The Hidden Promise

Chapter 19: The Burden of the Dark Mark

Hey everyone! I wanted to let you know that this will be the final chapter that I write. Good news though, Sunny is feeling much better now and she allowed me to write one more chapter before she takes over again. Apologies for the delay in updating; I just woke up an hour ago. On top of that, we have school tomorrow, which adds another layer of complexity. But hey, no time to waste! Let's jump right into it!

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Harry's POV:

I woke up with Draco sleeping on my chest. I looked down at him and smiled; he really looked beautiful. I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner—the platinum blonde hair that lit up in the sunlight, his pale skin, and those lips—so pink, so soft, and so perfect. He turned a little before sitting up on my lap and rubbing his eyes. I sat up too, and he opened his eyes, looking at me. I swear I could look at his eyes all day, but we had to get up.

"Morning Potter," he said, smiling at me. I smiled back and said, "Morning Draco, how did you sleep?" He blushed at me calling him Draco. "You're going to call me Draco now?"

"Well, yeah. We're dating, so..."

"Right..." He got off my lap and stood up. We had slept in the clothes we wore last night, and I had just realized that it looked like he wasn't wearing pants because of the hoodie. I got up too, and we grabbed our robes and made our way downstairs to the Gryffindor boys' bathroom. We brushed our teeth, took a shower, and I had tried to brush my hair to make it look neater, but it just wasn't working. Draco still didn't have his hair care supplies because they were in his Slytherin dorm, so he spent the next 30 minutes brushing his hair. I told him it looked fine, but he didn't listen and kept brushing. He was just lucky we woke up early, or we would have been late. After he finished, he walked out of the bathroom and to the Great Hall.

When we got there, we only saw a few people: Hermione, Ron surprisingly, Ginny, Parkinson, Zabini, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, and Theodore Nott, and Professor Snape. "You want to sit at the Slytherin table?" I asked Draco. He looked shocked but nodded his head, and we walked to the Slytherin table and sat down. I could feel Ron glaring at me the second we sat down, but I ignored it.

"Look what we have here! Is Saint Potter becoming one of us?" Parkinson said louder than she needed to. I knew there weren't a lot of people, but it was still unnecessarily loud. "Shut it, Pansy. You're making him uncomfortable," Zabini whispered, elbowing her in the rib. Before we knew it, others came flooding in, some whispering about how I was at the Slytherin table. I saw Draco getting uncomfortable with it, so I held his hand under the table. I didn't know if he wanted people to know about us, but I would be fine with it either way. I rubbed my thumb over his hand and smiled at him, secretly telling him it was okay. He looked up at me and gave me a small smile. We kept eating before an owl came and gave a letter. I felt him tense up before letting go of my hand and opening the letter. He read the letter before getting up and running out of the Great Hall. Parkinson and Zabini gave each other a look before returning to their meals.

"What's going on?" I asked them.

"It's probably a letter from his dad..." Zabini answered.

"Well, why are you two just sitting here?" I asked, frustrated. They were his friends, and they couldn't even help him. "When he gets letters like these, he wants to be alone," Pansy said, poking at her food. "He won't tell us what it's about; he just leaves and comes back to class like nothing happened," she continued. I listened to them and got up. "Potter, don't go after him; it'll only make it worse," Zabini said, looking up at me. I dismissed their advice and left, going to look for Draco. He was my boyfriend; he would want to see me... right?

I pulled out the Marauder's Map and said Draco's name. A green dot appeared; he was in the Gryffindor dorms. I ran there and opened the door. He was sitting on his bed, crying. "Draco, what happened? Why did you run?" I sat next to him and pulled him into my lap. He hugged me tight, and I hugged him back. I waited for him to stop crying before I asked him, "What did that letter say to make you cry like this?" He grabbed the letter on his bed and handed it to me.

Draco, my son,

The time has finally come; you will be picked up in 2 days' time. Be ready.

-Your Father

I didn't understand how these words could make him cry so much. "Time for what?" I asked. He was silent before saying, "My father...he wants me to get the Dark Mark. He wants me to become one of them." I froze—the Dark Mark, the mark that was pure evil.

"Are you doing it?" I asked. "I don't want to, but I have no choice... I would be killed if I don't."

"Killed?!" I yelled. I didn't mean to, but it got me angry; they would kill him for not having the mark of pure evil.

"I don't want to do this, Harry," he cried harder on my shoulder. I rubbed his back, I wish I could do more than this, but we both knew I couldn't. "It's okay, Draco. Let it out." He cried even harder, and I wondered just how long he has been keeping all this in. No one deserved this.

"Is your dad giving it to you?"

"No... Voldemort will. He's been living at the manor," he said through sobs. Voldemort living at his house. I sometimes get the chills just by seeing him, but having him live with you must be worse.

"Why don't you tell Dumbledore this?"

"There's nothing anyone can do. If Dumbledore was able to stop him, my father will just give it to me himself." I sighed, and we sat there, Draco's crying filling the room. I just got him, and I don't plan on losing him. "Don't worry, Draco. I'll be with you every step of the way." I kissed his forehead. How did he manage to keep all this in I thought.

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Bye Guys it's been fun! I'm going to go update Conflicted Hearts now.