that clung to his pale body.

Harry stumbled out of the fireplace, and into his living room. After brushing himself off, he noticed that the shower was running. Draco must be awake. His stomach growled and he crossed the room to make some dinner.

Harry's flat was soon filled with the smells of chicken, potatoes and corn. Harry didn't normally cook food like this, but he figured Draco would be hungry. As he cooked, he pieced together a plan to ask Draco to stay. Harry would follow Dumbledore's advice and make sure Draco remained safe until further plans could be made. This should be easy. So, why the hell am I so nervous?

Harry was so engrossed in his thoughts and his cooking that he didn't hear Draco enter the room. Draco stood in the doorway wearing a pair of Harry's jeans and a tight fitting t-shirt. He watched Harry silently. Harry moved so freely and beautifully that Draco could only compare it to the way he flew on a broom. Draco could see sweat forming on his brow and smiled to himself. Damn he looks good! Draco shook his head. Where the fuck did that come from?

At that moment Harry looked up and their eyes locked for a brief second before they both looked away.

"Did you sleep well?" Harry asked, trying to sound casual.

Even if the moment was brief, Harry did not fail to notice that Draco looked better in his clothes than he did.

"Yes," came the soft reply.

"Well, I hope you're hungry as well," Harry looked up and smiled.

"You wouldn't be trying to poison me would you?"

"Shut up and set the table."

Draco snorted in reply before putting plates and such on the table. In minutes they were both sitting down. Draco paused before taking a bite only to see the look on Harry's face. After the first mouthful was swallowed, Draco starting shoveling food into his mouth at top speed.

"Whoa! You act like you haven't eaten for days!" Harry exclaimed.

"Weeks."

"Weeks! Draco, what the hell happened to you?" Harry abandoned his plan to wait and continued with the questions without pausing. "You disappeared after school. You didn't fight in the war like every one else, and now, two years later, I find you alone in an alley. You haven't eaten in weeks. You're covered in scars..." Harry lowered his voice. "Tell me what happened to you."

"I'm not sure where you got the idea that it's any of you're business, but it's not," Draco suddenly got to his feet. "Why the fuck should I tell you?"

With that, Draco stormed from the kitchen and disappeared into the bedroom.

Harry sat at the table, stunned. He could hear faint noises coming from the other room but, instead of checking on Draco, he sat there thinking of his next move. He knew that whatever had happened had been bad. Draco was obviously still hurting. Then again, Malfoy never was much of a talker, except to throw insults at Harry's friends. Shit! Hermione and Ron.

Harry only had twenty-four hours to fix things so that Draco would be decent to his friends. Harry stood up and cleared the table. Then he took his time cleaning the dishes so Draco could have some time to cool off. Harry also needed time to think before opening his big mouth again.

In the other room, Draco was pacing. He didn't know what had just happened, Malfoy's weren't supposed to get mad. Malfoy's are to remain calm and collected at all times so as not to show weakness. His father's voice echoed in his head. But what the hell did Lucius know? Draco didn't know what to believe anymore.

What bothered him most though, was not that he had yelled at Harry, but that now Harry knew it was bad and that Draco felt pain. Harry? When did Potter become Harry? Shit! Now I'm really confused. Draco groaned and stepped out onto the balcony.

After his shower earlier, when he was digging in Harry's closet for clothes, he had found a pack of cigarettes. Now, he pulled them out of his pocket and lit one. The cool night air was very relaxing as he sat on the single chair and took a drag. He sighed as he exhaled. Damn father for taking mine away!

Draco was starting on his second when he heard a knock on the bedroom door. Without waiting for an answer, Harry entered the room and looked around. Seconds later, he joined the blonde on the balcony and noticed the stolen cigarettes.

"I see you've made yourself right at home by stealing my things," Harry said sharply. He winced, "Sorry."

In reply, Draco handed the pack to the Gryffindor. He remained silent as Harry lit one and handed the pack back. "Keep them, I can buy more."

They both sat in silence as they smoked and looked at the stars. It was Draco who broke the silence.

