Redemption.

An invitation

Draco's POV.

"I'm having the strangest of dreams."

Draco had smiled, his heart bursting as he heard Stiorra's voice after what felt like years. He could barely see, there were tears blurring his sight. He was sitting on a chair by her bed in St. Mungo's Hospital, stroking her hair as she fell back asleep.

There were nurses coming in and out of her room, checking on her vitals every ten minutes, and if her health was to improved again she'd be able to go back to the Hospital wing in Hogwarts. But for now, Draco was allowed to stay.

The others were gone, but Professor McGonagall stayed longer. She wanted to wait until they heard from the doctors before going back.

It had been a few hours now, and Draco was still there. He had propped his head up on his fist, on the edge of the bed as he watched her sleep. His other hand was holding hers, stroking the back of it with his thumb. He could have watched her sleep for days, now.

He only wished he could her eyes again, but he knew just how tired she was. He realised her golden necklace was still in her fist, the golden charm with the emerald laying on the mattress. He smiled to himself and put it away on the bedside table. He was here, now. The necklace could wait.

Draco had dozed off, his head on the edge of her mattress and his lips on her skin.

"Draco."

His eyes shot wide open as he sat up right. Stiorra was staring at him with a grin. Her warm brown eyes looked tired. And her skin was paler than ever. But Draco didn't care. He grabbed her hand.

"Hey," he sighed, trying to hide his shaking
voice, "I'm glad you're okay."

"Was somebody a little too worried about me?"

Draco chuckled, shaking his head as he looked down to his fingers intertwined with hers. He looked up, and he felt his heart melting as he met her stare.

"You got me," he laughed, "but yeah, I was really worried. For a minute there I thought you were about to die."

Stiorra squeezed his hand as she let out a long sigh, and smiled. Draco grinned, but the mental image of her blood flooding from her tiny body flashed before his eyes.

"Don't worry," she told him, "I feel better."

Draco stood up and bent over the bed, pressing his lips on her cold forehead. He had never been as worried as he was over those past few days. He sat down on the edge of the bed as the nurses came in and out of the room, asking her questions and giving her anything they could. He still didn't feel like everything was fine, and he knew he wouldn't until she got out of this bed and back at Hogwarts with him.

His eyes laid on the golden necklace that stood on the bedside table and he picked it up. He looked down at Stiorra with a shy smile, and the corners of her lips twitched up. There was a feeling of déjà vu to this scene as Draco tied the necklace around her neck.

Now that he was thinking about déjà vu, and anything that could have happened at Hogwarts, he remembered just how helpless he felt when he first thought Stiorra wouldn't be able to make it to the Yule Ball, but now it seemed she was better -but would she be able to go in about a week? He cleared up his throat.

Professor McGonagall stepped inside the room with a smile. She sighed as she pulled the chair Draco had been sitting on, and sat down it. Draco felt overwhelmed and awkward standing there, and the idea of going for a little stroll around the Hospital didn't sound so bad.

He excused himself and got up, leaving the room. His legs were aching after sitting down for so long, and walking was actually a good idea. He yawned and stretched, cracked his joints and his neck, and went out for a bit of fresh air.

There was snow falling down into St. Mungo's courtyard. The sky was grey and hanging low, and the cold woke him up. Overall he felt a lot better, and the fog that had settled in his mind lifted. There was nothing to worry about now: Stiorra had woken up, she seemed fine and said she was feeling better. Draco wondered for a second if she heard him whilst she was "gone" but thought she wouldn't tell him, whether she did or not. And to be honest, it was better not to ask.

He came back inside the hospital with rosy cheeks and cold hands, and walked back to Stiorra's room. She was now sitting on her bed, and Draco could see the bandage that was wrapped around her chest. He couldn't help thinking about her scar there, and how it was bleeding when he was holding her in his arms.

Professor McGonagall was nowhere to be found, and Draco wondered if she had gone back to Hogwarts. He shoved his cold hands in his pockets and sat down on the chair beside Stiorra's bed, his eyes landing on the golden necklace around her neck. His heart clenched. He was still worried for her.

"How do you feel?" he asked.

"The doctors say I might be able to go home."

"Home?"

"You know what I mean," she said.

Draco chuckled. He had never put a label on what Hogwarts felt like to him, and for the first time he wondered if it had ever felt like home. But over so many times did he thought about how much better he felt at school. He wasn't alone there.

"What did I miss?" she asked him.

"I don't really know, I was here."

"Thank you."

"What?"

"Thank you for everything," she told him with a smile, reaching out for his hand.

Draco smiled awkwardly, his lips pressed together in a thin line, and he didn't know what to say. He held her hand, and for the first time since they got back from her old house her hands felt warm. He sighed, and planted a kiss on her skin.

"Your friends visited you," he told her in a low voice, "Ginny was really worried about you."

"That'd be a first."

"I mean -they told us you were dying, so, I understand her."

He felt his heart shrinking. There was a pain in his chest, and a shiver down his back. He held onto her hand tightly.

"For a minute there I thought you were gone," he said.

She looked at him, her brows furrowed, and Draco wondered if she had any memories of what happened that night. She squeezed his hand.

"I'm not going anywhere now," she said.

"Good, now I can take you to the Yule Ball, if you're up for it."

"There's a Yule Ball?"

Her eyes shot wide open, glistening with excitement, and Draco couldn't hold it together and laughed. He nodded, though, and he was relieved Stiorra looked tired enough so as to not hit him as she'd usually do.

"Is that a yes?" he asked her.

"I can't wait."

Draco would have liked to hold her in his arms, but he was scared to hurt her so he held even tighter onto her hand, squeezing it tightly enough as he planted a kiss on her skin right there. His heart was melting inside his chest, and he couldn't remember the last time he had felt so happy -about anything. He was excited to go to the Yule Ball with her, and couldn't wait to see her dressed up for him.

The door creaked open and Professor McGonagall walked in along with the doctor, announcing that Stiorra was to go back to Hogwarts if she stayed in the Hospital wing for about two days to heal and get better.

Draco helped her out of her bed, and made sure she was okay until they got back to Hogwarts and put her in her bed there. The Headmistress managed to send them dinner over to the Hospital wing, and Draco spent the night with her -until he could feel her body relaxing and her head feeling heavy on his chest. She was alive, and here with him. This was all he needed.