Love Lasts

Chapter 10

As soon as Draco reached his dormitory, he wrote the letter he had been planning in his mind and left it on his bedside table, ready to send it tomorrow. He felt very relaxed and crawled in bed, falling asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Despite how he was feeling when he fell asleep, when he woke up, he felt miserable. His chest felt very tight and he felt like every one of his limbs weighed a hundred pounds.

"Draco? You alright?" Blaise asked him and he shook his head and burrowed down into his blankets.

The world blackened around the edges and he slipped out of consciousness. When he woke up, he heard voices.

"He's been sleeping for hours. He keeps mumbling, but it doesn't make any sense." It was Blaise.

"I can take him up to the Hospital Wing, but it's probably just a bit of flu. It's been going around." It was Madam Pomfrey.

Draco attempted to be interested, but the voices became muffled and sleep took him again.

The next time he woke up, light was hitting his face and he attempted to raise a hand to block it, but couldn't muster up the energy.

He slowly moved his head in the direction of a familiar voice.

"Is he okay? It's not like I'm worried or anything...I was just coming up to the Hospital Wing to..er...-"

"You don't have to explain anything to me Mr. Potter. It's okay for you to check on someone. Mr. Malfoy is doing fine. As far as I can tell, it's just a bit of flu. I gave him a bit of potion to sleep. But are you doing alright? You're very pale."

A divider was separating Draco and Harry, but Draco imagined Harry to be shaking his head.

"I'm fine. I just didn't sleep well." Draco tried to stay awake for a bit longer, but sleep overpowered him.

The next time he woke up, the sun was fading and the Wing was lit mostly by torches. Draco turned his head and, to his surprise, saw Harry curled up in the chair next to him.

What is he doing here? Why was he here earlier? Does he...does he care? No. That's absurd. But why else would he be here?

Suddenly, Draco remembered the letter that had been on his bedside and sincerely hoped that it had gotten mailed.

But how could it? No one knew I wrote it. Was it there when I woke up this morning? I don't remember.

Draco leaned back against his pillows. It would have had to get there early this morning. He looked back at Harry's face.

His eyes aren't puffy. If his Kneazle was taken away, he would have cried. But his eyes are normal. Granted, Care of Magical Creatures is in the morning. Unless he was crying all day, his eyes wouldn't be red.

Draco looked away from Harry and looked around the Hospital Wing. The sunlight was dying fast but he could still see Madam Pomfrey in her office. The rest of the beds appeared to be empty, so it was just him and Harry.

Draco looked back at him but before he could say anything, the sleep potion pulled him back under.

When he next woke, it was morning, but Harry hadn't moved. His head was tilted to the side and his arms were very still. His legs weren't even twitching. Something was off. Draco studied him closer and noticed that his chest was barely rising with his breaths.

"Potter!" Draco whispered. No response. "Potter!" He said again, this time louder. Harry didn't show any sign of recognition. Draco slowly climbed out of bed and walked over to Harry.

"Potter. Wake up." He said. Harry hardly moved. Draco gave him a harder shove and Harry just crumpled to the floor. Draco's stomach dropped and he knelt next to him.

"Madam Pomfrey!" He shouted. Madam Pomfrey came hurrying from her office and stopped when she saw the sight of Harry crumpled on the floor.

She took out her wand and lifted Harry over to an empty bed. He didn't wake. "What's wrong with him?" Draco asked, moving over to the bed.

"I don't know yet. Go lay back down. You haven't eaten in ages. You're weak." Draco noticed how weak and tired he really was, but he didn't want to move. Not yet.

Madam Pomfrey busied herself making potions, powders, and grabbing bowls and bottles.

She made many potions and at one point, she used her wand to make the liquid levitate in the air then it settled on Harry's skin. For just a moment his skin shimmered in the morning light, but then the potion started soaking into his skin and soon it was gone without a trace.

After a few minutes, his skin started to have a light blue tint to it and Madam Pomfrey clucked her tongue. "I thought so." She mumbled.

"Thought what? What's wrong with him?" Draco asked. She turned to him.

"The lack of oxygen seems to have taken its toll. They way it should have worked, was his limbs started twitching. Most of the time it starts in the legs." She didn't miss Draco looking down at his feet.

"I assume this was happening but neither of you thought to mention it?" She asked. "Maybe." Draco said softly.

"The most I can do is give him some potions and tonics and hope for the best. You see, the human brain is wired to need oxygen. Harry miraculously survived for a while without it but now his brain is trying to play catch up. If he stays asleep, he may be able to heal. I'm going to have to keep him out for a while. I'll say this, I've had Mr. Potter in here more times than probably all of the students of Hogwarts combined and yet he has always survived. I can only hope this will be the same."

Draco chuckled and looked back at Harry's face. It was very still. He looked across his chest and saw that it was barley rising.

"What if he doesn't heal? What happens then?" Draco asked. Madam Pomfrey took a slightly shaky breath and Draco knew that meant trouble. "Then he won't wake up."