𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍

Chapter 19

All Comes Crashing Down

His bare feet slapped against the cold stone as the blond fled down the dungeon's vast corridors. He hadn't noticed he'd forgotten his shoes in the room with the unconscious Theodore, as soon as he had realised Harry was gone he'd gotten out of there as fast as his feet could carry him.

He could only thank Merlin's ghost that he hadn't run into another student in his appalling state. With tear tracks glistening on his face and his eyes and nose -a vibrant red- contrasting horridly with his practically white skin he knew he looked a mess.

Reaching his private rooms the boy muttered the password and slid in the doorway, body trembling faintly.

"Draco?"

The quiet voice made him jerk. Startled he turned to face the intruder and relaxed marginally when he was faced with Pansy.

"Pans" he said with a weak smile in response. Not a second later he was being cocooned in small yet protective arms and Pansy was cooing and fussing. In any other circumstance he would have been aghast at being babied, but right now he welcomed the comfort and security and curled into the girl's arms, wondering if it was selfish to imagine they were actually Harry's.

"Hun?" the boy's ears twitched and he looked at the girl with a small sniff. "Oh Draco what happened?" She cooed softly, threading her fingers through Draco's hair and stroking the base of his ears making the boy curl into her all the more. His could feel his tense muscles relaxing at the tender, soothing gesture.

"Damn, Dray, what happened to your neck?" Draco's eyes flickered open, surprised that he hadn't noticed Blaise standing in the corner watching them. Outwardly Blaise looked impassive and curious, but Draco, the master of masks himself, could see the concern hidden beneath the façade.

Tentatively the boy raised his hand to touch his neck. His fingers skimmed gingerly over the wounded skin and Pansy swore quite colourfully as she inspected the bite wounds, pulling down the collar of Draco's shirt to expose the bitten and bloody shoulder. She missed Draco stiffen at the action although she snatched her hand back at the defensive snarl.

Draco brought a hand sharply to his mouth, flinching at the hoarse sound, noticing only now how badly his throat throbbed from the screaming he'd done only minutes ago.

"Sorry" he managed croakily, relieved when Pansy clucked her tongue and wrapped herself around him again and resumed stroking his ear.

He heard the shuffling of feet and assumed Blaise had sat on the chair at his desk. "What happened Draco?" The boy's voice was deep and sombre. He opened his eyes to see Blaise's eyes fixed on his own, his expression dark.

Draco shifted under the scrutiny, feeling uncharacteristically uncomfortable as he drew his robes around him while his ears flattened against his head. Licking his dry lips he exhaled heavily. "Nott" he muttered at last, jumping when the chair Blaise had previously been sitting on crashed to the floor.

"That bastard!" The boy snarled, all attempts at masking his emotions gone as he took up pacing like a caged tiger. Draco tilted his head lightly, reminded of Harry. His heart clenched uncomfortably.

Pansy's tentative voice broke through Blaise's mutters. "Did he...did...y'know..." her voice trembled, Blaise instantly froze and Draco closed his eyes, breathing heavily through his nose. After a moment of hesitation he shook his head, feeling Pansy slump in relief beside him.

"He almost did...though" he felt he had to add, "But...Harry saved me" he murmured, a swell of awe in his voice. In an absent motion, Draco reached for his bedside table drawer and pulled out the little marble statue of the lioness. Harry's tentative words and shy smiles surfaced in his mind as he stroked the strong sloping back of the statue making him feel slightly better.