Carry On

Chapter 14

A/n: before the start of the chapter, I just wanted to say thank you!!!!! I woke up and found this story to be at 500 reads!!!! If you have any ideas for the story or critiques be sure to tell me in the comments. Thank you guys so much!!! (P. S. This is before Hermione and Ron come through the floo in Draco's POV.)

"I cannot imagine you in a jewelry store, Harry. It's seems almost comical." I chuckled at the image playing through my mind. It was of a rather awkward Harry asking an overly peppy store clerk about the latest in jewelry trends. Comical indeed. I saw Harry open his mouth, likely to protest, but was cut off by the fireplace roaring to life. In mere seconds we were on our feet, wands pointed in the direction of the fireplace.
   "Harry!" I heard someone shout in excitement. I didn't put my wand down when I saw that it was Harry's friends Weasel and Granger. Harry practically shoved my wand down, probably so Weasley wouldn't start a spat on Christmas. I looked at the two with suspicious eyes. Granger was hugging Harry, and seemed comfortable enough, so I left that alone. The Weasel, on the other hand, was glaring at me in both confusion and contempt.
"Hey mate." I heard the raven haired boy say after detangling himself from the girl, his posture screaming how uncomfortable he was with the situation.
"What's he doing here?" Weasley said, his face screwed up further in anger. His sneer was rather pathetic, compared to those I have seen at least.
"Draco ended up staying for the holidays." Harry responded, seeming to ignore the obvious anger from the red head. That seemed to be the wrong thing to say to his friend, as he was positively seething now.
"Draco? Since when is he Draco?" He spat my name in disgust. I was quite offended at this. I always liked my name, and was about to tell him as much, when I was cut off before I could voice my offense.
"Ron, he isn't the prat that you think-" the Weasel cut him off, only irritating me further. He could at least let Harry finish for Salazar's sake!
"So he didn't call 'Mione a mudblood? He didn't call me blood-traitor?" He said, voice rising. I winced as he said the slurs I used to spout with pride. I could honestly say that I hated those terms, and was disgusted that I had said such things.
"He did, but he changed since then." Harry said, almost desperately. I couldn't help but feel a small amount of happiness at the fact that my newfound friend was defending me, even from his own best mate. Weasley's next words quickly replaced those feelings with cold fury.
"First you kill my brother, and then you start hanging out with bloody Malfoy? A Death Eater!" He shouted. I froze, barely registering the insult aimed at me.
"Weasel!" I practically screeched at the same time Granger shouted "Ronald!" I could not comprehend that Harry's supposed 'best mate' would spout such lies! He saved his arse! He bloody saved the entirety of the wizarding world! And now this pathetic weasel insults him in such a way! The seething boy seemed to realize what he had said and started to stutter out something of an apology, but it was too late. Harry had already sprinted down the staircase. I didn't bother calling after him; he was already too far to hear me. Instead, I marched up to the prat and punched him square in the jaw. Granger gasped in surprise, but didn't say anything.
"What the hell!" Weasley shouted, holding his now injured jaw.
"What the bloody hell is wrong with you?" I shouted, unable to hold back my anger. "Are you really this ignorant?" The red head began to stutter out an answer but I swiftly cut him off. "Do you have any idea how awful Harry feels about your brother? He already blames himself, for Merlin's sake! And now you just bloody confirmed it!" The other boy just stared at me as a look of realization passed over his face. "Now I am going to go after Harry before he does something stupid, and when I come back with him, you had better be ready to bloody well grovel, or I swear to fucking Magic herself that I will castrate you! Do you understand?" I shouted. At his nod I turned on my heels and sprinted from the common room, hoping to find the raven haired boy.
Where could he be? There were only so many places he would go in Hogwarts, and I had already checked the few places I would usually find him. Namely; the Room of Requirements, several empty classrooms, and the library. Other than that, Harry would only ever be found either in the common room or his dorm. So where the bloody hell did he go? I thought, panic quickly spreading. Wait. Of course! The Astronomy Tower! Why hadn't I thought of that earlier? I had found Harry there whenever he was upset, usually from a nightmare. I quickly changed directions toward the tower, and ran as fast as I possibly could manage towards it. I darted up the stairs, and flung open the door, only to see the worst possible scenario I could ever imagine.
Harry, arms dripping with blood, was on the very edge of the open window in the Astronomy Tower, seeming to be readying himself to jump.
"HARRY!" I shouted, not caring how desperate I sounded. I couldn't care about that right now, I had to get Harry down. He looked back at me, a dazed expression on his face, but quickly turned back. I ran up and yanked him back by the torso with all the strength I could muster. What truly terrified me was his lack of resistance. Normally, Harry would be fighting me. Why wasn't he fighting me? I thought desperately.
   "Dammit, Harry! You have to stay awake. Potter! Please, just don't fall asleep, please don't fall asleep." I shouted desperately, trying to stop the bleeding with little success. He looked over at me, eyes glazed over, and I saw those once vibrant emerald eyes close. "HARRY!" I shouted again, tears streaming down my cheeks. I quickly picked him up, shocked at how light he still was, and bolted down the stairs. I ran as fast as I could toward the Hospital Wing, trying not to disturb my precious cargo. As soon as I entered the infirmary, I began shouting.
