Life From the Start

Italics – Memories

Let’s continue where I left off…

Chapter 16: As Fate Would Have It

Harry ran down hallways as fast as his legs would carry him. He paid no attention to the people muttering and whispering at him as he ran by them. He paid no attention to the murmuring paintings that hung on the walls. The only thing on Harry’s mind was finding Draco.

Draco was all that mattered right now.

The brunet ran straight, turned right, turned left; he was going back to the place where he had spent his past two months in. All Harry hoped was that Draco was really there… If not, well, he’ll continue looking for the blond.

‘Please be there…’

As Harry continued on his way to the private quarters, he ran past a corridor where a blond headed teen was walking out. Said person turned in the opposite direction, never noticing the brunet that ran by him.

Both never realized that they were so close, yet so far as well. One disappeared down the curving hallway while the other made his way to the front gates of Hogwarts.

Such, was fate.

.:0:.0:.0:.0:.

Draco had his head down the whole time; he never looked up. Students muttered angrily and avoided bumping into the blond. Draco didn’t notice any of that.

‘Harry’s probably awake now… He’s probably all confused on why he’s there.’

Malfoy let out a long, suffering sigh and turned left, just as a breeze swept by. All Draco saw was feet as the person ran by him. He never looked up to see who it was; Draco didn’t care.

“I hope he’s alright…” Draco whispered as he trudged in the direction of the front gates. “I should’ve stayed longer this morning… None of it matters anymore, my job is done.” Draco said and he blindly walked to the gates.

He needed some time alone and what better place to be than the Lake.

HPDMHPDM

Harry stopped running and instead started walking in a slow pace. He looked around the hallway he was now in; everything looked so familiar yet… There was still a small part of him that didn’t quite believed it all happened. Harry shook his head and smiled when he saw the portrait that led to the private rooms. The green eyed teen stood two feet away from the painting and reached up to touch the soft canvas. The young lady in the portrait lowered her white lacy umbrella and smiled softly.

“You, young man, look strangely familiar,” The lady said, “Have I seen you before?”

Harry chuckled and peered right at the woman’s face. “Have I really changed that much, Lady Lia?”

“Lady Lia? It’s Lady Adalia to you! Nobody calls me Lady Lia except little Har--” She snapped then stopped in mid sentence; the lady narrowed her eyes and then smiled again, recognition present in her eyes. “Harry? Is that you? My my… You’re all grown up! I haven’t seen you for a day and now you’re a handsome teenager!” She giggled when Harry blushed.

“Er… Yeah. I’ve been in the hospital wing; just got released today.” Harry said when he got over his blush.

“So I assume you are properly aged now are you?” Lady Adalia asked; Harry nodded.

“How did you find out? I’m sure paintings didn’t know about the accident… do they?” Harry was perplexed; the young woman laughed and closed her umbrella.

“Oh no, Professor Dumbledore told me the day he assigned me to the rooms.” Adalia replied, “He told me about how you took a potion and it de-aged you. Then he said another teen, Draco, will be taking care of you.” She shrugged daintily and stood up from the bench she was sitting on. “For the past two months, I’ve seen you grow… So I pretty much knew what was going on.”

“Ah. Well… Uhm… Do you mind if I go inside?” Harry asked, gesturing to the covered doorway.

Lady Adalia chuckled and sat down again, picked up her lacy umbrella, and opened it.

“Of course I don’t mind Harry, but you must tell me the password.” She smiled at the brunet and started spinning the opened umbrella. “No password, no entry.”

Harry chuckled softly, “You know, when I was a toddler, I used to laugh when you start spinning your umbrella. I remember calling you ‘Pretty Lady’.”

“Hmm… You were such a sweet child,” Adalia said softly, “Well… You’re still a nice, young man now.” She stopped spinning her umbrella and looked around Harry. “Where’s Draco? He’s always with you. I remember how he always smiles when you were around. I could tell that boy really loves you, Harry.”

Harry blushed again and gulped; he scratched the back of his head and looked up at the portrait.

“Really? You could tell?”

“Of course! It was really obvious.”

