Authors note: I recently read over Lytare, and discovered that, wow have I changed and developed a lot as a writer in the 6 years since posting the first chapter. I found myself unable to rewrite/edit Lytare enough to feel like I could take it anywhere new after so long. Lytare 2.0 isn't a continuation of Lytare; it is a completely new story, sort of. Similar theme of creature fic, and still Harry/Draco, but hopefully I will be able to make this a much more interesting read than before. It will be set Post Deathly Hallows, Pre Epilogue. I hope that you all enjoy the new version of Lytare as much as you did the first.

Summary: After the war, Harry and his friends return to Hogwarts for their eighth year. All too soon it is discovered that there is something different about Harry, especially when he collapses on the Hogwarts express and Draco refuses to leave his side. The Lytare are back. A Post DH, Pre Epilogue HP/DM Creature fic. Warnings: M/M, Mpreg, fluff (at times), OC's, language.

Disclaimer: None of the recognisable characters belong to me. I don't own anything, however much I wish I did.

Chapter 1

Harry placed his shrunken trunk into the pocket of his jeans and walked out of his London flat, closing and locking the door behind him. He wouldn't be back until the end of the school year. Harry walked along the road, and down onto the tube at Highbury & Islington. He could have just apparated, but it was only one stop on the tube, and it would be his last look at the Muggle London he had come to love and appreciate over the summer. It was his refuge from funerals, memorial services, and the reporters who followed him everywhere in the wizarding world.

They had followed him as he walked through the ministry towards the many trials he stood as witness on. Most he was happy to send the accused straight to the newly formed Azkaban prison. But two trials in particular his testimony was what granted the accused a pardon, and for that he was grateful. The Malfoys. He had told the wizengamot of how Narcissia had risked her own life, to lie to Voldemort, in order to get back to the castle. As Narcissa was not a marked death eater, she was given a full pardon. Draco, on the other hand, had the dark mark burned into his left forearm. Harry told the wizengamot how Draco had refused to kill Dumbledore, and that Voldemort had held his family hostage, threatening his mother's life if Draco refused to cooperate. Harry told how Draco had saved his life. Draco had been granted a full pardon, after the ruling had been called, Harry had walked over to Draco Malfoy. And handed him back his hawthorn wand. A truce drawn between them. After all, there were more important things to worry about now, after all, forgiveness was what mattered in their post war world.

Harry got off the tube at Kings Cross, he made his way up through the crowds and over to the train platform. On the way he stopped at a little cafe and bought a packaged sandwich after all, sweets, cauldron cakes and pumpkin pasties were all well and good, but Harry knew that he would surely need more to eat than that on the long journey to Scotland, and Hogwarts. Harry left the cafe, holding the little plastic bag with his lunch in it; he made his way over to the 9-10 platform and as he walked he thought of what was to come that year.

After the battle of Hogwarts and the end of the war, Hogwarts had closed. Over the summer students were invited to take tests at the school to determine where they would be placed for the new school year that September. Many of the students needed to repeat the year, and no shame was placed among them, after all worrying for your family, and about the death eaters on staff didn't make for a particularly conducive study environment. There were students who should have completed their seventh year the previous spring. Some like Harry, Ron and Hermione, had not even attended, and others like Neville, had been unable to complete their NEWT's. All were to be welcomed back.

Harry calmly walked through the barrier and onto Platform 9 & ¾, ignoring all the students and families alike who stared at him. As he cleared the barrier, Harry started to feel a strange buzzing in the back of his head, and a fluttering in his stomach. Casting aside these feelings as just last year at school nerves, he continued onwards down the platform. Waiting and ready to be filled with students was the bright red Hogwarts Express, some carriages already filling up with excited students, both those who would be attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the first time, and all those in the years above. It would be an interesting year at the school, especially with so many first years to contend with.

Once on the platform, and therefore out of the way of the muggles, Harry shrunk his bag of lunch and placed it in his pocket, next to his shrunken trunk. His beloved wand stowed away up the sleeve of his neat button up shirt, he continued up the platform.

