The next day Harry got up to use the outhouse. He had heard of the things before. That they used them before modern day plumbing. Narcissa told him that this way they use the bathroom outside and once the hole is full it is buried and the outhouse is moved. Harry thought it was a joke at first until she showed him the way to the small shed. "Draco modified it himself. He is quite the crafty man. I never had any idea." Narcissa said with a groan reaching down for her ankle. Her leg had been bothering her. "Are you in pain?" Harry asked. "It will pass. Once the cold weather leaves. I'll be fine." She left him there in the doorway.
Harry bundled up in Draco's coat and walked out into the snow. The path was shoveled. Harry never thought after traveling for almost a year that he would be forced to use the bathroom outside again. At least he was shielded from the outside elements. Harry looked around outside. All the greenery was dead or dying. He moved closer to the manor wall. The protective barrier surrounding the manor. Harry wondered briefly if he could jump it. He wondered what would be waiting on the other side.
Harry stumbled back into the house after doing his business. He found the outhouse an unpleasant business. Draco was warming a kettle for tea. "Hungry?" He asked. Harry shook his head no. Draco sighed. "You should eat something. You went months without eating. I know your magic was sustaining you but in this world you need to keep your health up." Draco tried to explain. Harry moved passed Draco. "I think I'll go lie back down. I didn't sleep too well last night." Harry said. Draco gave him a look and Harry could have sworn he was going to be yelled at, instead Draco just nodded and went back to the tea.
"Do you need help Draco?" A house elf covered in warm clothes as the man who was standing over a fire. "No Minky darling. I can make tea. Go have a seat." Draco said to the little elf. Harry knew he had to be dreaming. There was no way that Draco would be talking to a house elf who was dressed in clothes. Why would one stick around?
Harry fell asleep and stayed in bed for what felt like days. He cried. He kicked and screamed into the pillows. He cursed Voldemort and the Malfoys. He cursed Merlin and Dumbledore. He fought for nothing. He killed the man who took so much from him just to have him take more in death. He wished he had been left to die. He'd rather die than live like this. Harry didn't want to be in Draco Malfoy's debt. His friends are probably dead. The Weasleys who were the closest thing to family he ever had, gone for all he knows. He felt exhaustion take him over and sleep claimed him.
-/-
"I don't understand why you saved him." Lucius said. Draco was tired of this same argument and now that Harry was mostly awake his father was worse. "He saved my life." Draco said before taking a sip of firewhiskey. He savored the taste. They didn't have but a few more bottles left and he had to hide those from his father. "And your mother saved his. Debt cancelled." Lucius said. Draco knew that was a touchy subject for his parents. His mother went against the man who his father worshipped in his cowardice to save the boy who eluded him so many times. His father hated Harry for more than the fact that he was the savior. It was the fact that he outsmarted him on more than one occasion. "It is more than that. You think I'm an idiot but I've seen the way you look at him and all the years you've spent trying to prove your worth to him." Lucius spit. Draco shrugged his shoulders. This wasn't nothing new that he hasn't heard before from his father.
"Your mother would be sick to know where your heart lies." Lucius said. Draco narrowed his eyes at the fire burning in the fireplace. "She always wanted grandchildren and you'll deny her that." Lucius added. Trying to use his mother against him, it made Draco's stomach churn. "Desiring a man is a filthy mudblood practice. You will fall out of favor with your mother and I, if you choose to go down that path Draco. Mark my words." Lucius said.
Draco laughed. He finished his firewhiskey. "You know father, at one point in my life all I ever wanted was to be like you. Now looking at you makes me sick." Draco said. "I'm glad the feeling is mutual, my son."
Draco out down his whiskey tumbler. He stalked towards his father. The light in the fireplace was casting shadows over their faces. Lucius wondered when Draco grew taller than him. "You will never talk like that to me again. You will never use mother against me again. It's obvious that she chose to save her son then follow a mad man. Maybe you don't know much about mother at all considering either of you barely talk. You are not one to lecture me on what I desire. Love is far more gracious a desire than power. Also you will treat Harry with respect and if you do not listen to me, you will find yourself outside of the manor. Since you have fallen out of favor with mother I doubt she will speak in your stead. Get some rest. You look terrible." Draco said to his father. He backed away from his father who was clearly startled by the outburst from his son. Draco never talked to his father like that. Draco left his father in the parlor sipping his drink slowly. He stopped to check on Harry who had fallen asleep. Draco walked to his room right across the hall and collapsed in bed. He fell into a fitful sleep.
-/-
The next morning Harry looked out the window. He decided today he was going to leave. He gathered the coat around himself as if he were going to go out to the outhouse to relieve himself. He picked now to leave when everyone was still asleep. Harry made it down the path towards the gate. He stared at the gate for a moment contemplating if this was the right choice. He slipped through the gate opening and headed into the woods.