Harry coughed into his hand and looked helplessly at the lady. “I’m looking for Draco actually. Is he inside?”

“Oh, well… He’s not. I haven’t seen him since yesterday.” Adalia frowned, “Something happened to Draco?”

Harry was crestfallen when the painting said Draco wasn’t inside. He shook his head and smiled lightly.

“Nothing’s wrong… I’m just looking for him and I don’t know where he’s gone.” Harry murmured, “Can I go in anyway? I think I’ll wait for him… I’m sure Draco will come back.”

“Password?” Adalia smiled and waited; Harry grinned at her and winked.

“Rubber Duck.”

Adalia giggled and the whole portrait swung outward; Harry stepped back and waited until the pathway was revealed. He walked over and stepped over the threshold.

“Thanks Lady Lia!”

Harry took a deep breath and opened his eyes once he was inside. Everything was just the way he had remembered it. Not one single thing was out of place. Harry walked over to the couches and danced his fingertips on the soft leather. He smiled, reminiscing the times he jumped onto the sofa and made Draco bounce. He could see his younger self sitting there, with Draco, cuddling into the blonde’s side. Potter patted the couch a few times and sat down. He leaned back and let his head rest on the couch; Harry closed his eyes and smiled.

“How nice it would be if Draco and I could stay here for the rest of the year…”

.:0:.0:.0:.0:.

Draco stood gazing at the dark waters of the Lake. It was late afternoon already; the sun was well on its way to disappearing behind the many hills that surrounded Hogwarts. Malfoy dropped his book bag carelessly onto the pebbled ground and sat down, mindful of not wrinkling his school robes. Not that it really mattered.

Draco had stayed in the hospital wing well into late morning. He never left Harry’s unconscious body, not even to take a shower or change his clothes. Thus, the clothes he wore were from yesterday. Students stared at him rudely in his classes. He had this beaten look on his face; his clothes were disheveled and starting to smell a bit. Nobody ever saw Draco Malfoy in such a state, not even the professors. Most of his teachers knew about the case of him and Harry, some did not. They asked him why he was such a mess. All Draco did was shrug and went back to his own world.

“I wonder… what Harry is doing right now…” Draco said to himself, “Is he with his Gryffindors? I hope he’s alright…” Draco smiled, his eyes stared straight ahead. “He’ll go back to hating me… He won’t remember anything…” He drew his knees up and rested his chin on top.

“Nothing matters… It’s all gone.”

Draco picked up a pebble from the ground and flung his arms in an arch, throwing the rock as far as he could. It landed in the water with a ‘plop’ and made the water rippled. The blond slid his shoes closer to the edge of the water, close enough so that the tips of his shoes were barely touching. Draco tuned out everything around him; all he was focused on was the still water before him. He looked into the water, letting images inside his head be projected. Draco’s mouth curved slightly upward as he thought back when he was out here, playing with Harry in the snow…

Draco scooped up a handful of snow, rolled it into a ball, and with perfect aim, threw the ball at Harry’s bum. It landed with a sharp sounding ‘splack’…

“Snowball fight!!” Harry hollered and grabbed a snowball. He threw it at Malfoy, who merely moved his head to the left.

“You have to do better than that, Harry.” Draco smirked and took a snowball…

“It wasn’t fair! You can aim better than me!” Harry laughed when Draco started putting specks of snowflakes on his flushed cheeks.

“Just admit you were an easy target, love.”

Love.

Draco smirked; he wondered if he’ll ever get the chance to call Harry ‘love’.

“… Never.”

HPDMHPDM

Harry tentatively opened the door to his old bedroom; he was immensely surprised when he found that all his things were still the way they were. Harry had thought that since he was his rightful age again, the toys, furniture, and clothes would’ve all vanished. But that wasn’t the case. Harry’s emerald orbs lit up when he saw his toy Firebolt propped against a bookshelf. The brunet dashed over to the small broom and held it at arms’ length.

