What Shakes The Elephant

What Shakes The Elephant

Chapter 51 – You Feel It When They Take It Away

The light was hazy and sterile. Things were moving so quickly but nothing seemed to be happening at all. The seat was hard and unforgiving as he sat for what felt like interminable hours waiting. Just waiting for something to happen, for someone to tell him something. The walls seemed to blend into one another. There were no corners, no beginnings, no ends, just endless wall standing before him and blocking him from the one thing he needed.

People passed by in groups or alone. They had no faces and no voices. They had no names and no meaning if they weren’t bearing just the right message. The hours were crawling away and he knew that outside the sun was rising. His eyes were dry and itchy from lack of sleep and he sat, leaning on his knees, staring at the ground as though it wasn’t there at all.

His head was pounding and his throat was tight, as though he was about to cry but there were not tears to shed. This could not be happening. It couldn’t be.

He had only just been with Draco in the room. He had only just been with Draco in the grove… He had only just given up his heart again; he was not prepared to lose it. He couldn’t. He couldn’t handle another loss. He couldn’t survive it. He wasn’t ready to lose more people in his life, not when everyone else had already seemed to have deserted him. He then thought of Ron and Hermione and how he had treated them. The pain stabbed at him and he lowered his head further.

It was too much. It was simply too much. His heart ached more and he began to heave dry sobs into his hands as he leaned on his knees. He had stopped breathing and couldn’t quite remember when the last time was that he crumbled this easily under the weight of his emotions. He forced himself to breathe again and opened his dry eyes.

“Mr. Potter?” a voice asked suddenly. Harry looked up and the haze of the light parted so that he might distinguish the features of the Mediwizard addressing him. He did not know this man but he was gazing sadly at Harry and that could not mean that he was uninformed.

“Yes,” he answered hoarsely. His throat had closed up and dried out during his long hours of silent, anxious waiting. He immediately got to his feet, forgetting the fatigue. He did not like the look on the man’s face.

“You accompanied Mr. Malfoy, did you not?” he asked not unkindly. Harry felt his heart tighten.

“Yes, I did,” he answered quickly. “How is he? Is he alright? What happened?”

The questions escaped his mouth before he could even hope to stop them or filter them out. The Healer did not seem surprised, however. Indeed, he looked much as though he dealt with the very same questions on a daily basis.

“I’m afraid Mr. Malfoy has suffered a rather serious heart attack,” the Healer explained quietly, his voice a skillfully soothing timbre, though it did nothing to help Harry. As soon as the dark-haired man’s face fell, the Mediwizard went on. “It was likely the result of a great deal of stress in conjunction with his high blood pressure. He will, however, recover. Thanks to you, mainly. Had you not been there to get him to hospital, he would likely not have made it.”

Harry wasn’t sure if those words were meant to soothe him or not, but they panicked him more. Perhaps it was irrational to think so but what if Harry hadn’t been there? What if Draco had been alone in the Manor? What if he hadn’t survived the heart attack? What if it happened again and Harry wasn’t around to help him?

The ‘what ifs’ overwhelmed Harry and he began to feel faint from the whole idea of it all.

Draco had high blood pressure. That was the Malfoy curse. He should have known better than to think it was as simple as that. Heart attacks are just one of the many results of high blood pressure getting out of hand. What if something even more serious occurred?

Harry heard the Healer tell him that he would be allowed in soon and that he should sit down and rest for a while. He nodded distractedly and sank back into the chair, holding a hand to his forehead.

What caused the heart attack? Stress. It was all stress. And why was Draco stressed?

His wife had recently attempted to murder both he and his father. She had successfully murdered his confidant. He’s faced the threat of a dangerous beast living in his home. His son has faced bullying and tension at school. He has been saddled with the responsibility to take on Harry’s work project as well as his own duties as Head of Department. He just found out that he has been recommended for the post of Minister for Magic which would bring the onslaught of more investigations and media attention.

Yes, Draco had quite the list of reasons to be stressed. But what irked Harry more than this was the fact that all of these insane things had started when he had decided to become an active part of Draco’s life.

