Disclaimer:I do not in any way, shape, or form deign to say i own Harry Potter or any of the other characters, blah, blah, blah.

1

Harry felt himself thrown bodily through the air; he landed with a sickening crack on the dank stone floor. 'You will suffer greatly for you insolence… you may think you have stopped us but you haven't!' Bellatrix screeched at him turning sharply on her heals, her cloak trailing behind her as a masked death eater slammed the door shut in her wake. Harry heard the metallic click of a lock and sighed heavily. His side was on fire and every breath brought tears to his eyes. He rolled onto his back with a groan and stared into the dark emptiness above him. The cell was cavernous and black; he couldn't see more than two feet in any direction. He lay there for several minutes praying that someone had seen him; surely Remus had seen Bellatrix curse him from behind. The order would be looking for him, they had to. Harry sat up with a grimace, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the infinite dark of his cell. Straining his ears Harry made out the faint sound of someone sobbing. 'Hello?' he called out, barely daring to hope that he was not alone after all. He listened intently every second felt like hours as he waited with bated breath. After a several moments a faint voice replied 'H… hello?' Harry sighed with relief; he couldn't stand to be alone. 'Where are you?' he called out, pushing himself painfully to his feet, he stumbled over his traveling cloak, at least they hadn't taken that from him. Regaining his feet he made his way toward the back of the cell. 'Here.' The voice replied a bit stronger than before, he heard a sniffle. Moving blindly, hands out in front of him, Harry kept walking. 'Does this cell even have a back?' he called out, amazed at its size. 'Yes' he heard; a bit cheerier this time. Harry's hands struck the back wall and he uttered a soft curse, clutching his barked knuckles he leaned against the wall for a minute, his left side was aching and each breath burned in his lungs. 'I'm at the back, now which way' he called out into the endless darkness. 'Over here' the voice came from his right and he walked laboriously toward it, his left hand on the wall to guide him and keep him on his feet. 'Are you coming?' the voice questioned, Harry heard a note of panic.

'Yes' he responded 'how long have you been here?'

'I don't know.'

'You sound closer' Harry said, even as he spoke he could just make out the outline of a figure curled up in the corner of the cell. 'There we are' he said softly. The figure looked up at Harry, though neither of them could make the other out quite yet, and struggled to get up, gripping the rough stone walls for support. It was a boy, of that Harry was sure; he was taller than Harry by a few inches, but so thin. He leaned heavily on the wall looking Harry over, 'I'm so glad you're here,' he said sounding relived. 'I've been alone for so long! I thought I'd die alone… now at least you'll be here.' Harry was taken aback.

'Don't say that! There's hope now, they'll be coming for me soon and I'll take you with me. The war is all but over…. Voldemort's dead.'

The figure almost fell down, 'Dead? Honestly? So Potter's done it then! I always knew he would' the boy said an odd mixture of joy and contempt in his voice. 'Yes, I did' Harry said softly.

'Potter?' The boy questioned, his voice tensed.

'Yes.' Harry said, stepping forward; he knew that voice from somewhere.

The boy stepped closer too, as if to confirm Harry's statement, and in the faint light Harry could just make out the platinum blond hair and stormy grey eyes that could not be mistaken as anyone else's.

'Malfoy.' Harry said, anger rising in the pit of his stomach. 'You bloody git. I'll kill you! How could you do it Malfoy? HOW? He never hurt anyone ever and you killed him!'

Harry could feel the anger consuming him; he glared at the blond, ready to kill him, wand or no.

Malfoy had gone white, which didn't take much considering how pale he had become, hatred burning in his silver eyes. Using the wall to push off he flung himself at Harry, hitting him square in the chest and they fell to the ground. Draco landed on Harry and beat at him mercilessly with his fists.' I didn't!' he screamed, eyes blazing. 'I couldn't do it! I couldn't! He said he'd kill me, and my family. He tortured me! I just wanted to make it stop! I never wanted him to die! I wanted to join him but those damn death eaters showed up and Snape KILLED HIM.' Draco's voice cracked. Harry lashed out and punched Draco in the jaw, he felt a spurt of warm blood splash his face as Draco's head jerked to the side. Harry grabbed Draco's wrists, they were far to thin, and held them steady. 'Get off me Malfoy' he said calmly. Harry's anger subsided as he saw that Draco's cheeks were stained from months of crying alone in the dark. Draco rolled off Harry and crawled back to his corner. Pulling his knees to his chest and glaring at Harry, he wiped blood from his mouth. Harry lay splayed on the floor, his side was on throbbing and every breath was agony.

'I saw you.' Harry murmured after several minutes. 'I was up on the rampart, under my invisibility cloak. Dumbledore petrified me and I saw everything. I… I thought you were going to relent until they came.' Harry felt sick; as he spoke he could see Snape, killing Dumbledore. He shook his head to clear the image then turned his gaze upon the wretched Slytherin.

Draco caught Harry's eye then turned his gaze elsewhere. 'When we got back, he was furious that I hadn't been killed. I've been here ever since then. Every once in a while Bellatrix sends some death eaters down here to torture me, just to make sure I understand how I've let down my Father and disgraced my family.' Draco shuddered.

