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Bloody But Unbowed	By : Lomonaaeren Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 36009 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 1
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.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
Thank you again for all the reviews!

Chapter Six�An Open
Heart Can Heal an Open Wound

�� Harry knew,
from the lack of stiffness in his limbs and the tingling, cooling pain in his
back, that he hadn�t had his eyes closed for long. He opened them at once and
sat up, then barked in pain as his head collided with someone�s chin. The other
person staggered away from him, swearing, and Harry recognized Malfoy�s voice.

�� He
remembered that he�d fainted, then, and Malfoy had curled an arm around him as
if he thought he could lift Harry to bed by himself. Of course, if he used a
Lightening Charm, then he probably could. But either Harry had awakened before
they reached the bed, or Malfoy had been leaning over him and watching him
sleep.

�� Harry
shuddered. He hoped it was the first. The second was simply creepy.

�� He looked
around, and was relieved to see that Malfoy had carried him into the bedroom
he�d chosen, instead of Harry�s. At least he had enough courtesy not to intrude
into the one place where Harry had told him explicitly he wasn�t welcome. Or
had he thought that having Harry in his bed was better than�

�� Harry shook
his head briskly and swung himself off the bed with one hand placed flat on the
covers. His feet hadn�t touched the floor yet when Malfoy came swarming up to
him, face bright with false concern and voice dripping sickly-sweet
condescension.

�� Oh,
Potter, you can�t get up yet, of course not. First, I think your friends would
murder me. And second, we need to find out what that curse is and who cast it. I
won�t allow you to risk your health whilst you�re still treating my father��

�� I know
exactly what that curse was and who cast it,� Harry snapped irritably. He
glanced at the watch on his wrist and was relieved to see that it wasn�t six
yet. He still had a chance of going to hospital and keeping his promise to
Marry by seven, though he would have to give up the second visit to Lucius that
he�d decided on. �You must not have associated with many mediwizards before, if
you�re used to people who are unable to recognize spells when they feel them.�

�� Malfoy
stared at him for long moments before he snapped his mouth shut. Then he
hissed, �And you�re doing such a marvelous job with the curses cast on my
father.�

�� Harry
assumed a haughty, frowning mask. �Are you really
still questioning my competence?� Inwardly, he was rejoicing. If Malfoy
went back to insulting him, that must mean he no longer desired Harry. Or, at
least, he�d decided such a troublesome partner wasn�t worth the bother he
brought along with him. �Then you should be fighting to get another Healer
assigned to the case.�

�� Malfoy shut
his eyes and massaged his forehead. A
headache already, Harry thought cheerfully. Excellent. He pushed away the inevitable guilt that always showed
up when he caused someone else pain, at least since he�d got his mediwizard�s
training. Malfoy was likely to cause pain to Harry and to other people, his
father included, if he was allowed to go on �admiring� Harry.

�� That was
unfair of me,� Malfoy said quietly, opening his eyes. �I keep
forgetting�sometimes I think you�re the boy I knew at school, because you don�t
look that different. But if I can
change in the years since then, surely you can. You have. I�� He gave a weak
smile and gestured with one hand. �I don�t usually lack eloquence like this,�
he said. �I think it�s because I know I�m strongly attracted to you, but you�re
not someone I can flirt with the way I usually would. You want different
things. I�m still getting used to providing them.�

�� Harry stared
at him. He tried to remember the last time someone who wasn�t Ron, Hermione, or
another Weasley had apologized to him, and he couldn�t.

�� But
Malfoy�s last words just proved the entire point. Malfoy saw sex as an exchange
of favors. He would do things for Harry, perhaps including the apology, and
Harry would take him to bed. That wasn�t the way it worked, and Harry had
neither the time nor the energy to explain it to him. He had other things to do.

�� The
important thing,� he repeated, �is that I know that curse. I�ve seen patients
come into the Spell Damage ward suffering from it. It�s called the Beetle�s
Bite, apparently because there�s some magical beetle in Germany or the like
that spits acid��

�� Acid?� Malfoy was on him in moments,
wrenching him around and staring at his back in horror. Harry rolled his eyes.

