"My goodness what in Merlin's name happened to you?"

Madam Pomfrey rushed over as soon as the two boys entered the Hospital Wing.

Harry watched as she grabbed Draco's face rather roughly, tilting it this way and that, examining his black eye and poking and prodding the rest of his body. He cringed and jumped and hissed but the woman was unfazed. Finally she took a step back and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Explain."

Draco remained silent and locked his eyes on the floor.

Madam Pomfrey cleared her throat and turned to face Harry with accusatory eyes.

Harry waved his hands wildly in front of himself in defense.

"It- it wasn't me professor, I swear."

"Well? Who was it then? I don't usually condone tattling, but this was no ordinary fist fight. I've practiced medical magic long enough to recognize injuries that have been caused by dark magic."

Neither of them opened their mouths and the school nurse eyed them both suspiciously before ordering Harry to bring Draco over and lay him on one of the beds. Harry was not about to say anything about what happened to Draco and risk breaking whatever trust he currently had in him so he stayed quiet.

"I need to at least know what happened, what spells were used in order to best assess your injuries Mr. Malfoy and give you the proper remedy."

Her tone was more motherly than malicious, but both boys knew from experience that she would find out the truth, using force if she had to.

Draco sat in bed and stared at his hands in his lap, clearly not wanting to admit that he was a victim of anything. The amount of pride that boy had never ceased to amaze Harry, but this time he didn't think it was pride so much as it was embarrassment, self-hatred, humiliation, fear maybe...

Harry didn't blame him, he would feel the exact same way had him and Draco switched places. Somehow though, he didn't think that Draco would have done the same for him.

Of course, he was starting to see Draco in a new light and the blonde had shown a little more trust in him than he thought he would have. There could maybe be a chance that Draco was feeling the same way, that he saw something in Harry now that he didn't before.

Madam Pomfrey repeated her question once more and made it clear that the healing process was going to be a lot more painful than it had to be if she was forced to guess what it was that happened.

Malfoy quivered a little at this idea and so did Harry. Madam Pomfrey could be very scary when she wanted to be.

Harry worried that Draco wouldn't say anything and would be in even more pain than he already was, and he couldn't say anything himself, it just wasn't his place.

Harry took a step closer to the bed and was about to give the boy a slight nudge but he was stopped by a quiet "crutiatus".

Draco never stopped looking at his hands and for a moment Madam Pomfrey didn't respond. Harry knew she had heard him though for her face turned to a look of disgust and then heartfelt understanding. She nodded as if those had been her original suspicions.

Draco hadn't mentioned that to Harry, but he had suspected as much. Something clearly had to have injured him since the death curse had only been used to terrify him.

Madam Pomfrey looked like she wanted to say something, but just then the phone started ringing. She stayed in place for a moment longer still eyeing the bruised boy sitting on the bed but then seemed satisfied enough with his response and went to answer the phone.

As soon as she was out of earshot Draco spoke.

"Why didn't you answer, tell her everything?"

He looked up into Harry's eyes and Harry couldn't read the expression on his face. He was confused. Had Draco really wanted him to say something? Didn't they establish a kind of trust up on the third floor?

"I…" He paused for a moment, thinking hard for an appropriate response. "I didn't know you wanted me to."

"Well I didn't." He responded a bit defensively. "I just… thought you would have."

Draco broke their gaze and went back to staring at his hands that were still locked tightly together in his lap.

Once again Harry found himself hurt by the lack of trust the other boy gave him. He needed to let him know that he really wasn't like that. He really wasn't going to do anything bad to him.

"It wasn't my place to say."

He looked at the blonde. "I honestly had no idea that you thought this low of me. Even if you hate me you should know me better than that."

"Tch! Of course I don't trust you! We were enemies before weren't we? You probably feel the same about me!" He growled, almost desperately, trying to keep his voice low.

Harry was speechless for a moment but then he understood. Of course. They were enemies. They both should feel an equal lack of distrust in each other. That would explain why Draco was so frustrated with Harry's unexpected behavior. They both knew how to act towards each other when they were enemies. But for some reason Harry wasn't as frustrated with his new feelings about the blonde as he clearly was. Maybe it was because he knew that things were different now, for everyone, they always would be.

