I made it!
I actually got this finished in time for the next challenge hosted by jamie2109 and nocturnali! :)
This week's prompt was: "...failure to communicate."
Enjoy! :)
Title: The Casualty of Misfortune
Author: firnsarnien
Pairing: H/D
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: They are not mine, I just like to steal them on occasion to wreak havoc.
Summary: Bad luck has latched on making disaster inevitable.
**************
“That’s what he said Draco! And you know what? Maybe he’s right.”
“He’s not Harry. Quit blaming yourself.”
Harry continued as if he hadn’t heard Draco at all. “When I firecalled him this afternoon, he said the failure to communicate was my fault and that I should have told him from the start.”
Draco snorted derisively. “If there was any failure to communicate, it came from him, not you. You tried to tell him, you said so yourself. He’s just too obstinate to listen properly.”
He knew Draco was right, but still, he couldn’t help feeling that he’d screwed up, royally. After all, Libby was dead because of him.
“All right, tell me exactly what he said.” Draco said patiently.
“I don’t know! Unless I use a pensieve, I can’t remember every single word that came out of that horrid arse’s mouth. He mumbled so much and his eye kept spinning, I had to keep asking him to repeat himself just to understand what he wanted!”
“Well, tell me what you do remember then.”
Harry sighed and slumped on the sofa dejectedly next to his boyfriend.
“He said something about being gone for a week and wanting me to feed her.” He grimaced. “Me! I tried to tell him I’d been bitten by that mackled malaclaw just two days before he asked me. I knew something like this would happen! Their bites give you bad luck!”
“Go on.” Draco prompted ignoring Harry’s outburst.
“He nearly bit my head off when I tried to tell him! He said that I’m just an auror in training and I shouldn’t argue with a superior.”
Draco rolled his eyes and huffed. “That’s nonsense. You weren’t arguing with him! As a fully trained auror, he should know the difference between arguing and relating a fact.”
Nodding emphatically, Harry agreed wholeheartedly. But it still wouldn’t change what had happened.
“What else did he say?” Draco redirected him back to his story.
“Well, he started barking orders on how to make sure I only give her a couple at one time and don’t let her out and some other shite I don’t remember. I kept trying to tell him Draco, I really did. He just wouldn’t--”
“You said that already, quit stalling.”
“But it’s true! He should have listened to me. You know how everything always happens to me, always! Now Libby is dead, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”
“Quit being so melodramatic and just tell me the facts.” Draco rested his hand on Harry’s arm comfortingly. “If you don’t tell me what else happened, how are we going to sort this out?”
Harry sighed, not sure if dredging up all the horrid details was going to solve anything. He was tempted to tell his boyfriend to just forget it but he knew that Draco was like a jarvey with a gnome, he wouldn’t let go of this.
“Well, after he told me what to do, he left to catch his portkey overseas.”
Draco looked at him, arching one perfect brow and waited for him to continue.
Harry shrugged. “And just like I thought it would, something happened, something bad. When I went in to feed her this morning, one of the puffskeins bit me when I reached in to grab it. Can you believe it? It actually bit me!”
He stood up in agitation and began to pace, waving his hands around wildly.
“When does a puffskein ever bite anyone? Never! But of course, it would have to bite me. Damn thing must have known it was going to be Libby’s breakfast! After that, it all went downhill from there. When it sank it’s fangs into me, I yanked my hand back but it had already latched on to my finger. Unfortunately, it let go when I was trying to shake it off and the thing flew from my hand, right into the mirror and shattered it.”
His motions were almost frantic now, as Harry grew even more agitated.
“All I could think was great, more bad luck, not exactly what I needed just then. I tried to use a reparo on the glass, but when I pulled my wand out, I stepped on the wretched little hairball and my foot slipped out from under me. Then I tried to break my fall by grabbing the umbrella stand, but all I managed to do was knock it over on my way down.”
Harry paused and took a deep breath, glancing over at Draco to gauge his reaction.
He looked like he was deep in thought, but so far, hadn’t fallen to the floor writhing in hysterical laughter. That was a good. He continued his tale with a bit more resolve.
“Well, the umbrella stand was right next to the Billywig tank so when it fell over it knocked the cover off and all the Billywigs got out. Before I knew it, they were swarming all over the place.”
“I don’t understand Harry, what in Merlin’s name does any of this have to do with Libby dying?”
“I’m getting to that part, let me finish!” he snapped, irritated at the interruption.
The corner of Draco’s mouth twitched, but he kept his patience in check and said nothing. Harry was in full rant mode now; he should have remembered to not interrupt him when that happened.
