Redeem Me

DISCLAIMER: Warning! I make no claim to any property of J.K. Rowling's, and am in no way profiting by this. I do offer her my sincerest thanks for allowing us this garden of the mind in which we play. Further Warning! This story...and likely any I ever write…are dominated by gay themes and characters. That's how it is, if this in any way makes you uncomfortable...do not read further.

Redeem Me…by Samayel

Chapter 4: Following Erections…Uh…Directions


It was probably the most intensely embarrassing thing Harry had ever done, washing Draco with soap and scrubbing firmly but carefully with a towel. It didn’t seem possible that he could blush without interruption for nearly a half hour, but he proved that it could actually be done. Harry’s mind reeled at the necessity of touching Draco’s soft, yet feverishly hot skin, and shifting his limbs to bathe and scrub him properly. He’d held hands with girls, and kissed or snogged them a bit back in school, but nothing could have prepared him for washing down a naked boy…particularly since the boy was Draco Malfoy!

Despite his best efforts, a few of the untreated and smaller wounds opened and bled, and Harry was forced to cast a few minor Blood Staunching Charms he knew, just to keep the bath from turning red. The water was already filthy from the grime that had come off of Draco, and he’d had to drain the tub and start over again once already! It was gross in every respect that he could think of. At least it was almost over, and all that was left was to levitate Draco from the bath and keep him aloft while Harry dried him off with a towel.

Head lolling to one side in slumber, Draco hovered in the air just a few inches off the ground. Harry took a good look at what had become of the younger Malfoy. Harry had still been growing during his sixth year, and hadn’t stopped during the year after. He’d finally settled down at a respectable six feet and one inch, almost the same height as his father, or so he’d heard. Malfoy had been taller, or at least Harry’s match in height, since their first year, but the last two years hadn’t seen any growth for Draco, and in fact, it looked like he’d lost more than thirty or forty pounds of weight since school.

The niggling memory of brutally kicking Draco’s prone body came back, and Harry pushed it away again, making himself busy with the towel, drying Draco off as quickly as possible. His urgent need to distract himself led his way, and Harry carefully detached himself from what he was doing, and went about the business of patting Draco dry from head to toe.

The steamy haze in the bathroom was fairly comfortable, and Harry relaxed a bit while he patted and daubed soft, nearly white skin to dryness, carefully ignoring the flaccid male organ displayed before him. This didn’t prevent him from noticing that, even when soft, his was still a fair bit larger than Draco’s, but he refused to dwell on that notion for more than a few seconds. A few minutes passed while he worked, and then something both unexpected, and entirely horrifying, occurred, destroying his sense of detachment completely.

Harry suddenly became conscious of the way his own cock was filling out his trousers, engorging slowly with blood and swelling steadily, until the faint tickling sensation of arousal was beyond his ability to ignore.

“FUCK!”

‘What the fuck am I doing?! This…this can’t be happening. Thisiswrongthisiswrongthisiswrong! This is soooo wrong! It’s a boy!…it’s Malfoy!…he’s out cold!…he’s fucking scarred all to hell and gone…what the hell is wrong with me?!’

Harry made short work of the rest of drying Draco off, bombarding his mind with the least sensual images he could conjure.

‘Dead puppies! Snape naked! Filch in a G-string! Hagrid showing plumber’s crack! Please, pleeeaase, God, make this go away!’

Harry was a bit rough and distracted, quite purposefully, when he finally wiped down Draco’s groin. He tried not to look at what he was doing, but when he pulled the towel away after, his heart skipped a beat when he saw the long smear of crimson that had come from between Malfoy’s legs.

Panic threaded its way through Harry’s nerves. He’d seen a lot of blood in his time, and even caused the shedding of it for more than a few Death Eaters, but never…never THERE! Draco was bleeding…from…he’d been…someone must have…

Harry was all too familiar with the victims of Death Eaters. His mind made the final leap to realization, and he only barely made it to the sink, just in time to lose his dinner. He stood by the counter, still shaking even though his stomach was back under control.

