His Daughter\'s Father

Title: His Daughter's Father Part 2
Email: tirel@pcnuthut.com
Site: http://www.angelfire.com/tv2/firebird_ascending/
Author: Constant Vigilance
Disclaimer: JK Rowling is God. I own nothing.
Distribution: Sure. Just lemme know where my baby's going.
Spoilers: Up to GoF. Book 5 never happened. *Growls at Rowling*
Summary: Making a decision.
Warning: Mpreg.


Four days later, Harry's eyes opened. The first thing he saw was white, sterile white, and he
knew. Someone had found him; someone had saved him. ~Bloody hell, people! Can't you tell
when a person is begging to die? ~ He rolled over and buried his face in the pillow, letting silent
tears escape to moisten the cotton cloth.

"Harry?" He tensed, hearing Madam Pomfrey's voice rise in query. Her sensible shoes padded
on the floor and he could tell when she was hovering over him. He used the pillowcase to wipe
away the tears staining his face and turned to look at her. She smiled hugely and fluttered her
hands. "I'm so glad to see you awake, Harry. You gave us all quite the scare."

He vaguely realized that she continued rambling platitudes whilst gathering her wand and other
assorted equipment onto a small tray. However, he didn't care. He didn't care who had missed
him, who had come to visit, how difficult it had been to heal his injuries. He simply didn't care.
"How did you find me?" he cut her off hollowly.

Poppy paused, eyeing him carefully, then continued. "Hermione, Ron and Draco Malfoy found
you. I don't quite know how, but apparently it was a group effort. They brought you in four
days ago."

Harry nodded and closed his eyes, the conversation over with as far as he was concerned. He
knew how they'd found him, now. Damn the day he'd shown that blasted map to his best
friend. He lay passively, allowing Poppy to cast various spells over his body and force potions
down his throat. He cooperated soundlessly and when she'd finished with her inspection, he
rolled back onto his side and tugged the covers up over his head.

Allowing the tears to come once more, he drifted off to sleep.
________________________________________________________________________
_____

The next time he awoke, it was to muted conversation. His ear picked out Hermione's smooth
cultured tones and the Ron's practically Cockney responses. ~Traitors. ~ He sighed, knowing
he would have to face them one day, and rolled over.

"Harry?" Mione called softly. "Are you awake?" He nodded, eyes still closed. "Madam
Pomfrey says you're doing well. She says you may be able to come back to the dorms in a
couple of days." He nodded and opened his eyes.

"How are you feeling, mate?" He turned his eyes to Ron and shrugged. He watched them
exchange worried looks and found that he hadn't the energy to care if he was worrying them.

"Do you remember anything, Harry?" Hermione took back over. He nodded. "How much?" A
single penetrating look sent to her soft brown eyes and she flushed. "You remember
everything," she stated. He nodded.

"Don't you worry about that bastard Zabini," Ron snarled. "Dumbledore expelled him but not
before Malfoy had a chance to curse him good."

"Ron," Hermione elbowed him, "perhaps we could stick to the plan and ease into things like
that?" Her sarcasm went unheeded, as Ron had fallen into the cadence of the retelling.

"Malfoy cast some kind of muscle cramping spell," he continued. "When Snape found him, he
was laying flat arsed on his back, afraid to move and screaming like a girl!" The gleeful tone in
his voice made Harry's lips twitch, but he caught the escaping smile in time.

"It's strange," Hermione added, "but Draco seems honestly worried about you, Harry." Harry
turned empty eyes to her. "He's been here every evening, checking on you. Of course that
could be because this is one of the few safe places left in the school for him," her voice went
distant as she thought about Draco's predicament.

"I'm even starting to feel sorry for the poor guy," Ron piped up. "He's been narrowly avoiding
bodily harm for a week." Harry rolled his eyes Ron's direction. "He won't tell Snape. Guess he
thinks that having a teacher protecting him makes him look weak. But we've been talking to him
everyday. Dumbledore moved him out of the Slytherin dorms and into his own room on the
second floor."

