Careless Whisper

1.05.04

Disclaimer: A new year, a new hope of someday owning these precious little characters, but as of today, they’re still not mine…

A/N: Special thanks to my beta, Elani Chaice! (who hasn\'t yet had a chance to beta this chapter) Also thanks to those of you who are faithful reviewers and who take the time to read each new post and make new threats to keep me motivated! Enjoy!
Literary References: Mahatma Gandhi, Aldous Huxley

Careless Whisper
Ch 09 – A Moment with You


It was several days before Harry was allowed to leave the hospital. He underwent several psychiatric evaluations before Neville cleared them all away and destroyed any evidence of the past week in his records.

In the meantime, Draco, Ron, and Hermione passed fleetingly through the hospital to visit Harry. Each one attempting to help out with the Narcissa/Lucius issue in any way they could. Draco had saved the relics from being destroyed at the last possible minute, although he still wasn’t sure why. Ron was looking through the archives in the Ministry of Magic, and Hermione had returned to teaching, while thoroughly researching marriage bonds in the library at Hogwart’s.

Every quiet minute Harry had, he thought about luring Lucius back into his own subconscious to rid the wizarding world of him once and for all. In his mind, it seemed like a perfectly plausible scheme. If only he could convince Draco and the others to let him try it. He would prefer to have them on his side in case something went wrong.



*****


Draco was there when Harry was finally released to go home. And he didn’t even ask where Harry would like to go. He simply took him back to the apartment they had shared for so long. Harry passed through the door into the place he used to call home. Somehow, he felt like a stranger here. An unsettling feeling came over him. He shook it off and turned to embrace Draco.

“Hey, Hot Stuff. Now that we’re alone, we can do whatever we want,” he whispered.

Draco blocked him at the last second, “Harry, Merlin knows I want to be with you right now, but I have to go back to the Manor and check on Mother. I’ll be back as soon as she takes her medicine for the evening. I’ve been going through some of the old Dark Arts books Lucius kept hidden away; I’m hoping to make real progress any day now.”

“I want you to stay here and relax. Do whatever you want. I’ll be home later and I promise we’ll talk…and do some other stuff too,” Draco said with a grin on his face.

The raven-haired man shrugged and turned away. “I know I’m being selfish, Drey, but geez, I just got out of the hospital. I thought I’d get at least a little quickie before you left again. But I’ll just go over to the loft and get some stuff from over there and bring it back. I guess I’ll see you later tonight,” he said, placing a gentle kiss on the Slytherin’s lips.

To Harry’s pleasant surprise, Draco deepened the kiss rather than breaking it. Soon, Harry found himself pinned against the wall by a rather demanding Draco. Their tongues explored the secret crevices of each others’ mouths, regaining the familiarity that was lost in their year apart. The blond slid down and kissed so gently on Harry’s neck that it left him shivering. Draco smiled as a moan escaped from the Gryffindor as he nibbled on his earlobe, a sensitive spot for both of them.

“Oh, Mother can wait a little while,” Draco whispered urgently as he led Harry to the bedroom.

Anyone looking down the hall would have thought a tornado had come through the tiny apartment. A shirt lay strewn here, a pair of pants there. The men could not wait for the sanctity of the bedroom as they tore at each other’s clothes, still kissing and biting at each other fiercely on the way to what was long overdue for both.

They fell roughly on the bed, but that didn’t matter so long as they were together. The pawing and panting continued until finally, both men had to come up for air. Harry looked admiringly at the lover he had thought would never have him again. Draco’s body was long and lean, muscular in all the right places, although perhaps a little on the thin side since they had last been together.

Leaning over, Harry placed a kiss on Draco’s shoulder. Draco had a scar there, a scar so tiny it was almost invisible. Harry had seemed drawn to that scar since the first time they had made love. Draco found that he missed the attention Harry lavished on that scar when he had been with other, later, lovers.

Harry was so close that Draco could feel his arousal rubbing him in the back. Letting out a soft moan, he turned to recapture Harry’s mouth with his. Hands explored slowly, lovingly. All thoughts of Narcissa were forgotten as Harry’s hand slipped below the waistline to embrace what was waiting below. Draco lie back on the bed and let Harry examine his body with his eyes, hands, and tongue. Moaning and arching his back, Draco began to wonder if it was possible to die from over stimulation.

Harry kissed a trail back up to Draco’s mouth when the blond rolled them over, switching their positions. With raised eyebrows, the ebony-haired man smiled at him. “I want to make love to you,” Draco whispered as he explored the exquisite body before him. Harry nodded that he was more than ready.

