Harry Potter and The Beloved Incubus (BP4)
folder
Harry Potter › Slash - Male/Male › Harry/Draco
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
41
Views:
21,991
Reviews:
120
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Harry Potter › Slash - Male/Male › Harry/Draco
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
41
Views:
21,991
Reviews:
120
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Breathless
Chapter Number/Total: 38/41
Chapter Title: Breathless
Words: 3076 Words
With the absence of the wind in his ears, the silence of the forest felt heavy, like it was literally pressing down upon Harry. "Stick close," he told Ron and Hermione, although they were already close. "Keep your eyes on the trees. Anything could be in here."
Draco could feel something old beneath the ground and looked carefully. There were several places where stone jutted from the earth and he realised it must've been the stone foundation of Rowena Ravenclaw's mansion. He let his eyes unfocus, feeling for the magics in the place.
Harry watched Draco intently, his heart pounding. He took deep, slow breaths, feeling like he was completely in the dark despite the rays of weak sunlight spilling between the branches above.
Hermione and Ron kept eyes on Draco as well, Hermione holding on to the back of Ron's cloak.
Draco stumbled on some stones but kept walking around the perimeter of the odd-shaped clearing. He occasionally stopped and crouched, resting his hand on the ground and frowning. Toward the middle of the S, he stopped and felt the ground and then jumped up, stumbling back and falling on his arse.
Harry gasped quietly and the air felt a tad thick. He moved quickly forward and got to his knees beside Draco. "What is it?" he asked, voice cracking a bit with his worry.
Draco tried to breathe but it felt like the air had suddenly turned heavy in his lungs. He pointed to the spot and managed, "There.”
"There what?" Hermione squeaked, looking at the spot Draco was pointing at.
"Are we going to have to dig for it or something?" Ron asked, panting slightly.
Draco couldn't seem to catch his breath. He nodded and picked himself up, bent over and trying to breathe.
Harry stood as well, panting like Ron. "I'm not fucking digging for anything," he said, pointing his wand. He backed up a bit and blasted some of the earth away. "How deep?" he asked Draco.
Draco staggered forward and looked into the spot. He frowned and began digging with his hands.
Harry moved up close again and reached down to help him. After a moment, Ron and Hermione did too, the four of them digging with their hands.
Harry was getting increasingly nervous, hoping that whatever it was they were digging for, they would be able to touch.
Draco felt it when he touched bone and drew his hand back quickly. He was starting to get light-headed. Every breath seemed to take too much energy and not enough air.
Harry, Ron and Hermione stopped as soon as Draco did. They were all panting and Harry knew there was something wrong now. They had done nothing to make them so out of breath. The pressing feeling he had gotten when they'd first landed was back and then Harry realised it hadn't ever left him; it had only gotten stronger.
"What is it?" he nearly wheezed, feeling the panic rising in his chest.
"Can't ... breathe ...." Draco gasped but he didn't know if he was heard or not. He gestured for them to back up.
Harry, Ron and Hermione stumbled back. Ron actually fell over, trying to take slow breaths.
Draco closed his eyes and felt around the edges of the body so he could have a clearer idea of the boundaries of the spell. Once he had it figured out, he reached to the middle where Regulus's heart would have been and began carefully moving the dirt, uncovering the handle of the knife still there.
Harry moved forward again. "Is it ... there?" he gasped, knowing that they needed to get out of there as soon as possible.
Draco waved him back again. He sat back, sweat pouring down his body now. He pointed to Harry and then up, trying to tell him to get off the ground.
Harry was trying to concentrate on breathing and it took him a moment to realise what Draco was trying to tell him. "No, please," he said in a desperate whisper. "Let me stay here with you." That one sentence cost him and he felt pain in his lungs as he tried to breathe after that.
Draco shook his head and gestured stronger. Harry was costing them time and he was worried he would pass out before he did what had to be done.
Ron crawled over to Harry and grabbed his cloak, attempting to drag him away from Draco. "Accio Harry's Firebolt!" he wheezed. "Go, Harry," he said, clutching his own chest as the broom came speeding over.