“How happy I was when you gave this to me, Draco…” Harry said; he hugged the broom to his chest. “The first time I played with it, you had to chase me around the quarters.” Harry chuckled and he gently placed the toy broom back against the shelf. “And then you were so worried when I tumbled off the broom after making a very sharp turn…”

“Look at me! I’m flying!” Harry squealed and shot past the dining table. Draco stopped running and placed his hands on his hips, his breathing coming in short bursts.

“Careful of the furniture,” Draco said huffily, “Don’t knock into things!”

“I won’t!”

Draco smiled as Harry flew by him and then made a wide turn around the kitchen and back into the living room. He followed the flying boy; his grey eyes watching every move.

“Don’t go too fast when you turn.” Draco warned as Harry curved around the couches. The blond winced when the end of the broom kissed a table lamp, making it wobble.

“I’m not going fa—WHOA!” Harry was making a turn and the broom handle swiped against a wall, which in turn tossed Harry off. The brunet rolled on the floor and laid there on his back, stunned.

“HARRY!” Draco screamed and ran to where Harry tumbled off; the young boy was now groaning in pain.

“Ow…” Harry grimaced and sat up slowly; he was about to stand up when Draco appeared beside him and held him tight.

“Are you alright? I told you not to go that fast! Did you hurt your head? Did you break anything?” Draco asked, worried. He pulled back and started checking every inch of Harry’s body. "You're so clumsy!"

Harry giggled and shook his head, “I’m fine, Draco! But I think I kinda banged my head on the floor…” Harry pressed his palm to the back of his head. “I think I feel a bump…”

Draco’s lips formed a thin line and Harry gulped; he knew Draco was mad at him now.

“I-I’m sorry Draco… I should’ve listened…”

Draco sighed and kissed Harry’s forehead, “It’s okay, love. Just remember not to go fast next time. You know what? From now on, you can’t play with the broom indoors. If you want to play, we’ll play outside.”

Harry nodded and Draco picked him up. The toy broom was levitated and floated behind them as they walked into Harry’s room…

Harry’s hand lingered on the cool wood of the broomstick a bit longer than necessary before walking away. He arrived at his bed, with the soft blankets, two fluffy pillows, and last but not least, Eddy. Harry grinned and crawled onto the bed; he tackled the teddy bear and wrapped his arms around it. The teen was on his back, the giant bear sitting on his stomach. Harry petted the soft brown fur, held the ‘paws’ in his hands and made the bear clap. He knew it was childish to be acting this way, but Harry didn’t care. This was his bear, a special bear that was given by Draco. Harry sighed blissfully and rolled until he was on his side, the bear facing him. He tapped the tip of the bear’s snout and hugged the teddy tight.

“Did you know, Eddy? Every night since Draco gave you to me, I pretend you were him.” Harry told the bear; Eddy remained silent and listened to all the words Harry had to say. “He asked me once… Draco asked me what would I do when I pretend you were him…”

“… What happens when you pretend Eddy is me?”

“Welps… I sleeps betta and den I can kiss-kiss Eddy. Aftew kiss-kiss I says night to Eddy and then I sleeps betta.”

Draco laughed at Harry’s explanation, “Would you do all that if you were hugging me instead?”

“Yups! Dway kiss Hawwy night-night,” Harry smiled, “Den you an’ me sleeps betta!”

Harry chuckled at the memory; he was only three then. Who could blame him for not really explaining anything? But it was true. Every night, after Draco had tucked him into bed, Harry would place kisses on Eddy, give the bear a hug, and slept. Not one night he failed to do all that.

The Gryffindor sighed softly and buried his face into the soft fur. He should be confused for remembering all the things that happened during his de-aged days, but alas, he was not. It was as if those days replaced his horrible childhood he had when he was with the Dursleys.

Well, good riddance.

Harry let out a yawn and he smacked his lips, “I… I shouldn’t be sleepy… I slept for a day…” He let out another yawn. “Oh geez… Well, it doesn’t hurt to… rest my eyes a bit…”

Harry closed his eyes and snuggled closer to Eddy. Sleep consumed him and Harry became a resident in the Land of Nod.

.:0:.0:.0:.0:.

Draco stood up and stretched; he had been sitting by the Lake for a good hour. The sun was well below the horizon now and the sky was turning a light purple with orange splashes. Evening was approaching. The blond bent down and picked up his school bag, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and hiked his way back to the castle.

