Song of the Sea

Harry stood alone in the main sitting room of grimmauld place, having one last look around before he needed to leave. Grimmauld place had been his home this last summer and he knew he would miss being surrounded by Sirius' things. Everything he smelled, touched and saw, made his heart ache for his godfather, even after nearly three years. He sighed before throwing in a handful of floo powder and stepping into the fireplace with his trunk shrunk to fit into his pocket. He called out kings cross station and disappeared in a blaze of green smoke, for the last time. When Mcgonagall announced that those students that didn't get to finish their seventh year due to the war, Harry had mixed feelings about the whole thing. Why wouldn't he? He already had job offers for the ministry to start right away, why go back? The only problem was that he had already decided that he was done fighting, so he didn't particularly want to be an auror anymore. He had had enough in the seven years it took to defeat Tom Riddle. He just wasn't sure he could go back and face the family and friends of the men, women and children that had fallen in the war, but Hermione had ultimately talked him into it and he would be meeting her and Ron at kings cross station. He exited, coming out on the other side of the barrier, just barely missing falling into a family that was walking by. Harry quickly made his way onto the train, into an empty compartment. Hermione and Ron could find him later, but he didnt feel like being stared at any more than he already was. It made him uncomfortable. He was pulled from his musing by the sound of the compartment door being slid open and he looked up into the pale face of one Draco Malfoy. "What are you doing here, Malfoy?", he asked cautiously. The last thing he wanted was to come to blows right now. He didn't have the energy and, quite frankly, it didn't look like Malfoy did either. He looked exhausted, bruises under his eyes, his skin sunken and sallow. Harry couldn't understand why he had come back. He must know that he wouldn't be left alone this year, and from how he looked right now he wouldn't be able to handle the harassment he was sure to. "I-i wanted to thank you for what you said at Mothers trial, and-",he looked down and shifted around on his feet. He took a deep breath and seemed to collect himself as he squared his shoulders and set his jaw. The familiar Malfoy mask settled on his face and Harry relaxed a fraction. This, Harry could handle. It was familiar, while the Malfoy of a few moments ago was completely foreign. "Thank you, Potter, for saving us from Azkaban. Mother, at least, doesn't deserve to go to that place.", He seemed satisfied with himself, and moved to leave. "Neither do you,"Harry murmured quietly, but it seemed he was still heard as Malfoy froze with his hand on the door. Harry couldn't see his face, as his back was to him, but his shoulders had tensed. "You didn't have much choice, and what you did have was shite. You were just a kid, Malfoy. We all were. None of us should have been in the position we were, and besides, anyone paying enough attention could tell that you didn't put any real effort into it. Especially when it came to killing Dumbledore." There was no response for a few short seconds. Then Malfoy turned his head towards Harry, gave a stiff nod, and exited the compartment. Ron walked in a few seconds later with a confused look in his eyes. "What the bloody hell did he want?" he exclaimed. "Nothing, he just got lost and thought Blaise had walked in here." Harry lied. No point in setting people after Malfoy for what they would see as a weakness. Ron rolled his eyes and muttered about Malfoy being a prick, but Harry just tuned him out. Ron had not changed much after the war. He still acted like he did before, but he was a little more bitter about everything. He held a bit of resentment toward Harry, though he would never show it. After the war, Harry had nowhere to go, so he wandered around the area, doing a last-ditch effort to check for survivors. He had gone to the boat house to see about Severus' body, now that he understood all that the man had really done for him, or rather, for his mother. When he got there he had found that Severus had been alive and managed to crawl over to the dock, roll himself over and stare at the sky. Harry had quickly gotten him some help and, over the course of the summer, their relationship had gone from terrible to rocky to rock solid. He was living at Grimmauld with him currently and things were, oddly, kinda great. Nobody who knew about their arrangement ever really understood though. Ron least of all. Ron was still grieving the loss of his brother because, even though he had been a prat, Percy had still been his brother, and in the end, had saved Fred's life. He blamed anyone and everyone who survived the war from the opposite side, even if they had been a spy or had had no