Molly must know. She did the diagnostic spells, how could she not? Harry cast the Blood-Staunching Charm in the appropriate direction, hoping that more wouldn’t be necessary. If anyone had told him a week ago that he’d be bathing Draco Malfoy and casting Healing Spells at him instead of hexes, he’d have accused them flatly of total insanity.

There were many things that Harry had done this past year that could have been called questionable. He had killed in hot blood and in cold, and he had killed some of them slowly, leaving gruesome evidence behind as a warning to those who wore Voldemort’s Mark. The people he’d killed were murderers, or at least the deliberate allies of murderers, and that made a difference to him. Those who had surrendered to Ministry custody were safe, and only the handfuls of renegades that lurked in the shadows of the Muggle world had to fear him.

Bellatrix LeStrange had been one of those, hiding in an abandoned tenement flat with a few other fleeing killers. It had been Bellatrix who had killed Sirius, mocking Harry all the while, and it had been Bellatrix who attacked and killed Ginny at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Harry evened the score when he found her, and she hadn’t mocked him then. Before he finished, she had begged just to die, and he finally obliged her.

There were no traces of Dark Magic, because Harry hadn’t used any. He’d used a knife. The same knife he’d gutted Voldemort with, though Bellatrix hadn’t deserved such a perverse honor. It had taken longer than he’d intended, but he’d hung her gutted corpse from the rafters by her own entrails. Before the week was out, half a dozen more renegade Death Eaters had surrendered to the Ministry.

For all that Harry had done, he had never harmed an innocent, never violated another person sexually, and never tortured anyone for more than minutes before he killed them. Whoever did this to Draco deserved death, because while Draco was no innocent, that person was still out there somewhere, and no person so steeped in evil would balk just because there wasn’t a deserving victim handy.

When Draco finally woke up, Harry would have no choice but to question him about his past. Draco had lied about being robbed, and Harry was certain of it now. There were Death Eaters at the core of it, and Harry would make sure that they never harmed another human being this way.

Harry cleaned up the bathroom, and towed Draco’s levitated body along behind him, back to the bedroom. He lowered Draco gently into the bed this time, and set the sheets and blankets enough to keep Draco warm. It was Molly’s orders, right? It was necessary to be kind, for now. That sickly feeling in his stomach didn’t go away, no matter how much he told himself it wasn’t sympathy for Malfoy. Molly finally walked in, rescuing Harry from swirling thoughts, all of which were uncomfortable in the extreme. Poppy Pomfrey entered right behind her, and Harry felt a certain sympathy for the look of distaste on Madam Pomfrey’s face.

“Hmph! You didn’t say it was the Malfoy boy when you Firecalled, Molly. I wouldn’t have bothered to come this late in the evening if I’d known. If you wish to give him sanctuary, it’s your affair, and I shall help, but only because a Healer’s oath requires it.”

Molly rejoined. “Poppy, I didn’t tell you his name because I wanted you to actually come. Cast a diagnostic spell for yourself and you’ll see why I called you here. You should know that I value your time as much as my own…and I would never waste it, dear.”

Harry sat down in the chair and watched Poppy Pomfrey concentrate as she cast her spells. The woman had seen a lot of different injuries over the years, both from the war and from her position as Hogwarts resident medi witch. It was the first time Harry had ever seen her blanch. Molly turned to shoo Harry off before discussing things with Poppy, and Harry balked her immediately by looking her in the eye.

“I know…about what’s happened to him. As much as you do anyway. There’s no need to send me off. Do what you have to for him, I’m fine.”

Molly pursed her lips, unsure of how to proceed, and settled for turning the conversation back to Poppy.

“You see what I’m dealing with then. This is after I used as much of my old potion stores as I could, and cast the spells I do know for elementary healing. I can’t deal with some these things without help. The boy has done a lot of harm, Poppy, but no one should have suffered the things he has. I know you can see this.”

Poppy fumbled with her wand a bit, flushed and humbled. She’d taken Arthur’s call at face value, and assumed that the guest in question needed serious help. She may not have expected to see Draco Malfoy, the stripling boy who betrayed an entire school, but she wasn’t made of stone, and she had never refused a patient yet.