"I'm guessing you spoke to the almighty Professor Dumbledore?"

"Yes."

"And, I'd be willing to bet that he had a few things to say about me."

"Not really. Only that you should stay here until he can figure out what to do about your father," Harry said slowly. He didn't want another outburst.

"And you agree?"

"Yes."

"Just so you know, I'm not afraid of him. He can't hurt me."

They were silent for a few moments before Harry took the chance at a question. "Just answer one question for me and I'll stop asking. Why didn't you fight?"

"I am not a death eater, Potter. But I never thought of myself as a member on the Light either."

"So you just stayed home while we went out to die?"

Draco smiled, "Just one huh?"

"Sorry."

"It's ok. Look, let's just say my father wasn't who I thought he was. While you and your brave Gryffindor friends were out fighting a war, I was locked in a room, dying to be fighting."

Harry sat and pondered that as another silence fell around them. Before another word was spoken a tiny owl swooped down and dropped a letter at Harry's feet. Ron!

Harry pulled the letter open and read:

Harry,

We talked to Hermione this morning and we'll be there tomorrow! Haley and I are looking forward to seeing you!

Ron

Harry inwardly groaned, "Um, Malfoy? Hermione, Ron and Haley are coming to dinner tomorrow."

Draco locked eyes with Harry before replying, "I don't have a choice do I?"

"Not really. But you should know that they have grown up and will probably be nice to you if I tell them to be. So, be good."

"Yes, daddy!"

They laughed together for a split second before realizing what they were doing. They both looked away and broke into silence one last time. Draco handed Harry another cigarette and they sat smoking, lost in thought.

"Who's Haley?" Draco asked after a few moments.

"Ron's girlfriend."

"Another brave Gryffindor?"

"No, she's American. She helped fight."

"American?" Draco suddenly yelled. He was standing again and Harry feared for another outburst.

"Yeah. What's that got to do with anything?"

"Nothing, sorry," Draco sat back down and rubbed his forehead as if he were thinking very hard.

Harry quickly decided not to ask about it. "Sorry? When did you start apologizing?" Harry said with a laugh.

"Today. It won't happen again."

"Ok... I'm off to bed. I'll sleep on the couch again, but tomorrow I'm gonna want my bed back."

Draco lay awake, hours later, staring at the dark ceiling. He moaned and sat up. He wasn't tired but he was hungry again. He climbed out of the bed and quietly opened the door. He had barely stepped out of the room when the sounds of Harry's labored breathing touched his ears. Before he got to the kitchen, he saw Harry on the couch and stopped.

The moonlight from the window shone on his face and illuminated his features. The familiar scar on his forehead was very faint now. Draco could remember it being much more noticeable before. Strange.

Harry suddenly stirred in his sleep. His face changed from peaceful to fearful, and he started tossing and turning. Draco stood entranced looking down upon him. Harry was mumbling and Draco leaned closer trying to hear the words. He could now see the specks of sweat on his face and caught words like "no" and "stop."

Draco dropped silently to his knees at Harry's side. He was overcome with a strong urge to touch him. He had never seen Harry Potter look so frail. It was a strange sight that made him feel almost sad for the dark haired man before him. Tears had started falling down Harry's cheeks.

Harry suddenly screamed and jumped up. Before he could fall to the floor Draco reached out and caught him. Harry looked around wildly as if expecting to see the monster that haunted his dreams. Draco kept a strong hold on him as they locked eyes and Harry attempted to scramble away.

"No! It's ok, Harry," Draco said before he could stop himself. Harry paused in Draco's arms before falling limply to the floor in tears. He wrapped his arms tighter around the man and instantly felt the shaking. Without thinking, Harry lost control and his body became overrun with wracking sobs.

The two men stayed this way for what seemed an eternity before Harry fell asleep again. Draco laid him back on the couch and leaned himself up against the opposite wall. Tears now stained his cheeks as the full weight of what had just happened sank in. Harry Potter was not supposed to kneel to weakness. If he couldn't stay strong, how could Draco?

Draco tried to stay up watching Harry sleep but after a while, fell into a deep sleep.