The Reason

Chapter 9

'All my roads, they lead to you, I just can't turn and walk away. It's hard to say what it is I see in you, wonder if I'll always be with you, but words can't say, and I can't do enough to prove, it's all for you. Rain comes pouring down, falling from blue skies, words without a sound, coming from your eyes. Finally I figured out, it's hard to say, it's all for you.' "All For You" ~ Sister Hazel

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Draco sat down heavily.

"I know you think this is new to me, this helping you and not being evil thing. It's not. First year, Dumbledore approached me with a proposition. He knew that my father was still as supporter of Voldemort, and he wanted me to spy on him. Desperate measures, but Dumbledore needs all of the help he can get. And if I said no, so what? I go home and tell my father, and he sends me to a different school. Big deal. My father already knew that Dumbledore didn't trust him, and if I went to a different school, there was one less threat here. So, Dumbledore took a chance. Of course, I was given Veritaserum to ensure that whatever my answer, it was the truth. I agreed. Given the choice, I would choose Dumbledore over my father any day of the week. I hated my father far too much - still do, actually, to choose his side. But obviously, my declaring my allegiance to Dumbledore would get me disowned, and nothing else. So, we determined that everything would go on as normal. I would be put into Slytherin as my father expected, even though I wished to be in Gryffindor, and I would maintain all appearances of one allegiant to Voldemort. This way, I could spy on all of my father's activities, be in the inner circle, and completely unsuspected. So, from first year on, I've been listening in on my dad's Death Eater meetings and reporting their plans back to Dumbledore. It was unbelievably easy the first few years, but then Voldemort came back. He's smarter, more careful about privacy, and better at plans, so my job got more complicated. Just this year, I've stopped 15 attempts on your life. But this time I got caught, and after the spell, I was under such close observation that I couldn't contact Dumbledore. So, I had to get involved personally, something we had hoped would never happen. I'm sorry. You can ask Dumbledore if you don't believe me."

"Why didn't you tell me? Why did you pretend to hate me?"

"To keep my cover. I had to stay distant from you - it would have made my father a little suspicious if we had become friends. And telling you would have just put us all in more danger. I'm sorry, Harry."

"Put me in danger? As if I'm not already the number one assassination target in the entire wizarding world? I think I could have handled that much more danger, Draco!"

"I didn't say it would put you in more danger, I said us. Mainly me, Harry. What happens if you get caught and tortured for information, and they ask you, 'who's your link, who do you get your information from?', and you tell them. I come home that night, and I'm dead. Would you want my blood on your hands? We did what we thought was best, Harry, and I'm sorry if that's not good enough for you."

"Fine, you had to keep your distance, I suppose I understand that. But did you have to act like you hated me?"

"Harry, I never hated you. You were the one that rejected me. I asked you to be my friend once, long ago, and you refused. I wasn't a saint, that's true, but it was hard for me, Harry. I was constantly saving your life, and you had no clue. No one did, and that was exactly how it should have been, but still ... You thought I was just a selfish prat. And everyone was so excited about you, Harry Potter, the boy who lived, the golden child, boy wonder, I could go on forever, Harry, believe me, and I was doing just as much to fight Voldemort, and yet I was reviled as evil. Every time you so much as cough, everyone looks at me like I poisoned you. Isn't that exactly what Hermione suggested just a day ago? I resented you for things like that, and I started acting the part of the jealous nemesis a little more than I should have, but I never hated you. I'm sorry if you ever thought so, because it was all just an act, Harry. I did what I thought was best, what Dumbledore thought was best, but maybe we were wrong. I'm sorry."

"Wow." Harry sat down across from Draco. "You realize this changes my entire perspective in life, don't you?"

"Harry, I'm sorry."

"For what, trying to save my life? Succeeding a million times and never saying a thing? I'm the one who should be sorry."

"You didn't know. Listen, let's just forget everything that's happened between us and be friends."

"Okay," Harry said with a smile.

"We better get to Potions; it's almost time for class to start, and it'll look strange if we both come in late."

"Let's skip. Let's just say screw it and go do something fun!" Harry said.

"Like what?" Draco asked with a smirk.

"Grab the Invisibility Cloak, sneak into Potions and throw things at Snape."

Draco laughed. "I could get used to hanging around you, Harry. But don't you think Snape would figure it out?"

"Probably. It would've been fun, though," Harry said with a sigh.

"How about we meet after Defense Against the Dark Arts to discuss the cure a little bit more?"

"Alright. See you then," Harry said, and he left, making sure the coast was clear first.

