Harry Potter and The Boy Who Had No Choice

Happy Christmas Harry

Chapter Thirty-Four

Harry was in the middle of eating breakfast the next morning when Draco and Narcissa arrived. He raced to the door and was greeted by Narcissa. He'd only ever seen her dressed in black, but as she stood before him, she was dressed in a silver, high-necked dress. Her previously waist-length ice blonde hair had been cut into a bob that was still sharp, but made her look less severe. In fact, with her lighter clothes and shorter hair, Harry could see the resemblance between her and her sister.

Harry hadn't even had a chance to say hello before Andromeda pushed past him, staring at her sister.

"Hello Andie," Narcissa said with a weak smile. She folded her hands in front of her in a way that was all too composed.

"Cissa," Andromeda almost whispered. Harry saw the beginnings of tears form in her eyes.

"Thank you for inviting Draco and I for the Holidays," Narcissa's words cut through the silence. She spoke quietly, her trembling voice betraying her composed body. "It is more than I deserve. I cannot even begin to tell you how sorry I am for-"

Narcissa was cut off as Andromeda pulled her into a tight hug. Harry heard her whisper:

"I've missed you so much."

The blonde took a second to react, but soon her arms were wrapped around her sister. They broke apart a moment later, tears streaming down Andromeda's face.

"There's so much-"

"I know," Andromeda cut her off, smiling warmly, but sternly. "We have a lot to talk about. But we have all the time in the world." She started towards the kitchen before turning around. "Do you still take sugar in your tea, Cissy?" Narcissa laughed and followed her down the hall.

"You know me, I have an incurable sweet tooth."

Harry watched them go off into the kitchen, and when he turned around, he came face to face with Draco, who had been hiding behind his mother the whole time. Harry heart leaped out of his chest as he locked eyes with Draco, but then plummeted when he got a good look at the Slytherin boy.

"Harry-"

"What happened to your face?" The words slipped out of Harry's mouth before he could stop them.

The right side of Draco's face was untouched, his porcelain skin as flawless as ever, but there was a large, purplish bruise spread across his left cheekbone. Harry found it hard to breathe as he reached out his hand, his fingers brushing against the bruise. Draco grimaced slightly as Harry made contact, but he didn't flinch away. Harry breathed in sharply when he traced over what looked like an indentation of a ring on his skin. He felt like throwing up when he realized why the marking looked so familiar to him: it was in the shape of the Malfoy family ring.

Harry suddenly remembered that they'd been standing in the entryway for a while and he pulled his hand away from Draco's face. He gently took his hand and led him upstairs without another word.

When they reached Sirius' room, he gestured for Draco to sit down and closed the door. The door clicked shut, and Harry stayed like that, his hand on the doorknob, his back to Draco for what felt like a long time.

He finally turned around, and what he saw just about broke him.

Draco wasn't looking at him, instead he kept his eyes downcast and to the side. Despite the giant mark on his cheek, his face was as composed as ever, if not more so. From the waist up, he looked as if he could've been made of stone. When he folded his hands over his lap, Harry was briefly reminded of his mother, but unlike Narcissa, Draco couldn't seem to keep his hands steady. They trembled, just slightly enough that no one would spot it if they weren't watching carefully.