Title: Two People Fell in Love

Disclaimers: Not mine

Warnings: Male x Male

Summary: Seventh year rolls around and life has slowly returned to normal after Voldemort's defeat. However, Harry realizes that life is nothing like it used to be for him. He finds himself slowly hiding from his friends until, another happens to steal the keys to his heart.

Note: Yeah, yeah, here I go again with another one. I am going to finish this one. I promise. :)

Chapter One

"Harry!" an excited squeal followed by a sudden rush of brown, gold and red collided with his chest. Harry blinked at Hermione, returning the infectious grin she sent towards him. "How are you?! I haven't heard anything from all you summer. What was it like living with Remus and Sirius? Did you have fun? You do know that-"

"'Mione, shut it!" Ron rolled his eyes, grabbing Hermione's hand and pulling her next to him. "You babbling like that and he won't be able to get any words in." Hermione sheepishly blushed, earning a kiss on the cheek. "You're too damn adorable. How you been, Harry?"

Harry slapped on his happy face. "Fine. I can tell you two have being doing good. Any plans for a wedding yet?"

"Oh, maybe," Ron teasingly said, mussing Hermione's hair. "Mum says that it would be the perfect celebration for Voldemort's defeat. I happen to agree with her. Besides, we already know we're going to be together forever, might as well make it binding, you know?"

"Yeah," Harry smiled. "I'm going to go check on Remus, make sure he's coping with the loss of Sirius." Smirking, he left the cabin, exuberant visage immediately melting into the face he'd become accustomed to wearing all summer. Life was returning to normal for everyone; everyone but him. He couldn't stop thinking about the ones who were dead, the ones who were in St.Mungo's for the rest of their lives. Then, there were those who hadn't previously admitted their feelings for each other and suddenly, they do. Was Harry jealous? Damn right he was. Since his decidedly horrible relationship with Cho in fifth year, he hadn't been with anyone since. He instead focused his attentions on gaining the knowledge he needed to finally end Voldemort's reign of terror.

Harry had changed. He wasn't the same boy he had been. He was a man and who wouldn't be after all that he'd been through? While his friends were busy with their pink, bubbly romances and deciding the best path for their futures, Harry was trying to forget the memories. He was depressed, paranoid, suffered from anxiety attacks, had a slight case of being bipolar, and was mildly schizophrenic. One doesn't watch their family and friends die and be tortured and not lose some sense of who they used to be. It was painful, even after four months of the bastard's death.

"Well, Potter, I'm surprised to see you here."

Harry turned on his heel, facing Draco Malfoy. Harry knew that Draco went through the memories like he did. Draco had been tortured and raped of his innocence just like Harry had. "And why are you so surprised, Malfoy? I do go to school here."

Draco snorted. "Obviously. What I meant is, aren't you scared of the reaction you'll receive when you walk through those doors tonight?" Not bothering with Harry's response, Draco continued, "You're the hero, the savior. You're name is already being written in the history books. All of those little brats in your fan-clubs are going to be vying for a chance to even be seen with the great Harry Potter. You honestly think you'll have a moment's peace with the idiots stalking you?"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're concerned." Harry smirked, meeting the stormy gaze levelly.

Draco laughed, running a hand through his blond hair. "You're imagining things. I thought I'd do my good deed for the year by warning you. Oh, and just because old Voldie's defeated doesn't mean a damn thing when it comes to me and you." The silver eyes narrowed. "Better yet, when it comes to Slytherin's and Gryffindor's."

"I think you need the warning, Malfoy." Harry languidly flickered his eyes behind Draco. "You don't have your bodyguards. That's right, you're pets are no longer in England. I wonder, are all the Slytherin's gone? You'll be alone, you do know that, don't you? The last Slytherin at Hogwart's. Seems kind of sad."

Draco chuckled, lazily staring at the passing vegetation as the train came towards the castle. "Even if I am the only one remaining, you think that's going to stop me? You might need to be careful. You could be facing the next Dark Lord." An unreadable emotion in the gray depths made Harry shiver. "Wouldn't that be entertaining?"

"Entertaining? Have you finally gone off the deep end?" Harry hissed, emerald eyes turning a darker hue as the anger sparked within him. "You know what you'd become. Just like Voldemort. I figured you were smarter than that. You've been through what Dark Lord's subject upon their enemies and in your case, their allies. You still have the scars, just like me."

"I am nothing like you!" Draco snarled, grabbing Harry by the front of his robes, shoving him against the wall. "Never mention what happened again. As far as I'm concerned, those scars came from myself. I'm not going to relive the past. It's time for the present and future. You need to realize that."

