Chapter Seventeen; Alarms.

The week that followed was a lot like the first.

Draco didn't eat as much as he should. He stayed quiet. His visit schedule to see Harry was every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He didn't sleep well. He cried everyday. And he missed Harry like hell.

Then, of course, it had been Harry's birthday.

Draco had gotten permission to stay with Harry for most of the day. Along with Mrs. and Mr. Weasley, and Hermione and Ron.

They didn't talk much. Even though Draco usually did talk when he visited Harry since the Healers had told him it helped to hear familiar voices. Draco told Harry about his day, usually, or how much he missed him.

But that day they didn't talk. They cried and sniffled and sobbed and whispered and then cried again.

Draco had got back around six in the afternoon, and finally looked at the photos.

God, how that had hurt.

Seeing Harry alive like that...eyes shining and his face moving, kissing Draco, steadying Draco, having an arm wrestle with Blaise, all of it...it was heartbreaking.

Blaise had walked in on him and immediately went to him, gathering him up and stroking his back. Whispering, "It's all okay."

Those first two weeks were the hardest.

After that Draco stopped crying as often at school, but still always ended up crying when he visited Harry.

He also started working a bit harder in classes, knowing that pre-exams were soon.

He still didn't smile, let alone laugh, but he was strong enough to have the photo of him and Harry stuck at the top of a Ferris Wheel by his bed.

Blaise was getting a bit better, and had actually made a joke at supper. Everyone has been so surprised they hadn't laughed, but then Pansy giggled and Hermione smiled and then Draco smirked.

Then there had been George's funeral right before the holidays.

Draco, Pansy, Blaise, Hermione, and Ron, had all come together. Draco and Blaise wearing a full black suit and Pansy and Hermione black velvet dresses, while Ron wore a suit with a very dark purple button up.

Mrs. Weasley had been extremely kind to Draco, and had insisted that he and Pansy and Blaise sit up with the front with the Weasleys and Hermione.

There had been a lot of crying, and Draco was part of it. Which surprised him at first, but then he realised it was because it was Ron's brother, and Ron was becoming family.

After the funeral, there had been food and Blaise stayed with Ginny the whole time. He wondered when they were going to get together since they obviously liked each other.

Everyone left after that except for Draco and Hermione since they were staying for the holidays.

Draco stayed in Ron's room while Hermione shared with Ginny.

It had been awkward at first, but then Draco had asked,

"I'm seeing Harry every day this holidays except Sunday's, do want to go with me?"

Ron had looked up.

"What, really?" He had said looking shocked.

Draco gave a small, sad smile and nodded.

"Don't you want to be alone with him?" Ron mumbled.

Draco had shrugged a shoulder.

"One of us could go wait outside."

Ron, for the first time that Draco had seen in a month, smiled a little.

"Thanks, Malfoy." He said.

"Your welcome, Weasley." Draco replied. "I'm going at three pm sharp, so don't muck around."

And with that, they had gotten ready for bed and went to sleep.

The rest of the Holiday went smoothly with Ron visiting with Draco almost everyday, which made them a lot closer.

Then it was back to school and Draco went back to his old visiting schedule. Ginny also came back, much to their delight (you should've seen Blaise's face when she walked in).

A month turned into two, and two turned into three. Draco never stopped visiting Harry as often. In fact, he started visiting more. He even ended up moving the Ferris Wheel picture to Harry's room at St. Mungo's because he visited so much.

He also cried a lot less, and smiled quite often. But with Blaise and Ginny finally together, how couldn't he?

One day, about two months and three days without Harry, they had walked into the Gryffindor common room (the usual hangout) holding hands and grinning like loons.

Hermione had screamed, causing everyone to laugh and other Gryffindors turn their heads over to them in curiosity.

Draco had gone to bed almost happy that night. Something he hadn't done in a long, long time.

Everything was going quite well, and Draco sometimes was able to visit Harry and not end up crying.

He thought everything might be okay now. That Harry would wake up soon. That everything would go back to normal.

Sometimes you hope for too much.

On the six month and third week without Harry, (Draco measured time like that now.) he had gotten a letter at breakfast on Saturday morning, along with Ginny, Hermione, and Ron.

They had given each other odd looks before turning it around to see who it was from.

"What is it?" Blaise had asked, panic clear in his voice at the looks on his friends faces.

Draco still remembered the way he felt his stomach churn, his heart beating louder and faster, his breaths shallow, his hands starting to shake.

"Draco..." Pansy had said, also looking scared.

