The Seeker and the Snitch

T. K.: Hiya!

Neko: ANGST! MWHAHAHA!

T. K.: Ignore him, he hasn´t read the whole fic. Angst and sap.

Tsuki: You may want to brush you teeth after you finish this.

T. K.: I don´t own Harry Potter. I´m not really all that sure who does, with the exception of JKR. /blah/= flashbacks and /blah/ = dreams.

~~~~~~

"I´m sorry, but the injuries are grave and he`s just so weak, I don´t expect him to wake-up, Albus," Madam Pomfrey said in a low tone that only Professor Dumbledore could hear. Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, wasn´t expected to survive the night. Madam Pomfrey didn`t want to be the one to tell the people surrounding Harry, all the Seventh Year and part of the Sixth Year Gryffindors, of his condition. The old wizard nodded grimly.

"Thank you for at least trying, Poppy. You should probably see to Mr. Malfoy," he said patting her arm. "I´ll tell the others and his friends. Just make sure Harry's comfortable."

Behind a set curtains, he could just make out Professor Snape giving Draco Malfoy the talking down of a lifetime, Draco said something in a quiet voice that the Headmaster couldn´t hear. Snape didn´t say another word. Turning, Professor Dumbledore caught Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley´s eyes and motioned them to the far side of the room.

Ron took Hermoine´s hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze as they walked to where the Headmaster stood. "He going to be fine, right?" Ron asked as they stood in the quiet, darkened corner.

Professor Dumbledore looked at the pair standing hand in hand; the sparkle in his eye seemed to have disappeared. "I don´t think so Mr. Weasley. He is," Professor Dumbledore´s voice broke and looked as if he would give anything to trade places with Harry. Hermoine moved forward and hugged him.

"Thank you," she said, her word muffled in his beard. "Thank you for the truth." Hermoine stepped back. "We´ll tell the others, we know you have to tell the other professors as well as... oh, dear."

The unspoken name hung in the air.

"Bugger," Ron cursed.

Professor Dumbledore closed his eyes and sagged against the wall. "I concur. This will be Sirius´s undoing."

Behind them, someone let out a discreet cough. Hermoine glanced over her shoulder and she saw everyone watching them, Hermoine gave the dorm her best Head-Girl look. Everyone quickly looked away. Hermoine clasped Harry´s Head-Boy badge in her hand, praying that this was all a bad dream.

Ron sighed. "Well, `Moine---"

"Yes. We´d best tell them before they drag the news out of us. Excuse us, sir." Hermoine turned away and walked toward the other Gryffindors.

"I´ll be right there." Ron looked to Professor Dumbledore. "How did it happen?"

Professor Dumbledore looked at the stilled form. "I`m not sure, to be honest. Somehow Voldemort got into the school with a few of his Death Eaters; Harry was on one of his midnight walks---"

"You know about those, huh?" Ron asked glancing over his shoulder. Harry moaned and Ginny swept his hair back from his face.

"---And they just ran into each other," Professor Dumbledore finished. He then asked, "Why would Harry be in the Slytherin Dungeon at two in the morning?"

Draco Malfoy appeared, as if materializing from the shadows, and said, "I can answer that."

If looks could kill, Ron could have turn Draco to a pile of ashes. "What did you do, Malfoy? Challenge him to another wizard´s duel and then let You-Know-Who have him?"

