A glance back to catch B’s wide eyes staring at them, their lips move but there’s no sound. A feels a small satisfied smile twitch on their face, curl their fist and hits the now limp and barely conscious C one more time.
A grabs the collar of C’s shirt with both hands and lifts them as they start to stand up, gives C a shake before dropping them to the floor, satisfied when all C does is moan painfully and then weakly trying to curl up on the floor.
A turn fully to B, who never even attempted to stand up, they are still on their hands and knees, frozen in a mid crawl. Like they wanted to go over to C, to help them or put themself between A and C, but was then grabbed by an invisible chain of cowardice and fear so completely they couldn’t move.
B stares at C and it looks like they’re ready to cry, but when A moves towards them their eyes snap back and it seems to unlock whatever it was that had had them frozen. They jolt backwards, hands and feet clumsily scrambling to push them back and away. The smallest whimper escapes them and A finally can’t hold back the grin, thinking they should beat up C more frequently if this is the reaction it gives B.
B flinch when their back hits the wall behind them and then press themself flat against it when A comes closer. Their breath is quick and hitching and A can see their pulse thudding in their throat.
“Oh, B.” A croon and hunches down before them. They reach a bloodied hand to B’s face and stroke away the strands of hair that have fallen over their eyes, almost tenderly. B is frozen again, wide eyes focused on A.
“See what happens when you try to hide behind others?”
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I thought I'd drop some whump details/scenarios your iconic blog reminds me of <3:
That moment when somebody notices how loud being cold is for them (like their rattling teeth and shuddering breaths), and they laugh sheepishly, apologising to whoever they're with
Similarly, when that other person notices themselves, prompting them to comment on it— "You sound frozen!", "I can hear your teeth from here!" etc.
How freezing swimming can be. Picture A talking to B, who's just got out of the pool/some water. They're carried away with whatever they're chatting about, and B listens politely. When A eventually slows down, they exclaim, apologising profusely— because poor B is blue and shivering, soaked hair dripping on their shoulders, having not wanted to interrupt A by leaving to go dry off.
The one Chilly Friend ™️. They chafe away goosebumps on a warm spring day. They're always the worst off when it's wintry weather, hands stiff and icy. Their friends often carry around an extra jacket for when they inevitably start to shiver, and they're the first to get handed a hot drink after being outside.
anon these are SO GOOD and I’m so glad you thought of me 🥹🥹🥹
I’m especially partial to the second one—there’s something about someone being cold and being acknowledged that I just love so much.
but seriously all of these are so good and right up my alley AND YOU JUST UNDERSTOOD THE ASSIGNMENT OKAY 🤩
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Whumpcember Day 10
Freezing
@whumpcember
Duke slammed the door behind him, standing outside the safehouse. He needed a moment alone, after finding out his sister was trapped in the same compound that he was imprisoned in. He knew firsthand that they would not be kind, and it tore him up inside knowing that Stella was in enemy hands. He paced, blowing on his hands to chase away the winter chill.
Curled up on the floor, preserving what little heat he had left, rubbing his hands together...
Duke shook his head. He couldn't believe he was traumatized, refused to believe that his short captivity had a lasting effect on him, yet there he was, having flashbacks. He grumpily sat on the cold grass, leaning back against the house, shivering.
Shivering, nonstop shivering, then it stopped, comfortable warmth replacing it, making him sleepy, maybe he should shut his eyes...
Duke jumped up. Fine, maybe he was a little traumatized. He couldn't handle the cold, the memories of freezing, of seeing his breath clouding in front of him, feeling his limbs stiffen until he couldn't move, feeling his hands go numb and pale, long hours of cold, cold, cold...
He ran inside, rushing to the bathroom. His hands had gone stiff, just like in his memories, and he needed it to stop. His fingers ached from the cold, even though it wasn't even that cold outside. It certainly hadn't hit freezing yet. Still, he turned on the shower, using the hottest setting. Duke used to love sitting outside, even when it was cold. It was an escape from the struggles of leading a rebellion. Now, he couldn't handle a little chill. He stepped into the shower, clothes and all, and stood in the burning water, letting the steam fill his lungs. The hot water stung his hands, but it was better then the creeping numbness that had taken hold.
He had to admit it. Duke was traumatized. And his sister would be, too. Curling up on the shower floor, Duke began to cry.
