First Place - Action/Adventure

Unfortunately, it was not to be an easy night for either of them. Draco woke screaming from a nightmare shortly after midnight. His terrified cries were an unusual and horrifying sound in the dorm, and all of the boys were startled awake.

Harry rocked him and soothed him, rubbing his back calmly and stroking his hair as the little boy sobbed out his terror. Neville, who in is own way was as much the pureblood gentleman as Draco Malfoy, was the one who passed Harry a handkerchief to clean the little one's face.

Ron may have still been uncomfortable with Malfoy and wasn't sure how to handle a child, but he did have experience with nightmares after living with Harry throughout much of the year. Screaming left a person's throat feeling raw and hoarse, so Ron poured a glass of water and sat down on the bed, offering it to Draco.

"Another nightmare?" Harry asked softly.

Draco nodded into Harry's chest. He was still hiccupping occasionally, but the tears had stopped.

"Was it the same one?" Harry asked.

Draco shook his head, but then he nodded. Harry glanced at Ron sitting on the bed next to them and Neville, Dean and Seamus who were currently sitting on the edge of Ron's bed. He sent them all a warning glare not to say anything.

"Was it about your father again, but something different happened?" Harry guessed.

Draco sniffled and nodded.

"Why don't you tell me about it, so then I can worry about it for you and you won't have to be scared about it anymore?" Harry suggested.

There was no movement or sound from Draco for a minute. Then he nodded and spoke up softly. "He ... he was punishing me again, because I did something bad."

Harry closed his eyes. Ron was beginning to understand what must have happened the day before because he could actually feel the power beginning to build in Harry. Ron quietly moved and laid a hand on Harry's shoulder, hoping to ground him before his power could get out of control.

"What did you do that was supposedly bad?" Harry asked calmly.

"I got my new robes dirty when I went outside. Father had told me to be careful and I wasn't," Draco admitted.

Harry took a deep breath. "Did he take you to the dungeons again?"

Draco's shudder wracked his whole frame, which was answer enough.

"Did he cast CrucioL on you again?" Harry asked evenly. Ron's grip on Harry's shoulder tightened painfully, but Harry was thankful because it was helping to ground him better than he ever would have thought possible.

Draco nodded his little head. "But there was no body this time," he whispered.

Ron's grip tightened even more in his horror, but those words actually made Harry feel a touch calmer. At least Draco hadn't had to see a dead body in his nightmare this time.

"Is that everything?" Harry asked.

Draco nodded once again, and Harry hugged him tightly. "It was good that you told me, angel. I'm proud of you."

Harry pulled back from Draco a little and tilted the boy's head up so he could look at him. Draco met his gaze willingly and trustingly. "Remember what I told you. I'm going to keep you safe and your father's not going to hurt you anymore. I know that you love your father and that's all right, but it's not all right for him to hurt you like that. It was very wrong for him to punish you so severely."

"But he told me to be careful and I wasn't," Draco whispered.

Harry shook his head. "That doesn't matter. What you did was not nearly that bad to be punished so harshly. Besides that, your father should know that little boys are going to get dirty sometimes. That's what little boys do," Harry said.

"Really?" Draco asked, sounding bemused by that idea.

Harry chuckled lightly, which went a long way towards breaking the tension in the room. Ron could literally feel Harry's magic calming down as well.

"Yes, really," Harry said smiling. "When I was your age, I was always getting dirty."

Draco looked at him wonderingly.

"Me, too," Ron spoke up. "I would get dirty all the time because I liked being outside and I liked exploring in the field by our house. It was dirty, but a lot of fun."

Dean decided to add to the conversation that was distracting Draco so well. "My big sister used to make me play house with her, which I didn't always like, but I loved it when she let me make pretend pies out of mud. I was always a filthy mess afterwards," Dean said laughing.

"And your father didn't care?" Draco asked skeptically.

"Nope!" Dean said with a grin. "Either him or my mum would just pop me in the bath to clean me up."

