Harry looked around his room. It wasn't a room, actually, jut a cave. But Harry did not look at it like that anymore. It was large enough for him to live comfortably, or as comfortably as one could live in a cave. He had things he needed, like his clothes, as he had had time to pack his trunk, and things like scissors, and a basin. The basin lay unused, as Harry did not have water, but he left it outside when it rained so he had something to drink and wash with.

He had brought two blankets, which he laid out on a flat rock like a bed. They were thin and ragged now, after five years of constant use, but they kept Harry warm at night.

He smiled as he looked around. He was probably living better now than he had with the Dursleys all those years. One corner, hidden from the wind and rain that sometimes blew in, was filled with newspapers, some with articles missing, some without. Five years worth of newspapers, many yellowed and faded, were Harry's only form of entertainment and communication with the outside world.

Another corner held his bed and his clothes. Both of them were hidden from view of the door, in case someone decided to take a hike up the hill and glanced inside the cave.

Along with reading newspapers, Harry also spent a lot of time experimenting with his wand, and perfecting spells he already knew, in case he ever became part of the wizarding society again.

He looked at his watch when he woke up the next morning. It read 10:30. he got up, washed his face and grumbled at his now rusty razor that he had stolen a few months earlier (it was completely useless now), and ate the small amount of stale bread he had left for the week. He was still hungry, but he always was these days. He ignored it now, though there was always a dull ache in his stomach.

At 10:45 sharp, at the flick of a wand, he found himself in a small room of an inn. It was empty, but bright. Light poured in the window. He quickly went to it, but stayed hidden from it. His seeker eyes scanned the street for any unusual activity. Not that Harry would recognize unusual activity any more, but he checked anyway. There was no one but a young woman walking quickly out of a store at the corner of the street, a homeless man leaning against the wall of a building across the street from Harry, and a few people sitting on picnic blankets in the park across the street, all facing away from Harry.

He sat down on the end of the bed. It seemed unnaturally soft. He looked around the room. A small table beside the bed, a mirror over a small desk near the door. It did not appear as though anyone was staying there.

Harry lay down on the bed. Ti felt so soft, and he immediately felt as though he was going to fall asleep. Just as he was about to, he heard a key in the door. He sat up. Cho was standing there, a hand over her mouth, a bag hanging limply in the other.

Harry stood up. "Cho." He said. Her name felt strange in his mouth.

She dropped her bag and ran over and hugged him. That felt even more strange than saying her name. He had not touched another person in five years, and Cho had been the last person. He felt her arms around him, listened to her breathing, felt her heartbeat against him.

She pulled away. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

Harry smiled, glad to hear her voice, even if he could not remember what it sounded like anymore. "It's alright." He said.

She shook her head and touched Harry's face. "God, you look like hell."

"Thanks." He said, as she hugged him again.

She smiled. "I brought you some food. I've got a bit of fresh milk for today, some dried meat, bread, and vegetables. I hope it is enough." She picked it up. "Here." She said, handing it to him.

Harry grinned as he took it. "Thanks!" He said.

Cho looked at him as he started to eat. He knew what she was looking at. He had caught sight of himself in the mirror by the door. His eyes were sunken incredibly, his skin was waxen. Though he attempted to bathe with his basin, his hair was still greasy and slightly matted, and his face and hands were the only really clean part of him. He looked back at her silently as he ate. The food tasted good.

"Are you going to say anything other than 'thanks?'" She asked after a moment.

Harry swallowed. "What do you want me to say?"

Cho smiled. "What have you been doing?" She asked.

"Hiding."

Cho frowned. "Don't joke, Harry."

He looked at her. "I snuck down to town at the beginning, but it was too risky to do it very often. I started sending Hedwig down, but I can't send her that often. It would get suspicious. Now I only get to sneak down every few weeks or so."

Cho looked at him, shocked. "What do you eat?"

Harry shrugged. "I go hungry a lot. I get a loaf of bread or two every time I go down to town, and I try to find some dried meat. There is an apple tree growing behind one of the houses. I go there as often as I can, but it only fruits once a year, and I can't take too many. I don't live that badly," he said to the look on Cho's face. "I keep a pretty clean..." he paused. "cave." He said quietly.

"It's not even that bad. The worst part is that I haven't seen my friends in years. I barely remember what they look or sound like. I can barely remember many things we have done together. I have nothing to spark my memory.

"I don't know if they even remember me, or if they just hate me." He stopped talking.

There was a long pause in the conversation. Neither of them really knew what to say.

"They hate you." Cho said quietly, looking at the floor. "They are scared of you, Harry. So am I."

Harry stood up. "Did you tell someone about this? Is someone going to burst in and arrest me?" He demanded.

Cho shook her head quickly. "That's not what I meant, Harry. Sit down."

He stood for a moment, then sat back down where he had been before.

"We were afraid that you would turn up one day to kill us. For a long time, none of us went anywhere without our wand and another wizard. It took me a while to decide if I believed you or not. I think the only reason that I did was that you looked truly scared when you left me."