“After the billywigs got out and were swarming all over, I had to cast a shielding charm to keep from getting bit. But I didn’t realize that billywigs don’t like the sound the shielding charm makes and they got mad. They were knocking over all sorts of things, plants, trophies, stack of papers, just about everything in Moody’s office that wasn’t nailed down. When I finally picked myself up off the floor, I cast an imobulus on them but instead of freezing, all the billywigs exploded.”
Harry flopped himself on the sofa again. “That’s when I noticed her.” His eyes dropped to his lap where his hands fiddled nervously with a throw pillow he’d grabbed.
Draco’s brow furrowed and he asked hesitantly, half sure what the answer would be. “What?”
Harry sighed again and frowned deeply. “Libby. She was dead Draco, dead as a doorknob. And planted right between her eyes was the left wing of one of those horrible little billywigs! Exploding bugs and flighty fwoopers don’t mix. So you see, it was my fault.”
“Harry!” Draco said sternly. “It was not your fault. Granted, you were bit and tripped and nearly stung, but what you did is what Moody himself would have done had he been in the same situation.”
“That’s just it; he never would have gotten himself into that situation to begin with.”
Draco shook his head. Harry was the most exasperating and stubborn man he’d ever met, worse than Severus. And that was saying something.
“You are not going to do this to yourself again Harry. I won’t let you. You have to stop taking the blame every time things go wrong. From what you’ve said happened, none of this was your fault. Come to think of it, it was actually Tonk’s fault you were bitten by the malaclaw since she left it in your drawer.”
He paused to let that sink in before he continued.
“It certainly wasn’t your fault that bite resulted in the string of bad luck you’ve had all week and it wasn’t even your fault that all those horrible things happened today and Libby died. Nasty bird anyway, good for nothing but the quills.”
Draco eyes glittered hopefully. “You didn’t pluck a few before you disposed of it, did you?”
Harry scowled at him. “No! Are you crazy? If I would have, Moody would have fed me to that Chinese Fireball the Ministry confiscated last week.”
“I can’t believe you wasted such a perfect opportunity. He wouldn’t have missed a few feathers off that scrawny bird.” Draco scolded. He shook his head before continuing.
“Well, as I was saying, it’s Moody’s fault Libby died. He should have listened to you when you tried to tell him about the malaclaw. Everyone in the wizarding world knows their bites cause you bad luck. Come to think of it, he’s damn lucky that blasted thing didn’t sing you crazy either! I would have hexed his misshapen balls off it that had happened.”
Reluctantly, Harry mumbled. “I cast a silencing spell on it when I went in.”
Draco’s eyebrows shot up and immediately, Harry went on the defensive. “I knew something was going to happen. I didn’t want to risk insanity since I was already putting myself at risk just by being there.”
“I’m not criticizing you Harry. Far from it. In fact, it’s a good thing you did that, otherwise, I’d be sitting by your bedside in St. Mungo’s watching you drool on the bedsheets. Moody should have never let you anywhere near all those dreadful creatures he’s got stashed in his office. I’ll bet he doesn’t even have permits for half of them.”
Draco paused and pursed his lips. “Hm, that might actually be something worth looking into. I’ll bet-ouch! Hey, what was that for?” He rubbed his arm where Harry had punched it.
“Don’t start. I’m already on his bad side because of this, you’ll only make it worse if you bring an inquiry down on his head.”
Draco grinned, his mind already on how he could use this to make things easier for Harry.
“All right, I won’t bring it to the attention of the Magical Creatures Division. But in exchange, I want you to quit blaming yourself for what happened today.” He lifted an eyebrow and nudged Harry with his elbow.
Harry shook his head then leaned against him, resting his head on his shoulder. He closed his eyes tiredly. “You know, I still have four days of bad luck to look forward to. Maybe I should just tell them I’m sick and stay home.”
“Maybe you should. I wouldn’t mind the company.” Draco said softly. He didn’t press Harry on the guilt issue. He’d carry it anyway, no matter what he said or did. Instead, he wrapped an arm around Harry’s shoulders and pulled his body closer. They sat in silence until the shadows in the room deepened and Harry’s soft breathing told him that he’d finally fallen asleep.
Draco used the time to mull things over in his mind. One thing he was sure of, the idiot Griffindor sitting beside him took things too hard and it wasn’t good for him.
There had to be some way to get Moody off his back without anyone suspecting Harry or himself. He sat long into the night thinking. He’d come up with a way, he was good at that sort of thing.
-Fin-
-AN-
I found some great information about the magical creatures that occupy Harry’s world from:
http://www.harrypotterfanzone.com/?ID=info/creatures and
http://www.chiff.com/pop-culture/harry-potter-creatures.htm
The creatures I mentioned came from the first one. Browse through these, they are very interesting.