Harry, his breaths even weaker now, looked at Draco like he was about to leave him forever. He clambered onto the broomstick and rose up a few feet, the pressure on his lungs letting up slightly, and then he knew that they would need to leave the clearing completely to be able to breathe properly again.
Draco waited for Harry to get clear. He wanted to get this over with, but not if Harry was close enough to be hurt by whatever trap was waiting.
"Go, Harry!" Hermione said this time, falling to her knees beside Ron.
Grimacing like it physically hurt to leave, Harry flew up higher and could breathe even better. He shook his head to indicate that he wasn't going any further.
Draco reached in and wrapped his right hand around the handle of the dagger and pulled. He felt the energy of the blood magic running up his arm and through his body and he could taste blood in his mouth. The dagger began to slip from the corpse. Just as the knife was free of the ribs, a hand closed on his wrist. A hand made entirely of bones.
Harry watched intently from where he was, unable to really see anything that was going on.
Hermione gasped, or at least took a breath as close to a gasp as she could manage.
Draco cursed himself silently for using his wand hand to grab the dagger. He pulled harder but the bones only dug into the flesh of his wrist and the rest of the skeleton began to rise from the ground, reaching its other hand for his neck.
Ron's eyes widened and he fumbled with his wand, pointing it at the skeleton of what had to be Regulus Black, but he seemed unwilling to shoot anything at it in fear of hitting Draco.
Harry could see that something was going on and his grip on the broom handle tightened as he prepared to fly back down.
The bone hand closed on Draco's neck and what little air he had been getting was cut off. He used his silver hand to grab the dagger and toss it to Ron.
Ron reached a hand out and clutched at the dagger where it had landed on the ground, stuffing it hurriedly into the inside of his robes.
Hermione pointed her wand now, shooting off a nonverbal spell at the skeleton's head, but it didn't release its grip on Draco.
Harry could stand it no longer and he flew back down quickly, feeling the pressure building the closer he got to the ground. His eyes widened as he landed and he leapt forward and grasped at the hand on Draco's neck, trying to pry the fingers away.
The Inferius didn't release Draco and he felt his skin give under the vise of it's hand around his neck, blood seeping and his throat being crushed.
Gasping for breath again now, Harry pulled with all his might at the hand, his fingers slipping in the blood. "No!" he shouted.
He could see Ron and Hermione trying to help, but they couldn't breathe.
He tried to think of a spell he could use to get the Inferius away, but all he could do was pull at the hand.
Draco reached his silver hand up and grabbed the arm at his throat, trying to break the bones before he lost consciousness. His other hand was still in the grip of the Inferius.
Harry took a gasping, searing breath when he finally felt bones beginning to bend back from Draco's throat. He pushed harder at them, hearing them crack. They were very strong, despite having lain here for years. He broke two of the fingers off and then pulled the hand away from Draco, reaching forward to grab the arm when the hand reached for Draco's neck again.
Black spots swam before his eyes now and he knew he was losing consciousness. Draco barely felt it when his neck was released and he fell backwards, the Inferius still holding his right wrist and dragging him forward into its grave.
Harry barely noticed Ron and Hermione behind him, but he could see that they were doing something and he knew what when one of their figures flew up on his broom. Harry, still holding on to one skeletal arm, began trying to stomp on the other, the pressure on his lungs getting close to being exactly as it was before he had flown up.
Draco blacked out.
Harry stomped on the arm, grasping Draco very hard. The strange pressure in the air was closing in on him rapidly. Even with as hard as he was stomping, it took several moments to break the arm of the Inferius. Finally, Harry heard a crack like a gunshot and the bone snapped under his trainer. The skeleton twitched when the arm was broken but showed no signs of pain, obviously it could not - it was already dead. It only continued to grab for Draco and now at Harry, grabbing at anything it could reach, dragging the arm, still only just hanging on, through the air.
Harry began trying to drag Draco away from it. It was not an easy thing to do, especially with his lungs seeming to clog. Suddenly, there was another pair of hands helping him pull at Draco. Harry looked quickly behind him and saw that it was Hermione. He could also see Ron climbing weakly onto his Firebolt, nearly blue in the face from lack of oxygen.