"I was like you, Draco," Neville said quietly. "I was supposed to be a proper pureblood wizard and I wasn't allowed to get dirty."

That, Draco understood. "If you did get dirty, how were you punished?" he asked softly.

"Well, I remember once when I got some of my brand new robes dirty because I wasn't careful. I had to wash them myself so that I'd remember not to get them dirty again," Neville answered quietly.

"Oh," Draco said. He looked up at Harry. "Is that what you meant by 'not harshly'?" Draco asked. "Yes," Harry agreed. "Neville's punishment wasn't pleasant for him, but it wasn't nearly as harsh or as bad as yours was."

Draco's brow was furrowed as he tried to think all this out. "Were you allowed to get dirty?" Draco asked Seamus, wanting the opinion of the last person in the room.

"Sometimes yes, sometimes no," Seamus said. "Sometimes I was told to go outside and play and it didn't matter how dirty I got. But other times, like when we had company, I was supposed to stay clean."

"See, that's probably the best way," Harry said. "There are times you can get dirty and times that you shouldn't. But sometimes accidents happen and you get dirty even when you shouldn't. Accidents aren't your fault and you shouldn't be punished in any way for them," Harry said firmly. He locked eyes with Draco. "And under no circumstances are you ever going to be punished so painfully anymore. Understand?"

Draco took a deep breath and nodded. Then he yawned.

"I think it's time for you to go back to sleep, little man," Seamus said with a grin. His yawn was causing all of the older boys to yawn, too. It was almost one o'clock in the morning by now. Draco already had his eyes closed and was snuggled up into Harry's chest before Seamus even finished his sentence.

"You all right, mate?" Ron whispered.

"Yeah, thanks," Harry said gratefully.

"No problem," he said, giving Harry's shoulder a squeeze before he let go.

"He asleep already?" Neville asked, as the other boys got up and they all prepared to go back to bed.

Harry looked down, checking on Draco, and smiled gently. "Yeah. It's been a rough day for him."

"Been a rough day for you, too, mate," Seamus said knowingly.

Harry gave a heavy sigh. "Yeah, it has. Look guys, will you promise not to say anything about Draco and his father?" Harry asked.

"We don't say anything about your nightmares, and don't give away your secrets; we won't be saying anything about his either," Dean said, and they all nodded in agreement.

"Thanks," Harry said with a sigh of relief.

"His father was what all those outbursts were about yesterday, isn't it?" Ron asked.

Harry's expression darkened but he remained calm with Draco in his arms. "Yes," he answered simply.

Ron nodded. He wouldn't ask for any more information and let it go at that. Ron went back to his bed and the others did the same. Harry lay back down and got him and Draco situated comfortably once again.

Harry's magic was thankfully under control, but his mind wasn't. He lay there thinking about everything that had happened. He was still incredibly angry, but knowing what he would hear and with Ron there to help ground him, he'd been able to keep his magic under control this time while he'd talked with Draco about his nightmare.

He supposed that a lot of the problem had been the shock at what he'd discovered the day before that had contributed to his loss of control. The shock at breakfast, of discovering that Lucius had been hurting Draco, had gotten both him and Snape angry enough to want to release.

The even larger shock of discovering just how Lucius had been hurting Draco caused such a build up of shock and rage that Harry needed more of a release and his magic had gotten involved with the intensity of his emotions.

Harry hoped that Snape and Dumbledore had been able to figure out exactly what had happened with Harry's magic and what he could do to keep it under control. He certainly didn't want to hurt anyone accidentally.

He'd love to release his magic on Lucius Malfoy, though. The man didn't deserve any mercy after what he'd subjected his child to. He'd threatened the tiny boy's life and forced him to look upon a tortured and murdered body while Draco himself was tortured under the Cruciatus curse. It was cruel and unbelievable, yet Harry didn't question the truth of what Draco had told him.

