Muffled noises. Harry is falling, falling into the sound as it gets louder. Male voices, chatting and laughing.
Harry woke with a start. Disoriented, he looked around. He was surrounded by green fabric: emerald sheets with silver cushions, a green curtain guarding the comfortable four-poster bed he was lying on.
Where was he? It couldn't be -
The curtain opened to reveal orange rays of the late afternoon sunlight. Harry closed his eyes, and his head suddenly felt like it was about to burst. Then something dropped onto the bed and the blinding light was gone. When Harry opened his eyes again, Draco Malfoy had climbed next to him onto the mattress. Harry felt dizzy. This was Malfoy's bed. He had been sleeping in Malfoy's bed. This didn't make any sense.
"What the -"
"Sh!" Malfoy hissed and held up a hand to interrupt him. Then he quickly cast a Silencing Charm. "They will be gone for dinner soon, then you can get out unseen."
Harry stared at him.
"You passed out. In Diagon Alley. I brought us back, thankfully everyone was at lunch so I could get you up here. Thought you probably would want to return on your own terms and without causing a spectacle, and the only place I could think of was...well, my bed."
Slowly, the memories started creeping back.
Gringotts. Harry is bolting up the steps to the entrance, Draco following in his wake. Just as Harry reaches the top of the stairs, the burnished bronze doors open and a tall figure in dark robes emerges from the entrance hall.
Harry's heart misses a beat. It's him.
Snape's eyes widen. Unable to slow down, Harry crashes into the man and then stumbles backwards. Balancing on the topmost step for a moment, he is about to fall when Snape's strong hands grab his cloak and pull him back up towards him.
Snape's face only inches apart from his, Harry stares into black eyes, unable to speak.
Catching up with Harry, Malfoy reaches the doors as well and stops short, looking back and forth between the two men.
As if burned, Snape lets go of Harry's cloak. The puzzled expression on Draco's face slowly melts away as truth finally dawns on him. Just for a moment, Snape's eyes flicker to Malfoy.
When they settle on the Gryffindor again, the agonizing fire within them seems to consume Harry.
A pained expression darkens Snape's features, and before Harry has the chance to speak, the man pushes past him and starts descending the white marble steps.
At the bottom of the stairs, Severus turns around one last time. "I'm sorry," he says, his voice empty, defeated.
Then Snape disapparates.
Paralysed, Harry stares down at the street, and he is falling, falling down the stairs. Then darkness closes in on him.
"You fell down the stairs. I slowed your fall but I'm not good at healing bruises. You might have to take care of that yourself."
The memory had hit Harry like a hammer. He tried to digest what had happened. He felt sick and tears were welling up in his eyes.
So this was it.
"Thank you. For bringing me back," he said slowly, avoiding Draco's gaze. Surely the Slytherin must've put two and two together by now.
"Listen, Potter. This is really fucked up. I don't know how this happened and I don't think I really want to. But Severus… I care about him. He was the only person in my life that… Well, anyway. Whatever happened between the two of you… I won't tell anyone about this."
When Harry walked back up to Gryffindor Tower a short while later, he felt empty and more alone than he'd ever felt in his life.
And he made a vow: he would never allow himself to fall in love again.