Hermione came back from her mental trip. "I'm quite concerned as well," she frowned. "It feels
to me like he's keeping us updated on his whereabouts in case he just doesn't show up one
day. I don't like it."

"Hermione? Ron? You didn't wake him, did you?" Poppy's disapproving voice rang through
the hospital ward.

"No, ma'am," Hermione shook her head. "He woke up just now."

Poppy cast several spells over Harry's prone body and brightened. "Well, Harry, you are
healing quite nicely." She cast one last spell and her face darkened. "Now, I'm afraid you must
make a rather painful decision, my boy." She eyed the other two students and sighed. There
was no way that these two wouldn't find out exactly what was wrong with their best friend,
come hell or high water.

"Harry, when you were raped, Blaise used a contraceptive potion," she began softly. Instantly,
Hermione's eyes began to tear and Ron's fists clenched angrily. "The unfortunate part of this is
that you were so bainjuinjured when you were brought in that your body couldn't take even one
more shock. Because of this, I was unable to counter the potion immediately."

Hermione's eyes widened in horror. "The potion took affect, Harry. And Blaise provided the
final…ingredient. Harry, dear boy, you're pregnant." A strangled gasp from Hermione, an
enraged roar from Ron. From Harry? Nothing. "I need to know, Harry. I need to know what
you want me to do about this. Do you want to have the fetus aborted? Or do you wish to carry
the baby full term?"

Harry moved dead eyes from one person to the next. He then rolled back over and tugged the
covers up again. Long moments later, he heard whispers. He chose not to focus on them and let
them lull him back into sleep…into the only place that couldn't hurt him again.
________________________________________________________________________
_____

Harry's timing seemed to be getting better. The next time he awoke, he heard nothing. He
waited for long moments, straining his ears to see if he were truly alone. Nothing. He took a
chance and pulled the covers down. It was dark in the hospital ward. Only the moon shining
through the windows gave any light at all. He sighed in relief and rolled to his back.

"Sorry to disappoint," came the slow drawl. Harry's first reaction was to throw his covers back
over his head. Then his thought process caught up with his muscle reaction and he stared
through the darkness at a blonde head and white teeth glinting in the moonlight. "You aren't
alone."

Harry pushed himself up. "What are you doing here?" he demanded, his voice harsh after a long
period of disuse.

Draco was surprised to hear Harry speak. He'd been briefed by Hermione and Ron on the
brunette's refusal to answer any questions and had been fully prepared to have Harry ignore him
entirely. But one should never look a gift horse in the mouth, eh? "I was worried about you. I'm
sorry Blaise hurt you."

Harry smirked, a disturbing similarity to the one Draco practiced in his mirror each day. "Yeah,
everyone is sorry. Everyone knows that if they'd watched me just a bit harder, kept a better eye
on Voldemort's recruits, that this wouldn't have happened," the bitterness in Harry's voice was
like acid. "Then their Golden Boy wouldn't be carrying the spawn of Voldemort. He wouldn't
be tainted. He wouldn't be ruined."

Harry paused to suck in a breath, horrified as it hitched and came out as a sob.

Draco stared, astounded. Then he felt anger creeping up and knew it was just a matter of time
before his over productive mouth would get the better of his brain. Sure enough, "Bollocks," he
snapped. "I don't know what the others think, but I know for a fact that there wasn't anything I
could have done to prevent it. I'm sorry you were hurt; violated by one of my housemates. I'm
sorry you are in the predicament that you are in now. But this wasn't my fault, Potter. And it
wasn't yours. And I'm not going to let you force either one of us into taking the blame."

Harry's eyes had widened and he sat, stiffened and afraid to interrupt. "That baby is not the
spawn of Voldemort," Draco continued, " but rather the combined essence of two teenaged
boys held in a magically constructed womb until it's miraculous birth into the world in nine
months."

