What Happened to Harry and Draco?

Chapter Eight

It was almost as if they were broken. Harry and Draco started focusing on schoolwork more, Draco sat at his designated table, and Harry didn't try to stop him. They even stopped talking and hanging off each other. It led to quiet hallways when they passed one another, and awkward silences during lunch as if everyone expected them to just jump up and say 'Fooled You!'

The teachers were even worried, well not Snape or Quirrel who could barely care less what happened to the pains. McGonagall seemed most worried, though it could also be played off as paranoid. She jumped at the slightest sound when the two were in a room together.

     Ron and Hermione tried to ask Harry what was wrong. He just smiled sadly and said it wasn't a good time for either of them. Draco said the same thing when Pansy, Blaise, and several of his housemates asked.

     It was when Sirius, Remus, and James came to the school that spirits were lifted. Everyone assumed their guardians would sort whatever was wrong with them out and they would have their loud, annoying, come as a set, duo again.

      Draco saw Remus first on his way to Transfiguration. Everyone in the hall at the time witnessed Draco drop everything he was carrying, bag included, and practically launch himself at the man. Gripping onto his robes tightly in a death grip. The boys shoulders were shaking ever so slightly but enough to be noticed. It was then that Harry turned the corner and saw the pair. He instead grabbed Draco's stuff and gently pry him away from Remus.

     "I'll calm him down." Remus smiled and watched the pair walk off in the way of the Ravenclaw dorms. Harry had an arm around Draco's shoulders and was whispering quietly into his ear. This calmed Draco, at least to the point where he wasn't constantly shaking.

    "I'll be in Dumbledore's office!" Remus called back to the two. His only answer was Harry waving back at him. When the two vanished out of sight the reaction was almost instant Remus' shoulders slumped and he seemed ready to drop. The man ran a shaky hand through his hair and made his,way to the Headmaster's office, ignoring the stares that followed him.
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     Back at The Noble House of Black all was quiet. Remus had just left leaving James, Sirius, and Regulus sitting at the kitchen counter the letter from St. Mungo's sitting in between them. It had come as a shock when the owl had first arrived everyone thought that it was good news on Peter, they didn't expect this.

     Regulus jumped when the sound of a chair scrapping harshly against the tile floor echoed throughout the kitchen. Sirius had stood, fists clenched tightly at his sides so tight Regulus thought that his hands would start bleeding. It didn't matter because without a warning Sirius turned harshly to the wall and punched. A sickening crack followed but no one could tell if it was from Sirius' hand or the wall.

     This action was repeated four more times before James caught his fist. Blood was running down his arm and completely cloaked his knuckles.

     "Let's get you patched up." James murmured pulling Sirius out of the kitchen and into the main hall. A door upstairs opened and slammed close a minute later. Regulus just put his head in his hands 'How could this happen?'
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     Upstairs sitting on Sirius' bed James was wrapping his best friends hand up, it was silent beside the occasional wince until.....

     "How'd they let this happen?" The growl was almost animalistic, it would of sounded so wrong coming from anyone else but it came from Sirius and it fit him perfectly. This was always how Sirius got when he was angry, but even the word paled in comparison to the amount of rage that coerced through his friends body. James could tell, he could always tell, the shaking gave it away.

      Still the shaggy haired male remained silent, letting the man rant was the best option at this point.

     "He was supposed to be safe there!" A hiccup followed the statement and James' head jerked up from where he had been staring at the bandaged hand.

     "Sirius..." James whispered almost in horror. Sirius didn't cry. He just didn't, watching the man in front of him break now he suddenly knew what it took to break through years of pureblood conditioning. No matter what Sirius claimed, his arrogance, the face he showed the world was just a mask.

     "They got to him again." Sirius croaked. "Years of treatment...." Another hiccup. "He was getting better, they said..." he trailed off silencing himself with a sob that managed to tear its way out of his throat.

     James gathered his best friend into his arms and let the man cry. It had taken so long for Wormtail to get back to the point where he could recognize all of them. By photo at least, they weren't allowed to visit.

     "They said we could see him!" Sirius cried clutching onto the red shirt in front of him. James stopped, this was news to him. He looked down at Sirius and felt his eyes blue with unwanted tears. So that was the surprise.

     That way they stayed clutching onto each other and sobbing their hearts out. When Remus came back that night with the boys he sent them to Draco's room. Regulus had stayed in the kitchen until Remus nudged him to go to bed. When he found James and Sirius they were collapsed onto the bed, sleeping, having cried themselves to sleep. Remus smiled sadly at the scene, but did not wake them, instead he sat in the armchair in the room and watched them until he dozed off himself.
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     Draco had been silent after his encounter with Remus and Harry was getting worried. He was changing his shirt into a night shirt when Draco decided to speak up.

     "Sirius was going to surprise you guys. You, your Dad, and Remus." The voice was so quiet that Harry thought he was hearing things because when he looked back at Draco the eleven-year-old was still shirtless staring at the nightshirt Harry had handed him. It was clutched into a tight ball in his hands, but he had changed his bottoms and that's all Harry could ask of him in this state.

     "Hmm?"

    "He got a letter from Mungo's and practically begged them not to owl you guys. He wanted to surprise you. Peter had gotten better to the point that he could manage a conversation. He could also recognize us. The letter said that he was asking for us. He specifically said he wanted to see James, Sirius, Remus, Dray, and Harry." Draco clutched the shirt tighter in his fists. Practically snarling. "They got in. Somehow the bastard got in and undid years of improvement. All in one night!" The shirt was flung across the room when Draco jumped to his feet, hissing as if the very thought of it discussed him.

     "Draco." Harry sighed and pulled the blond into a hug. He was definitely Sirius' brother. "He won't get away with it." Harry promised.

    "He wanted to apologize for failing them, for not staying strong. He wanted to apologize!" Draco cried as Harry laid him down onto the bed and crawled in beside him, gripping his friend tightly. Tears were also rolling down the raven haired boys face.

     They didn't have to worry about returning to school the next morning. It was so close to winter break that the Headmaster agreed to give the boys a longer break, with the current circumstances. It was a long break for everyone.
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This. This is what happens when I run out of run things to write. I write tragedies. It was to come anyways. I had to explain Peter's condition. I cried while writing this.

Ciao~