This new life was so hard at times, and in so many ways the past was better. But when it came to this moment right now and the boy sitting in front of him, Harry realized that he didn't want things to be like they were before. They were too hard, too painful. He wanted things to change, to be different, be better. Draco needed to know that things were no longer the same between them, they couldn't be. Not if they wanted any chance at finding peace.

The silence became almost unbearable before Harry spoke up.

"Actually, I don't feel the same about you."

He was surprised at how easily the words flowed from his mouth but he couldn't bring himself to face to blonde just yet.

"Maybe I did at one point… but things are different now. It doesn't matter what it was like in the past, because the past is gone. Now we all have to find ways to move on from it."

He slowly raised his eyes to meet Draco's unreadable ones, a new wave of determination washing over him.

"I don't want things to be like they used to. I think things between us should change."

The blonde was caught off guard by his response, and before he could compose himself there was a click and Madam Pomfrey bustled back to take Harry aside.

"The Headmistress wants to see you in her office."

Harry nodded and glanced over the nurse's shoulder into confused silver eyes. He made his way to the exit and turned once more to face those same confused eyes still staring at him. He laughed once to himself at the blonde's almost cute expression and then turned away to make his way to the Headmistress's office.

Once past the spinning owl statue and up the winding stairs, Harry was greeted by glittering green eyes and a warm smile.

"Hello Professor Mcgonagall" Harry greeted with his own smile.

After the war, Mcgonagall had been appointed the roll of Headmistress at Hogwarts. Harry used to think that that was the scariest thing in the world, but he realized that the death of the beloved former headmaster had taken its toll on her just as it had on everyone else which in turn created a much softer, much more understanding woman. Harry knew she was always worried that she would never be able to fill the magnificent shoes that Dumbledore fitted, but he had faith in her.

"It's a pleasure to see you Mr. Potter" She said cheerfully. "Please sit down." She motioned to the chair in front of her desk and took a sip of her tea.

Harry smiled thankfully at her and sat down. He was very content in that moment, but then remembered what had happened no more than an hour before. He frowned and dropped his gaze as he replayed the scenes in his head. He had to tell her about this, she had to know what was going on.

The headmistress noted the change in moods, but continued smiling and reached across the desk to offer Harry a lemon drop. She had called him up here for a reason after all.

Harry stared at the bowl of lemon candies in front of him but then looked past it into curious forest green eyes.

"Professor… I..."

"Do you know why I called you here Harry?"

He closed his mouth for a moment, thinking. Mcgonagall never called anyone to her office without a reason.

She gently placed the untouched candy bowl back into its original position.

"There is a student here who has been having a lot of… difficulties lately. I believe you are familiar with him." She paused, giving Harry a chance to respond.

He didn't say anything, just waited, so she continued.

"Mr. Malfoy."

Harry jumped at this as she thought he might.

"Yes! Professor, today he—well, I'm sorry I went to the third floor, you can punish me if you must, but if I hadn't found him when I did…"

"Harry..."

"….and it was students from my own house no less!"

"Harry."

"I don't know what to do… I don't care that he is a Slytherin! It's just not right, and I-"

"MR. POTTER!"

Harry froze and realized that he was no longer sitting in his chair, but standing up with his hands flat on the desk leaning very close to the surprisingly collected woman in front of him. He blushed and sat back down in his chair, folding his hands tightly together.

"S-sorry professor, I… got a little carried away." He looked down at his hands in his lap, much like Draco did in the hospital wing, expecting to get scolded for yelling in the Headmistress's face. He looked up again though when he heard not a lecture, but laughter.

She laughed softly to herself for a moment but then regained her composure. Harry saw what he thought was a peculiar twinkle in her eyes, much like Dumbledore often had when he was secretly planning something. She cleared her throat before speaking again.

"Yes, well, I am very aware of what happened to Mr. Malfoy."

Her tone became serious. "This cannot happen again. Though much worse could have been committed, this is a very serious crime and I fear things will not be getting any better for him. The war may be over, but Mr. Malfoy has more enemies now than ever."