Harry shook himself out of his stupor and snorted in disgust. He looked away from the piercing
gray eyes. Draco reached out and dragged his face back. It was the first touch Harry had
received since he'd woken up that hadn't been full of concern and tenderness. Strangely, Harry
appreciated the ferocity of it.

"The rape was not the baby's fault," Draco said harshly. "The identity of its parents is not the
baby's fault. The horrible timing of this pregnancy is not the baby's fault. I understand that
Voldemort had this done to you to weaken you. I understand that you hold no affection for its
father. I understand that at this time of your life, this is perhaps the very last thing you want."

Draco took a deep breath. "But, it's here. It happened. There's no turning back. You can only
deal with the hand that's been dealt to you. You are pregnant; through no fault of your own and
through no fault of this baby's. But so far, you two are the only ones suffering."

He grasped Harry's hand. "Do you think Voldemort is sitting in some moldy graveyard going
'Drat, poor Potter. All knocked up and no way to fight me'?" He was encouraged by the
desperate attempt to hide a grin. "Do you think Blaise is living in the lap of luxury, a favorite of
Voldemort's going, 'Golly, I sure wish I could see my child when it's born'." Another
smothered snort. "No. Because they're not. They're pleased because everything is going their
way."

He waved a hand over Harry, encompassing his form on the bed. "You are practically
comatose, lying there being miserable, sucking the life from the very air you breathe. You're not
fit to wipe your own nose, much less defeat the Dark Lord. And what happens if you do decide
abort this baby? Are you trying to tell me that for the rest of your life you won't regret getting rid
of your child?"

His voice softened. "Because it is, Harry. It is your child. It may be a part of Blaise, but it's part
of you as well. And no child of yours deserves to die. No child of yours deserves to be thought
of as evil spawn. No child of yours should be hated because it exists."

Harry just gazed painfully into Draco's eyes. The blonde could see tear tracks racing down
Harry's face, but didn't think the other boy even noticed. "So, what do I do, Draco?" he
begged.

Draco shrugged sadly. "I can't tell you that, Harry. It's not my choice. It's not my body, my
child, my life. You have to decide what's best for you. But please, let it be what is best for you,
not what's best for the wizarding world or what's best for Dumbledore. Don't let it be what's
best for your friends or even your godfather. Do whatever you need to do for you, Harry. And
know that the people who care about you will care about you no matter what."

He sighed and lightly brushed a finger down Harry's cheek. "I didn't tell you any of this to
influence you, Harry. You're obviously trapped in an endless cycle and can't make it past the
horror of the situation. I just brought up what you'll be thinking about years down the road;
what you'll be telling yourself when you can think clearly. I want you to go into this without
blinders on."

Harry just stared, tears collecting in the hollow of his throat. Draco sighed one last time and
patted his hand. "I'll let you sleep. Just think about what I said, okay?" He stood and crossed
the room silently. Taking one last look at the Boy Who Seemed to Be Tug ong on His
Heartstrings, he shook his head and eased out of the door.

Harry fixed his eyes on the stars outside of the window and resigned himself to a sleepless night.
________________________________________________________________________
_____

Poppy moved into the infirmary commons humming to herself. She automatically glanced at the
bed occupied by her patient of nearly a week. It was empty. A moment of panic set in. Then
she heard the shower. Narrowing her eyes, she padded to the door left ajar and peeked in. The
water shut off and the curtain flew back to reveal Harry, in all of his glory, blinking the water out
of his eyes.

A flush building on her cheeks, Poppy backed away from the door and began gathering the
items needed to test Harry's condition on what was obviously going to be his last day in the
infirmary. Moments later, a dressed Boy Who Lived pushed through the door and smiled at her.
"Good morning, Madam Pomfrey," he warbled.

Poppy smiled back hesitantly. "How are you feeling this morning, Harry?"

"Never better!" He placed his hands on his hips and cocked his head. "Come to think of it, I'm
kind of hungry. I should get down to breakfast before Ron and Seamus eat everything," he
grinned. "It's not healthy to skip a meal when you're expecting."PoppPoppy couldn't keep her smile from widening. "Does this mean you're keeping the baby?"

