Celandine's Chronicle (celandineb) wrote in cels_fic_haven, @ 2007-08-08 20:33:00 |
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Entry tags: | hp fic better than revenge, hp fic draco/harry |
HP fic: Better Than Revenge, ch. 5: Leaving Godric's Hollow [Harry/Draco, general]
Title: Better Than Revenge
chapter 5, "Leaving Godric's Hollow"
Author: celandineb
Fandom: HP
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Rating: general
Summary: Hermione has Harry and Draco come to stay at her parents' for a night, and Harry thinks that moving around to various Muggle hostels is a brilliant plan.
The last thing that Harry wanted to do was to talk about his parents' deaths with Draco Malfoy. Getting Draco to try the Protean Charm to contact Ron and Hermione was the first idea he had to distract the other boy from the topic; it was something they would have to do sooner or later in any case. It might have made more sense to have him try it inside, in privacy, but Harry did not want to be alone with him just now. The village green was not exactly crowded, so Harry told Draco to wait there while he brought the fake Galleon.
After some discussion, they settled on a message that Harry felt ought to be clear to his friends. Draco succeeded in casting the charm with little trouble, and Harry prepared to wait, since he was not sure whether Ron still carried his DA Galleon. If not, he might not notice the message at all. Harry was surprised when Draco proposed that he should be discreetly absent if and when Ron and Hermione turned up; avoiding confrontation had never been Draco's style. On the other hand, Draco had never before been in such a position, where his name and House would be liabilities rather than assets. Harry suggested that an apology from Draco to the two other Gryffindors might make them more willing to help, and the Slytherin seemed to accept that idea.
Draco's immediate apology to him startled Harry, though. He had not meant to imply that was necessary, and was chagrined that Draco seemed to have heard it as an unsubtle hint. It was not as if Harry had always treated Draco with much courtesy either. He said as much, reminding Draco of the time he had used the Sectumsempra curse.
"I tried Crucio," Draco replied, cutting off further discussion. Which was true, of course, but Harry had managed to block that curse. Trying to injure someone was one thing, succeeding another, but in Harry's opinion it was worse still to have used a Dark curse without having bothered to learn what it did or how to counteract it.
He thought about that for a while. If he had known the effects, would he still have used it? He was not sure what he would have done in the heat of the moment. To use whatever you could against your enemy was only common sense. Or was it? Harry wondered if Dumbledore had ever learned that Harry had injured Draco with Sectumsempra. He must have. Surely Snape would not have missed the chance to tell Dumbledore of Harry's transgression. Why hadn't Dumbledore said something? It was not the kind of thing he would lightly overlook; Dumbledore hated the Dark Arts. Harry felt shame twist like a knife in his guts when he remembered trying Crucio against Snape. Not that Snape deserved any consideration after killing Dumbledore, but it would have been an insult to the Headmaster's memory to have used the Dark Arts for revenge in his name. Much as Harry disliked it, honesty made him reluctantly acknowledge that he was glad Snape had prevented him from using an Unforgivable Curse.
Enough. He did not want to think about that night any more, and it must be lunchtime, anyhow. Since Draco had no Muggle money, Harry offered to get their lunch and asked him what kind of sandwiches he liked.
"Prawn and mayonnaise, or cheese and pickle," said Draco.
Harry preferred beef and salad himself. He was pleased to find that the shop had a reasonable selection, and grabbed a couple of packets of crisps and bottles of water as well. Shoving the change back in his pocket, he slung the carrier bag over his wrist and went back outside to see that Draco was no longer alone at the bench.
"Ron! Hermione! Harry sprinted toward them. "Thanks for coming so quickly." It looked as though there had already been some unfriendly words between the other three; he was glad when Hermione suggested a little private conversation without Draco.
"He really is on the run from Voldemort, like I said," Harry assured her and Ron as soon as they were a discreet distance away. "I'll have him tell you so you can hear the details for yourself, but I believe him."
"Why?" asked Hermione. "This is Malfoy you're talking about. You spent all last year trying to persuade us that he was a Death Eater."
Beside her, Ron nodded vigorously. "He's a lying little ferret, always was, Harry."
"He is a Death Eater, I was right about that, but he didn't kill Dumbledore," said Harry quietly. "He could have, easily, but he didn't."
