Howl into the Night

Published: May 2nd, 2025

TRIGGER WARNING: mentions of non-con, r-word

"Harry? What were you thinking?"

He whined, still looking at the stairs that Draco had left. He didn't know if Draco was okay. His emotions were all over the place. Shock, anger, fear, shame, anger, fear... anger. Draco was afraid of him, despite his ability to make him do anything. It was so confusing. Still, he wanted to... needed to know if Draco was alright.

"Is Draco okay? I don't think he is," he muttered, looking at the stairs. "I need to know he's okay."

"I don't know, Harry. I doubt it. But he's in the shower, and I don't think he'd appreciate any of us bursting in on him. You'll have to wait."

"He's upset... I need... I can't get up!" he growled, trying to fight Draco's order.

"What? Why?" Ron asked.

"He told me to stay here!"

"Well, I can't do anything about it and again... he's in the shower," Hermione pointed out.

Harry buried his face in his hands. "I didn't think...."

"Clearly," Ron muttered and Harry looked at him. "What? You asked for this! You went on and on for weeks... no months... about Draco's every emotion."

"I did not go on and on!"

"If the conversation lasted longer than a minute, you did," Ron scoffed and Hermione sighed.

"Ron, enough. Harry, please explain why you did this?" she asked, sitting next to him.

Harry shook his head. "It made sense to me. The wolves weren't going to stop unless we killed them all... and I don't want to kill them all. If I became a wolf... I could challenge the Alpha to fight for leadership."

"Oh, Harry..." she said, looking dubious. "And what after? The pack leader stays with the pack... that's why they have legal sovereignty. They live separately from everyone else."

Harry frowned. "We'll deal with it. Can I ask you... to...."

"Guard you at the moon? Of course, we will."

Harry lowered his head and resisted the urge to whine. "Thanks. I'm sorry... it felt right... in my mind. I didn't want Draco to face it alone anymore."

"He wasn't alone, Harry," she said, sounding exasperated. "But what is done is done."

"He smells... angry and afraid."

Hermione brought her hands up to her face like she was praying and closed her eyes. After a minute, she sighed and made a sweeping gesture with her hands. "Alright! I am not going to spell everything out for you, Harry. Far from wanting to reassure you... I want to make sure that you don't hurt him."

"I would never...."

Hermione smacked his leg. "Listen... Harry James Potter!"

Harry's spine locked up when she used his full name. She was pissed.

"Draco just went through hell. He was just brutally and repeatedly assaulted... gang raped, Harry, by werewolves. And more importantly... by the wolf that bit him... the Alpha! Whom he just casually mentioned, not ten minutes ago, made him do unimaginable things! Well... unimaginable for me... but were very, very real... to him."

Harry's eyes watered at her tone and the things he could only imagine... had happened to Draco. He murmured, "I know... about the obeying thing... Draco did... tell me some of things about what happened."

"That shows the amount of trust he has in you, or rather, had."

Harry winced. "Had?"

She leveled with him, her brown eyes staring straight into his with enough force that Harry wanted to show his throat. Weird. But he looked down under her glare.

"Had... because you made him do that! And now... I imagine... that he doesn't know if he can trust you not to hurt him."

Tears welled up. "I wouldn't... I would never!"

"What about when you are a wolf, Harry?"

He leaned back, shocked by the idea.

"You don't control the wolf and Draco knows that. He's scared, so do try to reassure him? Before he runs off?"

Harry paled. "No! I... I didn't want to... scare him."

"He's insecure. Unsure... and therefore is scared. The anger is a front."

"I-I figured. I'll be careful... of course. I'll do whatever he wants."

"Obviously," Ron grunted.

Harry glared at him.

"Hey, stand up and prove me wrong?" he said, with a raised eyebrow.

Harry clenched his teeth but could not will his limbs to move. "I can't."

"Point."

"Is this... normal?" he asked Hermione.

She nodded. "Did you forget what Remus said?"

"Yeah... about being hard to resist Greyback's call... so shouldn't Draco be... feel safer. He's my... sire?"

