Draco Malfoy, Broken

Chapter 77 - Strength

Chapter 77 – Strength

Published: January 1st, 2021

Happy New Year! I always make my New Year's resolutions! 

***TRIGGER WARNING*** smut

Blaise sat on the edge of his bed. Neville had graciously volunteered to take his patrol shifts and stay with Ron for the past few days. Theo wasn't sleeping, only getting a few minutes at a time, before he woke back up. Blaise wanted to be readily available for Theo during the night, though it didn't really do any good whether he was there or not. Neither of them slept well. Theo was sitting on his bed not ten feet away, staring at the floor, and Daphne was pacing, occasionally trying to talk to him. This had been their routine over the last week.

Draco and Harry were in their Home Ec class making freaking soufflés, but Blaise was glad for it. He had told Draco to stay out of it. Theo and Draco both understood that Draco wouldn't try to fix him with Occlumency, again. It would defeat what they were trying to accomplish. Theo wasn't supposed to lock up everything in his head, and connecting with Draco would just build the wall back up. Draco promised, but Blaise didn't want to leave him alone with Theo, anyway. Theo might just crack and force himself into Draco's mind, like he had done to Blaise the night they took out SAD.

It wasn't a conscious decision on Theo's part. It was desperation, and Blaise didn't want Draco to be put in that spot. Blaise just had Draco focusing on his problems, which wasn't hard to do. He knew that Draco was upset about something that happened, but he had bigger problems right then. Plus, Draco wasn't in immediate danger, and he had his priorities. Theo, Daphne, and then Draco. He would never let go of that promise, no matter if Draco had released him from it. He would be there for Theo through this. He would help Daphne be calm and, if necessary, help raise her son.

There was a chance that Theo might never come out of it, but Blaise was going to be at his side. He made Unbreakable Vow to Theo. He would never abandon him. He would protect him and would make sure that he was taken care of. Before his mother went into Theo's head, Blaise also promised him that he would take care of Daphne, too. That was to reassure Theo, of course. He didn't need to promise anything. Daphne was now a part of his family, no matter what. She was going through a lot and, as they waited for something to happen, she finally came over to talk to him, regardless if Theo could hear.

"It's been a week and he hasn't said anything," she whispered, needlessly.

Blaise nodded, unable to offer any words of encouragement. This was just the first step, and it wasn't going well at all. He gave her a helpless look and said, "We knew this was going to be difficult... we just have to...." He didn't finish, though, looking over at him.

She walked over to his bed and knelt down in front of him. She tried to get eye contact, but his black eyes flittered away, unable to rest on anything in particular. Theo hadn't been able to look at anyone since Blaise had let his mother rip down Theo's mental wall around his father's death. She said that it had gone okay, but Theo would need some time to figure it out and eventually talk about it. He didn't. However, the mind healer claimed that it was a natural response, and that they just needed to be supportive and not rush him into responding. But Blaise didn't need the healer to tell him what to do. Theo needed time to process. Daphne had tried to get him to open up, but he wasn't ready for that.

"Daphne... let me stay with him tonight," Blaise said, as perhaps the stress of having a pregnant girlfriend wasn't helping his peace of mind.

She agreed, not even getting jealous that Blaise was taking over. A sign of trust on her part, but she knew that their bond ran deep. She went to her room to let them be alone and talk for the night. Blaise went to Theo's bed, and then pulled him into bed and into his chest. Theo nuzzled up close, burying his head under Blaise's chin. His trembling fingers gripped his shirt, desperate for comfort. Blaise could only whisper reassurances and hold him tightly.