The sun was barely up in the sky when he realized he was lost in the woods. His feet were numb because his shoes weren't made for the snow. He started to regret his choice. Harry knew the disappointment Draco would feel when he woke up and saw that Harry left. But it didn't matter. Harry had to find his family and his friends. He had to make sure they were alive even if they left him. He knows there has to be a reason. Ron and Hermione wouldn't leave him like that. A snarl brought Harry out of his thoughts. He noticed a man was leaning against a tree.
"Excuse me sir. Are you ok?" Harry asked the man as he approached the man. The snarl got louder the closer he got to the tree. The man was missing half his face. His stomach was impaled on a limb that was sticking out from the tree. The snarling man looked at Harry and held out his hands making grabbing motions. Harry stumbled backwards and fell over a log. The man pulled himself off the tree limb and proceeded to follow Harry. He fell over the same log and onto Harry. Harry let out a panicked yell but he knew no one was coming to save him.
Harry knew that Draco wasn't lying now. That something was terribly wrong with this person. Harry grabbed the man's face and turned it away from his. He grabbed a nearby rock and hit the man in the head knocking him off of him. Harry stood up but another undead was on him. He didn't know where the hell this one came from.
Harry started to feel overwhelmed. If one could sneak up on him like that there could be more and he had no wand or weapon to protect himself. He should have stayed at the manor. His body felt numb all over from the cold and shock.
Draco came from nowhere and stuck a knife through the undead's skull that was attacking Harry and then he took care of the one that had been stuck to the tree. Harry stared at Draco for a moment. The man was cleaning his knife in the snow then wiping it on something that he stuck back into his pocket. "You can come back to the manor or stay out here and freeze to death it's up to you." Draco said. He didn't wait for Harry to answer. He turned back towards the direction of the manor and started walking. Harry didn't speak, he just followed.
When they arrived back to the manor Lucius and Narcissa were waiting for them. "I'm surprised you actually came back." Lucius said. Draco shrugged off his coat and grabbed Harry's. "We have to get you out of these cold clothes." Draco said. He began pulling on Harry's clothes. "Mother can you grab us blankets?" Draco asked. Narcissa nodded. She disappeared. Harry was now down to his boxers along with Draco. Draco sat down in the love seat in front of the fire and grabbed Harry. He guided him into his lap and wrapped the blanket around them. Harry should have been more self conscious about the whole thing but Draco was much warmer then he was expecting. Narcissa made tea for them to drink and thankfully both of Draco's parents left them alone.
"Want to explain to me why I had to go back out and risk my life to save you?" Draco asked Harry. Harry was holding his cup of tea to his lips for extra warmth. "I didn't want to believe you." Harry said finally. "I couldn't believe that everything I fought for was just gone. Just like that." Harry said. Draco kept his eyes on the fire. He was afraid to see the hopelessness in Harry's eyes.
"I'm sorry." Draco said quietly. "Huh?" Harry asked. It was so quiet he nearly missed it altogether. "I said I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I was such a prat to you back in school. I'm sorry that I never gave you a good reason to be my friend." Draco felt his eyes water. It was still a sore spot with him. "I'm sorry that I didn't help you when it came to fighting voldemort. God I'm sorry for a lot of things." Draco huffed with a laugh. Harry felt Draco's chest inflat against his back. The intimacy of the situation was not lost on him. "I'm sorry you're stuck with me and my parents." Draco said after a moment. "If I could I would take you to your friends tomorrow but I can't. You saw what it's like out there." Draco let out a sigh. Harry wasn't used to seeing Draco like this. He was used to Draco who wanted to fight and didn't care about him. This was different. This was a Draco he could get used too.
"I know you don't trust me. I don't blame you but I can't do this alone. My mother isn't up to the standards she thinks she is and father isn't...father thinks house elves should do everything even though we no longer have any but he hasn't quite grasped reality yet. But I need help Harry. I just, I'm not as strong as I thought I was and we could be a team. At least for a while. Until spring comes and I can take you to your friends." Harry looked at Draco thoughtfully now.
It was the first time he got to fully look at him in a long time, if ever. His chin was baring stubble that needed shaved and he wore having bags under his eyes and his hair was longer than he ever saw it before but Draco, this Draco no longer resembled the boy he knew from school. This is what Draco looked like as a man. His arms wrapped around Harry's waist were not that of a boys, Harry thought. His legs were strong and firm. The only thing holding Harry and Draco back from being friends or who knows what else was the animosity from their school days. School days that didn't matter anymore. So Harry did something next that if you told him a year ago he would be doing it, he would have laughed in your face but now, now he has hope for something else.
Harry maneuvered until he was facing Draco, there was a fear and sadness in his stormy grey eyes. Harry held out his hand. "Name is Harry Potter. Nice to meet you." Draco stared at Harry's hand for a moment before he took it into his slightly larger hand. "Draco Malfoy. The pleasure is mine." For the first time in months both men smiled.
Narcissa watched from the hall. Lucius thinks she would be disgusted with her son but secretly she has known Draco's heart all along.