Sorry for the long wait. I had to wait for inspiration to come...and of course it chooses the coldest day to do so.

Chapter Three:

Draco sighed as he headed back towards his office. Giving reports on people that had at one time been his allies was getting harder to do. He kept having to give more information and he was afraid that sooner or later it would all come back to haunt him or destroy him. What he really wanted now was a nice cup of…

Draco trailed his thought off as he looked at his slightly open door. He knew he had closed it and locked it when he had headed to the meeting. Draco swallowed past the lump in his throat and pushed the door open. He let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding.

Potter was sitting behind his desk.

"You look like the weight of the world was just taken off you shoulders." Harry commented as he looked up from a file he had been examining.

"Uh…yeah." Draco replied uncharismatic. "What are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to get some lunch or dinner I guess," Harry started as he looked at his watch. "It's been about a week and I could use the company."

Draco cocked a brow in wonder. Why was Harry asking him for company? Why wouldn't he want to spend time with Granger or Weasley? Draco looked up from his pondering thoughts to see a small frown on Harry's face that Draco guessed he wasn't suppose to see.

"I mean…if you don't want to I'll just go." Harry quickly said moving around the desk.

"No, I mean…yes, I'd like to go to lunch. Sorry, I just got caught up in thinking about something." Draco replied just as quickly. He caught the smile on Harry's lips before the man pulled out a blank look. Draco laughed in his head; the man could have been a Slytherin for doing things like that.

"Do you know any good places around here? I don't come this way often." Harry remarked as he placed a transfiguration charm on his features, which turned him into looking like a cousin of the Malfoys.

Draco looked at the man curiously before responding. "You mean you go out at all?"

Harry shrugged as they walked down the hall. "I went into the garden Wednesday."

"And how was that?" Draco asked politely. Truthfully he didn't care, but Potter looked like it was a triumph.

"Dead," Harry replied after a moment of thought. "Everything in the garden was dead."

Draco didn't reply and instead waited for the elevator doors to open. He entered and turned to find Harry giving the woman in the elevator a wary look as he positioned himself next to Draco. Draco turned from Harry to the woman to find no other than Hermione. Draco cursed his luck.

"How are you today, Malfoy?" Hermione asked curtly. There was a polite tone to her voice but Malfoy could tell it was forced.

"I'm doing alright."

Hermione's eyes flickered over Harry with interest. "Who is this?"

"My cousin Rigel, he's from France and is visiting." Draco replied quickly. He hoped not too quickly with the look Hermione was giving them. She muttered something to herself and got off at the next floor.

Harry let out a sigh as the doors closed. "Rigel?"

"I was trying to think quickly." Draco defended. "Besides, it wouldn't have hurt you to say something to her."

Harry's face became crestfallen. "I…can't." Draco gave him a curious look but waited for the man to speak again. "I…can't talk to any of them. It just doesn't feel right. To know that they'd want to congratulate me for something I don't want to be congratulated on. To know that they expect me to be happy with what I've done." Harry turned his eyes to Draco. "I've murdered someone Draco, that doesn't sit easy with me. Perhaps I should have been the one to die."

Draco watched as Harry silently ranted. He had thought that the numbness was lifting from the man's heart. However, it seemed that it was actually freezing it. Draco laid a hand on Harry's arm as the elevator doors opened. "You weren't supposed to die, that's why you're still here."

Harry let himself be dragged out of the elevator and through the lobby in silence. Draco's words were so simple but they struck a cord somewhere inside of him. A cord that was carrying itself to his brain and slowly getting it to work again, making it work again.

They exited through the doors and Draco let go of Harry's arm and turned to him. "What do you feel like eating?"

"Soup."

Draco gave Harry a look that questioned his sanity. "Isn't soup for the ill?"

"I'm ill in the head." Harry offered. Draco shrugged and began walking. Harry followed closely behind, his eyes scanning the area around him. It was a warm night and the little breeze that came by every often was a nice touch. "I like this part of town."

Draco glanced at Harry over his shoulder. "I do as well. That's why I've chosen to live here."

Harry caught up to Draco to walk next to him. "You live here? I thought you would still live at Malfoy manner."

Draco frowned. "You have been living the life of a hermit haven't you? I had a falling out with my parents."

"How was I supposed to know that?"

"It was plastered all over the front of the Daily Prophet." Draco sneered.

Harry shrugged. "Well, as we have established, I've been living in a box."

"Yes…yes you have." Draco agreed as they came upon an Italian restaurant. Draco led them inside and they were seated immediately. Draco looked over the wine list as Harry scanned the menu. Harry was glad that he had the guise up; there were a lot of wizards and witches here. Harry cast an uneasy look over the current occupants of the room, hoping none of them was looking for someone under a charm.

"You're awfully jumpy tonight." Draco remarked calmly.

"I'm nervous being out in public this much." Harry answered quietly. "I don't belong."

The thump of the edge of the wine menu on the table caught Harry's attention. He met Draco's cold eyes and swallowed. "Harry, you can't fight the numbness by saying things like that. It just doesn't work."

Harry tore his eyes away and looked out the window they were seated by. "I don't know what else to do. That's what's constantly on my mind."

"You must not have anything interesting to think about then." Draco muttered. "It helped me by going back to school but you don't exactly have that option. That's why I suggested that you get a job, but I can see that you haven't exactly done that. So tell me Po-Harry, what have you done since the last time I saw you?"

Harry sighed as he met Draco's eyes again. "I went out into the garden. I shuffled around the house, read a book, stayed in bed."