"Hurry, Harry!" Hermione said frantically to him. "We need to get him in the air!" She was already beginning to pant again.
Harry's lungs were searing now as he pulled with all the strength he had. The Inferius seemed dead set on getting at least one of them. As Harry and Hermione dragged Draco out of its reach, it started to get up from the earth all together.
It was not like skeletons that Harry had seen in some Muggle films when he was younger; it was much, much worse. The holes where the eyes should have been reminded him of a Dementor and dirt and grime spilled from them. It still wore very tattered robes, now thin and worn with huge holes, and covered in dirt as well. The bone of the Inferius was discoloured and disgusting-looking and the face a mindless show of teeth, a grin seeming almost as if it were mocking Harry as he tried to drag his bleeding, suffocating husband to safety.
Ron had landed again now and was holding his wand pointed at the Inferius as it pulled its legs free from the ground and staggered to its feet, unaffected completely by the drawn wand.
"Take Draco!" Ron yelled at Hermione, casting a quick Lightening Charm on the blond and then Summoning the other broomsticks.
Harry and Hermione both fell over slightly as Draco was lightened.
Hermione recovered from falling. She picked Draco up quickly and hurriedly climbed onto one of the brooms, looking very awkward as she held Draco like he was an over-grown child.
Ron waved her on wildly. "Go! I'll get Harry!"
Harry clutched at his chest, his breathing rapid and short.
Hermione threw terrified looks to the two men but then shot up in the air.
The Inferius was stumbling towards Harry and Ron now, seeming angered by Draco's departure.
Harry didn't need to be told to get on a broom. He began crawling as fast as his body would allow towards his Firebolt, longing for the clear air up above. He actually thought, for a glorious half-second as he climbed onto his broom, that he was going to get into the air with Ron, have the Horcrux and never have to come back here, but he was mistaken.
The Inferius closed the fist with the broken fingers and swung that arm through the air with a loud whooshing sound. It was as if the sun itself hid in fear. Everything darkened and the trees on all sides of them seemed to bend inward.
Harry's heart, though already pounding, seemed to beat double the speed. He knew it wouldn't work - everything around him, his mind, his body - everything told him it wouldn't work, but he had to try. He shot upwards on his broom, but just as he suspected, it was not going to be that easy. Vines shot out of nowhere and held him very firmly in place. He fought them violently as they dragged him and his Firebolt back down the few feet he had made it into the air. All he could think was, At least I managed another breath.
He turned his head to see that Ron was fighting vines as well, wriggling and struggling with all his might, his face as red as his hair.
As Harry continued to fight the vines holding him, everything around him began to swarm like a horde of angry bees. Leaves, sticks, dirt, everything the forest floor provided. The wind blew harder than Harry had ever felt it and his lungs hurt as he tried to draw gasping breaths, panic once again settling into him.
The bramble of the forest began to close in on them like a dark cloud, swirling all around them. It closed out nearly all light, and though Harry could feel the air rushing past him, he could not take a breath of it. It was as if he were drowning, drowning in the middle of the forest, the swirling sticks and leaves taking even more of the oxygen away it seemed. He could now just very barely take a breath and he struggled harder than ever at the vines holding him, but they did not break.
Suddenly, flashing images, visions and memories flew through his mind, all of them of the two blonds most important to him in the world. Valen's little face full of wonder as Harry or Draco did magic for him, Draco's face smiling and laughing at their son. No, Harry was not going down this way, no fucking plant was taking him out.
He took hold of the vine holding his left arm squeezing it hard. It caught fire and wriggled away from him. Feeling relief at that, Harry reached for another vine, catching it on fire with his bare hand as well. He was soon free but more vines snaked out to take hold of him while the others burned on the ground. He held his hand out and sent fire at them, the magic powerful and stealing his energy quickly.
He stumbled over to Ron, whose face was turning purple now as he struggled to breathe and get away from the vines. Harry had never been so relieved that he was able to do nonverbal magic. He couldn't speak at all and all of the magic he was using came directly from him with no help from his mouth.
