Chapter two: snow cold words

I've played the game

I've rolled the dice

You're words, they cut me

As cold as ice

Draco was slumped against a rock, fiddling with a piece of dead grass as his silvery gaze drank in his surroundings. The pale sun shining down on him made him look so small and vulnerable as the harsh wind cut against his skin and pinched is nose and cheeks a vibrant shade of red. Harry felt slightly awkward as he froze in the thin layer of icy snow that covered the hilltop. He didn't want to break this heavenly picture of Draco. However the picture was broken when Draco's voice rang out with an edge to it, that Harry had never heard before. "Why did you follow me?" Draco's voice cracked through the cold air like a whip. He didn't turn around to face his boyfriend.

"I wanted to see if you were alright," Harry admitted walking over and seating himself down beside Draco, wincing as the ice burnt his skin raw through his pyjama bottoms.

"Of course I'm not alright! How could I be? The way she was looking at you…" Draco trailed off and sniffed a tear creeping into the corner of his eye. He shook his head in disgust as his memory rewound to how Ginny had flirted shamelessly with his boyfriend, "sometimes I think it would be better if none of this had ever happened"

"Wh-what do you mean?" Harry's heart jerked. Draco couldn't mean … could he? "You don't mean…?"

Draco bowed his head his heart aching painfully within his chest. But he had started so he may as well finish, "I'm sorry Harry …"

"Sorry?" Draco jumped at the raised voice of his companion. He turned to face a distraught Harry. He cringed. He had never seen Harry this angry before. And they had fought a lot over the years. He looked away feeling ashamed and worhtless. He couldn't bring himself to look into Harry's blazing eyes. "Y-YOU THINK S-SORRY WILL C-CUT IT?"

"That's not what I-"

"YOU KNOW WHAT? DON'T TALK TO ME. EVER!!!"

"Harry-" Draco wanted to explain to Harry. He had just taken it the wrong way.

"I SAID 'DON'T TALK TO ME'!!!" and with that, Harry ran from the hill, his furious green eyes glazed with angry tears. Draco stood frozen for a moment or two before he raced down the hill after Harry. I can't let him go! Draco mentally screamed as he slipped and skidded on patched of sleek ice. I can't lose him to ... HER!!! However as he came down the hill, Harry was nowhere in sight. He felt his heart sink lower in his chest as he bowed his head to the wind. He felt as though he had lost already as he stared up at the grim shaded window's of the Burrow.

The sound of the kitchen door banging open alerted the trio of teenagers in the living room. They all craned their heads just in time to see Harry bolt up the stairs the sound of sobbing faintly heard over his thundering footsteps. "I'll go and check on him" Hermione said softly, patting Ron's knee as she stood up and followed Harry upstairs.

A few seconds after Draco crashed through the front door alerting Ginny and Ron to his arrival. "Where's … Harry?" he gasped urgently.

"He ran upstairs, Hermione's with him. I suggest you leave him alone … Malfoy" Ron hissed coldly. He had been growing to accept Draco and then this happened. Whatever 'this' was. Draco sighed and shook with tears. He ran up into one of the many bedrooms, curled up in a corner and cried.

In Harry's room …

"Harry?"

"G-g-go away H-Herm-Hermione-e…" Harry wailed his breathing short and heavy.

Hermione sat down next to him on the bed and rested a hand on his quivering shoulder, "what happened?" she asked gently.

"H-he said … I-it would b-be better off-f … I-if none of t-this had hap-happened …" Hermione cringed at the aching sobs that wracked through Harry's body.

"Do you want me to go?" Harry nodded against the pillow. Hermione stood and slowly made for the door. She turned before closing it, mouth open to say something. She snapped her mouth shut along with the door. "Best leave him to it" she searched the whole housetop to bottom until she found the wreck that once was Draco Malfoy. "How could you say such a thing to Harry?" she hissed sharply, making the older boy cringe as he wiped hot tear tracks from his cheeks.

"I didn't mean to!" he snapped, "I was angry and it sort of … slipped out"

"Well you've hurt him badly!"

Draco hurried clumsily to her feet "I should go and apologise!" he made for the door but was winded as Hermione stopped him with her arm.

"No! Let him cry it out, okay? You both need to calm down so that you can think straight"

Draco wasn't satisfied with the answer, she could tell, but he slumped against her sobbing nonetheless "I do love him, Hermione, I really do"

Uncharacteristically Hermione began to soothingly stroke the blonde's hair "I know you do, and do you know what else I know"

"W-what?" the blonde looked up into Hermione's deep brown eyes.

"I know that he loves you too"