Disclaimer: The characters in this story do not belong to me but to JKR - I'm just having fun with them. Story's mine.

Author's Notes: This is a story I began before OotP and, while that doesn't affect any major plot points, Sirius is still alive in this story. I can't let him go.

Please review and let me know what you think.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked curiously.

Draco yelped, startled, and spun round to face Harry who was standing in the bedroom doorway, smiling that soft, special smile he reserved solely for Draco. "Harry!" Draco squeaked, the shirt he was holding slipping from his fingers and floating noiselessly to the floor. "I thought you were at Ron's."

"I was but then I came home. It's almost dinner time, you know." Harry stepped from the doorway into the room and stood in front of Draco.

"Really?" Draco said, surprised. "It's that late already?"

"Mmmm," Harry murmured as he stretched his arms around Draco and hugged him. He stiffened as he spotted the half filled suitcase Draco had been trying to conceal on the bed behind him and pulled away. "You're packing?" he asked, the smile vanishing from his face as he looked at Draco. "Why?"

"Um ..." Draco hadn't been prepared for this. He'd expected to be gone before Harry got home but time had gotten away from him.

"Are you leaving me?" Harry asked, incredulously. "No!" Draco said, almost hysterically. "I just ... have to go away for a little while, that's all. Just a week or two."

"Where?" Harry asked, fighting the wave of panic welling up inside of him and feeling the colour drain from his face.

Draco retrieved his shirt from the floor and twisted it in his hands nervously. "A family thing," he said quietly.

Harry sighed, rolling his eyes as he sank onto the bed. "Oh, God, not this again," he muttered as he buried his face in his hands.

"Harry, we're not married!" Draco shouted. "You know I can't tell you about this."

"The only reason we're not married is because we can't be!" Harry stood up from the bed and rounded on Draco angrily. "But we're as good as married. We've been together for ten years and living together for eight!"

Unsure what else to do or say, Draco resumed his packing. "You don't understand, Harry," he said softly, hurriedly brushing the back of his hand across his eyes to sopt the tears which were welling there from sliding down his cheeks. He hated fighting with Harry at any time but this looked to be shaping into a real doozy.

"Of course I don't bloody understand!" Harry said, angrily. "Because you won't tell me!"

Draco closed the suitcase and snapped the look shut. "Harry, please don't do this," he begged. "If I had my way, I wouldn't even go."

Harry grabbed Draco's hand as if he thought by just holding onto him, he could stop him from leaving. "Then don't go," he pleaded urgently.

This scene was exactly what Draco had wanted to avoid. He didn't want to hurt Harry but was duty bound to go. "It's just for two weeks," he said helplessly, his eyes pleading with Harry. Harry dropped Draco's hand and turned away.

"When were you planning to tell me you were going?" When Draco didn't answer, Harry spun around to look at him. "Were you at least going to leave a note?" he asked incredulously.

"Of course I was going to leave a note," Draco snapped. He sighed and reached out his hand to rest on Harry's arm. "Look, Harry-"

Harry shrugged Draco's hand away. "No, Draco, just go," he said, turning away towards the window.

"Harry, I didn't want it to be like this. I was trying to avoid it," Draco said, as he pointed his wand at his suitcase. He pushed the shrunken suitcase into his pocket.

"Just go, if you have to, Draco," Harry murmured, still not looking at him.

"Two weeks, Harry, I promise," Draco said. When Harry didn't answer, he Disapparated.

The house was dark and quiet when Draco returned home. It was after midnight and he assumed Harry was asleep. Although he was hungry, fatigue was taking over and he stumbled his way upstairs to bed.

The trip hadn't been worth fighting with Harry about. He'd known it wouldn't be. When he was a kid, Draco got very excited about what he called Secret Malfoy Business, the name he'd given it adding to its general mysteriousness.

The truth, however, was far more mundane. It was just a stupid reunion of all the family members, the most pressing business being to tell each their present financial circumstances so the entire family fortune could be calculated. Stupid, really, but no Malfoy had ever missed a gathering and Draco, already on shaky ground with his family because of his relationship with Harry, wasn't going to be the first.

The location changed each time and only Malfoy family members and spouses knew where it would be. A rule never to be broken; the family had too many enemies the world over and a leak could be fatal.

The secrecy was putting too much strain on his relationship with Harry, though. He'd asked, even pleaded, with his family to allow him to tell Harry about it, to bring him along next time, but they were adamant. Draco wasn't married to Harry and so Harry wasn't to know anything. Lucius had been unable to stop himself from smiling gleefully.

Draco watched Harry sleep as he changed for bed. Harry looked so peaceful and happy when he was asleep. It was the sort of peace Harry never knew in his waking hours.

