Saving Myself || A Drarry Story

XXVI: Mummy and Daddy

Harry stood, his arms rigid and his mouth set into a frown. He didn't want to think about the dog. He didn't even care for it.

He was pacing when the door opened and he almost told Draco (who else would open the door and check on him?) off, when he saw that he was holding hands with a small, teal-haired child. Why would a kid have dyed hair? And wide, purple eyes that seemed inhuman?

"Hullo, " the boy said. He couldn't have been older than six.

"Hi?"

Draco shut the door behind him, leaning against it as he let out a breath. Harry looked down at the kid as he said, "I'm five, "

Harry said, "Alright, "

"Dray says you have seventeen."

"Seventeen what?"

The boy let out an exaggerated sigh and Draco grinned. "That's how many you are!"

"Oh, " Harry replied, not knowing what he was really saying. He somehow felt stupid and he didn't know why.

"I'm Teddy, "

"Like the bear?" Harry asked with a wry grin.

Teddy laughed and said, "That's what Sirius calls me!"

"That's . . .nice? I'm Harry."

Draco put his hand on Teddy's head, asking him, "Didn't you want to show Harry a trick?"

Teddy's purple eyes seemed to light up and he cried out, "Oh! What's a colour?"

Harry thought for a moment before replying, "Orange?"

"Okay, " Teddy said, keeping his eyes wide. "Don't look away, okay?"

"Okay, "

"And don't blink."

"Okay, " Harry replied. Expecting the child to do some lame 'magic' trick, Harry wasn't prepared for what happened next; Teddy's hair colour changed from teal to pale orange, like a sunset, then to a fluorescent colour that hurt his eyes, then to a ruddy, almost brown colour. His eyes did this also and Harry gaped rudely.

Draco clapped when Teddy's hair returned to teal and his eyes retreated back to purple. Teddy bowed and asked excitedly, "Did you like it? Huh?"

Harry cleared his throat as Draco praised the child, tossing him up into the air and catching him. "Wonderful job, little guy! Amazing!" When he put Teddy down, Draco told him, "Tell him what you are."

"I'm a metty-morp-magis, " Teddy told him proudly.

Draco corrected, though through an amused laugh, "Metamorphamgus."

Harry marvelled at the small boy. He had never met a Metamorphmagus and he always wished he himself were one. Then, he could get away with everything.

Draco said, "He's here for Christmas as well."

"I've gotta bed at home. With Mummy and Daddy. Two beds."

"You . . .wait, I thought Professor Lupin and your godfather were---"

"They are, " Draco interjected. "It was a past relationship."

"I live with Daddy, " Teddy added. "Mummy was suppos' to get me, but she didn't."

Harry asked softly, "Are you sad about that?" He crouched down, making himself level with the teal-headed boy.

Draco was about to stop Harry when Teddy sniffled and answered, "Yeah, but it happens a lot. Where's your Mummy and Daddy?"

Harry was silent. So Teddy asked again. Tears filled Harry's eyes and he smiled sadly. "I'm not sure if they like me much."

"Dray said that you were his special friend. Is that true? Are you two special friends?"

Harry looked up at Draco from his crouched position, smiling. "Yeah, we are. Is that alright with you, Teddy?"

Teddy nodded and Draco grinned. He remembered what Harry had told him when he told Harry how he felt. The hesitation before one word: . . .alright.

Draco suspected that Harry was afraid of the commitment, but he never elaborated on the subject with him. He had told him that his parents didn't necessarily care for him, but Draco suspected more.

For one thing, Harry always flinched at sudden movements or whenever Draco placed his hands on the smaller boy's shoulders. Once, back in mid-November, Draco had tried to pry something off of Harry's bed when his elbow came back at breakneck speed, hitting Harry's jaw.

Draco had apologized many times, but Harry had dismissed it, saying it didn't hurt. But, the next morning, Draco saw a large bruise where his elbow had connected with his jaw. Harry insisted that he wasn't in pain, but Draco would see him wincing if he accidentally tapped it.

Suspecting some sort of trauma, Draco didn't pressure Harry into questions, but he kept them to himself. Draco had always been the observant type, and that didn't change when he watched and studied Harry's movements or actions, hoping to get an answer. Any answer.

"I wanna get a snack, " Teddy whined and Draco opened the bedroom door. Teddy grabbed Harry's hand, telling him, "My dog is downstairs."

"I'm afraid of dogs, " Harry replied, not looking at Draco.

Teddy smiled in reassurance. "He's nice. He doesn't bite or growl and he's the same number as me."

Harry smiled and said, "Well, perhaps he's not that bad . . ."

Draco squeezed Harry's shoulder and, when Harry looked at him, gave him a kiss on his forehead. Harry looked at him until Teddy tugged his arm, making Harry turn.

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