Because You're Worth It (Drarry)

Chapter 3

Draco quickly found that going to Hogwarts for his final year was probably the worst decision he could have made. It wasn't that people were physically hurting him or anything like that... No, it was more the fact that everyone ignored him that frustrated and upset him so much. He could have dealt with sneers and laughter and jokes at his expense. He could have even dealt with some hexes or punches or something! Instead, he got absolutely nothing. No one spoke to him or even looked at him and it was completely infuriating! He was so completely angry; he was so completely alone.

He soon found himself roaming the castle to take his mind off of his lonely-ness. He would tour around the empty hallways at night and find all of the hidden passages and doors he had somehow missed in his earlier years. He found himself unable to sleep as well, being plagued by nightmares of the Dark Lord and all of his followers living in Malfoy Manor. So to take his mind off of everything, he walked around late at night, hoping that he wouldn't get caught by some teacher.

One night, as he started to walk past the Great Hall, he felt a cool gust of air which he knew should not have been there. He took a look around briefly and soon noticed that the doors leading outside were slightly open. He couldn't help but slip through the doors, being sure to keep it just that bit open in order to get back in later on.

As he walked, he realized how cold he was and that he really should have brought a coat with him. Despite this, he kept walking until he reached the tree by the lake, surprised to find someone else already there.

"Oh sorry, I'll go..." Draco said quietly, already turning to leave.

"No, it's fine Malfoy." A familiar voice said that Draco instantly recognized as being Potter's.

The raven-haired teen scooted over slightly to give Draco room to sit down beside him under the giant tree. Draco stood there for a moment, wondering if the other boy was actually being serious. Not seeing any sign of a joke, however, Draco silently sat down.

The two sat in silence for a long while, watching as the sun started to rise across from them, turning the sky and lake beautiful shades of orange and yellow. Finally, Potter spoke, "Nightmares, Malfoy?" he asked rather quietly.

"I don't see how that's any of your business." He nearly spat.

Potter was silent for a while, a thoughtful look on his face. "I have them too, you know..." Potter surprised Draco by saying. "It's nothing to be ashamed of."

"What are they about?" he asked breathlessly.

What am I doing? He wondered. Talking to Potter of all people! And about nightmares of all things! Have I finally gone mad? You know what? I'm just going to sneer at him and I'm going to leave, that's what I'll do... But of course, he did no such thing as Potter was the first person to actually speak to him in months and he couldn't risk losing this moment. Even if it is with Potter...

"The war, of course... Voldemort... The people I didn't save..." Potter said morosely.

"You couldn't have saved everyone Potter... Life doesn't work that way." Draco said, confused by the Harry Potter he was seeing. He was so used to the confident Potter that picked childish fights with him at every opportunity, not this Harry who had obviously grown up.

"But I wish it did..."

"Look, Potter," Draco said forcefully, "there's no way you could save everyone, so stop beating yourself up over it. If it weren't for you, even more people would be gone now. You had done everything you could to save everyone and so instead of moping around and being all depressed, maybe you should live the life that others died to give you."

He hadn't known where that had come from and he was afraid that he had crossed some line somewhere and that Potter would get up and leave him to be alone once again. Instead of getting angry, however, the other teen simply smiled slightly before saying, "I guess you're right Malfoy... Thanks."

To say he was surprised would be the understatement of the year. Draco couldn't find any words and knew he must have looked like an idiot with his mouth hanging open in disbelief. When he hadn't answered in any form, Potter looked over to him, only to double over in laughter that rang across the lake like music.

"The look on your face- it's -priceless!" The raven-haired teen spluttered in between laughs.

At the other boy's laughter, Draco couldn't help but smile back. "Well, it's not every day that a Malfoy gets thanked by a Potter" he said jovially.

"Very true." Potter said, still smiling to himself.

Both boys sat in mutual silence, each smiling to themselves before Harry cast a tempus charm and realized what time it was. "Oi, Malfoy, we better get going, it's going to be breakfast soon."

"Oh, yeah..." Draco replied, oddly disappointed that this moment was coming to an end.

The two boys stood up and a cool breeze went through them, but Draco found himself to be at a comfortable temperature, even though he had been freezing earlier. Potter having seen the blonde's confused expression explained, "I had cast a heating charm on you when you first sat down; you had looked cold."

"Oh," Draco said, surprised at Potter's thoughtfulness, "thanks, Potter."

Potter smiled brightly saying jokingly, "My word! A Malfoy thanking a Potter? Is Hell freezing over?"

Draco couldn't help but smile back as they walked towards the castle doors, nudging Potter playfully as they went. Potter opened the large door and the two teens slipped back in, closing the door behind them. Draco wanted nothing more than to ensure that this would happen again, but he had no clue how to ask, or if Potter would even accept. He didn't have to worry about it for too long, though, as Potter, with his Gryffindor courage, spoke up first.

"Hey Malfoy, if you ever can't sleep again... You know where to find me..." With that, Potter turned and left without even so much as a look back.

Draco smiled to himself as he watched the raven-haired teen walk away. He didn't quite know what it was, but there was something fascinating about Harry Potter. He couldn't help but be excited for night time to come so that he could meet with Potter once again.