Hermione was the first one to regain control.

"It's from St. Mungo's." She whispered.

"Open it." Blaise said, his voice a little high.

Draco heard Hermione open up her letter and Draco did the same.

"Dear Hermione J Granger." She had read, her voice shaky. "We are sorry to inform that if Mr. James Potter-" She broke off, lifting a shocked hand to her mouth.

Draco had let out a torn sob and scrunched up his letter, standing up quickly from the table, knocking over his goblet and bumping the table in his rush.

He put a fist in his mouth and bit down hard, trying to stop another sob from escaping as he started to run out of the Great Hall, tears streaming down his face. Ignoring Pansy's panicked cries of,

"Draco! Draco! Hermione, what does it say-"

Draco had run and run and run until he couldn't anymore before sliding down the stone wall, letting his fist fall.

The sobs echoed around the hall.

"No, no, no," he sobbed out. "NononoNO."

Tears wouldn't stop streaming down his face as he rocked back and forth, trying so hard to wake up. Because he had wake up. This had to be a bad dream.

"No, no, no..." Draco sobbed, and to anyone who couldn't see what was going on, they would've thought a man was being tortured.

"Aaaargh!" Draco sobbed and the wall in front of him cracked.

He bent his head down low, and brought his hands up to his head, threading them in his hair as he rocked forward then rocked back, hitting the concrete hard.

He need to see Harry. Now.

"Madame Promfrey..." Draco had mumbled through tears as he stumbled to his feet, setting off at a run again.

He had reached Madame Pomfrey, but she wouldn't let him visit yet, that he would have to wait till tomorrow.

Draco had sat down that night and read the letter again, to make sure it was all real.

Dear Mr. Draco L Malfoy.

We are sorry to inform you that if Mr. James Potter doesn't recover from his coma in the next two months, we will have to cease life support. This does not mean we have given up, we are still trying our best.

Sincerely,

St. Mungo's.

Signed: Doctor M Anderson.

Oh, it had been real alright.

They were going to cease life support if Harry didn't wake up in two months.

In other words, they were going to kill him.

XxX

A month went by, and it felt like the first week all over again.

Draco went back to not eating normally and his sleeping pattern went back to absolute shit. Blaise had to wake him up almost every night because Draco was sobbing or screaming, "Wake up!"

Ron and Blaise went cold again, although Ginny was there and that helped a little. Not just for Ron.

Eight months and one week without Harry found Draco next to his bed in St. Mungo's.

It was Saturday night, around 11:30, since Draco usually stayed the night in Saturday's now, and Hermione visited on Sunday's.

He had his elbow by Harry's leg, his head resting in his hand while he trailed his fingers on Harry's arm with his other hand.

"Blaise seems to be getting a little better." Draco said. "He almost smiled today, thanks to Ginny. They've been going out for over five months now, almost six I'm pretty sure."

Harry said nothing. Of course.

Draco stopped trailing his fingers up and down and linked their fingers

"I miss you loads." He said, snorting softly. "But of course you know that from the million times I've told you."

He swallowed thickly.

"You know," He said, sounding a little choked. "You only have three weeks."

Harry didn't move.

"Harry...please..." Draco said, a tear sliding down his cheek. "Wake up. You need to wake up. Please, they'll kill you if you don't soon."

Draco felt more tears fall.

"Harry." He sobbed and dropped his head to the mattress, his hands intertwined. His knuckles white and Harry still asleep.

XxX

Draco woke up two hours later to a loud beeping.

He sat up instantly and the beeping grew louder, more urgent. Screaming for someone to come now.

"Harry?" Draco said loudly, fear laced in his voice as he shook Harry.

Draco leant to his mouth.

"Oh, God." He said as Healers came rushing in. "He's not breathing!" He yelled.

"Sir," a young man said. "We're going to need you to go."

Healers were casting spells, making Harry spasm.

"No!" Draco shouted, fighting against strong arms.

"Sir!" The Healer shouted.

"One more time!" Shouted a healer and Harry spasmed again.

"What are doing to him!" Draco yelled, tears starting to fall.

"Sir! You need to go. Now." Shouted the Healer and held Draco firmly as he forced him out.

"Tell me what's happening." Draco demanded outside of the room, his eyes blazing.

"You need to calm down. We're doing all we can right now."

"Just tell me!" Draco shouted, causing other Wizards and Witches to turn and stare.

"His heart is failing." Said the Healer gently. "He consumed a lot of drugs, we suspected something might like would happen-"

But Draco wasn't listening.