Once he was inside, he found that the halls were empty. Draco shrugged and went in the direction that would lead him to the private quarters. It should be dinnertime by now and that would explain why the castle was so quiet. When he finally arrived at the portrait that would lead him to his rooms, the lady guarding the door was singing a soft lullaby. She caught Draco staring at her and stopped singing.

“You have a beautiful voice, Lady Adalia.” Draco complimented. Adalia giggled and nodded her head in thanks.

“Thank you, young man. Now, where have you been?” She asked, a pout marring her face. “I was worried about you!”

“I’m sorry… Something happened and I have been spending time outside… thinking about things.” Draco muttered, “I feel a bit better now… though I am famished.”

“Of course you are!” Adalia huffed and opened her umbrella with a bit of force. “I bet you haven’t eaten a single bite of food since yesterday afternoon!”

Draco didn’t answer her and instead he looked down at his shoes. Adalia let out a small growl and stood up from her bench; she cleared her throat and Draco looked up at her.

“Are you going to stand there the whole night?”

“Ah… no. Sorry…” Draco murmured, “Rubber Duck.”

The lady ‘humphed’ and the portrait swung open. “You better order some food. The house elves will bring you some no doubt.”

“I will.” Draco said softly and stepped over the threshold. “Have a nice evening Lady Adalia.”

Draco whole body deflated once the painting covered up the entryway. It was so quiet now without a young Harry chattering with him. His face became expressionless; Draco walked to the couch and slid his bag down his arm, letting it fall onto the furniture. Malfoy dropped into the couch and sat there like a sack of rocks. His arms lay limp at his sides, his head tilted back, and his eyes were staring up at the ceiling.

“It’s so lonely without you, Harry…” Draco whispered; he closed his eyes. He felt so emotionally drained.

Draco was about to nod off when he heard an indistinct ‘thunk’ from somewhere behind him. The blond was instantly alert; he shot off the couch and turned around, facing the doors to the bedrooms. His and… Harry’s. Draco took out his wand and was going to investigate when…

“Ow! Fuck that hurt!”

Draco pointed his wand at the door and tiptoed over to where the voice came from. He couldn’t tell who it was; the voice was muffled by the door. Draco placed his hand on the doorknob and opened it slowly…

HPDMHPDM

Harry was having the most wonderful dream; it was of him having a full blown make out session with Draco. He swore he was giggling like a girl when dream Draco kissed him full on the lips. Actually, Harry did giggle… In his sleep.

The brunet smiled in his sleeping state and was mumbling incoherent words. He started rolling closer and closer to the edge of the bed. Since Harry was now bigger in size, the bed really wasn’t all that wide. So in two rolls, a good half of Harry’s body was out. The teen was still happily dreaming and didn’t realize the situation. So with one more flop, Harry was out and down. Hard.

That woke him right up.

“Ow! Fuck that hurt!” Harry cried out and rubbed the side of his head. It was a good thing he was holding Eddy; the bear cushioned his fall.

Harry whimpered slightly when he felt a small bump on the side of his head. He sat up and looked around the room dazedly. It was dark. How long had he slept?

“Great… I probably missed dinner…” Harry muttered; he was still rubbing his head. “God, the floor is hard!”

Just then the door to the bedroom flew opened. Harry looked up, his hand still pressed into his hair. Green eyes met blond hair… Only one person he knew had short blond hair.

Draco stared, wide eyed, at the person sitting cross-legged on the floor by the bed. The person was holding Eddy. Said person had a mop of hair strangely familiar to him. He took a step closer and that’s when he saw it.

Beautiful green eyes. Eyes that shone like emeralds. Only one person had those eyes…

“Oh my… Harry?”

“Draco… You’re here.”

‘I found you.’

HPDMHPDM

A/N: Hello again! It took me six days to update this xD Actually, it only took me two days to type it up. The other four days were spent typing another story that I still haven’t updated yet. Once again, I declare myself evil for leaving the chapter like that *points to the last part* :D Love me!

Thanks for reading! ;)