Harry could see the Weasley family up ahead and made his way over to them. Harry often worried that it would be awkward with the Weasleys now that he and Ginny we not together anymore. But it never was. Ginny had moved onto other guys, guys who she could have a relationship with and not be in the public eye every second. And Harry liked it much better this way, it made his life less complicated, and it ensured that his friendship with Ron would never be troubled by a break up mess.

"Hello everyone!"Harry greeted the group with a smile, feeling the fluttering in his stomach increase.

"Harry dear," Molly Weasley said, "How are you? Have you been eating well?"

"Of course I've been eating well Mrs. Weasley, I ate at the burrow just last night!" Harry replied with a smile, ignoring the strange feeling running through his head.

"Have you seen Hermione yet?"Harry asked Ron

"No, not yet. I got an owl from her last night, saying that she would be here. She only just got back from Australia with her parents a few days ago. They came the Muggle way; I don't know how they make those things fly without magic. Hermione hasn't said anything about how they are coping yet, the whole memory thing was a lot to handle I would think." Ron replied quietly

"Well there is still plenty of time; the train doesn't leave for another half hour yet." Harry said, "More time than we have ever allowed ourselves before." Harry and Ron shared a look, remembering the innocent misadventures of their youth, especially the car incident.

Harry stood with the Weasley family, watching the students, and their families saying good bye. As the large pewter clock that hung above the platform ticked closer to 11 o'clock, the fluttering in Harry's stomach worsened. He began to rub slow soothing circles on his stomach, trying to massage the intense fluttering away.

"Harry?"asked Ron, "Are you feeling alright?"

"What?"Harry replied, "I'm fine."

"Then why are you rubbing your stomach like that?"Ron gestured towards Harry who was still rubbing circles on his stomach.

"Oh," said Harry "I just feel a little off, I'm sure it will pass. Must be just nerves or something. You know, last year and all." Despite Ron's attention, Harry continued with the ministrations on his stomach.

"Mmm," Ron replied with a sigh, "Must be, it's going to be a big year this year. But on the up side, there are no pain in the arse Dark Lords to hunt down and kill. That should make it a whole lot easier to pass our NEWT's."

"I couldn't agree more."A voice said from behind them. It was a Hermione, arrived just in time to catch the Hogwarts Express, "There is just so much we still have to learn this year, I know that we have a lot of experience in some areas, but we still need our NEWT's to go anywhere with a career!"

"Is that all you have to say to your boyfriend?"Ron said, "I haven't seen you since Harry's birthday party and all you have to say for yourself is that we have to study? Typical."

Hermione grinned and wrapped her arms around Ron's neck, hugging him close and kissing him lightly. She pulled back and rested their foreheads together. "I did miss you Ron, everyday."

"That's enough of that Ronnie, quick, come on, onto the train with you." Mrs. Weasley called. She hugged Harry, Hermione, and then Ron and Ginny. "Quickly now, get on."

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny boarded the train, Ginny wandered off to look for her year mates and the trio began to look for a compartment. The train seemed full to bursting already, with a new year of first years, and the extra seventh years there were more students than Harry had ever seen on the train before. Harry, Ron and Hermione made their way towards the end of the train, hoping that there would be an empty compartment further back.

"Quick, lets just go in this one." Harry said, pointing to a nearly empty compartment, feeling a need to sit down, or sleep.

The three walked into the compartment, the sole occupant turned to face them. Harry took a deep breath, and sniffed. There was something different about the young man before him, and while it somewhat calmed the buzzing in his head, the fluttering in his stomach surged, his insides quivering painfully. Harry looked closer, trying to spot what the change was in the man before him. His hair was the same white and gold blonde that it had always been, his eyes the same molten silver. His robes were, neat, clean and fashionable, but something was different. Harry could smell it in the air, he took a deep breath, it was intoxicating he took a step further into the compartment, and dropped to his knees.

A/N: I will hopefully keep a few chapters ahead, at the moment I am writing chapter 4. Do let me know if there are any glaringly obvious grammar/spelling errors, I have read over this a heap of times, but things do slip through the cracks. Thanks for reading! Please Review