"I don't understand you, Harry. So he didn't kill Dumbledore, he still let in all those Death Eaters to Hogwarts, and you say he really is one himself! How can you even think of helping him? Or asking us to do the same?" said Ron.
Hermione looked thoughtful. "I can see why he might need to hide from You-Know-Who, but I don't understand why he would come to you."
"I think it might be easiest to let Draco explain it himself," said Harry.
"Draco?" said Ron. "You're calling him Draco now?"
"Get off it, Ron," Harry said. "Does that really matter?"
"It's just weird to hear you say it, that's all," Ron said, scowling. "I'll help, Harry, but for your sake, not his. And don't expect me to call him anything but Malfoy."
"Thanks, Ron," Harry said gratefully.
"I will too," said Hermione. "But Harry, I want to know, how did you get the Galleon to change? You were never able to manage the Protean Charm in Professor Flitwick's class."
"I didn't do it. Draco did," Harry told her. "Actually, he's the one who suggested it as a way to reach you, since Hedwig is at the Burrow with Ginny. He's never been an idiot, just a bastard."
"Now that I can agree with," muttered Ron.
They walked back to the bench where Draco sat calmly eating his sandwich.
"We'll go get something too," Ron said, tugging Hermione away with him. Harry watched them go, hand in hand.
"And the verdict is...? Draco asked in an irritatingly assured tone.
"They'll help," Harry said, and unwrapped a sandwich.
Once Hermione and Ron came back Draco apologized for his previous behavior with considerable grace, his words indicating greater sincerity than Harry might have expected. Hermione accepted the apology with as much poise at it was given, Ron rather more grudgingly.
In discussing ways and means to keep Draco safe for the time being, it was Hermione who had the best plans. To no one's surprise, she volunteered to learn whatever she could about the Dark Mark. Whether Ron was particularly keen on helping her as she insisted he do, Harry doubted. She also suggested that her parents' house would be a safe place for Draco and Harry to stay for at least one night, giving them all a little time to think of other possibilities.
When Hermione hesitated over the fact that the Grangers had only one spare room, which Draco and Harry would have to share, Harry told her, "He shared my room last night. It'll be okay." Hermione shot him a funny look that he could not quite interpret, so he gave her as reassuring a smile as he could manage. It really had not been that bad to share a bed with Draco, after all, though waking up in his arms had been... unexpected. Harry told himself firmly that he had not woken in Draco's arms, not like that. It was probably just a habit Draco had of holding on to something when he slept. A bizarre picture of Draco snuggled up with a large stuffed bear popped into Harry's mind, and he nearly missed Hermione asking how they would get to her parents' house.
"Apparate," he said, and then had to point out that under the circumstances, the fact that they were both underage and neither he nor Draco had licenses was hardly important.
Hermione rolled her eyes, told him to meet her there in an hour, and Disapparated with Ron, leaving Harry again alone with Draco, who offered to help Harry get his things from the room before they left.
He only had the one small case, not difficult to pack or carry, and he was still a bit worried that Draco might start asking questions he did not want to discuss. On the other hand, he was going to be stuck with Draco for who knew how long. Might as well seize the dragon by the horns. "Yeah, okay. Let's go," Harry said, picking up the rubbish from their lunch.
Draco held out the carrier bag wordlessly, waiting for Harry to put in the wrappers and empty bottles before tossing it into the bin nearby.
"I would never have figured you for as being concerned for the environment," said Harry.
"Only a cretin would leave rubbish around," Draco said loftily. "It reflects poorly on one's upbringing."
True, Draco always had been one of the tidiest students in Potions class, surpassing even Hermione. His concoctions might not always turn out perfectly, but Draco never seemed to leave the room with bits of rat spleen or droplets of Bubotuber pus decorating his robes, as frequently happened to Harry, Ron, and indeed everyone else in the class. Come to think of it, Harry had never seen Draco with his hair so much as mussed, Quidditch matches excepted. It occurred to him that Draco had doubtless been wearing the same Muggle clothes for days, perhaps even weeks, and that he probably loathed having to do so. Not that Harry, who had worn Dudley's hand-me-downs for years, had too much sympathy.