Hermione sighed. "I don't know, Harry. Any werewolf bites I have heard of were done on the unwilling, so it's hard to say. Besides, Draco's not going to hurt you with it."

Harry hadn't even thought about that. He wasn't worried about that. He trusted Draco that much.

"I'm going to check on Draco... if he's okay, we'll leave. If he's not... Ron will take you to our house, and I'll stay here."

Harry's stomach dropped. No... he didn't want to leave. He actually whined. Hermione gave him a look and went up the stairs. He was trying to listen in, but realized she put up wards.

"Easy, mate. Stop whining like that."

Harry hadn't noticed he was still doing that. "Sorry. So... are you pissed at me?"

"No... I ain't even surprised."

Harry looked at him. "Really?"

"Oblivious as always. Sure, Harry. Live in your own little world. Just do what Hermione says... be careful. Malfoy looked like the walls were gonna close in on him."

"I will, but...."

Hermione came back. "He's okay. You are going to have to work this out on your own, now. You got your wand?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, summon us if you need help, alright? Let's go, Ron."

"But... I can't move...."

"That's why I asked if you had a wand. Draco didn't say... don't call for help."

Harry scowled. "But...."

Hermione gave him a hug. "Patience... he needs time. I'm not going to break his control unless I have to."

With that, Hermione and Ron left. Harry sighed. He stayed there... listening for Draco, who had left the bathroom and was somewhere upstairs. He tried to break the thrall, but he could barely move his limbs. His body wouldn't budge. Hours passed in frustration as he tried to break it, but panic seeped in as something else became apparent.

"Draco?" he tried, but he heard no answer. "Draco? I need to use the bathroom!"

"You have a wand. Figure it out yourself," Draco yelled back.

Harry frowned and after a few tries he managed to vanish the urine inside him. He did not like it, either. He wanted to leave and put some more effort into trying to physically overcome the order, without success. He summoned some food and noticed that Draco hadn't eaten... or taken his pain potions. Harry was worried. Draco was still pregnant and the baby needed him to eat.

"Draco?" he called, but there was no answer.

He didn't know how to figure it out. Why werewolves had this ability, he didn't know, but it was magical... not psychological. Of course, who had ever willingly gotten bit? Tonks never considered it, though she had married and had a child with Remus. The control was to keep the new werewolf in check until they knew better.

He wanted to call out to Draco, again. Beg his forgiveness or whatever... but he wanted to see him... smell him. Suddenly, his nose twitched as Draco's smell wafted down the steps. He didn't understand everything he was smelling, yet, but there was no mistaking the scent. Draco was afraid... deathly afraid with a twist of misery.

As soon as his mind recognized that fact, he was up the stairs and tracking the scent. He nearly passed the door to Draco's room, but the fresher trail led there. He opened the door. Draco was turned away from the door on the bed, crying softly in his pillow. Harry's heart stuttered and he was drawn to come closer, do something to ease Draco's pain and reassure him. He slowly climbed into the full-size bed, carefully so as not to startle Draco, though he knew he was there.

Harry whined softly and reached out to touch Draco's shoulder. Draco snarled loudly. His eyes even turned very wolf-like with a shine to them as he eyed him and then laid his head back on the pillow. The scent changed and Harry thought it smelled like shame. Draco was shaking and the fear scent came back. Harry had to do something. Draco could run away if pushed too hard. Run away... maybe to Blaise, and Harry couldn't stand that.

"Draco... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... but I swear on my magic... on my soul that I will never hurt you!"

Draco flinched, and his soft grey eyes turned back to him. "Harry... that's... you can't...."

"I just did. I will make it so you are safe!"

"You can't control the wolf...."

"You did. You didn't, wouldn't hurt me! Why would you think I could hurt you?"

Draco shook his head and tears came out. "Because I'm an Omega and you're... an Alpha."

Harry's eyes furrowed in confusion. "What?"

"I knew it the moment I smelled you. Power, strength, the natural ability to lead... and it's only magnified now."