“Very well, Molly. I brought a few things along based on what you told me, and there are a few spells I can cast tonight. I’ll owl you the rest of what you need tomorrow. He’s a fortunate boy, to be here in the home of people he once helped terrorize. You’re a generous soul, Molly. It would ill behoove me to do any less.”

Molly smiled and relaxed. “Thank you, Poppy. I knew I could count on you, dearie. I’d never have trusted my own boys to anyone else’s care. If we can get him up and about, I’m sure he’ll be on his way soon enough, but I won‘t have him leaving here until he‘s well enough to care for himself.”

Poppy nodded and began to unpack her kit, handing potions to Molly and explaining the requirements for their use. When the salves and potions had been sorted out, Madam Pomfrey cast a series of complicated and very specific spells, with incantations that neither Harry nor Molly had ever heard. It took quite awhile to complete them, but the stern medi witch pocketed her wand and turned back to Molly and Harry when she was finished.

“I suppose you were right to call me. You did quite well on your own, but several of his ailments have lingered far too long for my comfort. It may take quite some time for him to fully recover, and the potions I’m leaving with you may help ensure that he doesn’t relapse. I’m afraid he should stay a week at the least, possibly several…if you’re willing to commit to such a lengthy stay.”

“It will take as long as it takes,” Molly affirmed.

Poppy nodded somberly, then sighed and packed her kit.

“Do be careful, Molly. Don’t take on more than you can handle. Harry, I expect you to help take some up some of the slack for Molly, at least right at first. Mr. Malfoy will require a fair measure of care from both of you for the next few days. Do take care of yourselves, and I’m sure I’ll see you again sometime soon. Feel free to owl or Floo if you need any advice. Good night, all.”

Poppy excused herself, and Molly turned to Harry, while Poppy made her way to the fireplace downstairs.

“So you know.”

Harry sighed. “Yeah. There was…some bleeding while I was drying him. I figured the rest out myself. I know Death Eaters, I just didn’t think they’d do that to him.”

“Well, I’ve never seen the like, not through two wars, and I’m glad I haven’t. He was right to come here, and I mean to see him well. Will you help me, Harry?”

Molly’s tone spoke volumes. This time it wasn’t a command, it was a request. Harry hadn’t been proud of the hard words between them this day, and he capitulated instantly.

“Yes. I don’t trust him, and I don’t like him, but I’ll help you. You know I’d always help you and Arthur, Molly. It isn’t even a question.”

Molly smiled warmly, flustered by Harry’s sincerity, and pulled his head down so she could kiss him on the cheek.

“You’re a good boy, Harry. I always believed in you, and I believe in you now. Thank you, love. Just do the best you can, that’s all I could ever ask. He’ll sleep the night from the potions I gave him, and we’ll see what can be done tomorrow. It’s been a strange day. Go on to bed if you like, and we’ll see you at the table tomorrow morning.”

Despite the black moods that crept on him often, Molly and Arthur Weasley had always made him feel safe and welcome. Harry couldn’t quite bring himself to regret their generosity, even if it led to a room next to Draco Malfoy. Harry nodded agreement and wished Molly goodnight, then stepped into his room and peeled away his clothes to make ready for bed.

No mistake, it had been a strange day. Harry was reserving further judgment on Draco, even though the prat had already lied to him once. He wasn’t the victim of a simple robbery, and he should have known to tell Harry, of all people, the absolute truth. He’d question Draco privately when he came to consciousness, and if Draco played nice, this stay of his might not be a complete hell on earth.

As he made himself comfortable and let his mind drift, the incident in the bathroom played back through his mind again. Harry wrote it off as the price for still being a virgin at nineteen. Not that it was all his fault…after all…he’d had Dark Lords to kill, his first serious crush had been murdered in cold blood, and he’d waged a one man war against evil since he left Hogwarts. How was a boy supposed to worry about dating with a life like that?

It had been damned unnerving, getting stiff while tending to Draco, but it was doubtlessly the side effect of being alone so long. That was it! It was just one of those random things that happened…and it was purest chance that it had happened at that moment. That was all there was to it. Harry held that comforting notion to himself, and sleep slowly came to him, blotting out the world of complications and difficulties that awaited him tomorrow, trading it for a circus of subconscious fears that marauded through his sleeping mind.

TBC!!!