�� Not actual
acid,� he said. �The shock and the burning sensation combined feel like a bite
from the beetle, that�s all. You took care of it with your cooling potion.
Thank you.� He kept his voice frosty and formal, and leaned away from Malfoy�s
hand. It took an effort to keep his temper around the man. If he knew that his attraction to Harry was
unusual and inappropriate, why was he having so much trouble not acting on it?
�And as for who cast it, it was either Xavier or someone who had Xavier�s help.
The house is warded, but Xavier is still keyed into the wards.�

�� Malfoy stepped
back and stared into his eyes. �Pay close attention, Potter,� he said gravely.
�There are points where courage becomes stupidity. This is one of them. Keep it
in the back of your head for all future references, and perhaps you won�t have
to actually experience one of them
again.�

�� It was
easier to let him have access to the house to take his things back than to deal
with his whinging when I kept him out,� Harry said patiently. �Besides, I have
a house-elf. Kreacher keeps him from stealing anything, setting traps, or
poisoning the food. I never thought about his attacking from the outside,
through the wards, because I never thought he�d actually want to harm me physically.�
He gave Malfoy a wink. �He rather likes me
physically. On the other hand, that didn�t prevent him from leaving me.� There.
That ought to serve as a clear warning of the way Harry regarded attractions
that originated below the belt.

�� Malfoy
didn�t seem to think so. He was frowning. �And is this Xavier likely to prove a
threat to my father? My first thought was that someone had tried to kill you to
harm him.�

�� The
Beetle�s Bite doesn�t kill, though it can render those who are more sensitive
to it in enough pain to go to St. Mungo�s,� Harry said. The words slid out of
his lips without his thinking about it; they were the exact ones that Healer
Pontiff had used to him when she taught him about the curse. �Xavier is unlikely to prove a threat, no. He
just wanted me to know that he was annoyed with me.�

�� He hurt you.�

�� And so
what? I�m used to pain, and there was no lasting damage. If anything, I owe it
to him, as a reminder to tighten my wards and stop allowing him access to my
home.� Harry held up a hand when Malfoy opened his mouth. �Before you can ask,
that doesn�t mean I like pain. I tend to squirm and kick when someone tries to
bind me, and you wouldn�t want a bruise disfiguring that pretty jaw of yours,
would you?�

�� That
supposedly pretty jaw dropped further open, and Malfoy made some kind of
incoherent sputtering noise. Harry figured that made it a good time to hop to
his feet and start towards the door. He stumbled on the first few steps, but by
the tenth, he was walking steadily. Malfoy�s potion had gone a long way towards
combating the effects of the curse and calming the tremors that otherwise would
have had his limbs vibrating like a toy�s, he thought. Maybe he would let
Malfoy know that, if he behaved himself.

�� But he was constitutionally
incapable of doing so. He caught Harry�s arm just as Harry was about to enter
the library where he�d been attacked and tighten the wards. �Potter, you should
be resting,� he said.

�� A hint,�
Harry said, and elbowed Malfoy in the ribs; the only reason it wasn�t the solar
plexus was that he moved in time, doubtless because he�d seen how well the
tactic worked on Julius. �In general, I�m not fond of lovers who sound like my
mum.�

�� Malfoy let
him go so he could fold his arms defensively, which was perfectly fine with Harry;
it meant he could reach the window and examine the hole in the glass the curse
had made in coming in. He raised his eyebrows. Well. Xavier had been cleverer
than he�d imagined. Instead of simply taking advantage of the holes in the
wards that existed for him because he�d once been welcome in the house, he�d
bounced a second curse through one of those holes and then off a weaker part of
the wards, which had an effect like untying a knot in a taut rope. The whole of
the wards over the window had relaxed, and the curse had come through without
effort.

