You Raise Me Up

Karen - You didn't upset me. ^_^ I just thought I'd explain myself. No big deal, I promise. I treasure each review I get, and I do listen to what the readers say. Even if I don't use the ideas, sometimes it helps the reader be a better story writer to see what they would have done differently. Don't let my ghost-fetish discourage you from reading the story.

BTW, have any of you heard Harry Potter in the Hood? It's a HILARIOUS rap about HP on youtube. That one and The Harry Potter Rap are the funniest ones I've seen. I do believe I've killed several hours of my life listening and watching those two videos. Priceless...

I know you've all been waiting to see what happened to Draco! NOw as promised...
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Lucius was at his son’s side in a flash. It appeared that Draco had been hit with a weak Sectumsempra. There was a large gash that started at the top of his right shoulder, and traveled down his chest and abdomen down to his left side. Blood was pouring from his nose and mouth, and had stained his white shirt and silver vest.

Lucius knelt at his son’s side, and gently brushed some of his blonde hair out of his face.

“You look a bit worse for the wear, son…” Lucius said softly. The corners of Draco’s mouth twitched.

“Mi…Her..mi…” he gurgled.

“Hermione? She’s safe with the other women…” he said, and Draco seemed to relax visibly. “Your mother, Bella, and Hermione were tucked away as soon as this all started. They’re all safe.” He added. Draco nodded slowly. Lucius looked up as Severus knelt next to his godson. “Is there anything you can do, Severus?” Lucius asked. Severus looked the wound over.

“I tried. Someone has tampered with the spell. It’s not the same one I’ve used. I can’t heal it.” He said. Draco groaned softly, and shifted on the ground.

Some of the more talented curse breakers were able to get the doors to the temple open. Photographers and reporters flocked around the door as those who could walk escorted themselves out. They flashed photography as reinforcement Aurors were able to come and help take the Death Eaters away. They wrote quickly as Medi-witches and –wizards rushed into the temple, their bags in their hands. Several people had to be taken out on stretchers, including Percy and Draco. The Head Auror walked beside the stretcher carrying Percy.

“Minister…wha’ d’you want us to do with the ones ‘oo surrendered?” he asked, his Auror robes billowing out behind him as he walked. Percy turned his bloody face to the man.

“De….Demen…tor…..Kisssss….” he hissed, his face twisting in pain.

“All of them?” he asked. Percy nodded mutely, gasping for breath.

As the other women came out of their little hidey-hole, Narcissa spotted Draco being carried out on a stretcher. She was at his side in a flash.

“My baby!” she cried, taking his hand in hers. They corners of his mouth twitched happily.

“Mum….” He grunted. Her eyes glazed over with tears when she saw the state he was in. “Tell….mi…nee….I love….her…” he groaned. He coughed lightly, spitting up blood. Narcissa screeched in terror.

“You can tell her yourself, you silly boy! As soon as you’re well you can-” but the slight pressure of Draco’s hand squeezing hers made her pause.

“Jus….tell….her….” he murmured, and she nodded, her lower lip quivering. A mediwitch gently shooed Narcissa away so that they could Apparate him the St. Mungos for treatment.

Bellatrix walked out of the temple, looking no worse for the wear. She was pregnant, tired, and pissed that this day had been ruined. An Auror escorted her out, it being his ‘duty’ to see to it all patrons left the temple safely. A reporter immediately swamped her, and began asking crass and crude questions about her ‘involvement’ in the attack. The Auror next to her looked annoyed. Bellatrix nudged him gently with her elbow, and leaned her head up to whisper something to him. Cautiously, he leaned down his head to see what she was asking. She whispered something in his ear, and he gave a short bark of laughter, and gave her a thumbs-up sign. She then promptly turned to the reporter with a dazzling smile, punched him directly in the face, and turned back to her business as if nothing had happened. The reporter went backwards like a statue being felled.

Bellatrix met Severus at the bottom of the stairs, and they embraced like the world was about to end. Neither paid any attention to the flashes going off around them as Severus took her face in his hands and kissed her until her knees went weak.

Lucius and Narcissa finally crossed paths, and he held the sobbing witch close to him, his hand on the back of her head as she sobbed against his chest, barely cognizant sentences being formed about the state Draco was in.
Hermione looked around aimlessly, trying to find the man she had just been married to. She looked around desperately, before spotting Lucius and Narcissa plastered together on the sidewalk. She hurried up to them, her dress swishing around her ankles.