Potions was better than usual. Ron had decided to act as though everything was fine, so he and Hermione talked to Harry constantly, which helped him get through class despite Snape's frequent insults. After class, though, Harry hung back from Ron and Hermione, no longer feeling very talkative. He was still reeling from Draco's revelation that morning. So by the time he reached Defense Against the Dark Arts, he was alone. Draco was already sitting in his desk with his back to Harry when he walked in, but he knew immediately that something was wrong. Waves of sheer panic started emanating from Harry's mind the second he walked in.

"Draco, help!"

Draco turned around slowly and nearly fainted. Harry was standing in the middle of the classroom with fangs and a look of growing hunger.

Chapter 10

'Sick and tired of this world, there's no more air. Trippin' over myself, going nowhere, waiting, suffocating, no direction, and I took a dive and... On the way down, I saw you, and you saved me from myself, and I won't forget the way you loved me. On the way down, I almost fell right through, but I held onto you. I've been wonderin why it's only me, have you always been inside, waiting to breathe? It's alright, sunlight on my face. I wake up and yeah, I'm alive. Cause on the way down, I saw you and you saved me from myself, and I won't forget the way you loved me. On the way down, I almost fell right through, but I held onto you. I was so afraid, of going under, but now, the weight of the world feels like nothing, no, nothing. Down, down, down, you're all I wanted, down, down, down, you're all I needed, down, down, down, you're all I wanted, you're all I needed, and I won't forget the way you loved me.' "On the Way Down" ~ Ryan Cabrera

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At the front of the classroom, Professor Lupin looked up, and as Draco watched, he shivered and looked directly at Harry. Draco could have sworn that for just a split second, he saw Lupin's face begin to change, fangs start to protrude, and hair start to spring up on his hands. Lupin looked down and took several deep breaths, and Draco sprang into action.

"Harry, you have to make a run for it. The next classroom is empty. Stay in there and I'll tell Lupin you got sick."

Harry stood still, unsure.

"Now, before someone else notices you!" Harry turned and darted out.

Draco waited a few minutes, hoping Harry would be able to calm down on his own, but he only felt Harry's fear and hunger growing stronger.

"Professor, I can't find my wand. I have a hole in the pocket of my robes, and I think it may have dropped out of them. May I go look for it? If I wait until after class, it might get stolen or broken."

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy, but please try to hurry."

Draco rushed out of Defense Against the Dark Arts and into the classroom next to it.

"Harry, calm down. Everything is fine; you're not around Lupin anymore, and even better, we have a cure that we're going to start tonight."

"Draco, you shouldn't be in here; I'm dangerous." Harry still spoke mentally, too panicked to speak aloud.

"Harry, chill out. Don't think about it. Think about something good, like winning Quidditch, or getting Christmas presents, or meeting me ..."

Harry had to laugh, and slowly, his fangs started to retract, and he started to calm down.

"Draco, thank you," Harry said softly. "I don't deserve to be your friend. Just this morning I accused you of trying to kill me, and you've been protecting me for six years. And just now, I could've bitten you, but you didn't care. You could've calmed me down from another room, where you would've been safe, but you came anyway. I'm so sorry, Draco." Harry looked up at him, and Draco was shocked to see blood trickling down his cheeks.

"Harry, you're bleeding!"

"No, just crying," Harry said softly, but he looked shaken, as if he hadn't realized he was even crying. "It's a characteristic of vampires. Some ancient vampire killed a witch's lover, and she cursed him with tears of blood, so that if he ever cried, he would be identified as a demon and killed. The curse carried down to his descendants, and eventually all vampires. That along with the fangs and the bumpy forehead when in bloodlust are the only telltale physical signs of a vampire. The fangs and crimson tears appear after the second draw of blood, the bumpy forehead only when the transformation is complete. Sorry, I didn't mean to freak you out - I didn't even remember that, really. Anyway, I'd better go."

"Harry, wait. We still need to discuss how to start your cure. It's a little more complicated than I originally thought. It turns out that you have two sires, so we have to summon them both, in reverse order of their bites. So, we need to start tonight. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes, of course." Harry sat there for a moment, looking up at Draco. Suddenly, before either of them really knew what was happening, Harry had risen and closed the gap between them, and kissed Draco. He was tentative at first, but he quickly grew more self-assured. He had just begun to lose himself in the kiss when Draco pulled away.

"Harry, I can't," Draco whispered, and Harry was shocked to see tears in Draco's eyes.

"I have to go," Draco whispered, and walked slowly from the room. Harry lowered himself slowly into a desk and put his head in his hands.