He grabbed at the green plant-ropes holding his friend, setting them ablaze. Ron fell to the ground, sputtering and trying to breathe, clawing at his own throat. Harry, amazed that he still had his head, silently Summoned his Firebolt and Ron's Cleansweep and climbed atop his broom again, hoping that Ron would be able to fly his.
To his relief, Ron struggled onto his broom and nearly fell off it again, but at least he was on. Harry shot another round of fire at the oncoming vines and felt himself grow weaker. He was very light-headed and had been feeling faint for several moments now. Not even going higher into the air made his breathing any easier. When he looked down, he could see Ron following him, the Inferius trying to reach the tails of their brooms.
Everything still swarming was blocking their way to the sky and Harry raised his hand and tried to sweep it away, his vision darkening. To his dismay, it did not work. It was like a thick, swirling cover that allowed no passage. Taking the last tiny breath he could muster, Harry raised his hand again and blasted at the leaves, dirt and sticks like he had earlier at the earth when they had been trying to dig for the Horcrux. He blasted a hole through the covering and a sharp stick cut his cheek. He shot upwards, the flecks of dirt stinging his eyes as he flew through the rapidly closing opening. Ron followed just in time and they both took gulps of sweet, clear, wonderful air, gasping and drinking it in.
"Harry, Ron!" Hermione cried, speeding towards them, still holding Draco. Her face was tear-streaked and her hands bloody. "I don't know what to do! He's not breathing and I didn't want to leave you -"
"Give him to me," Harry gasped, opening his arms. He still felt weak, but he had to try to heal Draco.
Shaking, Hermione carefully handed Draco over, his head lolling about.
It was not easy to hold Draco to him in the air, but Harry did. He closed his eyes and placed his right hand over Draco's throat, almost as if he were choking him, and rubbed at his neck, trying to heal him like he had healed his own wound when Valen had been born.
"What are you doing?" Ron panted, still taking in great lungfuls of air.
Harry didn't answer him, just kept on focusing his power into his hand. He could feel it working, could feel the wounds closing in Draco's skin and could only hope that the inside of his throat was healing too.
When Harry felt his own power seem to shut off, he opened his eyes again, staring down at the bloody mess of Draco's throat and now his hand. "Draco, wake up, breathe, anything," he demanded, hoping that it had worked.
Chapter Title: Breathless
Words: 3076 Words
With the absence of the wind in his ears, the silence of the forest felt heavy, like it was literally pressing down upon Harry. "Stick close," he told Ron and Hermione, although they were already close. "Keep your eyes on the trees. Anything could be in here."
Draco could feel something old beneath the ground and looked carefully. There were several places where stone jutted from the earth and he realised it must've been the stone foundation of Rowena Ravenclaw's mansion. He let his eyes unfocus, feeling for the magics in the place.
Harry watched Draco intently, his heart pounding. He took deep, slow breaths, feeling like he was completely in the dark despite the rays of weak sunlight spilling between the branches above.
Hermione and Ron kept eyes on Draco as well, Hermione holding on to the back of Ron's cloak.
Draco stumbled on some stones but kept walking around the perimeter of the odd-shaped clearing. He occasionally stopped and crouched, resting his hand on the ground and frowning. Toward the middle of the S, he stopped and felt the ground and then jumped up, stumbling back and falling on his arse.
Harry gasped quietly and the air felt a tad thick. He moved quickly forward and got to his knees beside Draco. "What is it?" he asked, voice cracking a bit with his worry.
Draco tried to breathe but it felt like the air had suddenly turned heavy in his lungs. He pointed to the spot and managed, "There.”
"There what?" Hermione squeaked, looking at the spot Draco was pointing at.
"Are we going to have to dig for it or something?" Ron asked, panting slightly.
Draco couldn't seem to catch his breath. He nodded and picked himself up, bent over and trying to breathe.
Harry stood as well, panting like Ron. "I'm not fucking digging for anything," he said, pointing his wand. He backed up a bit and blasted some of the earth away. "How deep?" he asked Draco.
Draco staggered forward and looked into the spot. He frowned and began digging with his hands.
Harry moved up close again and reached down to help him. After a moment, Ron and Hermione did too, the four of them digging with their hands.