Draco slipped into bed and gently stroked Harry's hair. "I love you so much, Harry," he whispered.

Harry stirred and looked around sleepily. "Draco? Are you all right?"

Draco nodded. "Just tired."

Harry settled his head back onto his pillow. "Go to sleep, then."

Draco snuggled in against Harry's back and put his arm across him. He brushed a lock of hair away from Harry's face and tucked it behind his ear. "Are we OK, Harry?" he asked tentatively.

"Shh, Draco," Harry whispered, taking Draco's hand and holding it in his own. "I'm tired, too. Just sleep now."

Draco buried his face in Harry's neck and quickly fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

"You said a week or two but you were gone for three and a half!" Harry wasn't even trying not to shout. "And I didn't hear from you at all! No owl, nothing. Do you know how scared I was that something might've happened to you?"

"I'm sorry," Draco said automatically, for what seemed like the hundredth time.

He was sitting at the kitchen table, elbows resting on the tabletop, head in his hands, while Harry paced around him. They'd had this same argument so many times over the past years it was almost funny. It wasn't even about Draco being gone longer than anticipated. Not really. It was more about him still doing whatever his family told him to. Stupid family, too. All because no one trusted anyone else. The entire family only met once every ten years, but those in Britain still gathered every couple of years for a few days. So they could all make sure that no one else was losing money or hiding it away. Because, whilst they could all do whaever they wished with their family's individual fortunes, in reality, it all belonged to all of them. And they guarded it jealously.

In some ways, Draco thought Harry was lucky not to have any family. He didn't have to worry about petty family rules and jealousy and distrust. Not that, from everything he'd heard about Harry's family, they would have been anything like the Malfoys anyway.

Harry had told him he'd seen his family for the only time in the Mirror of Erised back in first year and they'd all been smiling and happy together. Draco could honestly say that never, at any of their family reunions, did any of the Malfoys seem happy to be with each other.

Harry sighed and sat down heavily next to Draco, he, too, weary of the same argument yet again. "We can't live like this forever, Draco. I can't. Something's got to change."

The blood pounded in Draco's ears and he couldn't hear anything else Harry was saying although he knew he was still talking because he could see his lips moving. Harry's voice sounded so faint and far away. This was what he'd dreaded. Harry wanted to break up. Had said he couldn't live with him anymore. All because of his stupid fucking family!

Tears pricked his eyes and he blinked them away rapidly. He jumped up quickly from the table, knocking his chair over in his haste. He heard it crash to the floor but didn't stop. He just wanted to get away. If Harry wanted to break up, then Draco was going to leave now, on his own, before Harry kicked him out.

He ran up the stairs two at a time and into the bedroom, grabbing his as yet unpacked suitcase. Save him from packing again anyway. Get out of there quicker. He glanced at the framed photo of the two of them sitting on top of the dresser. Happy and smiling and in love. It seemed to mock him. He snatched it up and slipped it into the side pocket of his suitcase just before Harry burst into the room.

"Draco, what is it? What's wrong?" Harry asked anxiously.

"You want me to leave, Harry, so I'm leaving now," Draco snapped. He was trying to hold himself together – didn't want Harry to see him cry – and it was easier if he was snappish and nasty. But he had to leave quickly. The lump in his throat was getting harder to swallow.

"What? No!" Harry said in a panicky, shaky sort of voice. "Draco, you mis-"

"It's better this way," Draco said coldly. "We were stupid to think this could work. We're too different and you'll never understand anything about me and my family."

It couldn't have stung more if Draco had slapped him. "Go, then, if you want, you selfish prick," Harry said, his voice hard. "I know all I want to know about your family, Draco. And you. You think you're so different from the rest of them but you're not. You're nothing more than a spoilt, egotistical brat!"

Draco scoffed as he swept past Harry out of the room and down the stairs, desperately trying not to cry until he was out of the house. At the bottom of the stairs, he realised he didn't actually have to leave via the front door and quickly Disapparated.

Harry was left, stunned, standing in the middle of the bedroom. He didn't understand what had happened. Yes, he'd been angry but he felt he'd been right to be. Draco had been gone for three and a half weeks and he hadn't called and he hadn't owled and Harry had been worried. But when he'd calmed down, he'd told Draco he wasn't going to let it get to him anymore hadn't he?

So what had gotten Draco so worked up that he'd left him?

They hardly ever fought anymore. Not big fights, anyway. Just silly little stuff that was inevitable when you lived with someone. Like when Draco left empty bottles in the fridge or when Harry dropped his wet towels on the floor. Or whose turn it was to clean the bathroom. Or what Sunday night movie they'd watch on telly. But on those occasions, one of them usually just gave in.

Had Draco given in this time? But if Draco had given in, why did Harry feel as if he'd lost?