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Whumpcember 10
All of this Whumpcember is a single, long fic, with the prompts used in specific scenes, in order. See the Masterlist and AO3 link here.
((content warnings: coughing blood, ignoring boundaries / pressure / dubious consent (touching), flashbacks / freezing fear response, sedation ))
promptspiration: @whumpcember Day 10: Freezing
Whumpee: Draco Malfoy
whump type: sick fic
fic type: post-Hogwarts AU
This entry is lightly edited from the version on AO3 to remove something that could be interpreted as NSFWhump
words: ~1500
-------------------
Draco was trying to doze in the window beside the family tree, but he couldn't stop shivering. The chills wracking his body left him feeling like a tree being assaulted by a fierce wind. One lonely little leaf clinging desperately to a twig, trembling in the gale trying to strip it away…
He coughed into his hand, barely able to unfold his arm from his chest enough to spare it, and gave up; he slipped out of the window and carried his blanket over to the fire, grabbing the… sitting… thing… on the way past and dragging it with him, legs scraping over the wood floor, until he parked it right at the very edge of the fire.
It didn't really help. He perched on the edge of the seat, huddled under the blanket, hands almost in the fire, and still felt like his organs were made of ice. His hands were actually out of his control, shaking as he rubbed them together, trying to stop it. The tight heat of the fire almost hurt his skin, but it couldn't penetrate any further.
"Does that racket mean you're not ready to go to sleep?" Harry asked as he entered the room. Draco didn't really know what he was talking about, but he was distracted coughing anyway.
Harry came over and ran his hand over the back of his hair. "You cold?"
He nodded and caught his breath, wiping the little bit of blood he'd coughed into his hand onto his knee.
"I'll make sure your room's warm," he promised, and offered him his hand up. When Draco touched him, he hissed a little and lifted him up, then touched his face. His hands felt burning hot. "Shit, you really are cold. Why didn't you say something?" He wrapped both of his hands around one of Draco's and rubbed it, trying to warm it.
"It's just cold…" His other hand was shaking and he folded it against his chest, like there was any warmth there to conserve.
"You should have let me know. I'm here to help you." He wrapped his arms around him, rubbing his arms, and supported him out of the room.
Draco didn't even realise that after they went up the stairs they didn't go to his room, because he had still failed to put up a sign for it, until they were in front of Harry's door and he recognised that sign balanced on the doorframe. He pushed back with a small frown. "What…"
"You're freezing, Draco." Harry pushed the door open and pulled him inside, rubbing his arms. The room was still a mess, the bed still half made, though at least it was cleared of detritus now. And the bloody spear was gone. "The fire's not cutting it. I'll be able to help keep you warm."
He shook his head slightly, and Harry wrapped his arms around him from behind, head just over his shoulder. "This is to help you."
Draco's heart suddenly leapt into erratic thundering, breath stuck in his throat. He couldn't move — a different unmade bed in a different messy room, different arms, a different voice over his shoulder, but the same smell, the exact same smell of him, the same words, "This is to help you," shoved into the bed, held into the bed, trapped, he was trapped, he was trapped—
Harry moved him without his help, without seeming to notice; he found himself sitting on the bed, trying to breathe. Harry interrupted the confused visions and feelings by nudging up his chin to look at him. "Dreamless Sleep, or regular?"
He blinked several times and pulled in a gulp of air, trying no disguise it. His hands dropped down to the sheet at his sides and gripped it tightly to ground himself. He wasn't trapped… he was okay…
"Dreamless," he said faintly. Definitely dreamless.
"Okay." Harry's fingers ran through his hair until he pulled his head away to make that stop — he didn't seem to notice, probably hadn't even noticed what he was doing. He gestured with his wand at a dresser with a hutch, and one of the doors came open, revealing a disorganised collection of bottles and phials of various colours and sizes within; a bottle of Dreamless Sleep separated itself from the crowd and leisurely levitated over to them.