Harry was getting increasingly nervous, hoping that whatever it was they were digging for, they would be able to touch.
Draco felt it when he touched bone and drew his hand back quickly. He was starting to get light-headed. Every breath seemed to take too much energy and not enough air.
Harry, Ron and Hermione stopped as soon as Draco did. They were all panting and Harry knew there was something wrong now. They had done nothing to make them so out of breath. The pressing feeling he had gotten when they'd first landed was back and then Harry realised it hadn't ever left him; it had only gotten stronger.
"What is it?" he nearly wheezed, feeling the panic rising in his chest.
"Can't ... breathe ...." Draco gasped but he didn't know if he was heard or not. He gestured for them to back up.
Harry, Ron and Hermione stumbled back. Ron actually fell over, trying to take slow breaths.
Draco closed his eyes and felt around the edges of the body so he could have a clearer idea of the boundaries of the spell. Once he had it figured out, he reached to the middle where Regulus's heart would have been and began carefully moving the dirt, uncovering the handle of the knife still there.
Harry moved forward again. "Is it ... there?" he gasped, knowing that they needed to get out of there as soon as possible.
Draco waved him back again. He sat back, sweat pouring down his body now. He pointed to Harry and then up, trying to tell him to get off the ground.
Harry was trying to concentrate on breathing and it took him a moment to realise what Draco was trying to tell him. "No, please," he said in a desperate whisper. "Let me stay here with you." That one sentence cost him and he felt pain in his lungs as he tried to breathe after that.
Draco shook his head and gestured stronger. Harry was costing them time and he was worried he would pass out before he did what had to be done.
Ron crawled over to Harry and grabbed his cloak, attempting to drag him away from Draco. "Accio Harry's Firebolt!" he wheezed. "Go, Harry," he said, clutching his own chest as the broom came speeding over.
Harry, his breaths even weaker now, looked at Draco like he was about to leave him forever. He clambered onto the broomstick and rose up a few feet, the pressure on his lungs letting up slightly, and then he knew that they would need to leave the clearing completely to be able to breathe properly again.
Draco waited for Harry to get clear. He wanted to get this over with, but not if Harry was close enough to be hurt by whatever trap was waiting.
"Go, Harry!" Hermione said this time, falling to her knees beside Ron.
Grimacing like it physically hurt to leave, Harry flew up higher and could breathe even better. He shook his head to indicate that he wasn't going any further.
Draco reached in and wrapped his right hand around the handle of the dagger and pulled. He felt the energy of the blood magic running up his arm and through his body and he could taste blood in his mouth. The dagger began to slip from the corpse. Just as the knife was free of the ribs, a hand closed on his wrist. A hand made entirely of bones.
Harry watched intently from where he was, unable to really see anything that was going on.
Hermione gasped, or at least took a breath as close to a gasp as she could manage.
Draco cursed himself silently for using his wand hand to grab the dagger. He pulled harder but the bones only dug into the flesh of his wrist and the rest of the skeleton began to rise from the ground, reaching its other hand for his neck.
Ron's eyes widened and he fumbled with his wand, pointing it at the skeleton of what had to be Regulus Black, but he seemed unwilling to shoot anything at it in fear of hitting Draco.
Harry could see that something was going on and his grip on the broom handle tightened as he prepared to fly back down.
The bone hand closed on Draco's neck and what little air he had been getting was cut off. He used his silver hand to grab the dagger and toss it to Ron.
Ron reached a hand out and clutched at the dagger where it had landed on the ground, stuffing it hurriedly into the inside of his robes.
Hermione pointed her wand now, shooting off a nonverbal spell at the skeleton's head, but it didn't release its grip on Draco.
Harry could stand it no longer and he flew back down quickly, feeling the pressure building the closer he got to the ground. His eyes widened as he landed and he leapt forward and grasped at the hand on Draco's neck, trying to pry the fingers away.
The Inferius didn't release Draco and he felt his skin give under the vise of it's hand around his neck, blood seeping and his throat being crushed.
Gasping for breath again now, Harry pulled with all his might at the hand, his fingers slipping in the blood. "No!" he shouted.