Harry knew that Lucius Malfoy was a cold, cruel man, but he had never thought that the man would subject his own son to such cruelty. Harry shuddered to think what else Draco had been subjected to as he grew older. Harry could easily believe that as he grew up, Draco was forced to watch as his father tortured and killed.

As he continued to lie there thinking, Harry realized that Draco still hadn't actually asked where his father or his mother was. Was Draco so terrified of them that he didn't want to know, or was he so used to their long absences in his life that he was used to them being gone? It wasn't hard to believe that his parents would leave the actual child rearing to the house elves or other hired help, like nannies and tutors.

Whichever the case was, Harry was determined to make the next four months enjoyable for Draco. With that thought firmly planted in his mind, Harry nuzzled his face in the little boy's soft hair and hugged him a little closer while finally drifting off to sleep again.

Unfortunately, the pleasant thought didn't stay. Harry's subconscious was obviously still focused on Lucius Malfoy, and his nightmares surrounded his past meetings with the man. Mixed in with the real memories were terrifying images of both the younger and older Draco thrashing on the ground screaming in pain, while Lucius held his wand focused on the boy and laughing cruelly. The laughter slowly changed until it was sounding sickeningly like Voldemort's high pitched cackle.

Harry woke with a scream still caught in his throat. He jerked upright and stared wildly at his surroundings, clutching his throbbing forehead. Panting heavily, he snagged his glasses off the bedside table and quickly put them on, desperately attempting to reorient himself.

As the darkened room came into focus, Harry realized that everyone was awake once again. Neville was sitting at the end of his bed trying to calm a sobbing Draco. Ron was sitting next to him and Harry realized that Ron had probably been trying to wake him for at least a few minutes. Dean and Seamus were standing beside his bed, shifting nervously and looking worried.

"Do you need to go see Dumbledore?" Ron asked anxiously.

Harry shook his head, but then regretted the movement immediately, and renewed the pressure of his hand pressing into his forehead. He held his other hand out to Draco and the little boy came scrambling into his lap immediately.

"Harry, are you sure you don't need to see Dumbledore?" Ron didn't sound any less anxious.

"No, he was just laughing at my nightmares," Harry said hoarsely. Ron and the others all looked terrified. They all understood who 'he' was. Even Dean and Seamus understood that much, though they didn't know about everything that Harry was subjected to under Voldemort.

Neville and Ron knew how deeply Voldemort could affect Harry. With Neville being a part of everything that had happened last spring, he'd learned far more about what Voldemort was capable of.

"No visions?" Neville asked nervously.

"No, just nightmares with a twist," Harry said bitterly.

Ron handed Harry a glass of water, which Harry gratefully drank down. The cold liquid felt wonderfully soothing on his raw throat.

"Are you okay?" Draco choked out between sobs. "I was so scared."

Harry tried to ignore the pain in his forehead and wrapped both arms around the little boy, shushing him. "Shhh, I'm okay. I didn't mean to scare you. This was why I was kind of worried about you sleeping with me, because I have nightmares just like you do. I'm so sorry I woke you up and scared you. Shhh, it's all right now."

Harry felt absolutely horrible for upsetting Draco and his misery showed on his face. Draco lifted his little hands and placed them on Harry's cheeks. "It's all right, Harry. I was just scared for you because you were screaming so loud and you wouldn't wake up. I was scared you were hurt bad."

Harry gave him a small smile. "I'm all right, angel."

Draco stretched up and kissed Harry on the forehead then threw his arms around Harry, giving him a big hug. Ron passed Harry yet another handkerchief and Harry got the boy cleaned up before tucking him back into bed under the blankets. Harry was amazed at the boy's resilience when Draco promptly fell back asleep, assured that Harry was okay and that he himself was safe.

Dean and Seamus had already drifted back to their beds when they realized Harry was going to be all right. Ron and Neville were still staring at Harry a bit anxiously, though.

"Are you sure you're all right, mate?" Ron asked, once he was sure Draco was asleep. "You-know-who didn't plant any visions or anything?"