Of course. He should have known.

Beware Harry Potter. He brings chaos and danger in his wake.

He felt a pang of guilt and immediately wondered if he shouldn’t just extract himself from Draco’s life altogether, before he made the whole matter worse. He wondered if he shouldn’t just leave Draco alone and stop bringing the adversity that he clearly did not need. He wondered if his presence in anyone’s life was worth the repercussions that followed.

He got to his feet, his heart beating hard and his throat tighter than ever. He glanced at the doorway to the ward, then over at the door of the lift. Just the idea of leaving Draco was tearing his soul from within him. It brought about the intense cold and hopelessness that only the presence of Dementors could have accomplished.

Could he just leave the man he loved?

“Mr. Potter,” a voice called to him from the desk in front of the seats. “You are free to see him now, if you like.”

No. He couldn’t just leave Draco now. Even if he was more of a burden than a blessing in the blond’s life, he couldn’t abandon him now. It was about time he started taking full responsibility for all his actions and facing them like an adult. He would go see to Draco and take care of him. When he was sure Draco was alright, he was going to go and pay a visit to Ron and Hermione.

Harry nodded to the Mediwitch at the station and pushed through the doors to find Draco’s room. When he finally did spot it, his heart stopped.

The blond was lying there, nearly as pale as his hair, silent and serene. He was absolutely beautiful but, stretched out on a hospital cot with potion bottles simmering beside him and observation spells fluttering around him, flashing the details of his condition, he looked fragile. Harry was strongly reminded of the little Fawkes he had first encountered in Dumbledore’s office. He had been withering away and on the verge of burning.

Harry reminded himself that this was Draco’s burning day. He was weak at the moment but he would soon be reborn from the ashes of his suffering and rise again to his former power. He would be alright. They would both be alright.

He took a deep breath then stepped into the room and sat himself down on the chair next to the bed. Harry placed his hand gently on Draco’s and squeezed it carefully. He would be alright.

“I never did think I’d ever be visited by you in the hospital,” Draco murmured smugly. He opened his glassy grey eyes and looked over at Harry.

“I’m glad you’ve retained your sense of humour,” Harry replied softly. He had started breathing again. Draco looked at him sternly.

“You didn’t honestly think that a heart attack would stop me?” Draco asked in all seriousness. “I survived Voldemort and you thought cardiac arrest would do me in? You need to reevaluate your perspective there, Potter.”

Harry had to laugh. If he hadn’t laughed, the situation would have gotten more serious and neither of them could have dealt with that. His laugh broke the anxious atmosphere and calmed them both.

“Your father’s been alerted, of course,” Harry explained. “And Scorpius, as well. Shacklebolt was here as soon as he heard and he saw to all that.”

Draco frowned.

“He shouldn’t have. He likely worried my father and son needlessly. I’m perfectly fine. There was no reason to alert them.”

Harry frowned now. He held Draco’s hand more tightly.

“You do not need to pretend like this is easy for you,” he said. “You were never the heroic sort, Draco. Don’t start now.”

Draco gave him a hard look for a moment, as though weighing out the possibility of that having been an insult or not. Then, judging on the look in Harry’s eyes, he settled on a small smile and a nod.

“Perhaps,” he answered noncommittally. “But I am fine. I’m not even in any pain. I should send word to my family that I’m alright. Especially Scorpius.”

Harry nodded. Draco’s eyes were half-lidded and his voice was weak as he spoke. He needed sleep. He needed rest. Harry was hindering that. He swallowed hard and kissed Draco’s hand softly.

“You need to rest,” he told him. There was no question involved.

“I’m fine,” Draco resisted. Harry shook his head.

“You won’t be if you don’t rest,” he repeated. “I’m going to go pick up Lily so that you can sleep for a while. I’ll be back in two hours, alright?”

Draco frowned slightly. Harry did not want to leave but it was the only way he knew Draco would allow himself to rest. He was a Malfoy, through and through. He never showed himself to be vulnerable if he could help it.

