Third Place - Angst

"Hermione, Ron! Thank Merlin you're here!"

Hermione looked up at the crowd of Gryffindors swarmed around the entrance to the common room. She and Ron had just come back from an awful meeting with Dumbledore. The headmaster had been sad at the news of Harry's defeated submission to Draco, but had not been unable to do or say anything to stop it. He assured them that he was still trying to untie his and the school's hands when it came to the law but was still unsuccessful. The worst part was that Dumbledore himself had written that law into existence and he had not left any loopholes. Hermione and Ron had returned to their tower in silent grieving for their lost friend.

"Harry's back!" Neville continued. He was standing in his pajamas and robe like many of the other students. "He doesn't look so good but he's back and we have watchers outside waiting to warn us if Malfoy's coming."

"Where?" Ron grabbed Neville's arms in his urgency. "Where's Harry?"

"He's up in our room. He didn't lock it or anything but we still thought we'd better wait for you guys."

Hermione and Ron nearly tripped over themselves as they rushed up the stairs and to the boys' room. Throwing the door open they scanned the interior until they found Harry lying on his side on his bed. They cautiously approached. They saw that Harry looked worse then when they had last seen him an hour ago. His robe and shirt were still torn down the front but now his eyes were red, the top of his nose was forming a bruise and they could just make out the edge of a red and bruised mark on his throat.

"Harry?" Hermione's voice was quiet as she gingerly sat beside him on the bed. "Are you okay?" She watched as Ron sat down on the edge of his bed across from Harry's. Harry's eyes, which had been staring at nothing when they came in, now looked in their direction.

"You were right. I should have listened to you," he said calmly.

Ron placed his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward and spoke gently. "You alright, mate?"

"I thought it would be better that way. I thought that I could save everyone a lot of trouble and grief if I finally just stopped fighting. I'm so tired of fighting." Harry closed his eyes and sighed. "I thought I could take it, whatever he threw at me, I could take it. I've always been able to before. But the pheromone high didn't last. It didn't work like it was supposed to. It was supposed to stop me from thinking and feeling anything bad. But I did feel bad, I felt it all�" His voice trailed off. Hermione exchanged an anxiously worried look with Ron, and then placed her hand gently on Harry's knee. Harry jerked and gasped. Hermione quickly pulled her hand away.

"Oh, Harry, what did he do to you?" she whispered.

"Sorry. My knee is sore where he kicked me. It's not too bad, it just hurts when touched."

"He kicked you?" Ron asked outraged. Harry chuckled.

"Yeah. But it's really not that bad."

"May I see it, Harry?" Hermione asked. "I could check it and see if you need to go to Madame Pomfrey."

"No."

"I promise I'll be as gentle as possible."

"I know. It's just�" Harry took another deep breath. "It's just I really don't want to take any clothes off right now."

Hermione swallowed and closed her eyes in pain. Ron's jaw tightened and his hands fisted. Biting her lips, Hermione opened her eyes and schooled her features into a calm fa�ade.

"Harry, did he rape you?" she asked plainly.

"No."

Hermione shot Harry's face a hopeful look. His eyes were still closed when he continued. "It's not as if I tried to stop him."

Hermione's face fell. "Oh, Harry," she whispered mournfully. Ron shot up and punched the bedpost.

"That bastard! That slimy jerk! He knew you couldn't say no!"

"Ron," Harry's voice was calm and his eyes were open, watching Ron pace. "I went to him."

"Oh, so now you're covering for him? What the hell?"

"No, I am just saying that if you want to blame someone, then you should blame the right person. I blindly went to him. I'm the one who thought I could handle it. I couldn't. I was wrong."

"No, no one is blaming anyone," Hermione said forcefully. "Harry, you thought you were doing the right thing. Malfoy was just being, well, he was acting true to his nature." She turned to Ron. "Blaming is not going to work. We need to figure out what to do. But first," she turned back to Harry, "we need to get you to the Hospital Wing."

"No."

"Harry-," Hermione began in a stern voice but was cut off.

"No, Hermione. If I leave this room, I'm a sitting duck." Hermione sighed. "I'm not ready for that yet."

"Alright, then we shall bring Madame Pomfrey here." Harry closed his eyes in silent agreement and Ron left to send one of the other Gryffindors to get the Medi-witch.

The three friends sat in silence as they waited for Madame Pomfrey. It only took a few minutes before the efficient witch bustled in with a small satchel and shooed Hermione and Ron out.

"What are we going to do Hermione?" Ron asked quietly as they stood outside the dorm room. The other boys who shared the room had kindly bunked with some other years for the night so that Harry could have his privacy. Hermione shook her head.

"I'm not sure, Ron. I do know that we are going to fully educate Harry about his heritage. He needs to know everything he can to be able to handle this." With those words she rushed off to get the books they had bought. Madame Pomfrey came out and told Ron he could go in now. Shaking her head in frustration she marched down the stairs muttering about talking with Dumbledore. Ron stood uncertainly in the hallway before slowly walking back in. Harry was sitting up in his bed, clothed in his pajamas. The candle on the bed table between their beds had been lit and cast a soft glow on Harry's features. Harry watched him as he came closer.

"Alright there, Harry?"

"Yeah."

