I don't own Harry Potter, it belongs to the fabulous J. K. Rowling.

This is just something that popped in my head and had to write it. This will have four chapters. A chapter a day.

Warning: MalexMale

This story is for and dedicated to cathcer1984. So proud! :D x

Summary: Letting go of the one man that helped keep him sane for what he believed to be for the right reasons Harry starts to regret it. Can wanted Death Eaters mysteriously turning up captured at the Ministry take Harry's mind off his personal life?

Thank you to marksmom for beta'ing this for me and for the title. xx

Harry groaned as he started to come to, he opened his eyes and saw a white high ceiling turning his head to the side he looked at the white walls, out of the window and saw the sun high in the sky, letting his eyes drop further he gave a small smile when he saw Severus fast asleep in the chair by his bed. The book in his lap open at a certain page.

"Severus?"

Severus' eyes opened and he sat forward when he saw Harry awake and looking at him. "How do you feel?"

"I ache."

"Not surprising. Harry, when are you going to realise that with you being an auror, all you are doing is making yourself a walking target for those still out there who fled when you started to win the war?"

"Severus there weren't that many...and it has been three years since the war; most of the ones who fled were only with Voldemort because he had power and people feared him."

"And what about the others that worshipped him and hated you as much as he did? Over fifty percent of his followers were like that Harry. I should know, as I knew every single one of them."

"Yeah you were one!" Harry snapped, tired of having this argument once again.

"When I was young and blind, yes."

"What changed?"

"He killed your mother."

Harry sat up in the hospital bed. "You saw the prophecy and told him; you knew he was after my mother and even knew she was in danger when you overheard...you say you loved her, then why tell him."

Severus stood up. "I am getting sick of this argument, Harry; all we do is go round and round in circles."

"You don't think I hate it? Every time I get hurt and end up in hospital, I come around, you ask how I am and then the same old argument starts."

"These arguments would stop and so would your frequent visits to this place if you quit-"

"No. Since I was fifteen I wanted to be an auror. I went back to Hogwarts after the war and got down and studied, didn't have a life for nearly a year as I ignored all my friends and you just so I could pass all my N. E. W. Ts and get the auror job I wanted."

"Yes but at the rate you are going, and with the amount of times you have ended up in here, you are going to get yourself killed! Wasn't going through the first seventeen years of your life with a mad man trying to kill you enough for you?"

"Severus, I am not quitting a job I know I am good at and enjoy doing!"

"You love and enjoy and are good at quidditch, and you have had managers offer you positions on their teams as seeker, and you turned all of them down."

"Because I don't want to do that Severus; being seeker and playing quidditch was all great fun when at school but I am no longer at school. I am an adult and have a proper job which I love doing."

"And what about me Harry? Every day when you are at work, every second you are late in coming home, I am pacing and worrying and making mistakes with my potions as I am worrying about you; and when the floo flares and I hear it I pray to Merlin it is you coming home unscathed and not some ministry bloke or hag telling me you have been injured on a case, or even worse...dead."

"Severus, I will be fine. I didn't get killed during the war I won't get killed now; if Voldemort couldn't kill me, what chance do his followers have?"

"Voldemort couldn't kill you because you had a part of his soul in you!" Severus sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "I can't do this Harry."

"Do what?"

"This. Us. I can't keep up with this worrying about whether you are coming home well or badly injured.

"What are you saying?"

"It's either your job or me Harry."

"Severus...I can't give up doing what I love. I'm sorry."

Severus nodded. "But you are alright giving up the one you love." Without waiting for Harry to answer, Severus left the room and Harry.

The next day when Harry left the hospital and entered his and Severus' home he sighed to find all of Severus' things gone, he walked into the kitchen and straight over to the door that led to Severus' own private lab. Empty. Harry sighed, leaned against the door frame and closed his eyes, remembering when he first showed it Severus.

Flashback

"You are lucky I trust you Harry." Severus said as he was led through the house they had just purchased together blindfolded.

Harry laughed. "That I am, but this is a surprise. I can hardly surprise you if you see it before I want you to."

Severus allowed himself a small smirk as he continued to wave his arms about in front of him. "Ah a tall hard object just inside the door. That would be the fridge freezer, we are in the kitchen."

"Stop trying to ruin it, we are nearly there now."

Harry opened the door and looked around what was once an empty room to see a big cauldron in the middle, smaller ones on tables, a big glass unit stocked full of ingredients and a table with notebooks. "Okay take the blindfold off."

Severus took his blindfold off and, when he saw what was around him, the look on his face was one Harry was never going to forget. Severus had said he couldn't wait to start using his lab but first, the room was to be christened in their own way...like they had 'christened' every other room in the house.

End of Flashback

A week later Harry had just sat down with a sandwich when the floo flared and Ron and Hermione stepped through. Ron straight away sat beside Harry and took a pickle off his plate. "How are you feeling mate?"

"Alright. Take more than a knock on the head to finish me."

"Must have been a hard knock for you to do something stupid."

"Not now Hermione, Harry doesn't need it."

"I don't care how can you choose your job over Severus?"

"I didn't!"

"Yes you did. He told you it was either him or your job, and you told him you can not give up doing what you love. It's alright to give him up though, isn't it? Severus, who has done nothing but risk his life for you, change how he is for you, be more open and talkative and puts up with all of us Weasleys."

Harry narrowed his eyes and handed his plate over to Ron who started to eat the sandwich. "How did you know all that?"

"I have eyes Harry. Severus never used to talk to people as much and there used to be a time when he wouldn't be seen dead in the Burrow, but he goes every Sunday for dinner and talks and even laughs."