Draco frowned. "When was the last time you truly ate a substantial meal?"

"I guess last time I was with you. I've just been picking at things otherwise." Harry remarked quietly.

Draco looked at the man with a serene gaze. He really did want to help Harry out of this predicament. Truly he did. And it seemed that Harry wanted it to with all the information that he was giving him. Draco tore away from his thoughts as Harry began speaking again.

"I kept feeling the numbness all this week. I'd try to break free of it but I felt as if it was pulling be back deeper each time."

"Well at least you're fighting it."

"Poorly," Harry said as he flinched. "I had a dream the other night about…him."

Draco scoffed. "Harry, why are you refusing to say his name? In school you had no problems with it."

"It doesn't feel right to say it."

"Nothing feels right to you right now." Draco reminded him. Harry shrugged in answer. "What was your dream about?"

Harry waited for them to give their order to the waiter and for him to leave before he began speaking. "It was about the final battle, only…I was hearing him in my head the whole time it was happening. He was telling me things like…this is right…this is what you were living for…I died, so should you."

Harry looked up from his napkin to see Draco frowning at him. "You think that the only reason why you were living was to face down Voldemort?"

"No..."

"That's what it seems like to me." Draco interjected. "It seems that you just can't let the past be the past."

"That's not it at all!" Harry hissed. "I want to forget all of it." Harry rose from his seat. "This was a bad idea, I'm sorry Draco."

Draco got up with a sigh and followed Harry out. He found the man standing in the dark outside of the restaurant his head raised to the stars. Draco watched him from the top of the stairs to see a deadened look in the man's eyes.

And then Harry sank to the ground and cried.

It was quite soft wherever he was lying. He rolled over on his side and smelt the unfamiliar smell of sheets that surely did not belong to him. He opened his eyes to a room with white walls and blue accents. His breath about froze right there. Harry quickly sat up and scanned the rest of the room. It looked normal enough. He glanced down at himself and saw he was still fully dressed from last night. Slowly he made his way out of the room and opened the door into a brightly lit hallway.

His eyes were burning. After only being in his darkened house the light was almost blinding. However, he didn't have long to dwell on his watering eyes. The stench of food was wafting up from the kitchen and his stomach growled in protest of not being fed in…a while.

Harry made his way down the spiral stairs and into a foyer which dumped into a comfortable sitting area attached to dinning and a library. Harry walked through the sitting area to find a kitchen on the backside of the house, brightly lit as well. Harry squinted as he entered.

"Glad to see you're awake."

Harry's eyes popped open at the sound of Draco. He looked towards the stove and sure enough there was the blonde watching the eggs as they turned themselves over. Harry leaned against the counter and watched them too. "Where am I?"

"My house." Draco replied simply.

Harry studied his face. The man didn't look mad. "I'm sorry about last night."

Draco shrugged in answer. "You really couldn't help it, I understand."

Harry looked around the kitchen in answer. The counters, walls, cabinets, and floors were all white with stainless appliances and windows all along the backside of the room and eating room to reveal a very green…and living…backyard. "You have a nice house."

"I enjoy it." Draco replied with a smile before he shooed Harry to the table. Harry complied and sank into one of the high back chairs as a plate of food levitated to where he sat. They ate in silence, Harry still casually observing. "Does my house interest you that much?"

"Yes, it's very different from where I live." Harry replied now realizing that the disgusted look Draco had given Harry upon first barging into his house had been because it was so dark. "I keep expecting some blonde woman to show up."

Draco paused in the sipping of his coffee and fixed his eyes on Harry. He slowly lowered the cup to the table. "You have been living the life of a hermit."

Harry looked at him with a confused gaze.

Draco sighed as he stood up. "Never mind, you said you didn't know about my parent's and I falling out of touch so you wouldn't know why. I have to head to the office to pick up some papers. I should be back within an hour. You can stay here of leave, I really don't care."

Harry watched as Draco made his way through the library and towards the front door with a wave. Harry finished chewing his eggs and then looked outside. After a shower he would go outside.

Draco returned to a quiet house. He sighed as he locked the door. He hadn't really expected Harry to stay, but it would have been nice. Draco made his way to the kitchen to find a sandwich lying on the table where he had sat this morning. Draco glanced around his kitchen before sitting down and eating it. He was pretty sure the Houselves hadn't prepared it.

He looked towards his backdoor to find it slightly ajar. Draco let a small smile take his lips. He was becoming familiar with the habits of a certain person and not closing a door all the way was one of them. He quickly finished up his lunch and made his way out into the backyard deck. Draco looked over the railing into the small grass area to find Harry lying on his back…staring at him.

"How did the trip to the office go?"

"Uneventful." Draco replied nonchalantly. "What have you done?"

"Nothing, made you lunch and laid out here." Harry replied getting up and turning to look at him in a sitting position. Draco moved down the stairs to join him. He sat next to Harry and looked at the trees, a calm smile upon his face.

"Thank you for lunch."

"You're welcome." Harry replied quietly. "It was the least I could do for you letting me stay here last night."

"Well then I'll be expecting food prepared everyday."

Harry looked at him blankly.

"Harry, it seems to me that the numbness gets better when you talk to someone and since I seem to be the only one you feel comfortable talking to right now it would make sense for you to stay here with me." Draco explained.

Harry gave him a light smile that almost met his eyes. "I'd like that."

I don't know why but I really like the ending and how its serene, peaceful, and calm for our two boys.

Now if you're excuse me I'm going to go and try to get feeling back into my hands.

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