Draco closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Ron studied him; his eyes were bruised and puffy and his cheeks had dirt and grime on them, but there were streaks cutting threw the patches. It looked as if he´d been crying; Ron shook his and reminded himself that this was Draco Malfoy. His shirt was open revealing scratches, bruises, and near his naval was a four inch long still healing cut. "His name was Voldemort," he said in the same long-suffering tone Harry used when Ron refused to say the Dark Lord´s name. "And you are wrong on both accusations, Weasley." Ron clenched his teeth and Professor Dumbledore was about to do something he rarely did... lose his patience. The last thing he wanted to do right now was to break up a fight between Ron and Draco. "Harry and I---"

Ron looking incensed and confused, cut Draco off, "Since when do you call him Harry?!"

"Since I started dating him, you git." Draco pursed his lips and wondered how badly Ron would be hurt by Harry´s lack of trust. Draco wiped ineffectively at his eyes, his body was rebelling and the tears just wouldn´t stop coming. Ron´s eyebrows shot up and his eyes grew as large as saucers. Draco continued, "He was walking me back to my dormitory when Voldemort found us."

"Draco," Professor Snape´s voice cut threw the darkness followed closely by Snape himself, "you need to be resting."

"In a moment, Severus," Professor Dumbledore said. "He was looking for you?" he asked Draco.

Draco shrugged slightly; careful not to re-injure his newly healed ribs. "Well it`s not like he said, `Ah, Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy, just the wizards I am looking for´." Draco gave choked sighed and said, "He just attacked us, and while Harry dueled with Voldemort I was dealing with the two Death Eaters.

"Harry´s wand turned into a sword and he ran Voldemort through. But before he died he cursed Harry once more, it threw him down the hall and then Voldemort died. Then Professor Snape showed up. When I finally managed, with the help of the Professor, to stop the two Death Eaters and get to Harry, he was unconscious and bleeding so badly I couldn´t tell one injury from the next." Draco stopped holding back the tears; Professor Snape looked at Professor Dumbledore who nodded. Professor Snape led Draco back to his bed. Draco said something that made Professor Snape´s back stiffen, the professor nodded and helped Draco into his bed.

Ron looked at Draco´s pitiful state one more time before Professor Snape closed the curtains.

"There you have it, Ron," Professor Dumbledore said cutting into his thoughts.

Ron nodded, blinking back his tears. "I think we´ll get the others out and let him..." Ron trailed off unsure of what to say. "We´ll just leave," he said.

"I´m sure Madam Pomfrey would appreciate that," Professor Dumbledore said.

Ron gave Professor Dumbledore a curious look and asked, "What will happen to You-Know--- Voldemort´s body?"

Dumbledore arch his eyebrows. "It will be burned and the ashes sealed in four magical boxes," he answered truthfully.

"And the Death Eaters? Who were they and what will happen to them?"

"One of them was Peter Pettigrew and the other I didn´t know. Pettigrew will hopefully clear Sirius´ name then turned back to a rat and kept at the Ministry of Magic until he dies and then his body burned. The other will face the same if he´s Animagi. Otherwise, he´s off to Azkaban."

"Thank you, sir. We´ll be off then," Ron said then walked over to the other Gryffindors. Placing a hand on Hermoine´s shoulder and ignoring the others´ questions he said, "We´ll explain in the common room. Harry needs quiet now." Hermoine looked at Ron who quietly leaned over and whispered, "Harry, if you´ve gotta leave, cheerio. But, don´t by any means think I want you to leave. You´re my best friend, Harry."

Ron stood up quickly and took Hermoine´s hand and led her from the room. Professor Dumbledore sighed; the teachers needed to be told and owls needed to be sent.