"I don't mean that I mean how do you know what was said?"

"Because she was with him when I came to see you." Ron answered with a mouthful of food.

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Oh I see."

"Just because I am one of your best friends doesn't mean I agree with you on everything. I am with Severus on this, what you did was wrong. He is right, if you are not careful this job will kill you. Seventeen years Severus risked his life time and time again to keep you safe and alive and what do you do when the war is over? You put him through more worrying by making yourself a moving target for those who still follow Voldemort and want you dead!"

"They need catching Hermione. If I didn't do this and become a seeker they could easily kill me by knocking me off my broom."

"You don't have to go out in the field looking for them you could stay in the ministry."

Harry stood up. "All you are doing is saying what Severus says and that is all we argued about. You can stay here and carry on. I'm going out."

"Where?"

"Out!" Harry said and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

"I will get through to him."

Ron chuckled. "I doubt it love. When we first met then yes you could, as the years went on he started to get stubborn with you and all of the fights with Severus were doing the same thing; the fights he had with Severus have made him more stubborn than you. You won't get through to him love, not now."

"I can still try. Wash that plate and put it away; I will straighten up in here and then we will get going."

Harry walked down the streets of Hogsmeade, he knew he could have apparated but wanted to walk to think about things. He stopped when he walked into someone. "Sorry." he said.

"That's alright." the man said as he straightened his sign.

Harry looked at the sign and up at the shop. "Coffee house?" he asked.

"Yes, just opened today, last owner made and sold potions."

"Severus Snape."

"You know him? Took me three days to get rid of the smell."

"He sold up? Did he say where he was going to?"

"No. Don't care if I am honest." the man said and walked back into his shop. Harry continued to walk around, until he knew Ron and Hermione would have left his place, before going home.

At work the next day, Harry called in some favours asking where Severus had gone, to see if they could find out, and came back with disappointment saying they had nothing, like he had just disappeared.

Storming into his office Harry snapped when a knock sounded on his door. "What?!"

"Easy Harry. Bad morning?"

Harry sighed and ran his hand through his hair messing it up even more. "Sorry Kingsley. What's up?"

"We think we have a link on where Dolohov is hiding."

Harry nodded and put on his long Auror robe before leaving. "Who's coming?"

"You, Ron, Draco, Dean and me."

Harry nodded, "Let's go."

They had entered an old broken down house, wands held high and lit up, showing them where they were walking. "Dean, Ron, take the shacks outside. Harry, Draco take the upper level. I will search down here." Kingsley said as he walked off in front.

Ron and Dean went to walk outside but Harry stopped them. "We go in alive..."

"We come out alive." Ron, Dean and Draco answered before they split and went where they were supposed to go.

"That always seems to work." Draco said when they reached the first landing.

"Don't tempt fate by speaking too soon, Draco." Harry said as they entered the first room, searching. "Are you sure you don't know where Severus is."

"I am sure Harry, he sends me letters and I try and trace them, using every spell I know, but nothing; his owl flies off as soon as I get the letter, but every third one the bird waits for me to reply."

"Next time the bird waits for a reply, send for me please?"

Draco looked closely at Harry and seeing him looking desperate he nodded.

"Thank you."

"No problem. There are two more rooms up here I'll check one you check the other."

Harry moved into the other room and started to go through things, there were papers here that showed that Dolohov had been here, collecting it all up Harry looked over his shoulder. "Draco I found evidence of him being here."

Silence.

"Draco?"

Silence.

Pocketing the evidence Harry turned and left the room, wand held high in front of him as he slowly walked into the room where Draco was he stopped when he saw Draco on his knees, head down facing Dolohov who had his wand at Draco. "Always the hero."

Draco turned his head to face Harry. "Kill the fucker!"

Harry looked from Draco up to Dolohov and was about to cast when Dolohov put his wand with Draco's and cast a powerful spell that had Harry flying back, slamming back against the wall before sliding down the wall and falling down the stairs.

Pointing his wand at Draco, Dolohov cast Petrificus Totalus and dropped Draco's wand, kicking him in the side before disapparating.

"Harry!" Kingsley cried, he set his Patronus out to Ron and Dean and hurried up the stairs once Ron and Dean came back in the house, Ron running up to Harry and dropping to his knees. "Harry mate."

"I'll alert St Mungo's." Dean said.

Kingsley hurried up the stairs and checked the rooms, finding Draco in the last one, he pointed his wand at the blond. "Finite Incantatem."

Draco coughed and rolled onto his side. "Harry..."

"I don't know, Ron and Dean are with him." Kingsley bent forward and helped Draco up, "lets get you up, lad, and seen to. What happened?"

Draco started to limp, holding onto Kingsley with one arm and holding his ribs with the other. "Dolohov was here. Harry checked one room while I checked the other. Dolohov was stood waiting when I walked in, he got me straight away I am sorry to say. I was expecting to find clues or evidence, not the wanker himself. Harry called out saying he found evidence but I couldn't answer as Dolohov had both wands pointed at me. Harry came in and I told him to kill him but before Harry could get him, he got Harry."

Kingsley stopped when they reached the bottom of the stairs. "Have you alerted St Mungo's?" he asked.

"Yes sir, they are on their way, Harry keeps slipping in and out of consciousness." Dean answered.

Draco looked down at Harry to see the brunet looking up at him. "Tell him I'm sorry."

"Who mate?" Ron asked.

"Severus..." Harry murmured before losing consciousness once more.

What do you think?

Chapter two up tomorrow.

Review? x