   "MADAME POMFERY! HELP!" I screamed, nearly in hysterics. The Mediwitch quickly ran out of her office, looking slightly annoyed.
   "Mr. Malfoy! What could possibly- Dear Merlin!" She quickly gestured for me to lay the boy I was cradling on a nearby hospital bed. I quickly complied. Madame Pomfery was grabbing several potions, and putting them up to the unconscious boys lips. After a few potions, she began to point her wand, muttering words that I could only assume were part of a diagnostic spell. After what felt like an eternity, she walked back over to me, seeming weary.
   "What is it? Will he be alright? When will he wake up?" I asked, barely taking time to breathe. The Mediwitch sighed.
   "Mr. Potter lost quite a bit of blood, and his body is already weaker due to his malnourishment. I'm afraid that..." She trailed off, seeming pained at her next words. "I'm afraid that he might not wake up." She finished. I froze, unable to comprehend what the witch had just told me. He might not wake up? But, how? He was the boy-who-lived-twice! He can't just die! I stared at Madame Pomfery in shock. "Now Mr. Malfoy, I need you to tell me exactly what happened." No sooner had she finished her sentence did Granger come bursting though the doors of the Hospital Wing.
   "Harry!" She cried in anguish, tears already falling from her chestnut eyes. "Oh my god, Harry!" She shouted, quickly breaking off into sobs. I couldn't help but stare at the tearful girl, feeling a numbness as the Mediwitch's words finally sunk in. I felt more tears well in my eyes, not bothering to hold them back. I vaguely heard Madame Pomfery trying to get my attention, but I ignored her, too overcome with emotion to care.
   I carefully took my eyes off of the bushy haired girl, and slowly made my way to the broken boy she was crying over. I started slowly, beginning at his feet in a futile attempt at stalling looking at his face. I gently shifted my eyes upwards, slowly making my way to his torso. He was so thin. I couldn't stop the thought. More tears streamed down my face when I saw his chest barely rising. I briefly glanced at his bandaged arms before quickly moving on, unable to look at the wounds for long. I brought my eyes to his neck, and with a final breath, looked at his face. It was pale, so pale, but not quite lifeless. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to be at some sort of morbid peace.
   If only I had found him sooner. With that thought, I crumpled, falling to my knees in grief. Sobs wracked my body unbidden. I couldn't hold them back, it was as if I didn't have any sense of control over the pain and guilt I was feeling. I ran my hands through my hair, over and over, no longer caring how it looked. More and more tears fell from my eyes. I couldn't stop. I heard someone kneel beside me, and immediately sought the comfort of another person. I buried my head into their shoulder, not bothering to see who it was, not even caring who it was.
   "He'll be okay. Shh, it's alright. He'll be okay." They whispered, but I barely heard them. All I could think of was Harry. I should have gone after him sooner. I should have kept him from running. I should have been able to help. More tears sprang to my eyes, but this time I attempted to wipe them away, finally realizing where I was. After all, Malfoy's never show emotion, let alone burst into uncontrollable tears. Sometimes I truly despised being a Malfoy. I glanced up at the person who was still trying to give me some sort of comfort, and found it to be Granger. I quickly stood, hoping to mask my surprise and slight embarrassment, only to run into the Mediwitch who had been standing over us.
"You still must tell me what happened, Mr. Malfoy." She said sternly, though there was an undertone of sadness and compassion in her voice, matching the look in her eyes. I sighed, wiping away any stray tears I may have, and tried to regain some shred of composure.
"Very well then." I said, and Madame Pomfery lead me away from Granger and the hospital bed occupied by Harry. I couldn't help the slight wince at how frail the boy had looked.
"Start from the beginning." She prompted. I took a deep, steadying breath.
"Harry and I were in the common room, talking."
"What were you talking about?" She cut in.
"Nothing in particular." She raised an eyebrow at my response. "Nothing heavy, if that is what you think." I clarified. "Anyway. We heard the fireplace, and, as we didn't think it was connected to the Floo Network, we both jumped up with our wands. It was only Granger and Weasley." I growled out the name, unable to keep the anger out of my features. "Granger went up and hugged Harry, but Weasley stayed back, staring at me. Immediately afterwards, he and Harry began to argue, and Weasley said something that triggered Harry. He ran to the Astronomy Tower... and..." I trailed off, my eyes stinging at the horrid sight in my minds eye, likely a scene I would never forget. Blood dripping from Harry's sliced wrists, standing on the very edge of the tower, one step away from-
"What did he do?" The Mediwitch cut off my thoughts. I glanced up at her concerned and almost fearful eyes.
"He slit his wrists, and nearly jumped off the Astronomy Tower." I whispered quickly, hating the words coming from my mouth. I heard Granger let out a sob behind me, and then the opening and closing of the Hospital Wing doors. I looked at the entrance, and felt the complete and utter rage bubble back to the surface.
"WEASEL!" I roared, dashing forward.