What if Harry died? Right now?

"I have to get to Ron and Hermione." Draco muttered, his hands over his mouth.

"What was that, sir?" The Healer asked.

"I need to contact his friends. They're more like family." He said, turning back to him.

The Healer nodded.

"Come with me."

They walked down corridors and Draco wished they could just run.

Then they were there and Draco grabbed a handful of Floo Powder and stepped through the fireplace.

And finally, he could run.

He burst into the Boys dormitory.

"Ron!" He shouted, sprinting over to his bed. He didn't stop to realise he had called Ron Ron out loud. "Wake up!" He yelled.

"Draco?" Ron yawned.

"It's Harry! Get up! Don't bother dressing, we need to go now!" He shouted.

A light turned on.

"What's going on?" Mumbled Thomas.

"It's Harry." Draco said hurriedly.

Ron had already jumped up and gone to get Hermione.

Draco ran to catch up with them.

"Draco!" Said Hermione, bringing him into her arms. "What's going on? What's wrong with Harry?"

"I'll tell you when we get there, the Healer's waiting for us."

The three of them ran, Hermione and Ron still on their Pyjamas.

Soon they were back outside Harry's ward.

Draco kept pacing back and forth, too shocked and restless to cry. Instead he hyperventilated at times and Hermione had to calm him.

"Draco," she said softly. "Tell us what's going in there."

They heard another faint shout of, "Again!"

Draco hesitated.

"I was asleep. Then I was woken up by a loud beeping-" he broke off shaking his head. "It was so horrible, Hermione. They all came bursting in and wouldn't tell me what was going on - he wasn't breathing Hermione! Oh god what if he dies! I won't forgive myself, it was all my fault to begin with, if I had stayed with him-"

"Draco!" Hermione said sternly. "Calm. Down."

Draco nodded and took deep breaths.

Hermione rested her hands on Draco's arms.

"Now, just tell me very slowly what the Healer told you." She said, and her face looked calm, but her eyes were wide and glistening.

Draco closed his eyes and took another deep breath.

"He stopped breathing. And they pulled me away. They were casting spells, making Harry spasm."

Hermione nodded.

"That'll be them trying to make him breath again." She said. "But, you need to tell me what the Healer told you."

Draco nodded.

"Right. Yeah." Draco shook himself, trying to remember. "Um, he said something about his heart failing, said he consumed a lot of drugs, thought something like this would've happened sooner rather than later-" He broke of into a small sob. "Oh, God, Hermione. What are we going to do?"

Hermione was shaking and she tried to get herself in control.

"We're going to wait." She said. "I'm going to go ask the Healer for more information."

Draco nodded and started pacing back and forth again, running a shaky hand through his hair.

Ron had his face scrunched up, trying not to cry or shout or do something.

Draco looked through the small window and into the ward.

"Hurry!" Someone shouted and Draco couldn't bare it.

"I'm going in." He said and burst through the doors, running over to the Healers surrounding Harry.

"What's happening?" He said loudly. "Why isn't it working!"

"We're doing all we can, Sir." A young witch said.

Then the same Healer from before came bursting in after Hermione and Ron.

"You three need to wait outside!" He yelled over another shout of, "Again!".

Draco shook his head.

"We're not going anywhere." Ron growled and the healer promptly backed off.

"It's working!" Came a shout from a Healer.

"One more time! Come on!"

Draco saw Harry spasm one more time and the loud beeping stopped being frantic and urgent and went back to its steady and regular pattern. The one that Draco knew so well.

Draco let out a relieved sob and rushed over to Harry's side. Clutching his hands tight.

He vaguely heard Hermione burst into sobs and a muttered "Bloody hell..."

But none of it mattered because Harry was still alive.

XxX

Harry gasped.

All he remembered was him feeling so, so tired. All he had wanted to do was sleep and so he had closed his eyes. Just for a second.

His dream was filled with shouts of "Harry!" And, "Again!" or, "One more time!"

Then he had felt his chest tighten and then his heart stopped beating and he had wished for it to be all over.

But then he had remembered something.

Beautiful grey eyes, shining under sunlight. A smile. A perfect smile. And a part of Harry had shouted at him the couldn't die.

And so he pushed against the sleep and woken up, gasping for air.

Looking at his forest around him now, it looked like it had died. The flowers were brown and the trees had lost all their leaves, the grass dry and the dirt hard as concrete.

He heard distant sobs.

He wondered if they belonged to the person with the beautiful eyes and the perfect smile.

