My Life With the Dragon *Discontinued*

Chapter 21: The Bond Strengthens

"D-Draco?" "Oh, thank Merlin, you're ok." He saw my tear stained face and his face donned a look of concern. "Harry? What happened?" I crumbled under his gaze. "I bumped into this neko and then Kronos came and he- he started flirting with him and... It hurts. It hurts Draco." His face softened and he hugged me, comforting me with his embrace as I melted into his soft hold. "I tried to warn you Harry, I tried to keep you from him. I knew he would find someone he wanted more than you." I started to cry. After a while, my tears trickled to a slow stop. "You know what though?" "What?" "I'm glad he found someone else. It means that I can have you, that I can protect you from others, people that would use you and then leave you like you're nothing." After those words, I fell asleep in his arms.

*Click...Click...Click..Tick, tick, tick, tick. The sound of a time turner in use.*

I woke up in a bed, a warm body next to me. I turn and see Draco, his eyes closed and his slow breathing signifying his sleep. Or, at least, I thought it did. His eyes suddenly opened, showing me his crimson red pupils. He smiled at me. "Hey. Finally awake I see." I sat up and he did as well. "What happened yesterday?" "You were put under a siren spell. Almost lost you to him." I hummed, snuggling up to him, happy to finally be back in his arms. It felt like ages ago that we last slept like this, but I guess that's just residual veela magic. "We really should get up, it's almost time for potions class." "But Draco~" I whined. "No buts, Harry. Snape is already mad about us skipping, let's not give him another reason to give us detention." I said nothing as I snuggled into him even further. He sighed. "Fine. But only for today, ok?" I nodded and he wrapped his arms around me, cacooning me in the warmth he gives off. This is how it should be. This is us now. Now that we are here, it's hard to believe that he used to bully me. It's hard to believe that we used to fight. That is, we fought until last year.

*Flashback* (Not cannon. Also, trigger warning. MAJOR trigger warning. This part is OPTIONAL. Just skip to next break.)

"Just look at yourself, Potter! Look at what you wear and how you act! You aren't royalty and you never will be! Nobody would want to marry you for anything except your money and your fame!" After that I started crying. "What's wrong Potter?" He asked sarcastically. "Did mean little Malfoy hurt your feelings?" "You wouldn't understand, Malfoy." Intrigued at this point Draco's voice lost its usual malice. "Understand what?" "I live with muggles, Malfoy. Muggles that hate me." For a moment, neither of us spoke. "Nice try, Potter. I know-" "You know what? That I'm treated like a Lord by everyone I meet? That I get everything I want?" He nodded slowly. "Well guess what? I'm not! In fact, when I first got my letter for Hogwarts my uncle took it from me. You want to know what he did with it? He burned it. The first piece of mail that I had ever gotten. Want to know how I knew it belonged to me?" Again, he nodded slowly. "It said Harry Potter, Surrey, Cupboard under the stairs. It referenced my room. The room I stayed in until after my first year here. This place is more of a home to me than my actual home. They beat me there. I feel safer here than there, even after fighting a basalisk!" By this point, Draco was on the floor next to me as I cried. "I'm treated like a house elf there. A bloody freaking house elf. No. It's worse there. You probably just yell at your elves when they do something wrong. I get beaten. I get my meals with held. I was... I was..." "What? What happened to you Harry?" "He r.." I mumbled. "What?" "He, um... He r..." Again, I mumbled. "Harry, speak up!" "He raped me!" At this I heard Draco growl. "He did WHAT?!?" I hushed him. "Draco please, I need you to never speak of this. Please. You don't understand what he would do to me if he ever found out that I said anything." "By the time he knows, the bloody fucking wizengamot will be knocking his door down!" "No, Draco, you can't!" I kept talking to him frantically. "Besides, my aunt lives with him. She's the only muggle that actually cares for me, sneaks me food whenever she can. Even when she knows she could be caught. I can't do that to her." At that point, Draco had taken out a phone, something I had no idea wizards used. By the time my brain had switched back on, Draco was talking to someone. "... And I just found out." "Draco, stop, please. I'm begging you. You don't understand. I have to be there. It's the only place Voldemort can't reach me, because of blood wards." By now, I was literally sobbing, tears streaming down my face, making everything blurry. "Harry, this is for your own good." Then, back to the phone he went. "Yes, he said his aunt takes care of him but he referenced the others at the house as they, so I'm assuming there is more than one male... Yes, thank you for your assistance." When he was finished on the phone, he came to me and hugged me, apologizing for everything he had done in the past. The apologies meant a lot, but I was already broken within. How could one not be after what I had gone through? After a while Draco started to just talk to me. "I had them take a wizard's oath not to tell anybody. While you were freaking out. I know that you care about your aunt so I told them to leave her out of it. Told them she was trying to protect you. That way, she won't get hurt." By the time the tears finally ran dry, I was asleep.

*End of flashback*

Yes, after that day, Draco and I were more friendly in the halls. Not by too much, but at least we weren't trying to curse each other. After that day, my uncle and cousin got sent to a correctional facility. I looked at Draco. With him snuggling up next to me, I couldn't help but think. Yes, this is how it ought to be. This is how things should be.

A/N I'm so, so, so, so sorry for the extremely long wait guys! But for you, I spent about a month fine tuning this chapter and finally finished it! As of now, (without the author's note, this chapter has 1,119 words, the longest chapter, even beating the previous longest, Wandless Magic. Hopefully that makes up for the *checks phone* half year wait for an actual chapter. ;_; Please don't kill me in the conments

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