Disclaimer: See first chapter

Beta by: Cyane Snape (Thank you so much!)

Chapter 3

Draco woke up to the sensation of someone shaking him gently and calling his name. Opening his eyes, he was greeted with the shimmering image of the ghost, Harry, kneeling in front of him and those green eyes staring deeply into his. Hmm, he has beautiful eyes thought Draco. Just as he finished that thought, a smile formed on Harry's face.

"And what are you smiling about, Harry?" Draco asked, a frown on his face.

Harry just shook his head, let go of Draco and returned to his seat once more. "Nothing, Draco, and before you say anything, I didn't smile because of your reaction. I think that's a usual reaction for anyone," he replied, a smile still plastered on his face.

"Stop smiling, for Merlin's sake," growled Draco, becoming annoyed by that smile.

Harry's smile disappeared immediately and his face now carried a cool expression. "Well, now that you're awake, should I continue with my explanation? You're not going to faint again are you?" Harry asked.

"No, I'm not. I think I've done enough of that for the day. Very well, continue."

"As I've said, I'm a wizard. That's what makes me different from the other ghosts. Due to my magic, I could make myself like any other human. To do so will drain some of my magic levels but, because I'm… well, let's just say that I'm a powerful wizard and it doesn't really matter."

Draco nodded his head, signaling that he understood what Harry had said. "Then what about me being here? I mean you were really surprised when I said I'm not a wizard."

"Ah well, that's just the thing. The picture in the paper is protected by a charm, a charm that would allow only a wizard to see it. That's why I'm surprised when you say you're not a wizard. All of the previous residents here have always been wizards," explained Harry.

"What?" exclaimed Draco, "That's… that's impossible! I mean, I could clearly see the picture and I'm definitely not a wizard!"

"Calm down, Draco. I'm not saying you're a wizard like me. I'm just as surprised as you are. Maybe because you're special, that makes you able to see it," replied Harry with a grin on his face.

Draco frowned at Harry. "And what, pray tell, do you mean by that?" Before Harry could open his mouth and answer, Draco cut him off. "Wait, don't answer that. Of course I'm special, after all I am a Malfoy. We Malfoys are always special," Draco said, smirking.

Harry giggled at this. "Well then, now that we've confirmed that, do you have any questions for me? I mean, surely you must have some."

"Of course I do. First things first, is Michael a wizard … seeing that you two are friends?"

"No, Michael is not a wizard. He's a friend of Luke, the previous agent that took care of this house. When he retired, he recommended Michael to me. Michael's reaction when he first arrived here was worse than yours. I still remember it clearly. He was brought here by Luke to talk to me, though at that time he didn't know that I was a ghost. So they were talking and waiting for me to arrive. I popped up in front of them and Michael was pale as a sheet. He screamed like a girl, and then fainted. Luke woke him up but when he saw me, he screamed once more and fainted again. It took us quite a while to calm him down," Harry said, grinning while he explained.

Draco shook his head, smiling all the time. "Well, I'm glad that I didn't react as badly as he did."

"Yeah, I'm sure you are. After that, things got much better, I must say. It took him quite a while to get used to me, but then that's expected. Now he's used to me. He comes here quite often, even when he's not on duty, just to update me with what's happening outside since I can't leave this house at all."

"What? You mean you can't leave the house?" asked Draco, surprised by the revelation.

"Yeah, that's what I mean. I don't really know why, though. I mean, the others can step out of this house and go wherever they like. For me, I can't even step outside. When I do try to leave, it's like there's some kind of invisible wall that prevents me from going."

"Wait a second," Draco said. "What do you mean by 'the others'?"

"Ah… well, I mean what I said. When I said 'the others', it basically means the other ghosts that live here."

"What! You mean… you mean there are more of you here?" shrieked Draco.

Harry looked at him in sympathy. He knew Draco had enough surprises for one day but he might as well get on with it. It would be better to tell Draco now rather than later when one of the others suddenly popped in.

"I know you've been forced to deal with a lot today but it will be better for you to be prepared now rather than later. To answer your question, yes, there are more of us here."

Draco rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming. "And pray tell Harry, just how many are there?"

"Well, including me, there are seven of us here."

"Good God! Seven! Did you say seven!"

Harry sighed. Draco was becoming hysterical at this point and the ghost knew he had to calm the blond down. "Calm down, Draco. Yes, you heard right. There are seven of us here. It's not as bad as it sounds though, trust me on this."

"Not as bad as it sounds! Are you out of your mind? One of you is enough, but seven?!"

Harry stood up from his seat and walked to Draco. Kneeling in front of him, he took Draco's hands and held them between his. "Hey, calm down. I meant what I said. Have you wondered why you haven't seen them? That's because I told them not to bother you just yet. I know how hard this must be for you; knowing that you're not alone when you think you are. I know you chose this house because you wanted some peace and quiet in your life. That's why I told them not to come out yet. Only when you're ready will I tell them that it's ok to come out. After all, you bought this house and we respect that. You won't have to meet them until you're ready, ok?" Harry explained softly.