"Hermione went to get those books. She says you had better learn all you can about what you are and all." Ron sat down on the foot of Harry's bed. "Figure Hermione would get studying into this some way, huh?" Harry smiled slightly and then bit the inside of his cheek. He turned solemn eyes to Ron.

"Ron, I'm really sorry. We should be done with all of this madness. You shouldn't have to put up with this."

"Harry! You're my friend. My best friend. That's what friends do. They help each other no matter what. Alright?" Harry's lips rose in a half smile.

"Alright," he said quietly. Hermione rushed through the doorway just then and placed the books down next to Harry. She brushed her hand across his brow and leaned down and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"You okay?" she asked quietly.

"Yep. All better." Harry returned Hermione's concerned look. Hermione took a deep breath and then summoned a chair to the side of the bed.

"Okay, let's get the basics down," she began in a business like tone. "I've been reading and I think I have the gist of it. There are a lot of little nuances and traits but the biggest things are fairly simple." Ron snorted but Hermione ignored him as she continued. "First, we'll address the 'pheromone high', as you call it. I wish I would have known that you were basing so much on it, I would have told you what I had found."

"Sorry," Harry mumbled.

"Never mind." Hermione waved the apology away. "I am not surprised that it didn't hold you completely enthralled, since you have a history of being able to fight mind control. But classically, that high is at its peak while the sub is still, um, well, virginal." She bit her lip and gave Harry an apologetic look.

"You mean if Harry had had sex before it wouldn't have worked?" Ron asked in disbelief.

"No. I meant virginal to other Indago. The dominant's�um, well, anyway, after sex the dominant, after having, um, er� You see, the Supero has in his�" Hermione's face was a blaze of fire. Harry decided to help her out.

"Are you trying to say that after he came, Draco's semen has something in it that is different than a full-human's?" Ron made a strange noise and Hermione sat up straighter and reassumed her businesslike demeanor.

"Yes, Harry, thank you. Because it's different, it triggers a chemical response, which is what enables your body to become�" she trailed off again with another apologetic look, "pregnant."

"It's okay." Harry shrugged. "Like I said, I was the one who went to him." Hermione nodded and Ron winced when he looked at Harry's abdomen. Harry did his best to ignore it.

"At any rate, it also triggers your brain to partially block Malfoy's effect on you. This more or less allows you a lot more free will when you are around him and other Indago. The theory is that you would need this in order to make appropriate decisions to protect yourself if you are breeding and/or any of your young."

"Geez, Hermione, you sound like you are reading right out of one of Hagrid's books," Ron said reproachfully. "He's not an animal."

"Well, I am sorry, Ron. I am just trying to explain everything as best I can," Hermione huffed.

"It's okay, you guys," Harry broke in. "Go ahead, Hermione. I need to know this stuff."

"Thank you, Harry," she said primly, shooting Ron a scathing look. Harry tried to hide his smile at his friends' familiar antics. They made him feel more real than he had for the past eighteen hours.

"Anyway, the ability to not feel anything but the compulsion to please the dominant is only in the pre-intercourse time period. Again, the theory is that young subs are headstrong and this makes them easier to, uh, control." Harry nodded his head in understanding. "Therefore, from now on you should only experience the desire to obey Malfoy and not the complete and overwhelming compulsion to do nothing else. The desire will be strong and I highly doubt that you could ignore a direct command when Malfoy is worked up about something and his pheromones are high, but otherwise, you should be able to have a modicum of power to stand up to him."

"Well, that's good. That gives me something to work with," Harry said.

"What do you mean?" Ron asked in indignation. "It's not as if you're going anywhere near him ever again."

"Ron," Harry began patiently. "That's just not possible. Besides," he grimaced, "I did make a bargain with him."

"What?!" Ron cried.

"Harry, there is no way that he can hold you to that," Hermione argued.

"No, but that goes both ways." Harry looked seriously at his two friends. "You both have to know that I can't hide forever. I refuse to be chased my entire life like a fearful rabbit. And as much as you want to, you can't protect me from it. I mean, not even Dumbledore can. So, if I play fair with Malfoy then maybe he'll play fair with me."

"Fair isn't in the Malfoy dictionary, Harry!" Ron had stood back up and started pacing again.

"He's right, Harry," Hermione said. "You can't possibly trust him to hold to any sort of bargain. Look what he did to you."

"Yeah, I know. And I freaked out and ran back here. But I've been doing a lot of thinking since then and I haven't really got another choice. This isn't like Voldemort. This is more than just a part of me; it's what I was born to be without any interference from anyone else. It's a bloodline and heritage that connects me to my mother and further back through wizarding history. I can't get rid of it and I'm not ready to check out of this world just yet. I can't run for my entire life. I have to deal with it. I'm part of some sort of community of species and I have to learn how to deal with it. I don't like it. I had plans that can never be now. But," Harry took a deep cleansing breath, "I can make the best of this situation."

Ron shook his head in disgust and flopped back down on the bed. Hermione reached out and held Harry's hand.

"I sometimes forget how grown up you've become, Harry Potter." She gave his hand a squeeze and smiled at him. Harry returned the smile and sat up a bit straighter.

"Okay, so, what else can you tell me?"

Indago - Chapter 14

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