After preparing for his entry, Draco took Harry slowly and gently, not wanting to hurt the man before him. The Gryffindor groaned and tried to slide against Draco, allowing him deeper passage. The Slytherin in turn, took Harry’s own arousal in his hands, so that both were feeling the same sensual rhythm. At the point of release, Harry sat up, embraced Draco, and bit into his shoulder roughly. The blond moaned and spilled himself into the warm crevice of his lover. Exhausted both men collapsed on the bed, entangled in each other’s arms.


*****


Hermione had been looking at the same page for several minutes now, unable to read a single word of it. Frustrated, she slammed the book shut and left the library with it.

Making her way to Dumbledore’s office, she uttered the password at the entry. “Butterscotch.” Entering his chambers, she saw an old man with a sad look in his eyes. “What’s wrong, Headmaster?” she asked hesitantly.

He smiled, immediately gesturing towards a seat and tea and scones simultaneously. “Ah, Professor Granger-Weasley, I hate to think I have let anyone catch me brooding, I make such an attempt to hide it. But, since you have found me out, it is only fair I tell you of what I am thinking. I have only been sitting here wondering whether our world will ever truly be free from danger or the threat of the Dark Arts. Grendelwald in the 1940’s, Voldemort up until a few years ago, and now Lucius Malfoy. All I want is for our people to live in peace,” the wizard spoke sagely.

Hermione’s heart went out to Albus Dumbledore, he had seen so much in his life. Then remembering her reason for coming, she passed the book to him. “Headmaster, sir, I’ve been doing some research on marriage bonds, but I can’t read this language. I don’t know what it is. I was hoping perhaps you could help me,” the bushy brunette said.

Peering through his bifocals, Dumbledore examined the marks on the page and smiled. “Ah, yes. This, Professor Granger-Weasley, is the written language of the ancient Druids. I’m afraid I would not be able to translate it for you, but there may be someone who can. Oliver Wood was always interested in ancient languages; he would be the person I would talk to. I believe he is playing Quidditch for the Chudley Canons these days, I’ll send him an owl if you like,” Dumbledore offered.

Thanking him, Hermione turned to go but was stopped by the sound of Dumbledore’s voice again. “Hermione, please disregard my ramblings of before. It is important to remember one thing: Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty. Grendel, Voldemort, Malfoy, they are only specks of dirt when compared to the rest of humanity.”

Turning to leave once more, Hermione found herself lost in thoughts as she wandered back to her classroom to send an owl to Draco.


*****


Harry woke up alone in an empty apartment. Stumbling drowsily to the kitchen, he found a note on the counter. Draco hadn’t wanted to wake him, so he had gone on to his mother’s to check on her; he would return soon. Harry shrugged and tossed the note aside.

Examination of the refrigerator revealed the serious need for some grocery shopping. Sighing, he plopped onto the couch and sat in the dark, thinking about the current situation with Lucius Malfoy.


*****


Draco entered the Manor and called out. “Mother, are you here?”

Narcissa appeared in the doorway, leering at him. “What are you doing here? We don’t want you here. You’ll only get in the way, it is best if you leave. We don’t want to kill you; you are flesh and blood after all…”

With a questioning look on his face, he glanced at his mother. “Mother, you haven’t taken your potion today, have you? Come on, then, we’ll go get it now. It’s alright, I’ll make him go away in a moment…” he stopped when he realized she had a wand pointed at him.

“We asked for you to leave, boy. You have always been a bit of a rebel…just have to change that, won’t we?”

Draco reached for his own wand and silently cursed himself. His wand was still in the pocket of the pants he’d been wearing before he’d shagged his Gryffindor Adonis senseless. Extending his hands, palms up in a gesture of submission, Malfoy the younger thought about the best way to approach this situation.

“Okay, I see, Father, that you have succeeded in fully controlling Mother. Now we can get down to business then,” he began.

“Don’t toy with me, boy. It seems to me you have gotten too big for your britches, I may just have to remind you what your place is. Cruciatus!” The curse echoed off the walls of the stone room.

Draco immediately collapsed into a fetal position on the cold floor. There had been a time when he was used to this pain, a time when this and other similar curses were tossed at him on a daily basis. However, since he had joined Dumbledore and The Order of the Phoenix, they had protected him from that evil that was Lucius Malfoy. The last time his father had cursed him this way, Snape had come to his rescue which resulted in his death, leaving Draco to retaliate against his father with the killing curse.

The pain was just as real as it had ever been. A slow fire crept through his veins and spread throughout his body. His bowels felt like molten lava, burning him from the inside out. His muscles constricted everywhere, giving his entire being the feeling similar to the immense pain of a leg cramp in the middle of the night. Draco’s face contorted and his body writhed involuntarily against the pain.