Something that struck Harry, just then, was that he was probably one of the few who had so often seen Draco at his weakest. Truly weakest, anyway. He kissed Draco’s forehead.

“Two hours,” Draco repeated. “I’ll hold you to that. It’ll be death to pay if you’re a moment late.”

Harry smiled and kissed him again.

“Two hours or I turn into a pumpkin,” Harry agreed. Draco gave him a quizzical look, wondering perhaps if Harry hadn’t actually hit his head during the commotion. “Never mind. I’ll be back in two hours. You, rest.”

Draco nodded reluctantly and Harry left the hospital to pick up his daughter. He couldn’t leave Lily with Seamus for this long. He needed to see her, to ground himself again and remember why it was that he struggled through all the pain in life. He struggled for his children and he struggled for his loved ones. He struggled for Draco now. He had been struggling for Draco for a longer while than he’d realized, too.

******

“Do I get to go back there soon, Daddy?” Lily asked Harry for the umpteenth time. It seems she and Seamus’ daughter had become thick as thieves in their time together. Harry was pleased. It was good for Lily to make friends with other girls her age outside of her family. He smiled and nodded.

He walked out of the fireplace into his sitting room, holding her against his hip. As soon as he walked in, he noticed something off.

The room was clean and everything was in its proper place. He had not left it that way. Chills ran down his spine and he held Lily close to him, gazing around carefully to find the intruder. His hand grasped his wand and he was ready to draw it and cast.

“Harry?” He turned abruptly with his wand drawn and then realized that he was pointing at Hermione. He relaxed, put Lily down and dropped his arm. “Oh my, Harry, what was that for??” She was clearly shocked by his welcome.

“I though you were an intruder,” he answered honestly as Lily ran to her room. “The house is clean and not the way I left it.”

“And you thought first that it must be the work of a dangerous intruder?” Hermione asked skeptically. Harry frowned and dropped himself onto the sofa.

“I’ve had quite a long night, I’m afraid,” he answered, immediately feeling guilty. Hermione hesitated, but sat next to him. She turned and looked at him with her loving and concerned brown eyes. Harry folded under the power of them.

“Harry, I heard about what happened with M-.. with Draco,” she said, clearly forcing herself to treat him kindly for Harry’s sake. “I’m so sorry. Is he alright?”

Harry relaxed and let his head down.

“He’ll be fine,” he answered softly. Hermione put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently. He missed having her and Ron at his side.

“You’ve been through hell, Harry,” Hermione admitted. “No one deserves everything you’ve been saddled with.”

Harry felt worse at those words. He did not, perhaps, deserve to suffer this much, but that did not justify his actions.

“I still shouldn’t have treated you and Ron the way I did,” he answered sadly. “I just… Ron can be so vengeful sometimes. He won’t forgive anyone with an outright war and I couldn’t deal with it. I’ve already lost so many people in my life and only gained a few. Draco is important to me and Ron wouldn’t understand. I shouldn’t have blown up at him the way I did, but I can’t understand why he’s being so unrelenting.”

Hermione tensed and shut her eyes. Harry looked up and, again, felt terrible. He pulled her close and hugged her, hoping to make some amends for his stupidity.

“I’m sorry, Hermione. I am.”

She pulled away and shook her head.

“It’s not that, Harry,” she told him. “Ron shouldn’t have acted the way he had, either. But it was painful for him, too. He lost his sister and felt as though you were replacing her with his loathed enemy, so soon after death. It may not be rational but it’s true. Surely you see that.”

Harry frowned and nodded.

“Yes, but I don’t see why he still loathes Draco,” Harry admitted. “He hasn’t done a single thing to deserve this much loathing. Especially after what he has done to pay his respects to Ginny.”

Hermione tensed again and looked aside. Harry tilted his head, confused. What was wrong?

“Ron has his reasons for hating Draco,” she explained very softly. It took her a few moments to do it but she finally looked back up at him. “He didn’t only lose his sister in that time, you see…”

Harry froze. What? What was she saying?