"But he is innocent!"

Harry found himself worked up once more and had to grip the armrests of his chair to keep from jumping out of it again.

"That may be true, but there are many blind souls out there who don't really care either way. They are just simply looking for someone to take their pain out on."

"But HE is in pain too! Probably more so than any of them, they couldn't possibly understand! They couldn't…." Harry trailed off.

He couldn't continue he was so exhausted from being so frustrated. He wanted to do something, to make them know how Draco felt, or at least realize that he wasn't the one to blame.

"But you can."

Mcgonagall finished Harry's last thought and gave him an understanding smile when he looked up at her.

Now he was fighting back tears. He was just glad that Draco wasn't here to see him weak like this. Not after he promised himself that he was going to be strong.

Mcgonagall continued as if she knew what he was thinking.

"You don't always have to be strong Harry. Don't try to forget that you were hurt too. Both you and Mr. Malfoy have known hurt on such a deep level. A level most people never have and never will experience. This hurt is unimaginable unless it has been experienced personally. That is something that you and Mr. Malfoy now share."

"I just don't know what to do…" Harry pleaded through tear filled eyes. "It won't go away." He was now sobbing and covered his face with his hands.

The headmistress spoke softer now.

"Many never heal from this sort of pain Harry. I don't want to see you go through that. I don't want to see Mr. Malfoy go through that."

Harry took a deep breath and stopped his tears. "I don't… I don't want to see him go through that either. No one should have to go through that. I would know. Why am I having feelings like this about him? We hated each other before."

The headmistress smiled softly.

"Oh, I don't think you ever hated one another. I think your true feelings might be deciding to make themselves known now because of what the two of you went through. Pain that is so immense that is shared can form an everlasting connection between people. I think that connection might be the key to being able to heal."

Harry was very confused by what she said and he also had a newly formed headache.

"Now, I assure you Mr. Potter that the students who are responsible for Mr. Malfoy's injuries will be rightfully punished, but I still fear that there are many more out there who wish to do him harm. I hate to ask this of you, but I don't think Mr. Malfoy should go anywhere without an escort for a while… at least until his injuries are healed."

Harry sighed. He had a feeling where this was going. He was going to be Draco's designated babysitter.

"I have an idea, though I'm not sure how much you'll like it. Harry, would you mind terribly moving into a two-person dormitory?"

That caught him off guard.

"Two-person dormitory?"

"Yes, it is a very special dormitory that I myself have created. It isn't a part of any house, and is located away from the other house dormitories."

Ok. Harry was seriously confused. A dormitory that isn't a part of any house? What would the point of that be? When he didn't speak up the professor continued.

"The reason I ask, is because I think it might be best if you and Mr. Malfoy were separated from your previous dorm mates. That way you would always have a safe place you can go to."

"Professor?"

"In other words, I would like you two to room together."

That immediately shook off Harry's confusion.

"Room with Draco?! I'm sorry professor, but I seriously doubt that he would ever consider rooming with me."

The headmistress raised an eyebrow when Harry used Draco's first name and eyed him curiously.

"Even after what happened between you two today?"

She sat patiently, waiting for a response.

Harry had to think about that. He had stopped Draco from getting…. and Draco even cried in front of him. He supposed that would have NEVER happened in a million years before the war. And he had even told him to call him by his first name….

"Well, I guess-"

"Then it's settled."

Harry choked. "What?! I didn't agree-"

"On the second floor you will find a statue of a gargoyle with the face of an angel. The password is slugwort. Your belongings are being transferred as we speak and I will inform Mr. Malfoy of his new accommodations."

"But- I-he-" Harry was so mixed up he couldn't even form a coherent sentence.

"I'm sorry Harry, but I really must be going. I'm sure you will find your new dormitory to your liking. I will check up on you soon and see how things are going."

She smiled a big smile before bustling out of the office, leaving Harry standing alone trying to figure out what it was that just happened. He stood there for a good 3 minutes in silence before it hit him like a ton of bricks and Harry thought for sure he was going to pass out.

It was simple. He was going to be living with Draco Malfoy.