�� Defenso,� Harry murmured, tracing his
wand above the gap in the wards, and they repaired themselves obediently. Another
swift spell removed Xavier�s access to the house. He stepped away, nodding, and
turned towards the door of the room.

�� Malfoy
stood with his arms extended and his wrists braced on the sides of the
doorframe. Harry bit his lip to keep from laughing.

�� Did you
know the adult human male arm is not actually strong enough to resist the
determined charge of another adult human male?� he asked conversationally. �Xavier
found that out the hard way. He really should have taken a course in
mediwizardry before he started dating me. It would have prevented a number of
unpleasant surprises from affecting him the way they did.�

�� You were
just wounded, Potter,� Malfoy said,
who seemed to have decided to ignore reality in favor of sticking to the course
of sheer stubbornness. Harry knew a lot of people like that. �Pardon me for being
more concerned about that, and for thinking you should be flat on your back��

�� Not with
that curse,� Harry pointed out sweetly.

�� It was
just an expression.� Malfoy was definitely speaking from between clenched teeth,
now. Excellent. Harry didn�t think he
was someone who could stand much aggravation, and if things went on like this,
Harry might manage to get him to give up the notion of guarding Harry as well
as flirting with him.

�� But we�ve
had the discussion before, about how important it is to be specific.� Harry
regarded him severely. �You don�t know about specific wording, you don�t know
about the specific strength of arms, and you can�t find the words to tell me
exactly why a spell that shares life force between two people is so important.
I�m afraid that you must excel rather more at the practical part of your
potions mastery than the theoretical one.�

�� Malfoy
dropped his arms from the doorway to fold them again. That was exactly what
Harry had been waiting for, and he slipped by whilst Malfoy was beginning a
little speech about Harry�s lack of gratitude. He was downstairs before Malfoy
caught up with him, and Harry had time to thoughtfully flex his back muscles
and decide he would be better off carrying a book for Mary under his arm rather
than in a satchel slung over his shoulder before Malfoy started speaking.

�� You are
the single most stupid person I know,� Malfoy began.

�� Does that
mean you want someone else treating your father?� Harry raised an inquiring
eyebrow.

�� Malfoy�s
face grew darker and darker. Harry carefully concealed his triumph. He had
discovered already that Malfoy took triumph as a personal invitation to try and
change the mind of the person who felt that way.

�� It�s not�it�s
not traditional stupidity,� Malfoy
said. He was struggling for words, practically fuming, his face red, and Harry
felt a cheerful sense of anticipation. He would probably still be staring at
the walls and fumbling after words when Harry had Flooed from the downstairs
library on his way to St. Mungo�s. �You have knowledge of mediwizardry that I
never will, that�s more than plain.�
He snorted. Harry smiled and Summoned the book of Muggle fairy tales out of
which he intended to read to Mary; since she�d been reared in the wizarding
world, she would never have heard most of them before. �But you can�t care for
yourself in the most basic matters, where even Goyle would have no
trouble�Potter, are you listening to
me?�

�� Every
overdramatically emphasized word of it,� Harry said, and marched out of the
room to the Floo with Malfoy trailing behind him.

�� You
can�t��

�� No legal
authority prevents me,� Harry said.

�� Then let
common sense have some authority!� Malfoy had got hold of his arm and seemed
disinclined to let go, even when Harry tapped his hand with his wand to teach
him a lesson. Harry sighed and let loose a stinging spark that made Malfoy yelp
and jump back, shaking his fingers as he examined them for signs of split
nails.

�� Harry
tossed a handful of Floo powder into the flames and prepared to step into them.

�� I have a
good mind to stay here,� Malfoy snarled around the fingers in his mouth.
�You�ll run into trouble without me. That might teach you to reflect on what
I�ve done for you and be grateful.�

�� Harry
sighed and looked back at him. God knew why he was taking the time, but he
would try honesty once more. �Malfoy, don�t you understand? I didn�t ask for
this protection. I didn�t want it.
Your father isn�t different from any other patient to me.�

�� I know you dislike him.� Malfoy took his
fingers out of his mouth and scowled at him.