He wondered if he'd ever see them again.

XxX

Draco eventually stopped crying and left Hermione and Ron alone with him while he talked to a doctor.

It has been around three hours since Harry's heart had started working again, and Draco still felt a little shaky and on edge.

He walked up to the Healer.

"Please, sit down." The woman said, gesturing to a seat.

Both of them sat down.

"Now," she started. "We've got a few things to discuss."

Draco nodded.

"We realise that almost two months ago you received a letter that told you that we were giving Mr. Potter two months, yes?" She said.

Draco nodded again, slowly. Fear seeping into his veins.

"And there was only three weeks left, correct?"

Draco nodded again.

"Right, well, after the incident three hours ago, we have decided to shorten down that time to a week."

Draco's stomach dropped. His hands started shaking. He started sweating. He couldn't breath.

"Now, I know this seems unfair but you must understand that for Mr. Potter to be alive that amount of time could just cause him a lot of pain." She was saying.

Draco shook his head.

"No," he said. "No. No, you- you can't."

"I'm afraid it's for the best."

"How!" Draco yelled, standing up. "How is it for the best!"

He could feel tears pricking his eyes.

"Any future with Harry dead is not for the fucking best." He spat and rushed back to Ron and Hermione.

"You won't believe what that fucking bitch just told me." Draco said. Anger filling up inside him.

"Draco, you need calm down." Hermione said walking over to him, placing her hands on his arms.

Draco shook her off.

"No- She told me Harry only has a week. A week! Seven fucking days!" He yelled, his voice trembling.

"Draco, Draco, listen to me, Draco." Hermione said firmly.

Draco looked down at his feet. Shaking with fear and anger.

"Everything will be okay." She said firmly. "Hey, look at me."

Draco brought his head up, meeting Hermione's fierce brown eyes.

"Everything will be okay. Harry will wake up." She said.

Draco suddenly felt guilty.

Here he was, yelling about like a thirteen year old while Hermione hasn't even had the proper chance to grief.

Draco shook his head and enveloped her into a hug.

"What did I do to deserve a friend like you, Hermione?" Draco mumbled into her hair.

Hermione laughed a little and sniffed before they pulled back.

"I have know idea." She said. "But I'm glad."

Draco bit his lip to stop himself from crying.

"I'll leave you be." He said softly. "I think I've got a Healer to apologise too."

Silent tears rolled down his eyes when he looked back and saw Hermione and Ron locked in an embrace. Sobbing.

XxX

Draco rocked back and forth beside Harry's bed.

He had two days to go before his time ran out. Forty eight hours. Two thousand, eight hundred and eighty minutes.

Draco glanced up at the clock.

Two thousand, eight hundred and seventy nine minutes.

He looked back at Harry, still asleep and motionless apart from his breathing.

He sighed.

He hadn't gone to school in the past five days and neither had Hermione or Ron or Ginny. Blaise and Pansy came when they could, of course.

The curtain slid open and then shut.

"Hey." Ginny said softly, sitting down in the chair next him.

"Hey." Draco replied, not looking away from Harry. "Did you want to have some time with him?"

He glanced over saw Ginny shake her head.

"No, it's fine. I wanted to see how you were doing, actually."

Draco turned back to Harry.

"I feel like shit. I feel guilty. I feel horrible. I feel depressed. I feel sleep deprived. I feel like I would do anything to have Harry wake up." He said.

"I think it's safe to say that we are both feeling the same thing." She paused. "Maybe you a lot worse."

Draco snorted softly.

"Also," Ginny said. "I came to give you lunch."

Draco turned around and took the paper bag from Ginny's hand, smiling a little.

"Thanks." He said softly.

They sat in silence after that, slowly eating their sandwiches and watching Harry, praying that he would just open an eye.

XxX

Draco woke up and glanced at the clock.

One thousand, six hundred and twenty minutes.

Draco's stomach lurched.

Twenty seven hours.

He linked his and Harry's hands together, stroking his soft skin with his thumb.

"Harry..." Draco said softly. "Harry...it's time to wake up now."

Harry didn't do anything.

"Harry." Draco said more urgently. "You need to wake up. Please, wake up now. Please-"

XxX

Draco looked back at the clock.

One thousand, one hundred and seventy four minutes.

Draco's knee started bouncing up and down.

"Harry." Draco said. "Harry. Wake up. You need to wake up."

Draco's breathing was starting to get shorter and his eyes started tearing up again.

"Harry." He snapped. "Wake up!"