He could see Ron and Hermione trying to help, but they couldn't breathe.
He tried to think of a spell he could use to get the Inferius away, but all he could do was pull at the hand.
Draco reached his silver hand up and grabbed the arm at his throat, trying to break the bones before he lost consciousness. His other hand was still in the grip of the Inferius.
Harry took a gasping, searing breath when he finally felt bones beginning to bend back from Draco's throat. He pushed harder at them, hearing them crack. They were very strong, despite having lain here for years. He broke two of the fingers off and then pulled the hand away from Draco, reaching forward to grab the arm when the hand reached for Draco's neck again.
Black spots swam before his eyes now and he knew he was losing consciousness. Draco barely felt it when his neck was released and he fell backwards, the Inferius still holding his right wrist and dragging him forward into its grave.
Harry barely noticed Ron and Hermione behind him, but he could see that they were doing something and he knew what when one of their figures flew up on his broom. Harry, still holding on to one skeletal arm, began trying to stomp on the other, the pressure on his lungs getting close to being exactly as it was before he had flown up.
Draco blacked out.
Harry stomped on the arm, grasping Draco very hard. The strange pressure in the air was closing in on him rapidly. Even with as hard as he was stomping, it took several moments to break the arm of the Inferius. Finally, Harry heard a crack like a gunshot and the bone snapped under his trainer. The skeleton twitched when the arm was broken but showed no signs of pain, obviously it could not - it was already dead. It only continued to grab for Draco and now at Harry, grabbing at anything it could reach, dragging the arm, still only just hanging on, through the air.
Harry began trying to drag Draco away from it. It was not an easy thing to do, especially with his lungs seeming to clog. Suddenly, there was another pair of hands helping him pull at Draco. Harry looked quickly behind him and saw that it was Hermione. He could also see Ron climbing weakly onto his Firebolt, nearly blue in the face from lack of oxygen.
"Hurry, Harry!" Hermione said frantically to him. "We need to get him in the air!" She was already beginning to pant again.
Harry's lungs were searing now as he pulled with all the strength he had. The Inferius seemed dead set on getting at least one of them. As Harry and Hermione dragged Draco out of its reach, it started to get up from the earth all together.
It was not like skeletons that Harry had seen in some Muggle films when he was younger; it was much, much worse. The holes where the eyes should have been reminded him of a Dementor and dirt and grime spilled from them. It still wore very tattered robes, now thin and worn with huge holes, and covered in dirt as well. The bone of the Inferius was discoloured and disgusting-looking and the face a mindless show of teeth, a grin seeming almost as if it were mocking Harry as he tried to drag his bleeding, suffocating husband to safety.
Ron had landed again now and was holding his wand pointed at the Inferius as it pulled its legs free from the ground and staggered to its feet, unaffected completely by the drawn wand.
"Take Draco!" Ron yelled at Hermione, casting a quick Lightening Charm on the blond and then Summoning the other broomsticks.
Harry and Hermione both fell over slightly as Draco was lightened.
Hermione recovered from falling. She picked Draco up quickly and hurriedly climbed onto one of the brooms, looking very awkward as she held Draco like he was an over-grown child.
Ron waved her on wildly. "Go! I'll get Harry!"
Harry clutched at his chest, his breathing rapid and short.
Hermione threw terrified looks to the two men but then shot up in the air.
The Inferius was stumbling towards Harry and Ron now, seeming angered by Draco's departure.
Harry didn't need to be told to get on a broom. He began crawling as fast as his body would allow towards his Firebolt, longing for the clear air up above. He actually thought, for a glorious half-second as he climbed onto his broom, that he was going to get into the air with Ron, have the Horcrux and never have to come back here, but he was mistaken.
The Inferius closed the fist with the broken fingers and swung that arm through the air with a loud whooshing sound. It was as if the sun itself hid in fear. Everything darkened and the trees on all sides of them seemed to bend inward.