The sight of it was a relief. Something to focus on that made sense. He drank it without any instruction, and then Harry helped him lie down in the unfamiliar bed and tucked the covers over him. There weren't as many as he was accustomed to, but there was a heavy down quilt there. Maybe that would help. Harry rubbed his arm as he left his side, and Draco found himself looking blankly straight ahead, at the dresser with some of the drawers half-open, strewn with clothes and books and papers. There was a massive discolouration on the wallpaper above where a portrait had hung for decades or more, and he found it vaguely unsettling, like an empty eye socket. The house was so bare…
The lights went out with a suddenness that startled Draco out of the sleepward drift he hadn't even realised he was in, and he lifted his head. There was a little moonlight coming through the window on the far side of the bed, enough to illuminate Harry sliding into the bed behind him. He'd changed into light pyjama pants and had his shirt off, so the moonlight glanced off bare skin and surprisingly defined muscles. He had his glasses off, even changing the lines of his face. Draco dropped his head back down and looked firmly away, surprised at how embarrassed he felt.
If he thought about it, he couldn't remember ever having shared a bed with anyone before. Even though he was sure at some point he must have had nightmares as a small child and gone bothering his parents, he couldn't remember it, or maybe he'd never actually been allowed. The feeling of the bed dipping as Harry settled in behind him was all manner of uncomfortable. And with that strange flash of being 'trapped'…
Harry responded as though he knew his thoughts. "I'll stay over here," he promised. It sounded as though he was facing him, but Draco didn't look back to confirm. "You'll just share my heat under the covers and you'll feel better."
This was a bad idea. Draco didn't even know how he ended up here, he should be in his room. How did he end up here? He should go… but the Dreamless Sleep was taking hold. He should have said no…
"Goodnight, Draco," he distantly heard.
—-
Draco opened his eyes to grey morning light and a disconcerting view of what was not his room. He uneasily ran his hand up his chest, but he was wearing a shirt. Of course he was dressed, why wouldn't he be?
For the first time in as long as he could remember, though, he was warm when he woke up. It was a lot of conflicting impulses, not wanting to move from the unaccustomed comfort, but the uneasiness of needing to figure out where he was. He acknowledged those feelings and then set them aside so he would be calm, and lifted his head, looking around cautiously.
The messy room was immediately distasteful; he felt dirty just being in it. For a moment, his mind insisted that Crabbe, Goyle, and Theo needed to clean. But this obviously wasn't the dorm. It was…
It was the master bedroom, in Harry's house. Harry's room. He looked to his other side and saw Harry sleeping. He looked at him blankly for a moment, feelings so muddled he couldn't even tell what they were, and then looked back at his side of the bed, coughing as quietly as he could.
He was warm, though. It was wonderful. He lay back down on his side, looking at the mess, taking in the warmth while he decided what to do and absently ran through his morning Occlumency exercises. Today he had 'unease' to add to his inventory, a baseless feeling that something was wrong that he just couldn't identify. He felt horribly like it should be obvious but he was missing something, like there was a gaping hole he was about to walk into that he just couldn't see.
"Mm. Draco?" Harry woke when the grey was beginning to turn into actual sunlight. The feeling of him moving around in the same bed put Draco on edge. "You awake?"
"Yes," he answered without moving, and coughed once.
"Let me see how you are."
Harry came closer, pressed up with his chest right against his back, and Draco just stopped. The arm that curled over him felt like the bars of a cage. Nothing moved except his frantic heartbeat, not even any formless thoughts praying him away. He just couldn't—
Harry's hand slid down his arm, under all the covers, and brushed against his stomach as he found his hand and held it, kneading it gently between his fingers. It was his half-hand but the disfigurement didn't seem to trouble him. "Oh, yeah," he said, squeezing his hand. "That's much better." He let his hand go, rubbed his arm, then slipped his hand free of the blankets to rest the backs of his fingers against his cheek. "You're so much warmer today. How do you feel?"
He knew he had to answer. He'd been asked a question and had to answer. He forced an "Okay" out of his tight throat.
"Good." Harry rubbed his arm and, it felt like, rested his forehead against his shoulder. He sighed, and Draco felt it against his back. With those few inches of space between them, Draco could breathe, a little, although he had no idea what it was that scared him so badly, and the not knowing made it worse. Terror for no reason… Terror so powerful he couldn't even identify it as fear until it started to let up, it was just everything…
"This is good for you." Harry rubbed his arm. "Okay, we can keep doing it."
He didn't want to. His instincts or his broken mind were telling him that something was terribly wrong, but he didn't know what it was… He silently pulled his arm away from Harry's hand and didn't answer.
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