Returned- Drarry COMPLETE

Chapter 8

—Harry POV—

I heard when Draco woke up, asking why I was awake and sitting with my head hung over at the side of the bed, but I didn't answer him, my mind was racing, leg bouncing rapidly. What if Skeeter is actually disguising herself to follow me around? What if I'm not safe here? Who knows how far the rumors have spread by now. How much has she seen? How much does she know?

"Harry?" A touch of on the shoulder made me jump back and stand up, facing Draco, who stood nothing short of 2 feet away from me.

"What if what you heard is a real problem? What if we're ignoring a really big, serious problem?" I told him, looking down, playing with my fingers anxiously.

"What if we're in danger? What if they know we're... us! What if everyone in the Wizarding world knows? How long will it be until I'm constantly being swarmed by reporters, o-or-"

"Harry, It's alright. Look at me." He said calmly, moving towards me. My head started to pound and I wanted to move, I needed to expel the energy. I pushed him away from me, walking out the bedroom door and ignoring the half-asleep look of anger on his face. I started to the living room, crouching down, and getting up again. I brought my hands to my head, annoyed by the pain in it, and ignoring the itch I could feel crawling up my arms, causing a shiver to go down my spine.

"Harry-"

"Stop. I, I'm... I-" I didn't finish because any thought I had, left me; and I found myself not knowing how to describe what was happening to me. All I know is that it's painfully familiar, and I hate it. I made my way to the floor, taking short shallow breaths.

—Draco POV—

"Hey, listen. Listen to my voice, Harry. We're safe. Nothing is going to happen to you."

I got down next to him, making sure he didn't push me again, and when I realized that he wasn't going to move much, I brought an arm around him, pulling him to my chest.

"Just listen, match my heartbeat. Follow my breathing." I said, proceeding to take deep, slow breaths for Harry to mimic. He closed his eyes, pressing further into me, holding his left wrist close to his chest and squeezing. I encased it, trying softly to get him to stop, knowing that if I left it unchecked it would develop into scratching.

Things were silent for a long while, and we just stayed in that position on the floor while he calmed down slowly. I was thinking about what he'd said, and his comments were what determined me to write my own letter to Hermione, explaining today's events, and asking her if she knows anything. Every once in a while, Harry would twitch, and try to press himself further into me, muttering words I wish I heard properly. I would just keep him in my arms, letting him take the time he needed, occasionally passing my hand through his hair, silently saying simple, calming words. Eventually, I heard a sniffle come from him.

"Let's go back to bed, yeah?" I suggested gently, feeling quite tired. After all, it's still the middle of the night, and if anything, Harry needs the sleep more than I do. He nodded numbly, and I got us both up from the living room floor. Harry stayed leaning into me, seeming exhausted. I wasn't surprised by it at all.

Getting to the room, Harry silently curled up into the bed, pulling the covers over himself. He looked shaken and distant. I decided to turn on the diffuser before getting in bed again, not before noticing he took a large breath, inhaling the smell of eucalyptus.

I resided in the spot next to Harry, wrapping my arms around him from behind and bringing him closer to me. I felt his arm twitch, and I decided to break the silence between us.

"Everything is perfectly fine. We're here together, and nothing is going to get us."

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—Harry POV—

I had woken up again, and didn't bother checking the time, just trying to go back to sleep. I turned around to wriggle out of Draco's embrace, because as safe as I felt with him, I was uncomfortably sweaty. Time passed, and I didn't realize it was morning until I felt a warm, yellow beam of light from the window hit me.

Eventually, I ended up staring at Draco's arm. It was just the first thing in my line of sight and I didn't want to move, feeling numb.

I noticed the faded mark, it was almost unrecognizable, and if I didn't know better, I'd have thought it was only a few scars. The curious thing was seeing scars that branched a little ways from where the mark used to be, scars that looked different from those of the faded mark. Those different scars were also on the mark, and if I wasn't so tired, I'd answer my curiosity telling me to feel the map of lines on Draco's arm.

Why hadn't I asked about it earlier? It's not that I never noticed, it's that I ignored it. I figured it would give him peace of mind. But now, spending what felt like an eternity memorizing the way his skin would raise and stretch into the small bumps, how the lines were just ever so slightly darker than the rest of his pale skin, I found myself wanting to ask.

After a few more moments of me just visually going back and forth, up and down a particularly long scar in that area, his arm moved, Draco stirred, waking up. He promptly brought me into a hug, placing a small kiss on my temple.

"Good morning. How are you?" He asked sleepily. My mind was ready to answer honestly: That I feel a bit lost, and I think I'm disconnecting from reality. But instead of answering, my mouth decided not to move. The only indication that he had of me listening, was that exhaled more loudly than usual, drawling it out as if that was my answer- that the words just hadn't gotten to be pronounced. I closed my eyes, mentally leaning into Draco's touch. Physically though, I didn't move.

"Are you alright?" He asked, slightly more awake and concerned.

"How did your mark get like that?"