"No, Ron," Harry said wearily. "After everything that happened yesterday I was dreaming about Lucius and all the different times I've dealt with the bastard. Only this time I was also seeing him torture Draco, both four and sixteen, under the Cruciatus curse. He was laughing cruelly at his son, but then the laughter turned into Voldemort's and that's when I woke up."

Ron and Neville both flinched at the sound of Voldemort's name, causing Harry to roll his eyes. He didn't comment on it, though, because both of them were already looking terrified and slightly green at the realization that Voldemort had gotten through the link to Harry's mind again.

"I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine. Well, not fine exactly, but there's no emergency. I don't need to see Dumbledore and there's nothing else to be done. Just go back to bed. I'm sorry that I woke you guys up yet again tonight," Harry said.

"No problem, mate. We're here for you when you need us," Ron said, and Neville nodded his agreement. They were still looking concerned, but they both slowly went back to their beds.

It wasn't long before Harry could hear everyone sleeping peacefully again. He knew he wasn't going to be going back to sleep, though, if for no other reason than the fact that his head was still throbbing. He made sure that Draco was tucked in securely, and carefully climbed out of bed.

Harry rummaged through his trunk until he found what he was looking for. He snagged some ink and a quill from his bag, then went to sit on Draco's unused bed. He pulled the bed curtains part way to shield the light, but left them open enough where he could still see Draco and keep an eye on him.

Harry propped himself up against the headboard and pulled the blankets up over his lap to keep warm, getting himself comfortable. Only then did he take a look at what he'd retrieved from his trunk. It was a leather bound diary that Hermione had given him for his birthday. Diaries were kind of a girly thing, but she'd said that she'd given it to him because maybe it would help him deal with the loss of Sirius. Writing was therapeutic, she'd said.

Harry ran his hand over the fine leather and the gold lock. It was a key lock but Hermione had charmed it so that it would only open with whatever password Harry chose and a tap of his wand. It worked similar to the way the Marauder's Map worked.

Harry had never written in the diary. The idea of writing in a diary had reminded him too much of Riddle's diary. And those were far from pleasant memories.

Now, however, Harry sat staring at the diary in his lap. He wasn't thinking about Riddle, Hermione or even Sirius. He was thinking about Draco, and he was thinking about his own childhood.

For ten years of Harry's life there was almost nothing to show that he'd even existed. There were no pictures of him, no mementos of any kind, and certainly no one who would reminisce with fond memories relating to his childhood. Harry had lost his parents and had no memory of them. He'd had Sirius for such a short time. Remus was the only one left and even Remus could only tell him about a few things that had happened in Harry's first year of life.

Harry glanced over at the little boy sleeping peacefully in Harry's bed. Harry couldn't be sure of what had happened to Draco Malfoy, but he strongly suspected that the boy was looking for a second chance. Extreme to be sure, but then, Draco's life had been extreme so far. Of that Harry was positive.

With a firm resolve, Harry opened the diary and began writing about everything that had happened since Draco's cauldron had first exploded. Good and bad, Harry recorded it. Harry hesitated only briefly as he debated whether or not to include his own personal thoughts and feelings regarding the boy. It wouldn't be the same without the personal touches, so Harry included them. Of course, he didn't include anything too personal.

Two hours later, Harry closed the diary and locked it with a sense of satisfaction that he was doing something good. Although, he did decide that he was going to call it a journal instead of a diary. The word 'diary' still had too many bad connotations. He snorted softly to himself, realizing it didn't technically matter what he called it.

It was almost seven o'clock and Harry started gathering his and Draco's things for the day. Harry woke up the sleepy boy, who wasn't ready to be awake yet, and hustled him into the shower. He was almost glad they hadn't had time to shower the night before when the shower helped to refresh and wake them both up a bit. Although neither of them were still particularly alert and at their best, they were better than they were.

Malfoy's Child - Chapter 9

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