~~~~~~

Draco heard the room fall blissfully silent, with the exception of Professor Snape´s light breathing. The infirmary doors open and closed one last time but no footsteps. Dumbledore´s left, he thought toying with the edge of his left sleeve.

"Are you going to make me ask what´s wrong with your arm?" Professor Snape asked causing Draco to jump.

"There´s nothing wrong with my arm," Draco said blandly. "At least nothing you aren´t aware of."

Professor Snape looked puzzled then realized what he was talking about. "Ah... it doesn´t still hurt after all this time?" he asked.

Draco fought not to roll his eyes; he recalling very little of his initiation as a Death Eater; the only thing he did recall clearly was the white hot branding iron pressing into the pale flesh of his left arm and leaving the twisted skull. He sighed, "No, it doesn´t still hurt. It´s just, well, it´s---"

"Spit it out, boy," Professor Snape said gently.

Draco sighed, "It´s fading." Pulling back his sleeve, he showed the skull that had once been solid black but had now dulled to a pale gray.

"So has mine," Professor Snape pulled back his own sleeve, it too had faded but not to the extent Draco`s had.

Draco´s eyes closed and he settled deeper into the pillows. "I can´t say I´m broken up about it," he said.

Professor Snape smiled. "Neither can I."

"But why is it doing it?"

Snape shook his head and said, "My best guess is that since the Dark Lord is dead, his power, the same power that went into the mark, is dissipating and will eventually be gone and take the marks with it."

"Is everyone gone?" Draco asked, changing the subject.

Snape sighed, "Yes." He stood up. Draco slipped out of the bed and quietly slunk over to Harry´s bed.

Draco looked back at his bed; Snape wasn´t there. Draco knew that Snape hadn´t left but was grateful for the sense privacy. He looked back at Harry and felt the tears sting his eyes. "Oh, Harry. Don´t leave me. We have too much to look forward to. You promised Harry, you promised that we´d finally have peace in our lives after Voldemort was defeated, that we´d grow old together." Draco wiped the tears from his face and a laugh escaped his lips. "I was just thinking about the night when we first became friends. God, was that really over year ago?"

/Draco sat on the ledge of a window in the Astronomy Tower, his knees drawn to his chest and head resting on them as he cried silently. Draco had learned early in life to release his pain and sorrow silently. Crying out only made his father angrier. The blows fell harder and the spells grew darker when Lucius was angry. But even hundreds of miles away from Lucius, Draco was still afraid to cry out. It was just after Yule Break. Draco let out a shuddering sigh and a choked sob as he pulled back his robe sleeve. There it was, that twisted skull burned into his pale flesh.

"Damn you, Voldemort," Draco said fiercely. He pulled the sleeve back into place and looked into the sky. He scanned the stars and landed on the constellation of Leo. He looked out in front of him and wondered if anyone would miss him if he jumped. Draco sighed and put his head back on his knees.

The movement caused him to gasp and clench his teeth as pain shot up his back. The bruises hadn´t even started to fade and he felt something wet and sticky trail down his back. He had reopened one of the many cuts. He had received those when his father had learned that he was second to Hermoine Granger in grades. Draco had tried to explain himself but Lucius wasn´t hearing it. He all but ripped the shirt off of Draco as he applied a belt to Draco´s back, then cast a Cruciatus on him. Draco didn´t remember loosing consciousness but he did remember waking up in his bed, his house elf the only other being in the room.

Draco shook the thought from head and listened to the silence of Hogwarts late at night. Then the silence was broken; there were footsteps on the stairs. Great, Filch, Draco thought, he didn´t move off the ledge. He knew that there was no way he could leave without running into Filch so Draco just scrubbed at his face and waited for the axe to fall. The trap door opened and Draco turned his head.

"Potter?" Draco said.

"Nothing you need to concern yourself with, Potter," Draco said as he let his legs fall over the edge of the tower.

Harry bit his lip and took a step towards Draco. "I´m making it my concern," Harry said. He studied Draco, his hair was tousled and his face was red. His eyes were puffy and bloodshot. "Have you been crying?" he asked.

Draco closed his eyes and quickly turned away from Harry. The movement sent a wave of pain up his back and he gasped. Harry crossed over to Draco and grabbed his arm. "Please, come off the ledge," Harry said, almost pleading.

"Draco, put your arm around my neck. I´m going to slip my arm under your legs and lift you up," Harry said. Draco nodded and draped his arm over Harry´s shoulders. "One, two, three," Harry lifted Draco then quickly sat him on the floor. "Where does it hurt, Malfoy? Please let me help you."

Draco nodded and tried to slip off his robe. Harry got the idea and helped him shed the heavy cloth, then his shirt. Harry gasped as he looked at the angry welts. "Draco, we need to have these treated."