choice. He needed someone to blame. Harry couldn't blame him. He had felt the same and the first few months that Snape had been at his house had been really bad. He had yelled, and thrown curses, while Snape had just taken it all, until Harry had broken down and just started to cry hysterically. Snape had come over and wrapped him up in his arms and held on as Harry had struggled. e relaxed after a few minutes and just held on to the older man tightly, sobbing into his shoulder. Things had changed between them after that. Snape had become a sort of father figure to him, and he was glad that Snape would be returning to Hogwarts as well. He was pulled from his thoughts by the compartment door sliding open and Hermione all but falling inside. "You ok, 'Mione?" Ron asked, steadying her. " Yeah, I just tripped. I was trying to get away from all the curious first years. I have a feeling this year is gonna be kinda crazy." Harry grunted in response, staring out the window as the train pulled out of the station, wishing for the millionth time that he had a normal life. HPDM Draco sat in a secluded corner of the Slytherin table, staring into space, as Headmistress Mcgonagall gave her beginning of the year speech and the new firsties were sorted into their houses. The eighth years were given a whole new dorm and common room, so they would have to room with the other eighth years, and that made Draco nervous. He had too many secrets to keep, too many things to hide still. He couldn’t afford to be roomed with them. He would have to be extra careful this year. At least he had Snape to talk to if he needed him this year. Unfortunately, that was another thing he owed to Harry Potter; the life of his godfather. He had so much to make up for this year. He just hoped that it would be a quiet year, and he would be left in peace. Later that night…… Draco sighed as he walked into his assigned dorm, praying he was roomed with Blaise or another Slytherin. Except, he was Draco Malfoy, and his luck was awful, and he swore loudly when Harry Potter himself walked into the room, Ron Weasley followed closely on his heels. This was going to be a painful year. "What the hell are you doing here, ferret?!" Weasley roared. He rushed up to Draco and grabbed him by the shirt, shoving him against the wall, his head slamming into the stone. "Ron! Let him go. He was assigned to this dorm, same as us, right Malfoy?" Harry sounded exhausted. Draco hated how exhausted he sounded. "Yeah" he wheezed out, his head throbbing painfully. Ron looked at Harry like he had lost his mind. "I am not rooming with a Death Eater! Harry, are you crazy, how can you be okay with this? He killed dumbledore. He tried to kill us!" Ron yelled, shoving Draco harder against the wall. He winced in pain, but didnt say anything. He didn't want to enrage the oaf any more than he already was. "Ron, just give it a rest. He was never a Death Eater. You know this, I know this, the Wizengamot knows this! Just, please, I just want a quiet year this year. I just want to get my N.E.W.T.S and move on. Don't you?" Harry pleaded. He flopped down on the bed that had his trunk and laid back, staring at the ceiling. Ron gave one last shove, grunting like an ape, before releasing Draco and moving away, allowing Draco to slide to the floor and rub his head in pain. Ron stomped over to his bed at the far end of the room and grabbed some pajamas and stormed to the bathroom, grumbling under his breath the whole time. Draco slowly stood up and mumbled a thank you to Potter as he walked by his bed, ignoring any response as he climbed into his bed and closed the curtains, spelling them locked and putting up a silencio. No way he wanted to hear Weasley talk about him to Potter when he emerged from the bathroom. Draco curled up into a ball holding himself tightly, willing himself to sleep. Draco wakes up screaming, his legs feeling like they were being melted from his body, his lungs burning from the inside out. He lay in his bed gasping, his skin feeling like it was paper dry, like all the moisture was being sucked out of his body. He was able to let out another blood curdling scream, before his throat was too dry and it hurt to try to swallow. His mother burst into his room, crying out his name. She gasped when she saw him, her hand moving to her throat. Draco was coming in and out of consciousness, but he could hear his mother gasping out orders to the house elves and his body being moved from his bed to his bathroom. He sobbed in relief when he was set down gently into the most wonderful water he had ever felt. Gradually he could feel his body relaxing, the aches fading to a dull throb. He cracked open his eyes to look at his mother. "What's happening to me?" he sobbed. Draco woke with a start, his body covered in sweat. He dragged a shaking hand down his face as he took some deep steadying breaths, calming his heart beat. Memories, just some horrible memories