Not your usual Veela mate [Chapters 39-69]

Dream A Little Dream [48]

It was with a sigh of relief that Draco heard the door fall close behind them. Dropping his bag, he turned around and faced Harry. Moving closer, he tugged gently on the hand holding the book bag, smiling in satisfaction when it fell to the floor. Ignoring the fact that Harry seemed totally unresponsive, Draco pulled him into his arms, doing his best to comfort him in this latest blow.

"I can't believe she said that," Harry eventually whispered, slowly coming back to where his mind had retreated. "I knew she was angry with me, that she didn't approve of my choices, but to… How could she, Draco? What happened to turn her so… spiteful? So nasty? Was it…?"

"No!" Draco protested harshly. "No! Don't you dare to try and take the blame for this! Nothing you have done, nothing, explains why Granger is behaving the way she is. That proves to me that the problem is all with her. Not with you. Never with you, love. Never."

"I wish I could believe you, Draco, but-"

"There is no buts! Oh, Harry, how can I show you that you are the most kindhearted, the most good person I have ever known? You are always trying to help others, caring more for their welfare than your own. Please, let me take care of you now. Let me show you that you are worthy of love, of care. Forget about Granger. Forget about Weasley. Neither of them are worthy of being your friend. All they care about are themselves. I'm sorry, but they are two of the most selfish prats I have ever come across," Draco said almost desperately, willing his mate to believe him.

Harry sighed and pressed his aching forehead against a handy shoulder. "I want to believe you," he admitted quietly. "I want to believe, even if it hurts, that they never were my friends. It is hard, though, to turn your back on five years of friendship. Yeah, I know, they never were true friends, but for a long time I actually believed they were. Merlin, I'm tired," Harry sighed, sagging slightly against the blond boy.

Draco immediately turned his focus on his mate, pushing away his thoughts of revenge, putting them on a backburner. The revenge would wait; the only thing that mattered now was caring for his hurting Elf.

"You are tired, aren't you?" Draco asked with sympathy. "Come, let us go and lie down for awhile. It is utterly clichéd, but things will look better once you've gotten some sleep," he added, tugging gently on Harry's hands, encouraging him to move away from the door.

Harry snorted softly at the words, but he didn't resist the gentle urging, and allowed Draco to walk them both to the Veela's bedroom.

Coming to a halt by the large bed, Draco quickly undressed his mate, until he was standing only in his underwear. If it wasn't for the bruised look in Harry's eyes, he would have been tempted to ogle, perhaps even steal a grope of the fine body presented before him. However, the pain radiating from the brunet effectively put a lid on the blond's libido, and he merely pulled the covers back, encouraging Harry to curl into the bed, tucking him in after he had come to rest in the middle of the bed.

"Stay with me?" Harry asked softly, looking up at the one person who was slowly becoming his entire world.

"Gladly," Draco replied with a gentle smile. Swiftly and efficiently, he stripped down to his own underwear, crawled into the bed, curled up next to Harry, and pulled the teen into his arms until he rested comfortably against Draco's chest.

For a long moment they lay contentedly next to each other, revelling in each other's company.

"Could you drop the glamour?" Draco murmured, feeling ridiculously pleased when Harry hummed softly and did just that. Petting Harry's heavy mass of hair was quickly becoming one of Draco's favourite pastimes. From the way the brunet was all but purring, it didn't seem that Harry was objecting to his new hobby much.