XxX

Eight hundred and ninety one minutes left.

Draco rocked back and forth, trying to keep his breathing calm, trying to stop his tears from falling.

"Harry." He said, his voice coming out in a choke. "Harry. It's time to wake up. You've had enough sleep. Come back, now. Open your eyes."

Draco started to panic.

"Open your fucking eyes!" He shouted.

XxX

Five hundred and forty six minutes.

Draco's vision went blurry.

"Harry..." He choked out. "Harry just wake up. Just let me see your eyes again. Just bat an eyelash. Anything!" He cried.

He took a shaky breath.

"I love you."

XxX

Two hundred and sixty three minutes to go.

Draco rested his head on Harry's chest, a hand threaded through his black hair and the other stroking his cheek. Trying to coax him awake.

"Remember that time we went to that Muggle fair?" He said softly. "And we went on the Ferris Wheel?" Draco let soft laugh. "Remember how I yelled like I girl when he got stuck at the top? You laughed and kissed me and said, "It's fine just enjoy the view.""

Draco sighed happily at the memory.

"Then you kissed me on the cheek and took a photo of us."

Draco turned his head slightly to the photograph which with sitting by Harry's bed, along with dozens of other treasures and a bouquet of white roses.

"Do you remember?" He asked softly, watching as Photo-Harry leant over and kissed a blushing and smiling Draco on the cheek before both of them laughed. "Please tell me you remember." He choked out, his voice shaky.

"Just wake up and tell me you remember."

XxX

Forty minutes.

"Harry." Draco sobbed. "Harry please wake up! Please! Wake up!"

He was getting frantic now, tears streaming down his face.

"Harry wake up!" He sobbed.

"Wake up!" He yelled.

XxX

Harry was desperately searching.

Searching for memories.

Memories about a Muggle fair. Memories with someone he loved. Memories about the boy who was crying and yelling at him to wake up.

Harry started with the forest around him.

It was familiar, but where had he seen it before?

He closed his eyes and blocked out the sobs around him, searching the fragments of memories he had.

Harry gasped when a pair of red eyes flashed before him.

He recognised them.

He searched again.

Dark cloak. Skull. Wandering. Stumbling. Fear.

"Harry? No!"

Harry snapped his eyes open.

Voldemort. Hagrid. Forbidden Forest.

He had died here once.

Harry searched again.

A red blotch came up and he stopped there. Trying desperately to remember more about it.

It looked waxy, like something you would use in the olden days to stamp-

To stamp a letter.

Hogwarts.

Harry jerked backwards as bright memories came rushing towards him.

Ginger hair. Sweats. A train.

"I'm Ron Weasley."

Laughter. A toad. A girl with bushy hair.

"I'm Hermione Granger. And...you are?"

Laughter. A wand. A flash of light. Glasses. Fixed. Hermione gone.

Then it fast forwarded.

Laughter. He was with the bushy haired girl and the Weasley boy.

"Shove off, Malfoy."

Malfoy.

The perfect smile. Years of bullying. Sixth year. Obsession. Kisses. Smiles. Hugs. High. Smoke. Music.

"Harry..."

Gasps. Moans. More laughter. Laughter from the blond haired boy.

He was with the bushy haired girl but...she was older. Skating. Laughing. So much laughter. Happiness.

Sadness. George dead. Harry himself guilty. High. Too high.

Hermione. Ron. Ginny. Dean. Seamus. Lily. James. Sirius. Remus. Blaise. Pansy.

Draco.

Harry gasped.

XxX

Twenty minutes left.

"Harry.." Draco sobbed. "Wake up. Please, just wake up."

Hermione was rushing in.

"Draco, they're taking us away-"

"No!" Draco shouted. "No! You can't make me!"

"Draco-"

"Harry!" Draco sobbed. "Wake up! It's almost too late!"

"Draco!"

"Harry!" Draco yelled, sobbing trying to pull away from Hermione's grasp, clinging onto the boy he loved for life.

Harry's eyes fluttered open.

XxX

A/N: Thank you all so so so much! To the readers, to the people who followed, to the people who favorited, to the people who reviewed. I really hope you enjoyed this story and I had a lot of fun writing it. I will say that I think this is definitely not my best piece of writing, but thanks (again) to all the people who read anyway!

Thank you for reviewing on the last chapter sasuhinas fan! 3 I'm glad you are enjoying my story and I hope you will read Your Favourite Death Eater when I post the first chapter! :D Thanks for beingso supportive.

Thanks again for reading - Ritz :)