Harry's heart, though already pounding, seemed to beat double the speed. He knew it wouldn't work - everything around him, his mind, his body - everything told him it wouldn't work, but he had to try. He shot upwards on his broom, but just as he suspected, it was not going to be that easy. Vines shot out of nowhere and held him very firmly in place. He fought them violently as they dragged him and his Firebolt back down the few feet he had made it into the air. All he could think was, At least I managed another breath.
He turned his head to see that Ron was fighting vines as well, wriggling and struggling with all his might, his face as red as his hair.
As Harry continued to fight the vines holding him, everything around him began to swarm like a horde of angry bees. Leaves, sticks, dirt, everything the forest floor provided. The wind blew harder than Harry had ever felt it and his lungs hurt as he tried to draw gasping breaths, panic once again settling into him.
The bramble of the forest began to close in on them like a dark cloud, swirling all around them. It closed out nearly all light, and though Harry could feel the air rushing past him, he could not take a breath of it. It was as if he were drowning, drowning in the middle of the forest, the swirling sticks and leaves taking even more of the oxygen away it seemed. He could now just very barely take a breath and he struggled harder than ever at the vines holding him, but they did not break.
Suddenly, flashing images, visions and memories flew through his mind, all of them of the two blonds most important to him in the world. Valen's little face full of wonder as Harry or Draco did magic for him, Draco's face smiling and laughing at their son. No, Harry was not going down this way, no fucking plant was taking him out.
He took hold of the vine holding his left arm squeezing it hard. It caught fire and wriggled away from him. Feeling relief at that, Harry reached for another vine, catching it on fire with his bare hand as well. He was soon free but more vines snaked out to take hold of him while the others burned on the ground. He held his hand out and sent fire at them, the magic powerful and stealing his energy quickly.
He stumbled over to Ron, whose face was turning purple now as he struggled to breathe and get away from the vines. Harry had never been so relieved that he was able to do nonverbal magic. He couldn't speak at all and all of the magic he was using came directly from him with no help from his mouth.
He grabbed at the green plant-ropes holding his friend, setting them ablaze. Ron fell to the ground, sputtering and trying to breathe, clawing at his own throat. Harry, amazed that he still had his head, silently Summoned his Firebolt and Ron's Cleansweep and climbed atop his broom again, hoping that Ron would be able to fly his.
To his relief, Ron struggled onto his broom and nearly fell off it again, but at least he was on. Harry shot another round of fire at the oncoming vines and felt himself grow weaker. He was very light-headed and had been feeling faint for several moments now. Not even going higher into the air made his breathing any easier. When he looked down, he could see Ron following him, the Inferius trying to reach the tails of their brooms.
Everything still swarming was blocking their way to the sky and Harry raised his hand and tried to sweep it away, his vision darkening. To his dismay, it did not work. It was like a thick, swirling cover that allowed no passage. Taking the last tiny breath he could muster, Harry raised his hand again and blasted at the leaves, dirt and sticks like he had earlier at the earth when they had been trying to dig for the Horcrux. He blasted a hole through the covering and a sharp stick cut his cheek. He shot upwards, the flecks of dirt stinging his eyes as he flew through the rapidly closing opening. Ron followed just in time and they both took gulps of sweet, clear, wonderful air, gasping and drinking it in.
"Harry, Ron!" Hermione cried, speeding towards them, still holding Draco. Her face was tear-streaked and her hands bloody. "I don't know what to do! He's not breathing and I didn't want to leave you -"
"Give him to me," Harry gasped, opening his arms. He still felt weak, but he had to try to heal Draco.
Shaking, Hermione carefully handed Draco over, his head lolling about.
It was not easy to hold Draco to him in the air, but Harry did. He closed his eyes and placed his right hand over Draco's throat, almost as if he were choking him, and rubbed at his neck, trying to heal him like he had healed his own wound when Valen had been born.
"What are you doing?" Ron panted, still taking in great lungfuls of air.
Harry didn't answer him, just kept on focusing his power into his hand. He could feel it working, could feel the wounds closing in Draco's skin and could only hope that the inside of his throat was healing too.
When Harry felt his own power seem to shut off, he opened his eyes again, staring down at the bloody mess of Draco's throat and now his hand. "Draco, wake up, breathe, anything," he demanded, hoping that it had worked.