Careless Whisper

Disclaimer: Oh, bah. You know it already.
A/N: Thanks to my betas! MaLady Molto…


Careless Whisper
Ch 10 – Changes


Harry immediately cast a body-binding curse at Narcissa and grabbed Draco to apparate back to the Infirmary and Madame Pomfrey. Once he had the thoroughly unconscious Slytherin safe, he would return for the other bound Malfoy at the Manor.

Dumbledore joined him hurriedly in the Infirmary with Poppy. Madame Pomfrey, of course, shooed the men away so that she could do her job. Dumbledore then turned to Harry, “Go get his mother. She’ll be alright here. We’ll protect her; make sure she has her potions. This is where she needs to be right now. Go, go, Harry.”

Harry nodded and turned to go when he ran directly into the muscular wall that was Oliver Wood. Hermione was standing next to him and uttered a silent “shit” before rushing to Draco’s side. Oliver gave Harry a questioning look as his friend addressed him, “Harry, what the hell happened?”

Dumbledore placed a hand on the young witch’s shoulder and spoke. “He’ll be fine, Professor. Harry is going back now to bring Draco’s mother. It seems some sort of scuffle has taken place. I feel she would be better monitored here, at Hogwart’s. We can make sure she receives her potion each day. Harry can explain everything when he returns.”

Oliver smirked, looking between the three of them. “Somebody better do some explaining before he gets back,” he said pointedly at Hermione. Her face flushed. Harry scowled but disappeared for his other charge.


*****


Ron, meanwhile, was trying to hold things down at the Ministry. Apparently there had been several Dark Arts coups in the past several days…Since Lucius Malfoy had made himself known in Narcissa’s mind, now that he thought about it. He was calling in the cavalry for back up. Aurors from the continent were coming in to help with the small crisis in the United Kingdom. He was ordering people around in French, German, Italian, and Dutch. All the while, still trying to find out anything he could about marriage bonds.

At this particular moment, he was sitting at his desk with the relics harbored by Blaise Zabini in his hands, puzzling over what the hell they could possibly mean. First, there was what looked like nothing more than an ancient urn. Simple in design and russet in color, nothing too fancy. Rather plain for something of the Dark Arts, really; typically, they were rather showy in their relics. Then there was the book in a language Ron couldn’t begin to understand. Sighing, he pushed it to the corner of his desk, knowing he would have to ask for Hermione’s help with the old tome. Finally, there was the chain and pendant. It looked as if it had just been made the day before. The chain was of the brightest silver, it almost looked as liquid as mercury. The metal was light in his hands, as though he were holding a handful of air. The pendant was the purest jade, that beautiful opaque green that almost demands the hand to reach out and offer it a caress. A dragon carved in what looked like an old Nordic design was the shape. Ron had never seen anything more beautiful. He wanted to put it around his own neck, just to feel the weightlessness of the chain, but also the pressure of the pendant on his chest. Still, something in the back of his mind screamed against it. Ron had learned to listen to that voice and quickly closed the pendant gently in the cover of the book.


*****


Hermione was keeping a vigil just outside the Infirmary, Oliver Wood keeping her company. Or not. Pacing up and down the hall, she was attempting to tell Oliver what had happened and why she had thought he might not understand.

“No, Oliver, don’t you see? They never stopped loving each other. It was all an elaborate ruse to turn them against each other. It wasn’t anyone’s fault, really. Well, except perhaps Narcissa’s, but not even really hers. You can’t blame them for getting back together, Oliver. I mean really…”

The brunette Keeper shrugged nonchalantly. “Why should I care whose fault it was? At least I had my chance to get back at Harry. Oh, I will never forget the look on his face when he saw Draco bent over me…I had a good laugh over that. But you’re right! Harry has paid for his sins so I can’t hold anything against him anymore,” he rushed as he actually saw the steam coming out of her ears. He noted that she had almost gotten her hand to her wand.

“I know you’re friends with him, but geez, the kid fucked me up. Plus, Draco Malfoy turned out to be quite the good little shag. Anyway, this doesn’t have a damn thing to do with the current situation. Let me get this straight…Lucius cast a binding spell on Narcissa’s wedding ring. Now they want to figure out a way to destroy him without destroying her. And Harry Potter saves the world again. Bah humbug, if you ask me…”

Hermione sat down next to Oliver and closed her eyes. “Oliver…”

“Yes?”

“You’re a real ass, you know that?”

“Yeah, but this isn’t about me, like I said.”

“I know. I just wanted you to know that I still think you’re a bloody prat.”

“Well, I don’t think they can do it. I’ve pored over that book, Hermione, and I can’t find anything that even resembles a counter spell. I’m sorry. Just know that, well, I’m not gonna turn my back on anyone just because I’ve shagged both of them senseless before.”

“Whatever, just go try to find an answer to our problem.”

“Ron’s got his hands full with you, Hermione, that’s for damn sure.”