This week's prompt was: "...failure to communicate."
Enjoy! :)
Title: The Casualty of Misfortune
Author: firnsarnien
Pairing: H/D
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: They are not mine, I just like to steal them on occasion to wreak havoc.
Summary: Bad luck has latched on making disaster inevitable.
**************
“That’s what he said Draco! And you know what? Maybe he’s right.”
“He’s not Harry. Quit blaming yourself.”
Harry continued as if he hadn’t heard Draco at all. “When I firecalled him this afternoon, he said the failure to communicate was my fault and that I should have told him from the start.”
Draco snorted derisively. “If there was any failure to communicate, it came from him, not you. You tried to tell him, you said so yourself. He’s just too obstinate to listen properly.”
He knew Draco was right, but still, he couldn’t help feeling that he’d screwed up, royally. After all, Libby was dead because of him.
“All right, tell me exactly what he said.” Draco said patiently.
“I don’t know! Unless I use a pensieve, I can’t remember every single word that came out of that horrid arse’s mouth. He mumbled so much and his eye kept spinning, I had to keep asking him to repeat himself just to understand what he wanted!”
“Well, tell me what you do remember then.”
Harry sighed and slumped on the sofa dejectedly next to his boyfriend.
“He said something about being gone for a week and wanting me to feed her.” He grimaced. “Me! I tried to tell him I’d been bitten by that mackled malaclaw just two days before he asked me. I knew something like this would happen! Their bites give you bad luck!”
“Go on.” Draco prompted ignoring Harry’s outburst.
“He nearly bit my head off when I tried to tell him! He said that I’m just an auror in training and I shouldn’t argue with a superior.”
Draco rolled his eyes and huffed. “That’s nonsense. You weren’t arguing with him! As a fully trained auror, he should know the difference between arguing and relating a fact.”
Nodding emphatically, Harry agreed wholeheartedly. But it still wouldn’t change what had happened.
“What else did he say?” Draco redirected him back to his story.
“Well, he started barking orders on how to make sure I only give her a couple at one time and don’t let her out and some other shite I don’t remember. I kept trying to tell him Draco, I really did. He just wouldn’t--”
“You said that already, quit stalling.”
“But it’s true! He should have listened to me. You know how everything always happens to me, always! Now Libby is dead, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”
“Quit being so melodramatic and just tell me the facts.” Draco rested his hand on Harry’s arm comfortingly. “If you don’t tell me what else happened, how are we going to sort this out?”
Harry sighed, not sure if dredging up all the horrid details was going to solve anything. He was tempted to tell his boyfriend to just forget it but he knew that Draco was like a jarvey with a gnome, he wouldn’t let go of this.
“Well, after he told me what to do, he left to catch his portkey overseas.”
Draco looked at him, arching one perfect brow and waited for him to continue.
Harry shrugged. “And just like I thought it would, something happened, something bad. When I went in to feed her this morning, one of the puffskeins bit me when I reached in to grab it. Can you believe it? It actually bit me!”
He stood up in agitation and began to pace, waving his hands around wildly.
“When does a puffskein ever bite anyone? Never! But of course, it would have to bite me. Damn thing must have known it was going to be Libby’s breakfast! After that, it all went downhill from there. When it sank it’s fangs into me, I yanked my hand back but it had already latched on to my finger. Unfortunately, it let go when I was trying to shake it off and the thing flew from my hand, right into the mirror and shattered it.”
His motions were almost frantic now, as Harry grew even more agitated.
“All I could think was great, more bad luck, not exactly what I needed just then. I tried to use a reparo on the glass, but when I pulled my wand out, I stepped on the wretched little hairball and my foot slipped out from under me. Then I tried to break my fall by grabbing the umbrella stand, but all I managed to do was knock it over on my way down.”
Harry paused and took a deep breath, glancing over at Draco to gauge his reaction.
He looked like he was deep in thought, but so far, hadn’t fallen to the floor writhing in hysterical laughter. That was a good. He continued his tale with a bit more resolve.
“Well, the umbrella stand was right next to the Billywig tank so when it fell over it knocked the cover off and all the Billywigs got out. Before I knew it, they were swarming all over the place.”
“I don’t understand Harry, what in Merlin’s name does any of this have to do with Libby dying?”
“I’m getting to that part, let me finish!” he snapped, irritated at the interruption.
The corner of Draco’s mouth twitched, but he kept his patience in check and said nothing. Harry was in full rant mode now; he should have remembered to not interrupt him when that happened.