Harry didn't know what he meant. He wasn't naive. He knew about basic psychology and about alpha male behavior... and where it came from. Omega wasn't a term he understood well.

"Alpha means... pack leader. I get that... or why you think that."

"Really? It's only been a few hours and you cracked the thrall. I probably can't order you to do anything, now."

Harry frowned and realized he was right... probably right. As soon as he knew Draco needed his help, he broke the spell on him.

"I could smell that you were... scared... panicking. I had to come. But Draco, why would you think that you're...? Why aren't you the... Beta? I know that term."

Draco curled inward and the scent of pain and misery exploded off him in waves. Harry was shaking from the intensity of it. "They made me... it. The Omega. I am the Omega. I serve the pack... I obey the pack," he whispered, almost mechanically, as if in a trance.

Harry was wide-eyed, realizing that Draco was repeating their mantra. "No... no, Draco! You don't have to... that's not true!"

Draco shivered and shook his head. "I had to. I couldn't say no. I'm the weakest and I always will be. He branded me to make sure I am. I can't transform... I can't do magic."

Harry shook his head and gently touched the brand. "I don't care about this... or if you can fully turn. It doesn't matter."

"It does if I'm in a fight... or in a duel. Some wolves there were magicians, Harry, and he made sure I could never fight anyone off with strength or spells."

"Draco... it matters what's in your mind. You're stronger than them... smarter."

"Lotta good it does me. Power wins in their world. I never disobeyed him. I never tried."

"You didn't want to be hurt... you were trying to survive. Survival mode. You're with me now, and I won't hurt you... do those things to you."

Draco was quiet for a few minutes. "I know. I believe you. But we're not equals. I would never, could never, stand up to you or your packmates."

Harry was confused. "What?"

"Granger... Weasley? Lupin? Even girl-Weasley and Luna are yours."

"Just because my friends support me, doesn't mean you have to obey them. They wouldn't do that, either."

"It's not that any of you would... Harry. It's that you can."

Harry grimaced. "Draco... how has that changed from me being a werewolf? You weren't exactly up for confrontation before now."

"It hasn't," he admitted. "I'm just explaining why I'm the bitch in this pack."

Harry hated the bitterness in his voice. "You're not... that. You're in recovery. People scare you... that's why. But you can get strong."

"Again... no. I don't have magic, Harry. I will always be weak. I can't get a job... protect myself. I will never be anything but their Omega."

"That's not true. Not everyone needs magic to live by."

"Really? What can I do in the magical world? Push around a broom like Filch? Grub around in the dirt like Sprout or Hagrid?" Draco sneered.

Harry grimaced at his dig. "Potions... you could make potions! You don't need a wand for that!"

"Unless there's an accident... or I need to clean up... or to conjure flames or flasks? Face it... I'm a muggle with no future."

"Muggles can have great lives, too."

"I'm sure they'll accept me... the scarred, neurotic, traumatized guy who disappears a couple of days a month. You do know that Ministry doesn't let werewolves mix with muggles, right? We might break the Statute of Secrecy with our wolf-like behavior."

"Draco...."

"I'm nothing, Harry. There's no point to deny it. I can't ever leave this house without them kidnapping me."

Harry's heart throbbed, and he reached out and gently touched Draco's bitemark to calm him down.

"You're something to me. One day, I'll make you see it."

Draco's smell changed to a more relaxed one as he leaned into Harry's hand with a soft whine. Tears came out, and he looked up at him. His eyes were pleading for more. He wanted comfort and didn't know how to ask for it.

Harry slipped in under the blankets and pressed up against Draco's back. He wrapped his arms around him and pulled Draco in tighter. Harry lightly rubbed his face against Draco's bitemark, and Draco whined again. Harry just wanted as much of Draco's smell as he could. He smiled, remembering Draco rolling in his spot in their bed. Now, he understood perfectly why he did that. Draco smelled absolutely divine.

Unfortunately, there was still some bitter scent to him. Fear and anguish. Draco was still hurting. Harry could only hope Draco would get better after a few days.