Trust Me (Drarry)

Chapter 15

A/N - Hey guys! So I FINALLY updated... Again, I'm so sorry, and I really hope this is worth the wait... There is a slight trigger warning on this chapter, purely for suggestion, but I've marked it with an asterisk where it begins and ends, so I hope all can enjoy despite that! Happy Reading :-)

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HARRY POV

I was curious as to what Draco was going to say to me, and (though I hated to admit it) thrilled that he didn't want to give up on our friendship. I followed him right around the lake, towards the Forbidden Forest, before he spoke.

"I'm sorry, Harry," he said. "Really, I am." I stayed silent, sure he had more to say for himself. But he didn't speak again for a few minutes, so I decided to help him out.

"I only need to know one thing, Draco." I grabbed his arms tightly. "Why did you do it?"
He sighed exasperatedly, looking at his feet. "Harry... It's so much more complicated than that!"
"Then tell me everything!" I cried, and he looked back at me, his silver eyes filling with tears. I stepped back in shock; this was the first time I had seen Draco so broken, so vulnerable. It was terrifying. He stayed silent for a a couple more seconds, staring at me, before he sat down on the grass by the lake.

"I think..." Draco began, avoiding my eyes. "I know this isn't an excuse by any means, but honestly, I think my father has a lot to do with it."

I nodded, having already thought about that.

"For my whole life, I've been brought up to believe that anyone who isn't a pure blood is 'below me'," he explained, and I rolled my eyes. "I know," he sighed, "but what can you do when your father drills it into you every day that you're better than everyone else and all you learn about in your home studies is the importance of your family and who you should be friends with..."

"Then why did you want to become friends with me?" I asked, and Draco visibly cringed.
"This is the worst part..."
I laughed. "After two years, I honestly think I can take it."
Draco looked up at me, his sliver eyes boring into my green ones, and I shrank slightly under his gaze. "I think..."

"Ever since you defeated... You-Know-Who, my father has had a vendetta against you."

I sat down on the bank next to Draco, completely unsurprised by this piece of information. Ron had told me in our first year about the Malfoy family's history with Voldemort, and after last year, I had no doubt that I was very high up on Lucius Malfoy's list of oxygen-wasters.

"For my whole life I was told that I should hate you, that you ruined our lives, that you were the reason we weren't held in such high regard in the wizarding world any longer... What was I supposed to do other than hate you?"
"But then why..."
"I'm getting there. My father was... Cruel to say the least. Everything he said, everything he did, Mother and I had to obey without hesitation. When I came to Hogwarts, I was so used to punishments that they didn't phase me anymore."

I wanted to ask what Draco meant by "punishments", but I stopped myself, knowing that he would tell me only if he wanted to.

"But as soon as I was on the train, I felt like I had a newfound freedom. My father wasn't standing right behind me, breathing down my neck every time I spoke to anyone. And then I saw you," he laughed slightly. "I had already found some friends that my father would approve of, but then I saw you and Ron sitting together in that compartment... I stopped listening to my father and decided that I wanted to be friends with you."
I felt my cheeks start to burn. "But I turned you down..."
Draco shrugged. "After the way I spoke to you in Madam Malkin's, I wasn't particularly surprised. But it made me realise that I already had a reputation to uphold, thanks to my wonderful father," he added sarcastically, "and I needed to stick with it. I really am sorry, Harry. I was innocent and stupid, and I couldn't think with my own mind, only my father's. And those pranks... I would be lying if I said it was all Blaise's idea, but you have to believe me when I say I've never regretted anything more in my whole life."

"That's ok.." I said slowly, and his mouth stretched into a goofy grin. "I understand why you were the way you were. But what I don't understand is why you decided you wanted to be friends with me if your father specifically told you to hate me?"

"Oh, Harry," Draco grinned mischievously. "You should know by now that I don't take orders from anyone."

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DRACO POV

I think it's safe to say my talk with Harry was a success. Not only did we stay talking by the lake for most of the afternoon, he actually suggested a game of chess later in the evening. My heart leapt at the suggestion, and I almost cried with joy at the thought that we had saved our friendship. Almost.

"Nine o'clock, the Astronomy Tower?" He asked as we parted ways outside the front doors.
"Don't be late," I winked, running off in the opposite direction.

When I got back to the common room after dinner, I thought briefly about doing my Charms homework. VERY briefly. I ended up lying on my bed and chucking a snitch around for over an hour, before preparing to leave at 8:45. Before doing so, however, I went into the bathroom and changed into my pyjamas, so that if I got caught I could solemnly swear that I was sleepwalking. * As I pulled my shirt off, my eyes trailed over the fading, yet still easily visible, scars and bruises on my abdomen. I shuddered and shut my eyes until my pyjama top was on and they were safely hidden from sight. *