“Where’s Draco?” she asked, almost dreading to hear the answer. Narcissa pulled away from Lucius, and pulled Hermione close.

“He’s been hurt, my dear. They’ve taken him to St. Mungos.” She said. Hermione pulled away.

“I want to go see him!” she cried.

“We are going very soon. You two wait here and let me pry Severus and Bella away from each other…” Lucius said, leaving the two women to retrieve his dark-haired companions.

~~

They were all gathered together in the waiting room, their nerves frazzled. They were in the presence of several families that had come to wait on news from their loved ones after what had been dubbed as The Battle of Star Temple.

It had been approximately four hours since they had arrived at St. Mungos, and Lucius was about to have a kitten because he had heard nothing about his son. Hermione was shaking from head to toe, still in her wedding dress, and Narcissa was sobbing like a baby.

A pudgy Mediwizard stepped into the waiting room, and all eyes were on him to see whose name he would call.

“Malfoy?” he said, looking at the chart. Lucius, Narcissa, and Hermione practically swamped the man. Bellatrix had fallen asleep on Severus, who couldn’t stand for fear of disturbing her.

“Is my son alright?” Lucius asked, his voice clearly showing his ire.

“I’ve got good news and bad news….” The Mediwizard said softly.

Narcissa sniffled. “What’s the good news?” she asked.

“The good news is: he’s alive and in a room. The bad news is: we couldn’t get the wound sealed magically, so we had to use a non-traditional procedure to get him stable.” He said, his eyes lighting on each of their faces.

“What did you do to my son?” Narcissa hissed, her hands balling into fists. Lucius put his hand on her shoulder to calm her.

“We had to use a procedure that is quite common in the Muggle world. I had to put in stitches.” He said. Narcissa twitched.

“That sounds like you would be trying to sew the skin together, but even Muggles aren’t that barbaric….” She trailed off.

“That’s exactly what it is. The skin would heal magically, so I sewed it back together. The stitches will be removed in a couple weeks.” He said. Lucius had to physically restrain Narcissa at this point.

“You sewed my son up like some common garment? He is my son, not a bloody shirt!” she screeched drawing attention to them.

“It’s all right…” Hermione said. Narcissa turned to her, still enraged. “My mum had stitches before….they’re not bad at all…” she said, her face rather expressionless.

“You said our son is in a room…may we see him?” Lucius asked, his arms still around Narcissa. The Mediwizard nodded.

“I’ll take you to him.” He said.

Draco was out cold when they were all escorted into the room. His suit had been taken off of him, and there were bandages across his chest, looping up over his shoulder to cover the part of the gash that had traveled up that far. Hermione went to his side, and rested her hand on his, looking into his face.

His face was paler than usual, almost gray in color. There were smidges of dried blood around his mouth, and some that had dried in his hair. His lips looked thin and lifeless, a shadow of the fiery lips that had pressed against hers only hours before.

Hermione leaned down and kissed his limp lips lovingly.

“You silly boy…you’ve gone and gotten yourself hurt….” She said, brushing a few strands of white-blonde hair out of his face. “You are in so much trouble when you wake up…” she murmured half-heartedly. His chest rose and fell in a slow and gentle rhythm, the only hint that he was still in the land of the living. Narcissa stepped to the other side of Draco, and ran a cool hand over his cheek.

“We’re all worried about you, my little dragon…” she said. She hadn’t called him ‘little dragon’ since he was six. She had stopped at his request, ‘because he wasn’t little anymore’ was his argument, and she had indulged him like a good pampering mother would. “Do wake up soon…your father’s birthday is coming up, and you always give him the most unique gifts…” she said, a smile playing at her mouth when she remembered the arthritis cream he had gotten him on his last birthday. Draco had had to run very fast to escape his furious father.

Lucius stood back, watching silently as the two women began to take turns talking to the boy. Bellatrix and Severus stood behind him, also silent. Lucius smiled lightly when Narcissa mentioned his birthday. He had been furious at Draco for insinuating that he was old. He had fully intended on thrashing the boy had he caught him…but the little had bugger jumped the stairwell and took of through the front door, and then out through the garden. He had lost him in the maze, and finally gave up.

“If you don’t wake up, I’ll be forced to tell everyone the story of your naked run through the house on your third Christmas…” Narcissa teased gently, running her fingers through his hair. She was disappointed when the young man slept on.
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He's ALIVE!!!! Asleep, but very much alive. The plot bunnies are growing well thanks to the copious amounts of review-carrots they are receiving. Fatten them up...they won't complain.