�� I won�t
let that dislike prevent me from treating him,� Harry said precisely. �It
doesn�t matter when I�m his mediwizard and he�s my patient. You don�t need to
stick to my side. You don�t need to honor me. You don�t need to think the
Heart�s Blessing spell was an extraordinary thing to have done. It�s not. I�ve
done the same thing for a few other people before, and I�ll do it again in the
future. Taking care of your father is mundane for me.�

�� Malfoy
stared at him.

�� And that�s
why you don�t need to offer to protect me,� Harry finished, �or offer me
potions, though I�m grateful you did. And that�s why I don�t find it necessary
to accept your companionship in bed, either. That�s my personal life, outside
of the interactions of patient and mediwizard, and I get to say what I do with
it. Don�t rely on the Heart�s Blessing spell or my position as regards your
father to soften me. If you and I ever were lovers, it would have to be because
I liked you, not simply because we were in close proximity.� He hesitated, then
added, because it was true and cost him nothing, �And you�re handsome and witty
enough to find someone who actually likes you as a person, rather than chasing
futilely after someone who�ll always reject you.�

�� He turned
around and whirled into the flames with a call of, �St. Mungo�s lobby!� Behind
him, he thought Malfoy was standing still, with his jaw probably hanging
somewhere in the vicinity of his knees.

�� An open heart can heal an open wound, Healer
Pontiff had once told him, when Harry had expressed frustration at how many
people he had to deal with who blamed him for not ending the war sooner. If you confess your own reluctance and
confusion about the end of the war, you might soothe their anxieties, and make
them realize you�re as human as they are.

�� So, now,
Malfoy understood exactly why Harry didn�t want to date him. Maybe that would
soothe his hurt pride and let him move on.

*

�� Mediwizard
Potter.�

�� Harry
didn�t let himself sigh as he laid down the book he�d been reading to Mary
from. She�d fallen asleep ten minutes ago as she listened to a story about a
bird who had to go on a quest for three golden feathers, and Harry had
half-whispered the concluding words, then watched her sleep. Of course this was
the moment Emptyweed would choose to appear and disturb him�the one moment of
the day Harry had achieved something like relaxation.

�� Yes,
Healer?� Harry said politely, rising and moving towards the door. He didn�t
intend to remain in the room where his raised voice might wake Mary.

�� Emptyweed
didn�t respond immediately, which was unlike him. Instead, he stood fidgeting
and staring at Harry. Harry stared back stoically, though he had to clench his
jaw to prevent an unfortunate outburst. Emptyweed had acted like that in the
past when he�d failed to prevent some other Healer from dumping a case on
Harry, or when someone had gone over his head and countermanded whatever orders
he wanted to give Harry.

�� I�ll say this about Emptyweed. At least he
stops others from taking advantage of me most of the time, because he wants his
control over me to be absolute.

�� Mediwizard
Potter,� said Emptyweed, and that was also unusual, because he didn�t often
repeat himself. �You are henceforth removed from the Malfoy case.�

�� At first
Harry thought he must be dreaming. Those were the words he had hoped Emptyweed
might say the first day he gave him the case, after all.

�� He kept his
voice calm as he said, �I�m sorry. I must not have heard you correctly. Someone
else has been assigned to treat Lucius Malfoy?�

�� You�ve
never had problems with your hearing, Potter.� Emptyweed folded his arms and
scowled past Harry. �That�s exactly correct.�

�� I had
thought I was the only one in St. Mungo�s who would agree to treat him, given
his past,� Harry said. �Sir.�

�� They found
someone else.�

�� Who?�
Harry could feel his patience sliding away from him. He put up with Emptyweed
most of the time because the man could sack
him if he wanted, and he at least gave Harry the opportunity to help people by
his unwillingness to do his own work. But he would not stand to see someone else abused because Emptyweed lacked the
will or the spine to confront the prejudiced bastards and bitches in the St.
Mungo�s hierarchy.