Harry nodded. "That's why I need your help. I need to convince them otherwise."

Cho looked at him helplessly. "Harry, what am I going to tell them?"

Harry sighed. "You need to make sure they know I am not trying to kill them, right? Well, you have spent all this time with me, no one knows we are here, and I still have not killed you! I have known where they were for five years now, and I have not even tried to do anything to them, or anyone. If it was such a big deal to try and kill them in the first place, why wouldn't I try again?"

"I can just improvise with that."

"No!" Harry snapped. "Not one white lie about me, where I am, how much you know, anything. I don't want to make any mistakes. Then they will never believe me."

Cho stood up. "I've got to go home, Harry. Take a shower, clean yourself up. I will come back in an hour to check out. I'll tell the innkeeper that the meeting I was in town for was cancelled.

Harry stood up as well, to say goodbye. Cho hugged him and didn't let go for a long time. "I've missed you, Harry." She said. "It feels so strange, seeing you again. It was such a long time ago that I forced you out of my mind. I told myself that I would never see you again, that that was a good thing. But when I got your letter, it was everything I had dreamed of in all these years. Goodbye, Harry." She paused. "I will talk to you again. I don't know how soon, but I will."

Harry smiled. "Thanks, Cho." He said. "How can I ever repay you?"

Cho smiled. "You sound like some silly romance movie." She made eye contact with him. "It would be silly to make you pay for kindness. You are my friend, and you always have been. I may have forgotten it for a while, but it was there the whole time. And hopefully, it will be with Ron and Hermione too."

"Thanks. Bye, Cho." They hugged once more.

"Bye Harry." Cho said, stepping back from him and waving. She disappeared within a heartbeat.

Harry showered and picked up his bag of food. He took one sad glance at the bed, and was gone.

Three weeks later, he got a letter from Cho.

Dear Harry:

I don't know how to explain this. I am just going to write out pretty much exactly what happened.

I invited Hermione and Ron over for drinks last week. They both came. When they were both comfortable, I said it.

"I saw Harry two weeks ago." I said.

Hermione asked me where. When did you come out of hiding?

I told her you didn't. I said that you had contacted me, and that I talked to you.

They said I was insane and lucky to be here. Ron didn't actually say anything. He just looked shocked.

"The Ministry said he was dead." He said.

"Well, we know better than anyone else, you can't trust the Ministry." Hermione said.

I told them that you were innocent, and everything you told me to say.

At that point, Hermione said she had to go home and think about it. She and Ron both left.

Hermione sent me an owl this week. She said that she and Ron had talked about it, and they believed me. But they want to see you first.

I hope that is alright. I was wondering if we could come there. It is really expensive to rent a room every time. I promise you, I am not going to turn you over to the police, and I will make sure Hermione and Ron agree to that.

Please write back.

-Cho

Harry instantly wrote back.

Dear Cho:

I would like to say that you could come to my cave, but I cannot until I have spoken to Hermione and Ron. I don't have any money with me, but I can pay you out of Gringotts, if I ever get a chance, I promise.

Please, rent the same room. This will be the last time.

-Harry

Almost a week later, Harry apparated into a room that was almost an exact mirror image of the last one, just with a different painting on the wall, and a different view out the window.

Harry was looking out the window at the back of the building behind the inn when the door opened. He turned around to see Hermione and Ron staring at him.

After Hermione calmed down and Ron closed his hanging open mouth, they got talking. They finally believed him, if reluctantly at first.

"That's all I can say." Harry said after telling them his story. "There is nothing else to it. I was framed, I did not try to kill anyone. I promise. Besides, what would I want to kill you guys for anyway?"

Hermione and Ron glanced at each other. "How do we know to trust you?" Hermione asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

Harry look at her, pleadingly. "Hermione, when have I led you wrong? When have I lied to you?"

"Pretty often, I remember." Said Ron.

Harry sighed. "But I never tried to hurt you. You know I have even risked my life to save you! Why would I then go and try to kill you?"

They looked at him. "I'm your best friend, Ron. Don't you believe me?"

They stared at him for a moment. "What do you want us to do?" Hermione asked with a sigh.

Cho clapped her hands together and Harry hugged Hermione. "Thank you so much!" He said.

Hermione pointed a finger at him. "If you ever try to kill me, I will never forgive you." She said sternly.

Harry grinned. "I promise, it will never happen." He said.

Ron nodded. "I think that's fair."

Harry grinned again. "Nice to see you, Ron." He said.

Ron smiled. "Nice to see you too, Harry."

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Hmm... so maybe I didn't get this chapter up that weekend. Maybe I took a month and a half... don't hate me! I'm sorry!

Lady of Masbolle: I'm glad you like it!

FSI: ooh... I'm glad you found it so good that you needed to use caps lock... happy!

Well, 'tis all for now. I hope you all enjoy it, and I will get the next chapter up when I have time! Yay!

"If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason."

-unolimbo