“After the billywigs got out and were swarming all over, I had to cast a shielding charm to keep from getting bit. But I didn’t realize that billywigs don’t like the sound the shielding charm makes and they got mad. They were knocking over all sorts of things, plants, trophies, stack of papers, just about everything in Moody’s office that wasn’t nailed down. When I finally picked myself up off the floor, I cast an imobulus on them but instead of freezing, all the billywigs exploded.”
Harry flopped himself on the sofa again. “That’s when I noticed her.” His eyes dropped to his lap where his hands fiddled nervously with a throw pillow he’d grabbed.
Draco’s brow furrowed and he asked hesitantly, half sure what the answer would be. “What?”
Harry sighed again and frowned deeply. “Libby. She was dead Draco, dead as a doorknob. And planted right between her eyes was the left wing of one of those horrible little billywigs! Exploding bugs and flighty fwoopers don’t mix. So you see, it was my fault.”
“Harry!” Draco said sternly. “It was not your fault. Granted, you were bit and tripped and nearly stung, but what you did is what Moody himself would have done had he been in the same situation.”
“That’s just it; he never would have gotten himself into that situation to begin with.”
Draco shook his head. Harry was the most exasperating and stubborn man he’d ever met, worse than Severus. And that was saying something.
“You are not going to do this to yourself again Harry. I won’t let you. You have to stop taking the blame every time things go wrong. From what you’ve said happened, none of this was your fault. Come to think of it, it was actually Tonk’s fault you were bitten by the malaclaw since she left it in your drawer.”
He paused to let that sink in before he continued.
“It certainly wasn’t your fault that bite resulted in the string of bad luck you’ve had all week and it wasn’t even your fault that all those horrible things happened today and Libby died. Nasty bird anyway, good for nothing but the quills.”
Draco eyes glittered hopefully. “You didn’t pluck a few before you disposed of it, did you?”
Harry scowled at him. “No! Are you crazy? If I would have, Moody would have fed me to that Chinese Fireball the Ministry confiscated last week.”
“I can’t believe you wasted such a perfect opportunity. He wouldn’t have missed a few feathers off that scrawny bird.” Draco scolded. He shook his head before continuing.
“Well, as I was saying, it’s Moody’s fault Libby died. He should have listened to you when you tried to tell him about the malaclaw. Everyone in the wizarding world knows their bites cause you bad luck. Come to think of it, he’s damn lucky that blasted thing didn’t sing you crazy either! I would have hexed his misshapen balls off it that had happened.”
Reluctantly, Harry mumbled. “I cast a silencing spell on it when I went in.”
Draco’s eyebrows shot up and immediately, Harry went on the defensive. “I knew something was going to happen. I didn’t want to risk insanity since I was already putting myself at risk just by being there.”
“I’m not criticizing you Harry. Far from it. In fact, it’s a good thing you did that, otherwise, I’d be sitting by your bedside in St. Mungo’s watching you drool on the bedsheets. Moody should have never let you anywhere near all those dreadful creatures he’s got stashed in his office. I’ll bet he doesn’t even have permits for half of them.”
Draco paused and pursed his lips. “Hm, that might actually be something worth looking into. I’ll bet-ouch! Hey, what was that for?” He rubbed his arm where Harry had punched it.
“Don’t start. I’m already on his bad side because of this, you’ll only make it worse if you bring an inquiry down on his head.”
Draco grinned, his mind already on how he could use this to make things easier for Harry.
“All right, I won’t bring it to the attention of the Magical Creatures Division. But in exchange, I want you to quit blaming yourself for what happened today.” He lifted an eyebrow and nudged Harry with his elbow.
Harry shook his head then leaned against him, resting his head on his shoulder. He closed his eyes tiredly. “You know, I still have four days of bad luck to look forward to. Maybe I should just tell them I’m sick and stay home.”
“Maybe you should. I wouldn’t mind the company.” Draco said softly. He didn’t press Harry on the guilt issue. He’d carry it anyway, no matter what he said or did. Instead, he wrapped an arm around Harry’s shoulders and pulled his body closer. They sat in silence until the shadows in the room deepened and Harry’s soft breathing told him that he’d finally fallen asleep.
Draco used the time to mull things over in his mind. One thing he was sure of, the idiot Griffindor sitting beside him took things too hard and it wasn’t good for him.
There had to be some way to get Moody off his back without anyone suspecting Harry or himself. He sat long into the night thinking. He’d come up with a way, he was good at that sort of thing.
-Fin-
-AN-
I found some great information about the magical creatures that occupy Harry’s world from:
http://www.harrypotterfanzone.com/?ID=info/creatures and
http://www.chiff.com/pop-culture/harry-potter-creatures.htm
The creatures I mentioned came from the first one. Browse through these, they are very interesting.