Harry's smile became dreamy and his gaze faraway. He covered his belly with his hands and
sighed happily. "Yes. I'm keeping my baby."

Feeling the need to be the devil's advocate, Poppy frowned a bit. "Are you sure this is what
you want to do, Harry? A baby conceived in rape has a difficult life ahead of it."

Harry continued rubbing his tummy. "When my baby asks about its father, I'm not planning on
lying. But I am planning on telling it how much I love it. How happy I am to have it in my life and
how sad that its father will never be able to share in that joy. It's not a baby conceived in rape.
It's a baby conceived in me."

Poppy broke her standard policy of no personal touching and embraced the brunette in a
motherly hug. "I'm proud of you, Harry Potter," she whispered. "Now, go and share this news
with your friends. They're bound to be waking up about now."

Harry hugged her back and raced up the stairs to dor dorms. He called out the password and
slipped by the Fat Lady with a smile. His entrance to the Gryffindor common room was marked
by silence. Early morning chatter ceased abruptly. Those who had friends dozing on the various
couches poked their friends awake. Even snogging couples paused to stare.

No one, however, spoke to him. Even Ron and Hermione, though they moved closer to their
best friend, looked at him as though he were a skittish horse. Harry felt his smile disappearing
under the scrutiny.

"Oh, bloody hell, people," came a disgusted voice followed by Ginny Weasley bearing a
disgusted look directed at her fellow Gryffindors. "He's just back from the infirmary and you
are all acting like he's just escaped St. Mungo's." She stepped up to Harry and wrapped her
arms around his neck. "Morning, Harry," she said with a warm smile. "How are you?"

Harry's smile returned and he squeezed the lovely little spitfire. "I'm wonderful, Ginny," he
stated. "Wonderful, starving and pregnant. How are you?"

Ginny grinned. "Well, other than the pregnant part…I'm pretty much the same."

"You interested in some breakfast?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

Ginny nodded and linked arms with him. As they moved to the tapestry she turned back to the
others and rolled her eyes. "You all can come too, you know." The common room erupted into
a flurry of movement and noise as the Gryffindors lined up to support their Golden Boy in his
trip to the Great Hall. Harry was grateful for their support when he realized that every single
person in the school must know he'd been raped and impregnated.

No one had the decency to look elsewhere or to simply continue eating. Ginny and Hermione
glared and most of the Hufflepuffs looked away, shamed, while the Ravenclaws just looked
annoyed as they went back to eating. The Slytherins snickered behind their hands until Draco
cleared his throat. A few shot looks of hatred at the blonde, but most remembered what he'd
done to Blaise and turned their eyes away.

Harry straightened his spine and nodded to Ginny to get them a seat. With as much dignity as he
could muster, he approached the Slytherin table…and Draco. The blonde watched him coming
and schooled his features into polite curiosity. "Good morning, Potter. I see you're feeling
better."

Harry blushed and smiled as he came to a halt in front of Draco. "Yes, thank you. Thank you
for everything, actually. For helping me…that night and for talking to me as well. You opened
my eyes and gave me a lot to think about."

Draco couldn't help the smile of satisfaction. "You've decided then."

Harry nodded and raised his voice a bit to be heard all along the table. "I'm going to keep my
baby," he announced.

Draco bit his lip as his grin threatened to spread over his entire face. "Well, good on you
Potter."

Harry nodded and focused on Draco. "I was hoping…" he flushed.

"Hoping what?" Draco prompted into the silence.

"That you…er, that you might be interested in joining us for breakfast at the Gryffindor table?"

Gasps rolled down the Slytherin table. Draco graciously inclined his head. "I'd be honored," he
said clearly and folded his napkin up, placing it on the table with a sense of finality. He followed
Harry over to the other House table and waited patiently as ioneione scooted down to make
room for him.

"Welcome to Gryffindor," she whispered as he took his seat.