"How can you say that?!" Harry cried, wrenching free of Draco's hold. "How can you just forget what happened to us?! You saw your best friend die, you saw your mother and father murdered, you saw your boyfriend raped in front of you! How can you act like none of it occurred?!"

Draco's eyes lost the fury as his shoulder's sagged and Harry saw how fatigued Draco was. "You think me so heartless that I'd forget them? I choose to remember them before that happened. To remember them when they were happy, when Voldemort's threat was just a joke." The silver eyes misted. "But we were naïve back then. We realized too late that it was real. If I have to pay for my mistakes in the next realm, then so be it."

"You've given up." Realization dawned. "You don't even care anymore."

"Why should I? I've lost everything that meant anything to me." Draco shrugged. "You're the same though, aren't you? Although, your pain might not be exactly like mine." Draco disappeared into one of the cabin's, sinking down onto the seat gratefully. He wasn't shocked that Harry joined him. "Look, we can either hold a civil conversation or we can be at each other's throats. It doesn't matter either way once we step off of this train."

"I'd like to talk." Harry sat across from Draco, regarding the other man intently. "What do you mean, my pain isn't like yours?"

"No one you cared about was killed. You even got Black back. Your friends are alive except for the few at Mungo's. Me?" Draco's laugh was hollow. "My parents, Pansy, Blaise, Marcus, and Bella are dead. Most of my allies in Slytherin are wasting away in Azkaban. Oh, let's not forget that my godfather is at Mungo's in a coma! I'm alone, Potter. Though, someone like you might not understand what it's like to be truly lonely."

"You have no idea, Malfoy." Draco sharply glance at Harry. "So what my friends aren't dead. They're too busy with making plans and romancing each other to even be around. Since last year, that shit's been the furthest thing from my mind. It's hard, trying to switch back to being a boy when I'm already a man inside."

The two exchanged one long, intense look before Draco finally glanced away. "So, you're jealous of what they have? That they can go on with their lives while you're stuck in the past?" Draco's lips curled into a wry smile. "At least they're going on with their lives. Maybe you should take a lesson from them."

"You could too. Why have you given up, Malfoy? You never have before."

"Let's see. I'm the last remaining Malfoy alive and no one trusts me. Everywhere I go, I'm glared at and whispered about. My personality is terrible and most people can't stand to be in my presence because they don't understand that that's how I am, no matter who I'm with. I have my looks going for me at least but do I honestly want to have relationships based on appearances? Oh, but there's that tiny fact that my body's scarred in numerous places so that makes me pretty hideous. Let's not forget that this body has also been used and abused thousands of times in the past," Draco sneered at himself. "Answer your question yourself."

"There are people who aren't bothered by your personality and there are even people who wouldn't be disgusted by the scars." Harry sadly smiled. "You just can't give up. There is someone. You just have to look."

"Are you talking about yourself, Potter?" Draco arched a brow in Harry's direction.

Harry hned. "Not on your life. That would be the prank of the millennium. A Potter and a Malfoy." The train came to a stop and Harry felt himself disappointed. "We don't have to keep fighting just because of who we are. We can be friends."

"...I don't know about that Potter. Your fan-club might not like that." Standing, Draco smiled. Harry was taken aback by that smile, gob-smacked that it was a real smile, not one of Draco's notorious superiority ones. "I might consider your offer though. Just don't expect anything from it. I can't guarantee I'll even be around long enough to try."

Draco turned to walk away when Harry's hand intercepted him. "Don't you even dare commit suicide."

"Who's going to save me? I won't be missed."

"You will be missed. I'll miss you and yes, I will save you. Only if you can save me as well."

"You're pretty desperate, aren't you?" Draco took hold of Harry's hand, letting it linger in his own for a couple of seconds. "How can I save you when I can't even save myself? Face it, Potter, I'm doomed. Death is the only sanctuary left for me."

"Don't say that," Harry whispered, eyes betraying concern. "Death is never the only option."

"To some, it is. I'll see you around, Potter."

Harry watched Draco go, a gnawing at his heart had his stomach knotting into hundreds of tangles. Draco wouldn't kill himself. He just wouldn't. He was too strong for that. Harry frowned. Why did he even care what Draco Malfoy did? Was it because he'd seen too much death? Or was it because he knew that Draco was the only that could understand him? The reason, no matter how unclear, pointed at Harry saving Draco.

XXX

Short chapter, I am aware. However, depending on reviews, the length will steadily rise ;)