Disclaimer: The world of Harry Potter, its characters and settings are the copyrighted works of J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros, and anyone else with legitimate rights. No profit is being made by this site or the authors it houses, nor was any malice intended in any way, shape or form.

A/N: Hey guys i am having trubbile with my computer but i am trying to rewrite The Last but i decided to post this to keep you valtures off my back ; )

Prologue

At the end of the school year, like any other year at Hogwarts, the students were finally free of all the worry and turmoil that the end of term brings.

Well with the exception of one young man, a fifth year known as Harry Potter. He was far from worry free. He was The-Boy-Who-Lived, Savior of the wizarding world, The-boy-who-would-defeat-He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, The bloody Gryffindor Golden Boy.

Harry had just lost the only person who really cared about him to the same mad man who had killed his parents, Voldemort. Now he sat alone on the train heading away from his one true home so he could spend the summer holidays as a slave to his muggle, magic hating relatives, the Dursley's.

His semi-short black hair fell haphazardly into his haunted green-eyes as he leaned against the window of his compartment. He was staring out at the nothingness that he could see behind his eyelids when he heard the door to his compartment open and close. He did not turn because he really did not want to see anyone at the moment.

" Harry are you ok?" It was one of Harry's so called best friends. Harry forced a smile onto his face as he turned to see Hermione and Ron standing by the door. Harry tried not to look at their joined hands as he looked at them.

"Yeah guys I'm. Just really don't want to go back to the muggle's." He said with a shrug. Ron seemed to sag with relieve before pushing his flaming red-hair out of his to long face.

"Well, mate if your sure then well just be, uh, going to, study, ya know." He said as he rubbed the back of his head. He pulled Hermione out the door swiftly. When the door closed, Harry let his smile drop and scowled before spelling the door. He turned back to the window and watched as the green Scottish country turned into English cities.

Harry stood up stood up unhurriedly as the train slowly came to a stop. He pulled back on the mask of the martyred hero as he opened the door and strode out into the packed corridor. He went outside and stood silently on the platform as he waited for his uncle.

"Did you hear the news? Lucius Malfoy got released." A voice said to his left. Harry made no indication that he had heard but inwardly quirked an eyebrow.

"Yeah I heard, but do you think he'll show up today?" A second voice asked the first.

"Don't know and don't care." The voice sounded further away then before so Harry figured the people had walked away. Suddenly he was hit from behind and stumbled forward slightly.

"Watch it Potter." Draco Malfoy drawled as he brushed off the front of his robe. Harry straightened up and turned to stare at the blond before he turned back to watch the surrounding station for his relatives. Malfoy was shocked to say the least. He could not remember the last time he had not been able to get a rise out of the dark haired boy. "Hey Potter, what's up?"

"I just don't want to fight, ok." Harry said with his back turned towards Draco. Draco made to say something but Harry was not listening, he was to busy looking for his uncle. Just when Draco was about to move away a loud voice caught his attention.

"Boy, you stupid freak, I told you to wait by the entrance." A large beefy man hissed as he drew closer to the two boys. "Making me walk in here with all of your kind walking around."

The blond moved back as he watched the overly large man descend on the only hope of the wizarding world. Many different outcomes came to Draco's mind but never in his wildest dreams would have imagined what was happening in front of him.

"I am sorry Uncle Vernon. I didn't mean to make you angry." Harry said as he bowed his head. Vernon looked around to see if anyone was watching before wrapping his short beefy fingers around the Gryffindor's thins shoulder.

"Yeah, well you did you ungrateful freak. When we get home, you will be lucky if you have food for a month." The beefy man said as he bodily dragged the small boy from the station.

Draco watched the scene with shock written clearly across his face. Not only was he shocked by the actions of Harry Potter but by himself. He had felt an unbearable need to protect the smaller boy from the overly large man. He had thankfully been able to keep himself from ripping the boy from the man's grasp. It would not due to have him rescuing his schoolyard nemesis from his big bad uncle.

The blond walked thoughtfully towards the car in which his father waited. He was trying to figure out way he had felt the urge to protect the man he hated. Draco stopped short as a thought entered his mind, unbidden. He had always protected Potter, kept him grounded when he needed it, given him a vent, and the emotion he had felt was not that of someone protecting an enemy but family.

Draco's eyes widened as the true concept registered in his brain. For years, he had been fighting with Harry Potter not as his rival would but as a big brother would to his younger sibling.

--0--

Harry climbed wearily into the large back seat and waited for his uncle to get in. Vernon Dursley clambered into the car and glared at his nephew through the rear view mirror. 'Only a few months.' Was Harry's only thought as he was taken away from his last lifeline to the wizarding world. He knew deep down that this would be his last summer with the Dursley's. He knew that no matter what anyone said a part of him had already died. It had died with Sirius, and he did not think he would be able to get it back.