“Hermione…” Harry began, looking wide-eyed and worried. She was holding back tears.

“I was pregnant, Harry,” she told him. His heart stopped. “With twins.” A sharp pain shot through him. “I was having difficulties with the pregnancy just before Ginny died. I went to St. Mungo’s to see the Healers and they gave me a potion to take but… the potion didn’t work or it made things worse. I had a miscarriage the day after Ginny’s funeral.”

“Hermione,” Harry began, his throat tight. He held his arm to hold her but she did not come. “I’m so sorry. You should have told me… I’m so sorry…”

“Ron blamed the Healers,” Hermione went on, still shaking her head. “He blamed everyone at St. Mungo’s for being unable to save either the twins or Ginny. He blamed Draco because St. Mungo’s is his responsibility. He was grieving in the only way Ron knows how; he was laying blame on whoever he could to distract his attention from the actual problem. Anger is better than sadness to him; you know that.”

Harry clenched his teeth and shut his eyes. It wasn’t rational and it was not logical but it was Ron. And no matter how foolish the whole matter, he should have been there for his friend… they should have both overlooked their pride and been there for each other.

“Hermione, I’m so sorry,” he repeated. He was shaking his head. “I wish you would have told me…”

“We didn’t want to put more on you, Harry,” Hermione explained. “Though that doesn’t make much sense in retrospect. He doesn’t blame anyone anymore. He knows now that it was out of everyone’s control. I’ve made him understand that.”

“Then why hasn’t he come to me?” Harry asked, his brows drawn together and his heart aching.

“His pride, Harry,” she told him sagely. “You didn’t come either.” Harry looked away.

“I’m sorry.” He couldn’t think of anything better to say. Hermione hugged him this time.

“It’s alright,” she told him. “You’ve fought before and worked it out. I’ve learned that what you both just need is time. Always time.” She calmed him down with her words and he knew that she was right. Just as she always was. “Besides, I came today because I was worried about you and Draco.”

Harry looked up. Worried? About both of them?

“Why?” Harry asked, suddenly seeing something more behind his best friend’s eyes. She pulled out a copy of the Daily Prophet and handed it to him.

Harry took the paper and glanced at the headline. His eyes widened and his heart dropped. He got to his feet and went for the fireplace.

“I’ll watch Lily,” Hermione immediately told him. He made some unidentifiable gesture of thanks and appreciation before jumping through the green flames into St Mungo’s hospital.

He ran to Draco’s room, still holding the paper. He flew by the Healers and through the doors until he skidded to a halt in front of Draco’s bed, where he looked up, alarmed and confused.

“What’s going on?” he asked, looking worried. Harry showed him the paper. There was a danger that the headline would trigger another heart attack but Harry had to let him know. He couldn’t be left here vulnerable and unaware.

--ESCAPE FROM AZKABAN PRISON--

Draco dropped the paper after having seen just the image. Hydra’s face was looking out at him with murderous and maddened eyes.

“You cannot be serious,” he whispered under his breath. Harry was breathing hard, waiting for some indication of what they should do. Waiting for something to strike him.

“Mr. Potter?” a voice came from the door. “I have letters for you and Mr. Malfoy.”

The Healer handed them both identical letters and they tore them open. The letters were from Hogwarts. Harry’s heart was racing and his eyes scanned the letters. Once he finished, he felt his entire body rent with the inward battle of whether to be fierce with rage or collapse from fear.

He imagined that Draco’s letter was identical to his own.

Mr. Potter,

Your presence is urgently required at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. James Potter, Albus Severus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy have been abducted from the Hospital Wing of the school early this morning. An investigation has been commenced and your cooperation is crucial.

-------

A/N: OMG! MORE ANGST! But Draco is ok. He will be. I lurve him too much. On a more important note: DUMBLEDORE IS GAY! *GASP* SERIOUSLY? JKR said so and I feel better now.

At least she’s admitted it about SOMEONE. It won’t be long now until she admits that Sirius and Remus were too. And Harry and Draco of course. Yeah. >.>….<.<

I love you all!