dumbledore said nothing until the door opened and prall ehe deputy headmistress had the total ount of missi ounting harry and drao, thirteen slytherins were missing, along with five ravenws, two hufflepuffs, and three gryffindors. all of the studeher six or seveudents.
dumbledore o think for a moment bef the orders. filh ersonally wath the front doors ahem open for as who were eous enough to marh in after being missing. all studeo remain in their on rooms uudent from that house was aouhe heads of their respetive houses were to stay with their students in their on room. dumbledore himself would over the slytherin house in professor snape’s absene. hermione ao go bak to the gryffindor on room.
“harry,” dumbledore said through drao’s muffled sobs. “why don’t you take drao bak down to your rooms. i trust you will both stay there.” the twinkle was gone from his eyes as he spoke, a diret order, not a suggestion…though harry doubted her drao nor himself would be doing muh of anythiil breakfast.
harry helped drao get to his feet and the neatriarh walked solemnly out of the room. harry had to admire drath. if he had been in drao’s positioed he would be able to think straight right now, muh less be somewhat dignified. harry, ron, and hermio of dumbledore’s offie t at the foot of the stairs.
“y to tell us e?” roively.
harry i saw of it anyway.”
roisfied aryffindor on r that hermione lingered a moment longer.
“he’s going to need your support harry.” hermione said quietly, as if uo approah the subjet. “you might hrough the same thing he did, so you annot feel his same emotions, but you aher people stay away from him until he’s ready to fae the waied walking to ath up with r bak whe of something. “and knowing malfoy, it will be before he’s truly ready for it.” the harry to walk after drao towards their rooms.
medusa was livid when harry got to the portrait.
“what did you do!” she him.
harry ignored her ahe passwo about whatever it was that harry had dohe poor malfoy boy so miserable as she opened and harry was sure that he ould hear her ontinui it, nue.
“y to repeat yourself,” harry muttered, but he k hear him.
he found drao in their bedroom, urled up o muggles alled the fetal position. his wings were urled around him as if to protet him from the world, but they opened as harry drew near.
the boy ersonifiation of grief, and harry wished at that moment to never see suh a sight again. strands of blond hair stuk to his fae, held by the drying and still wet tears. his eyes had lost their luster, more of a dull gray than a vibrant silver. his firembled as they held his ko his hest.
harry had never wished voldemort dead quite like he did right now.
harry approahed the bed autiously, slowly, unsure if drao would push him away. maybe drao wouldn’t want him to be seen in this state. yet, as harry stepped lose enough that he ould have reahed out and touhed him, a wing enirled him and pulled him loser. drao’s arms followed, and harry found himself again full malfoy.
“he’s dead.” drao’s voie was riddled with sobs and heaves. “he’s go oming bak.”
harry didn’t know what to say, so he didn’t say anything. what ould one say? so he just held drao ahe blond mutter brokeo his hest.
&ayed that way f time, until drao’s sobs had slowed ahing evened. harry realized that drao had fallen asleep, wor with rying.
carefully harry mahem into a horizontal position and losed his own eyes, willio sleep and not think about what the m might bring.
harry shifted from sleeping to waking instahat drao had shifted and was also awake.
all the blond said whehat harry as, “it’s afternoon already.”
harry ould easily believe it. he strethed ao be disrete as he ik out what he was goi day ahe bathroom to hahe bloioo have shut dow even soff at the mirror wheed, “you look absolutely dreadful dear,” a omment that rodued a shouting math on a normal day.
harry quikly ha of his own lothing from the night before and into lea in merlin’s name he was going to do . lukily, dobby made that deision for him.
the house elf eh a tray den with foods that harry knew were drao’s favorite breakfast foods. this the house elf ped on harry’s made-and-hardly- slept-iurning to harry. even the normally heerful house elf seemed to be in m.
“dobby thought he might do something to help, harry potter sir,” dobby muttered. “dobby knew diddy would be doing that if she were still here, harry potter, so dobby… dobby broke more rules, harry potter sir.”
harry was o he followed the house elf out of the bedroom when the elf bekoo follow.
“this was ier’s study, harry potter,” dobby said, pointing at the wall.
harry’s jaw dropped.
a regal golden eyebrow rose in a disdai harry was all too