�� That�s not
your concern now.�

�� It is,�
said Harry, controlling his voice with an effort that made sweat start on his
forehead, �because I�ll need to meet with the new Healer, or mediwizard, and
give him or her the notes I�ve made so far about the curse on Mr. Malfoy.�

�� Your
research skills have never been exceptional, Potter.� Emptyweed swiveled to
face him, looking down his nose in an ordinary way. �I�m sure that whatever
you�ve discovered, the new Healer can find out more quickly.�

�� But it
would save time if I let him know��

�� Potter, do
not presume to row with me.�
Emptyweed�s voice was loud and incredulous. He leaned forwards, as if he could
bear Harry down by his sheer weight. �Do you really think yourself the best
researcher or caretaker in this hospital? Do you think you have skills that
Healers twice your age with three times your natural talent at potions don�t
have? The new Healer will take excellent care of Mr. Malfoy, I�m certain.�

�� Tell me
who it is.� Harry had never stood up to Emptyweed like this before, and he
thought the Healer was just as shocked as he was by it. But this wasn�t some
petty matter of precedence or an insult delivered when he was tired. This
concerned someone else�s safety and well-being. One reason Harry had become a
mediwizard was that nothing else had mattered to him so much after the war. He
couldn�t bring back the people who had died in those battles�a fact that had
taken him a long time to accept�but he could do his best to prevent anyone from
succumbing to diseases or spells that only needed a quick eye to detect.

�� I would
almost think you�re begging to be sacked.�

�� If you
prevent me from doing my job,� Harry snarled softly, �then perhaps I should go into
private practice. It couldn�t make me less money than this, and it would mean I
had the final say about who gets helped and who doesn�t.�

�� Emptyweed
began to protest, but Harry overrode him. �I don�t think you know who will take
over Lucius�s care,� he said.

�� On
first-name terms with a patient, Potter?� Emptyweed mustered his most
impressive glare. �You know what comes of that.�

�� Harry
flushed hotly. He�d first met Francis, another of the lovers he�d failed, as a
patient, though they hadn�t started dating until more than two months after
Francis had been released from St. Mungo�s.

�� But his
present, and not his past, was the important thing now. �You don�t know,� Harry
continued. �Perhaps no one will. Perhaps those people you warned me about, the
ones you could only give me a week of safety from, have maneuvered things such
that the one mediwizard who would risk his life for Lucius�s own��

�� You�re
being melodramatic now.�

�� Am I? When
someone removed the stabilization fields and tried to set the curse to work on
him again?�

�� From the
way Emptyweed took a step back, Harry was confident he hadn�t had anything to
do with that attack, at least. �Impossible,� Emptyweed muttered after a long
moment. �You mustn�t have cast the fields properly. We all know your magic
tends to fail at unpredictable moments.�

�� Not this
time,� Harry said. Yes, he would fight those battles on Lucius�s behalf that he
wouldn�t fight on his own. �They vanished abruptly, not deteriorated over a few
hours� time. I had to use a risky spell to save Mr. Malfoy�s life. I�m sure he
won�t like it if he has to deal with someone else in the middle of a treatment
like this.�

�� The
decision�s made, Potter.� Emptyweed backed further away from him, as if Harry
were some sort of angry god, though Harry, as far as he knew, had no weapon but
the fury on his face and in his voice. �You will turn over your notes on the
various curses plaguing Mr. Malfoy to me tomorrow, and then you will cease to
visit him.�

�� And he
turned and fled.

�� Harry stood
where he was for some minutes, breathing steadily and fighting the urge to
pound a fist into the wall and scream aloud. Then he stiffened his spine as
another bit of Healer Pontiff�s advice came back to him.

�� In times of emergency, do what you can, when
you can.