Hermione fumed for a few moments more over the pain he had caused her friends over the past year. Seeing Draco with Oliver had destroyed Harry. Seeing Harry seeing him with Oliver had hurt Draco as well. And here he was being a right fuckwit about the whole situation. Merlin, she hoped she could find an answer before he could. It would kill both Harry and Draco to accept help from him.


*****


Harry appeared at the Manor to find a fully awake, completely calm Narcissa Malfoy. “Hello, Harry dear. What a pleasant surprise. And where is Draco?” She smiled at him innocently, as though she remembered nothing of the past week.

“Are you feeling alright?” he asked tentatively.

Her smile did nothing to help his unease. Still, she glanced up at him and said, “Of course, Harry. I just wonder why I’m in a body bind. Would you remind moving it for me? Please? Harry, where is Draco?”

The Gryffindor grew concerned for his lover’s mother. Something was clearly not right. He thought about the best way to handle the situation. He approached her and began to ask her a few questions. “Narcissa, do you remember why you’re in a body bind?”

“No. Why?”

“Narcissa, what’s the last thing you remember? I mean really remember clearly…”

“Well, let’s see…Draco had just owled me that he thought you might be up to something…you were out late at night and you never slept anymore. He wondered if maybe you were cheating on him. You weren’t cheating on him, were you Harry?”

“Gods, no, Narcissa. Do you realize that was nearly a year ago? Don’t you remember Blaise Zabini? Or even Draco coming here on Saturday last? When we realized there was a bonding spell on your ring?”

“I remember bits and pieces, but they were only dreams, nothing more. It seems I remember taking my ring off though…”

“Narcissa, I’m taking you to the Infirmary at Hogwart’s. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I don’t think you’re safe here. Wait…taking your ring off…”

Harry looked at the ring finger on her left hand. Her wedding ring was gone. She was no longer under the spell. Muttering finite incantatum, he released her from her body bind and helped her to the loveseat. “Narcissa what is that last bit you remember of this dream or whatever?”

She appeared to concentrate very hard for a moment. “There was a light…and Draco…Draco was in pain, calling out to me. I stopped him from hurting my boy. Then…I’m not sure, it gets cloudy…”

“Try to remember, Narcissa, please,” Harry urged.

“I…I can’t, Harry, I’m sorry,” she whispered as tears shone in her eyes.

“It’s okay; let’s just get back to Hogwart’s. We need to tell them. Draco may be in danger even now,” he said as he rubbed her back gently.


*****


The trip back to Hogwart’s, though short, was long enough for Harry to agonize over the current condition of the blond man lying in the Infirmary. Harry wondered at what exactly had happened in the Manor. How had Draco come to bear the ring? He would kill Lucius Malfoy…or whatever it was one did to destroy what Lucius had become.
Funny, only several days ago he was lost in memories of all the times he had failed Draco; now he was on a mission where failure was quite a feasible possibility but the thought never crossed his mind. The only thing he thought about was drawing Lucius into his own world, a world where Lucius could be destroyed.

He was racking his brain with ideas to lure Lucius out of Draco. Could he just go to sleep again, perhaps take a potion? But not a Dreamless Sleep Draught, he had to be able to dream. Would he have to go back into a coma? He would. He would get someone to hit him over the head with a beater stick. Or let a bludger loose in a closed room.
Before he knew it, Hogwart’s was there, before Narcissa and him.


*****


Madame Pomfrey looked at Dumbledore with a very concerned look. “He’s had cruciatus cast on him, Headmaster. He’s had it cast and held for quite some time. Our Mister Malfoy is in a very fragile state,” she said.

Dumbledore looked at her with the knowing eyes of a man who has seen more than anyone ever needs to see. “What else is there, Poppy? What is there that you aren’t telling me?”

Madame Pomfrey looked at an interesting spot on the sheet that covered Draco’s weakened body. She couldn’t explain what she had to tell the headmaster and she hated making diagnoses she couldn’t explain. Still, it had to be done. “Well, Headmaster, sir, there seems to have been, sort of, well, an influx in his power. Mister Malfoy is powerful, there is no question, but it seems to have increased even more, and not in a way that I can explain to you, sir,” she finished sheepishly.

Dumbledore looked deeply puzzled. Frowning, he left to speak with Oliver Wood over the spell he had translated for Hermione earlier that day.

After the ageless wizard left, Madame Pomfrey sat next to the still figure in the bed and reached out to hold his hand, wanting to comfort both of them. Holding his lifeless hand in her own, she admired the ring that was on his pinky finger. It looked more like a wedding ring than a ring for a young man to have. The ring was silver, but old and clearly worn for a very long time. There was a design etched into it so that the entire ring resembled an endless chain of Celtic knots. Madame Pomfrey felt inexplicably drawn to the ring, but just as she reached out to touch it, Harry and Narcissa arrived in the hall.