Although the pain typically felt as though it would last forever, Draco couldn’t help but believe that the curse had never lasted this long before. Willing himself to look up, he saw that Narcissa still had her wand trained on him, still had the curse on him. Gasping for breath and feeling his lungs tighten with each struggle, he called out to her, “Mother, if there is any of you left, please, please, stop this!” He felt the spell release just before he gave in to the blackness that was closing in on him.


*****


Professional Quidditch was in its off season so that Oliver Wood was at home when Dumbledore’s owl reached him. Glancing at the letter, he frowned. Surely Hermione knew something of the ancient Druid Runes or she could do research; it couldn’t be so pressing that they needed him immediately. Still, he quickly apparated to Hogsmeade to get involved.

Once there, he traveled immediately to Hermione’s classroom. Upon knocking, he was at once allowed entrance. “Hey, Hermione. Got a curious letter from Dumbledore. What’s it all about?” the Irishman queried.

“Well, it’s rather a long story, and I’m not sure how much I should tell you. It has to do with Ministry business I’m helping Ron on really,” Hermione answered, thinking Oliver may not be willing to help if he knew just how many of his ex-lovers were involved.

She continued, “I’ve been doing some research on ancient marriage bonds. I ran across one in the library in a language I could not understand. Dumbledore said that you were the closest thing to an expert I would find. So, now that you’re here, I’ll show it to you. Let me just get it.”

Handing him the book, Oliver perused the contents on the pages she specified. Before him, he saw the words:

With the placement of this ring, you are mine in body and spirit. With the placement of this ring, at my will you will do my bidding. With the placement of this ring, upon my death your life shall no longer be your own but mine. With the placement of this ring, you are the extension of my life, my soul, no longer your own. With the placement of this ring, you belong to me even in death. With the placement of this ring, you are bound to me, you are mine. With the placement of this ring, no man can remove the honor and duty you owe me. Removal of this ring means death unless the wearer provides another to replace the bond under which the wearer is restricted to.
Finished with the reading, the Keeper let out a low whistle. “Fuck, Hermione! This is serious shit,” he said before reading it aloud to her.

The bushy-haired witch’s brow furrowed as she pushed a quill and parchment towards the wizard before her. “I’m going to have to take a copy of that to Ron, please. You don’t think there’s any other way to break this bond, Oliver?” A frown of worry marred her pretty face.

Oliver shrugged, “I’ve got some books at home I can take a look at, but this is some pretty deep stuff. I don’t know how you’re going to get out of something like this unless someone else is found to take the place of the wearer…Do you mind if I ask who managed to get themselves into this mess? It has something to do with Voldemort, doesn’t it? That bastard is never going to die.”

Hermione looked at him for a long minute before responding. Leaving one ex out of the equation should be safe, “It’s Malfoy’s parents.”


*****


Harry, fed up with waiting for Draco, decided to make the trip to Hogwart’s, where he knew Hermione would still be furiously searching any book yet unread in the library.

Dumbledore was waiting for him when he got there. “Hello, Headmaster Dumbledore, sir,” Harry greeted the older wizard.

Dumbledore nodded. “Ah, Mister Potter. Good to see you, I was just thinking of you and our current situation with Mister Malfoy, the elder, that is. It seems to me that you are destined to save the wizarding world more than once, although I believe you know that already…”

Harry nodded. “Yes. I’ve been thinking too. Do you think maybe that this world is another world’s hell? Is that why people like Voldemort and Lucius keep trying to take control? Don’t answer that. It’s rhetorical, I suppose. I know I’m going to have to destroy Malfoy. The only problem is convincing Draco that I’m the one that has to do the job.”

Dumbledore frowned, as though seriously contemplating telling the raven-haired man something he would not want to hear. Instead he said, “Harry, dear boy, how long has it been since you last saw young Draco?”

“Several hours. He went to check on his mother,” was the younger wizard’s reply.

“Don’t you find it a bit strange, Harry, that he would be away from you for so long?”

A questioning look passing over his features, Harry frowned. “You’re right, Headmaster. He’s been gone far too long. Excuse me, Sir, I’ve got to get to Malfoy Manor to check on him,” the Gryffindor said just before he disappeared, off to Hogsmeade to apparate.


*****


Standing before the Manor, Harry was still a little c. A. Although the spells and wards to keep intruders out had been removed, he was still hesitant to enter. Steeling his will, he uttered an opening spell and wandered into the darkened mansion.

An unsettling feeling came over him. He knew something was wrong with Draco. Fear was something Harry had banished from both his vocabulary and range of emotions long ago, so it never occurred to him to be afraid of what he might find. Yet, finding both an unconscious Narcissa and Draco on the floor, especially an obviously injured Draco, caused Harry’s heart to pause in its beating. It was the first time he had experienced fear since the battle with Voldemort had begun all those years ago.