Harry had never learned the spell Tonks had once used to help him pack his trunk quickly, and he was sure that Draco, accustomed to having a house-elf to deal with such matters, would not know it either. Not that it mattered. It was not exactly a chore to toss his few things into the case, even if he did take a little more effort than usual to fold his clothes instead of jamming them in just anyhow. Draco brought over Harry's comb and toothbrush.
"Thanks," said Harry, taking the things from Draco's hands.
"Sure," Draco said. He sat on the edge of the bed, then lay back and stared at the ceiling as Harry finished packing and shut the case.
"We still have a little while," Harry said. "I don't want to get there before Hermione has had time to ask her parents." He flopped down on the other side of the bed from Draco.
"Will it be all right, do you think?" asked Draco. He actually sounded nervous. "I mean, they're Muggles. Aren't they going to be upset by having two strange wizards show up?"
"Strange? Speak for yourself." Harry laughed. "They've met me before, they know I'm Hermione's friend. And you'll be just another classmate as far as they're concerned. They may be Muggles but they're still proud of Hermione's abilities as a witch. We won't seem odd to them at all, don't worry."
"If you say so," Draco said, his posture still tense.
Harry supposed that after despising and belittling Muggles all your life, it would be strange to go and stay with some, but Draco seemed... he could not be afraid of the idea, could he? "I do say so. Remember, I'm helping you, I even persuaded Hermione and Ron to help, so you'd better trust me."
Draco lifted one hand as if in a sort of vertical shrug, saying, "I do trust you, Harry." As his hand dropped back to the bed, it brushed against Harry's leg for an instant.
A jolt went through Harry, but he told himself that Draco surely meant nothing by it; it was accidental, Ron might have done the same. There was no reason for him to react this way, not to Draco who had always been his rival, his enemy, and still would be had he not pleaded for Harry's help. Which Harry was giving only for Dumbledore's sake, wasn't he? Not because he was flattered despite himself by Draco's confession last night that he had always wanted to be friends with Harry – Harry was pretty sure that it was Draco's father who had discouraged that – and not just friends, but more. Whatever Harry felt about that idea, he had to admit that it was a compliment, and the kiss they had shared had been more exciting than any experiment with Ron. He was not prepared to compare Draco to Ginny.
On the other side of the bed, Draco had remained silent, apparently waiting for Harry to speak.
"I think we'd better check out and pretend that we're going to catch the bus back to Carlisle," Harry said. "Walk to the bus shelter and Apparate from there. If there's anyone else waiting we can just go past and find somewhere out of sight."
"All right," said Draco, and stood up.
He reached out as if to pick up the case, but Harry said roughly, "It's mine, I'll carry it."
A flicker crossed Draco's face. He opened the door and walked out first, leaving Harry to follow, but waited outside for him to lead the way to the bus shelter.
Because he was leaving in midafternoon, Harry had to pay for a second night they would not use, but that could not be helped. No Muggles were waiting for the bus, so Harry was able to explain to Draco where the Grangers' house was. To make sure that Draco reached the right place, though, Harry decided it would be best to Apparate together, holding hands. Draco's skin was cool and dry against his own. He let go as soon as they were standing in Hermione's front yard and hastily stepped off the grass and onto the walk.
Hermione must have been looking for them through the window, because she opened the door before Harry had reached the step.
"It's all right," she said, smiling. "My mum and dad are still at work but I rang them up and asked, they're happy to have you to stay overnight. Come in, Harry, the room's upstairs, you can put down your case. Malfoy, come on." Draco was still standing a few paces back, staring at the neatly trimmed lawn and the bright yellow door.
The Grangers' house was far more cheerful and lived-in looking than the Dursleys', thought Harry as Hermione led them up the stairs and across the landing. The guest room overlooked a back yard full of bright flowers; Harry recognized pansies, delphiniums, and a few others from having been forced for years to help Aunt Petunia weed her garden, but here they grew luxuriantly unrestrained and mixed in with others of whose names he had not the faintest idea.
Seeing Harry looking out the window, Hermione came over to open it. Draco stepped to Harry's other side.
"Smell," said Hermione, and breathed in deeply. "Mum grows loads of lavender, it's near the far wall but you can smell it all the way from here."
Harry sniffed the air. It was rather like the flowery fragrance he associated with Ginny, but there were other scents too. "What's that bitter smell?" he asked.