�� He Summoned
the book from the chair he�d been sitting in, not opening the door so he
wouldn�t wake Mary up, and then headed for Lucius�s room.

*

�� Lucius was
sitting up in bed, finishing the last remnants of a meal that looked as if it
had chicken in its ancestry somewhere and talking quietly with his wife. He
looked up when Harry burst through the door and pushed the tray away from his
lap with a neat, economical motion. The better to spring up and out of the bed
if he needed to, Harry noted distantly.

�� Mr.
Potter,� Lucius said, and his eyes flickered to the door. His mouth grew tight
and chill. Harry reckoned he thought Draco ought to have followed him. �And
where is my son?�

�� Back at my
house,� Harry said distractedly. �There was a bit of excitement and he had to
think over whether he really wanted this position, after all.� He shook his
head and plunged right into the story of how Emptyweed had removed him from the
position of Lucius�s mediwizard. Narcissa leaned forwards until she was
literally perched on the edge of her chair, but Lucius listened without moving.
Harry wasn�t sure he even blinked.

�� At last,
when Harry finished the story, Lucius gave a short nod. �It is utterly clear
what we must do,� he said.

�� Do you
know a way to find out who your enemies in St. Mungo�s are?� Harry ran a hand
through his hair and began to pace. He hated to show this much distress in
front of a patient he was trying to reassure, but calmness would be an outright
deception now. �I don�t have contacts among anyone who really runs the hospital, just a few ordinary
Healers and mediwizards trying to do their jobs. I don�t know how to guarantee
your safety.�

�� Mr.
Potter.� That was Narcissa, her voice so thin and faint Harry had to stop
pacing in order to hear her. From the way Narcissa�s voice immediately grew
stronger, that had been her intent. �My husband is no longer safe here. We will
be removing him from St. Mungo�s.�

�� Harry
stared at her for a moment, but he could see the sense in what she said. He
nodded. �I know the names of a few Healers who left the hospital when Emptyweed
and idiots like him started becoming prominent,� he said. �I can give you their
names. Two of them will attend anyone, and won�t care about your past. One of
them will do anything if you give him enough money, although��

�� I intend
to retain your services,� Lucius said. �Competence is not easily discovered,
and I would be a fool to surrender someone as dedicated as you are.� He settled
comfortably back against his pillows, as though matters were all settled.

�� Harry felt
a tight surge of dread across the middle of his stomach. �I don�t think I could
Floo or Apparate out to Malfoy Manor every evening,� he said lowly. �You
wouldn�t be getting the best of me when I�d dealt with other patients all day.�

�� I was not
thinking of that,� Lucius said.

�� Harry
frowned at him, baffled now. �You want me to consult from a distance? I don�t
think any of the Healers I mentioned would like a mere mediwizard taking on so
much of their work.�

�� Lucius
watched him with a faint smile, though Harry didn�t understand what there was
to be so happy about. Then he began to speak in a normal voice on a completely
unrelated topic. Harry did his best to calm his impatient urge to fling about
the room and listened instead.

�� The
Heart�s Blessing spell, and others like it, are valued for the same reason a
friend�s surrender of his money to another to pay debts is valued,� Lucius
said. �Imagine a man who was willing to beggar himself so that a friend might
not go to jail. That is true friendship. The friend might not ever be able to
pay back the money. And yet, knowledge of the debt remains between them,
unforgotten but honored, and thus the money is shared, in the truest sense. The Heart�s Blessing spell is not an
action performed once and forgotten, but a shared drawing on the same life
force. My heart beats because yours does.� Lucius laid a hand over his chest.
�Your blood, in essence, flows in my veins. That explains the color of the red
light when you first cast the spell. Some small portion of your blood passed
into mine.�

�� And?�
Harry asked impatiently. He had never paused to wonder about the color of the
spell. If anything, he had thought it was red because it involved the word
�heart.�

�� If the
person given such a gift does have
the means to repay the debt,� Lucius said, eyes piercing, �he always does.
Or�and this was more common in the age when such spells also were�he shares
something else. His home, perhaps; the friend who shared his money would have
free right of access there. There is no simple cancellation of such a spell,
Mr. Potter, but only a building of more bindings, more links. You are welcome
into my home, and I will pay you all the money you could desire to continue
attending me.� He bowed his head. �I hope the connection may continue into the
future.�

�� Harry found
his mouth hanging open. Narcissa made a discreet motion that he was to close
it; he did so. Then he said, �I�surely too much lies between us in the past for
that to happen?�

�� Lucius
shook his head. His gaze literally hurt to meet now. �Not at all,� he said with
awful gentleness. �You have proven yourself a person with great honor. That is
not the impression of you I had before. I thought you more lucky than anything
else. It has been, traditionally, pure-blood wizards and witches who achieved
such sharing, not half-bloods.� Harry glared. Lucius did not deign to notice.
�Now you have shared yourself with my family outside the bounds of war, and in
spite of our being on opposite sides then. I would welcome you among the
Malfoys.� He showed his teeth suddenly. �And hopefully I can cure that
disgraceful lack of ambition you seem to have, to lift you to a position more
deserving of your talents.�

�� Harry
placed a hand on his forehead, dazed. He couldn�t leave his patients at St.
Mungo�s like that. He couldn�t leave his job. He couldn�t change his whole life
about to please the Malfoys.

�� On the
other hand, there was no doubt that Lucius Malfoy was the most vulnerable of
his patients right now, the most in need of special care. Harry had been
assigned other, far more ordinary cases in the last few weeks. Others could
take over his burdens if he removed.

�� I can�t believe I�m mad enough to be considering
this.

�� And then
the solution occurred to him. Harry relaxed and lifted his head. �I�ll stay
with you in the Manor until we find a cure,� he said. �Then I�ll ask you for
enough money to set myself up in private practice.� He would be more
comfortable with an equal exchange like that than with this talk of continuing obligations.

�� Lucius
smiled and bowed.

�� Later, Harry
was to wish he had looked a little more closely at the edge on that smile.

*

�� qwerty: Thanks!
This chapter was a rude awakening for Draco, in more ways than one.

�� Mangacat:
Thank you! Harry doesn�t really want to live under the Fidelius, but he�s at
least acknowledged that it�s not a good idea to let Xavier have access to his
house anymore.

�� GoddessMoonLady:
Thank you! I suspect you will want to punish Emptyweed even more after this
chapter.

�� If Draco�s
tactics don�t change, Harry can hold out pretty much indefinitely.

�� Slytherdor:
Hopefully this chapter explained the Heart�s Blessing spell more clearly.
Basically, it�s a huge sacrifice of friendship, trust, and love, and Harry made
it despite not knowing the Malfoys all that well, which renders it even more
precious.

�� avihenda: It
is kind of a family connection, in a tenuous way. As for Draco�s fury over
Harry, he will explain it from his POV later in the story, but right now it
mostly comes from sheer incredulity that someone would let himself go like
that.

�� Irish
Dragon: Thank you!

�� YanaYugi:
More protective Harry coming up.

�� CassieBlack:
Thanks! Hope you continue to have a soft spot for Lucius as the story
continues.

�� SP777: This
is a new kind of Draco characterization, I think. There�s a lot going on under the
surface, but he doesn�t have a POV to speak it, so some of his later actions
will have to do so.

�� Jilliane:
Thank you! The Heart�s Blessing spell is what revealed to Draco that Harry is
not only more competent than he used to be and has a breathtaking smile, but
that he really is that noble and
self-sacrificing�and in a way that even Slytherins can consider wonderful.

�� feltonslover:
Thank you! As it is, Harry did manage to keep his promise, though only by being
still more stubborn.

Sara: Sorry, but updates can�t be
faster. I�m near the end of the other two WiP�s, but not quite there yet.

celestialuna: Thanks for the
reviews!

��
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Bloody But Unbowed