They sat in silence a long time, contemplating. Harry hated himself, he found himself feeling sorry the Slytherin. Draco looked like he was on his last stint anyway, he wasn't kidding when he had told Harry he might die alone. He had lost a lot of weight and his once brilliant eyes had started to lose their luster, even his platinum blond hair had started to lose its color. He was so pale now he looked almost as white as nearly headless Nick, he was so gaunt. His eyes and sunken in as had his cheeks; Harry was willing to bet he wasn't much more than skin and bones.

'Nine months' Harry said softly, into the silence between them.

'What?' The blond asked.

'Nine months… you've been here for Nine months. I'm surprised you're not dead.' The boy who lived said offhandedly as he stared into the darkness above him.

'Surprised… or disappointed?' the Slytherin shot back with a sneer.

'Surprised…' Harry said curtly, 'that you haven't tried to kill yourself... nine months… how did you do it Malfoy?' Harry turned his head to face the blond, Draco looked even worse now. The blood dripping from his mouth was a shocking contrast to his pale features; his normally sleek and combed hair was tousled and matted. He was staring at Harry intently as if to discern the reason for his interest. 'Look,' Harry said quietly 'we're going to be here for a while. There is no point in ignoring each other, you already look half mad and I have no intention of losing my sanity. Besides if we die here, no one has to know we were civil to each other, right?'

Draco's icy eyes flickered understanding as he sighed heavily. 'I couldn't kill myself; I had to show him that nothing could break me. Besides if he's dead already… I want a chance to enjoy a life without him. I hate him.' Draco's voice was shaking with rage, and his eyes hardened as he glared into the darkness.

'Your father?' Harry asked quietly.

Draco nodded, slowly. He turned his silver eyes back to Harry's emerald ones. 'It wasn't for him that I attempted what Voldemort asked, my mother… she may not be that great, but she's all I got.' The blond voice came out quite and defeated. 'I suspect he's killed her though. I'm glad you killed him, but that doesn't mean I hate you any less.' He sneered and closed his eyes.

'I'm sorry, that I accused you. I didn't really believe you'd do it… you know, if they hadn't showed up.' Harry turned his eyes upward again. 'But that doesn't mean I hate you any less either.'

They were quiet for a long time, Harry stared at the ceiling wondering if anyone would come looking for him. After he had gone over who might still believe him alive he began to notice how cold it was. He could see his breath in small puffs rising before his eyes, he pulled his thick traveling cloak tighter about him. Draco shattered the silence when his teeth started to chatter, he shuddered and curled up tighter in the corner, tugging at the threadbare robes he had had for months. The boy savior felt sick, 'it's already March Malfoy, did you know that?' what had Draco done during the last three months? Harry sat up painfully, his left side burning. 'Malfoy?' Harry turned his eyes to the corner; Draco was a wretched sight to behold. He was shaking violently, biting his lip to keep from chattering.

'Can't you let me die in p…peace, Potter?' The Slytherin snapped at him.

'Take my cloak.' Harry said, holding the cloak out to the gaunt blond.

'I don't need your ch…charity Potter.' He spat, trying to pull his pathetic robes tighter with a hand that was simply too thin.

Harry stared at the blond perplexed by this stubbornness. In one quick move he flung the cloak over the blond, and smiled triumphantly.

'You need it more than I do, don't deny it.'

'Just want to be the savior again, huh? It's really sad Potter, that's the only way you can make friends.'

'There is no pleasing you! I mean Fuck, Malfoy you've been alone down here for almost a year and you can't even accept a cloak? What is with you?' Harry felt like punching the arrogant Slytherin in the face again.

'Oh… did I strike a nerve Potter? Or do you finally see that they only want to be your friends so they can say they know the boy wonder?'

Harry felt sick, he had always wondered in the back of his mind why his friends had been drawn to him, and secretly feared the scar on his head may have played a role. But to hear Malfoy state it so matter of factly… then he thought of Ginny. Shy around him because he was the boy-who-lived, so who was it she really fell in love with? Was it him, or the famous Harry Potter that her brother just happened to know?

Finding his voice at last, Harry retorted. 'At leas they don't like me because I'm rich. They're not scared into liking me because of my father's position or the power they think I have. You think any of those Slytherins actually care about you Malfoy?' Draco looked taken aback at Harry's sudden out burst; he stared blankly at the Gryffindor for a moment before retorting with all he could think of. 'Least I have a dad.'

'Some father Lucius is.' Harry spat, his eyes alight with anger.

Draco sat there for a long time. Harry's cloak was still in his lap and he was staring at it intently, his eyes roiling with hatred for its owner. 'FINE, ' he screamed at last, his voice cracking with the effort. 'You're right! You always are! What do you want Potter? Isn't it enough, you do NOTHING and people love you. All you did was sit there and live, now you're famous! You have everything and I'm nothing… is that what you want to hear?'

'No. because you are right… ' The raven haired boy replied slowly ' they do only love me because I lived, no one cares about me for who I am. I'm just pointing out that we aren't that different, you and I, no one really knows who we are… they just see what they are supposed to see.'

The weight of Harry's observation hung between them, the silence was deafening. Draco hoisted Harry's cloak over him and pulled it tight. Harry lay on his back again, closing his eyes. 'I'm not ready to stop hating you' the blond murmured softly. Harry opened one eye and looked over at the Slytherin lazily. 'Neither am I' Harry responded softly, closing his eye again and breathing as lightly as he could. Soon Harry had drifted off and was snoring lightly, as was the blond with his cloak.

This is my first ever fan fic, my best friend and sis, Ginny, got me into them... so let me know what you think, and maybe i'll post some more.