"Ivy, down there," Draco said, leaning onto the sill and pointing at the walls. As he moved Harry realized that a bit of what he smelled was Draco, a scent that he could only think of as spicy. Strange, when Draco had used the same soap as he himself had last night; it had not smelled that way to Harry then.
At Draco's words Hermione looked at him with surprise, and the Slytherin shrugged. "There's a lot of ivy growing 'round my house."
"Right," said Hermione, plunking herself down on the bed. "We need to be planning. My parents will be home at half five or so, so we have," she peered at the clock, "nearly two hours to think."
"Two hours to think about what?" said Harry. "You can't possibly have any books here that would tell you about the Dark Mark. The Hogwarts library might, but you'll have to convince the Headmistress to let you in to the school and get Madam Pince's permission to use the Restricted Section."
"Not think about the Dark Mark, Harry," said Hermione patiently. "Think about where Draco could go next. You needn't go with him, you know, not if we set up some sort of way to communicate; you could go back to the Burrow, for instance."
Draco looked wide-eyed at Harry, who could guess how he felt. "I think he'd be safer if I'm there too, just in case Voldemort or one of the Death Eaters does find him," Harry said. "My other plans can wait for a few weeks, they weren't very specific yet."
"If you want. You're more used to Muggle places anyway," Hermione shrugged.
"Muggle places?" Draco asked.
"Yes. You'll fit right in, summer holidays and all," said Hermione.
"Fit right in where?" said Harry suspiciously.
"Youth hostels," Hermione said. "You can move from place to place every night and no one you meet will think that odd at all; you'll be just a couple of friends having a cheap holiday. My mum and dad used to do it, years ago, and they asked if that's what you two were doing, which gave me the idea. I'm sure that there are guides to all sorts of places to stay; we can go out and buy one, and the two of you can choose a few places to go to begin with and arrange when and where Ron or I will meet you next."
As Hermione explained, Harry listened with growing enthusiasm. It did sound a good plan. They could blend in with all the other students on holiday.
"But what about this?" Draco indicated his left arm, marred by the Dark Mark.
"Wear a windcheater, or long-sleeved t-shirts," said Harry.
"I might be able to get my dad to lend you some," Hermione said. "If anyone spots the Mark, they would just think it was a tattoo, but better not to let it show if you can avoid it." She giggled. "Wear an earring as well, that will finish your disguise. If you have your ear pierced?"
Draco pushed back the loose fair hair over his right ear, revealing a small silver stud that Harry had never noticed before.
"Something bigger than that, more daring. I know. I have a pair shaped like skulls, they were a joke gift but they'd be perfect for this," said Hermione.
Harry ignored Draco's doubtful expression. "The whole thing's a brilliant idea, Hermione. Do we have time to go look for one of those hostel guides now?"
"Oh, yes, the bookshop is only..." Hermione had begun, when Draco interrupted.
"One thing first. It's my skin you're trying to save, and I owe you for that. Granger, can you have this changed into Muggle money so that Harry needn't pay for everything?" He pulled a jingling sack from his pocket. "It isn't that much, thirty Galleons or so, but it's all I have."
"I can exchange it, but not right away," Hermione said. "In three or four days perhaps. I'll probably have to ask Bill Weasley to arrange it."
"Leave your money with Hermione, Draco, I can manage easily until she has a chance," Harry told him. "Let's go buy that book."
Draco hesitated for a moment. Then he handed the sack to Hermione. "Lead the way, Granger," he said.
ch. 1 / ch. 2 / ch. 3 / ch. 4 / ch. 5 / ch. 6 / ch. 7 / ch. 8 / ch. 9 / ch. 10 / ch. 11 / ch. 12 / ch. 13 / ch. 14 / ch. 15 / ch. 16 / ch. 17 / ch. 18 / ch. 19 / ch. 20 / ch. 21 / ch. 22 / ch. 23 / ch. 24 / ch. 25 / ch. 26 / ch. 27 / ch. 28 / ch. 29 / ch. 30 / ch. 31 / ch. 32 / ch. 33 / ch. 34 / ch. 35 / ch. 36 / ch. 37 / ch. 38 / ch. 39 / ch. 40