Draco sighed. "I… Thank you. You don't know how much I appreciate you doing that for me."

Harry just smiled softly at him, never letting go of his hands. "You don't have to thank me. I know this must come as a shock to you and I just want you to get used to the idea of not living alone before you meet them."

Draco smiled in reply. He really appreciated what Harry had done for him. "No, you're wrong. I do have to thank you. It's been so long since someone care about my feelings as a person."

"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked.

"People that worked for me, they never cared. They never bothered to see me beyond the façade. I know, I couldn't blame them for this because it's partly my fault. But I miss that feeling, the feeling of having someone care about you because you're a person like them and not because you're one of the most influential people in the business," Draco explained.

"That's why I chose to move here. I wanted to get away from all the attention. I don't have to go to my office unless I want to. I could do all my work without having to step outside this house. Many people questioned my decision to move here, you know. They talked to me and tried to change my mind. They couldn't understand why I wanted to move to a secluded place like this. But of course they wouldn't. After all, they think my life is glamorous; getting invited to all the most influential parties, having people flock to you and worship you like you're a god. They couldn't see that I didn't want any of that. I mean, I love what I do, but I never asked for all that attention. I hate it when people worship me. I just wanted to be like everybody else and live normally, but they can't understand that," explained Draco.

"They think I like all the attention. If I could, I would give it all up. But I can't. It comes with the job and I don't want to give up what I've worked so hard to achieve. That's why I chose to move. I want to get away. I couldn't stand any more of it," Draco finished softly. He had his eyes fixed downwards as he didn't want to see the pity that Harry must have felt for him.

Harry grasped his hand tighter and moved one of his hands. He reached out and cupped Draco's face, slowing tipping it upwards and their eyes locked together once more. Draco looked carefully at the man that was still kneeling in front of him. He didn't see a look of pity in those eyes, instead, was that understanding?

Being this close to someone made Draco somehow nervous. It had been a long time since he had a person so near to him. Not that he minded of course, but he was surprised by his own reaction. Usually he would draw himself away, but with Harry, he didn't feel the need to. Though they had only met today, deep inside he knew Harry wouldn't use him like others did. After all, what would Harry use him for? Others used him for publicity and money, but Harry didn't need those. Why would he anyway, seeing that he couldn't even leave the house?

Meanwhile Harry was deep in thought as well. It scared him how comfortable he was with Draco. Never had he felt so attracted to a person before. When he was still alive, he was too busy thinking how to defeat Voldemort and therefore didn't care so much about having a relationship. He had good friends and that was more than enough for him. But since Draco had arrived two weeks ago, Harry had watched him. Since the moment Draco stepped inside the house, Harry could feel an attraction to him. But who wouldn't be affected by his masculine beauty?

With that gorgeous blond hair, grey eyes and nice build, anyone would be drawn to him. Harry had kept a close watch on Draco for the last two weeks and day by day, Harry could feel his attraction growing. For the life of him, he didn't know why. He wasn't gay as far as he knew, so why did he felt that way towards Draco? And why was he so comfortable with him? Surely that must be weird. They had only met today for goodness sake.

Minutes passed before Draco broke their gaze and looked away. Draco was blushing but he didn't try to take his hand away from Harry's. Harry's thumb was now gently stroking Draco's check. Harry drew his hand away from Draco's face but still left his other hand grasping Draco's.

"I'm sorry," Draco said. "I shouldn't have said any of those things."

Harry just shook his head. "It's ok, Draco. I'm glad you told me that. You can talk to me about anything. I swear, I won't tell anyone."

Draco looked up and smiled. "Thank you."

Harry didn't want to let go of Draco but he did because he didn't want Draco to feel uncomfortable with him. Standing up, he couldn't miss the look of disappointment that flashed through Draco's face when he drew away.

Straightening his clothes, he moved back a little so Draco didn't have to tilt his head to look at him. "Well, I guess I should leave you alone now. I know you want to rest and gather your thoughts about what has happened today, so I won't bother you any longer."

Just when he was about to disappear, Draco spoke. "Will I see you again, Harry?"

Harry turned and smiled softly. "Of course you will, Draco. After all, I do live here. Anyway, if you want to see me, just call my name and I'll be here as soon as I can, okay?"

Draco, who was still sitting, nodded his head. "All right, I guess I'll see you around."

With one last smile directed at Draco, Harry disappeared, leaving Draco musing over his confusing thoughts.

A/N: I've a bad news everyone. I'm moving to a new apartment on the 21st this month and I won't have access to internet 'till early of next month. I apologise in advanced that it till take me a while to update. I'll see you guys next month :).

eMeRaLd86