Samsara's Curse (Drarry Slowburn)

THE MOON'S LOYAL STAR

Harry didn't even wait for Hermione or Merry to catch up before he made a break for the study. Hearing the door swing open, Draco whipped around, probably thinking he was about to be attacked by an Agris. Harry attacked him instead with a suffocating hug, almost toppling over the quilted armrest.

Without any explanation as to why Harry was so clingy all of a sudden, Draco was a little confused. Was it surprising? Yes. Did he want it to stop? Absolutely not. "What's gotten into you?" he asked affectionately.

But Harry couldn't tell him—not entirely—and that crushed him. He had to bear the burden alone. Even though Hermione knew, she couldn't fully understand. Harry couldn't say that he was afraid of losing Draco, as that would spur on more questions, and they'd be ones Harry couldn't answer.

Merry, who had just walked in with Hermione close behind, seemed to be forming a plan, but it was one she hadn't fully worked out yet, so she didn't say a word. Draco hadn't even noticed her presence. The Gryffindor completely blocked his view of Hermione and Merry by the entrance, but Draco was rarely inclined to look away from Harry, anyway. He put down the scroll he had been reading and tenderly kissed Harry on the cheek, none the wiser of any audience. Harry gazed at Draco with adoration, lost in own tumultuous thoughts. The Slytherin's mere existence tended to bring him back down to Earth.

Merry had an indifferent expression, like one you'd expect from a being who's lived for nine centuries. It was nothing she hadn't seen before.

Hermione, on the other hand, was dazed. Harry told her before that he loved Draco, but seeing evidence of that was a different matter. The way Harry doted on Draco without fear of being reprimanded or hit was in stark contrast to how he acted around Ginny, while they were married.

Thinking about everything in hindsight, she was relieved. Harry deserved this. He deserved a real, healthy relationship where disagreements didn't end in physical altercations. Whenever he and Draco bickered, it was never about anything serious, and they'd bounce back from it without issue. They even seemed energized by the back and forth.

"Possibly. . ." Merry finally spoke up, causing Draco to frantically pull himself away from Harry, cheeks flushing. He stood stiffly as if caught red-handed while Merry resumed, unaffected, "I might be able to temporarily remove Samsara's signature . . . so that you can relay to the boy what I've told you."

Harry stood at full attention, "Really?" Merry nodded stiffly, and Harry's face brightened, "Why didn't you just say that to begin with?"

Merry nervously smoothed down the wrinkles on her cotton smock-frock, "Because I've never done it before. It's highly risky."

Harry shrugged and said hoarsely, "What's life without a little risk?"
It was a poor attempt at humor, but that was all he could do to prevent having a breakdown.

Draco held up an interjecting finger, clearing his throat, "As the person directly involved, I prefer low to no risk."

Harry gazed at him sadly, trying to telepathically tell him that the risk would be worth it—that there was more to the cure than met the eye. He had to know; Harry wouldn't let him go along with the plan in ignorance of what it might cost him. His life was at stake.

"What could go wrong?" Hermione asked, wanting to compartmentalize a list of worst case scenarios and their possible solutions.

"Mainly, there's a chance I'll lose control of Samsara's signature, and he establishes a connection with either of you," Merry explained, gesturing to Hermione and Harry. "He might peer into your memories and find out what we've kept from him."

"But won't he just do that to me when you return his signature?" Draco inquired.

Merry nodded coldly, "Not if I fortify your soul in the same way I did with Samsara's. I'm assuming it worked, since you've been asking questions that his memories can easily answer."