"NO!... No, I can´t let anyone know," Draco said. "If my father found out I went to Dumbledore, he would have me killed."

"Draco, if you don´t get these treated they could get infected and you may die!"

Draco snorted. "So I´m damned if I do, damned if I don´t." He hung his head. Harry pushed Draco´s hair away from his face. Draco looked back up at Harry.

"Would you trust me to heal you?" Harry asked him.

Draco sighed and said, "What the Hell. I can´t end up any worse than I already am."

"A real vote of confidence, Draco," Harry said wryly.

Draco smirked. "I´m full of them."

"You´re full of something, all right," Harry quipped.

"Damn near six years of fighting and you´re finally coming up with decent comebacks."

Harry sighed and drew his wand. "If it hurts let me know, cry out."

Draco´s eyes settled on the floor. "I´ve forgotten how to cry out."/

Draco laid his head on Harry´s arm and let the tears fall, his body racked with loud sobs. "It hurts, Harry, it really hurts," he wailed. Draco had finally learned to cry out.

~~~~~~

Draco awoke the next morning with his head still on Harry´s arm.

"His chances have improved greatly," Madam Pomfrey said as she noticed Draco awake. "Professor Snape wanted to put you back in your bed, but when he tried to move you, you grabbed Harry´s hand and wouldn´t let go."

"His chances have improved?" Draco asked, his excitement showing through a little.

Madam Pomfrey smiled. "Yes, it´s really a miracle," she told him. "How do you feel this morning?"

Draco smirked, but it wasn´t his usual cold smirk this one was full of happiness. "Much better, thank you." Draco turned back to Harry. "Wake up soon, Seeker."

/Draco and Harry were walking through the halls clad in their winter cloaks, going out to the Quidditch Pitch, brooms over their shoulders. It was late December and Yule Break had just began, almost year since Harry had found Draco in the Astrology Tower.

"You know, I was watching you last night at the Yule Feast," Harry said. Draco had spent the night talking to the special guest from the Ministry whom Dumbledore had invited. "The way you go from person to person, never lingering for more than a minute then moving on; you reminded me of the snitch."

"I reminded you of the snitch?" Draco asked looking at him.

Harry shrugged. "No one could catch you," he said, "you would talk for a minute then move on. Not even any of the girls could capture your attention for more than a dance. You just kept moving, like you had endless energy."

"You can catch me," Draco said staring ahead. "If I´m the snitch, then you are the seeker. No matter where I am, you can always find me."

Harry smiled. "I just hope no else can catch you," he said.

"I don´t think I´d want anyone else to. But I bet you can´t catch me now!" Draco said as he took off running. Harry smiled and took off after him. Draco headed around the Quidditch Pitch and into the locker rooms. Harry followed closely behind him, gaining on him.

Harry dropped his broom next to Draco´s as he entered the Quidditch Field and looked around; Draco had disappeared. Harry´s eyes quickly scanned the bleachers and teacher´s box then back to the field. Something flashed across the field and Harry was on it.

"Got ya!" he cried as he grabbed Draco around the waist and pulled him close.

Draco let out a soft laugh and said, "You are my Seeker."

"And you are my Snitch," he said gently taking Draco by the chin and laying a gentle kiss on his lips./

~~~~~~

Professor Dumbledore walked into the Infirmary and smiled at what he saw. Draco had been released from the Hospital Wing two days before after a three-day stay, but still ended up by Harry´s bedside every morning. Professor Dumbledore shook Draco awake.

"Mornin´," Draco said sleepily as he sat up and rubbed his eyes.

Professor Dumbledore smiled at the young man. This is true love, Albus, he told himself, you can feel it deep in your old bones. "I brought your homework," he told Draco with a knowing look. "The professors say they miss you in classes."

Draco looked a bit sheepish. "I know I should be concentrating in class, but I just can´t," he said.

"Well, then I say you stay here and not blow anything up," Professor Dumbledore said. "Finish your homework and take it to the professors at the end of the day. They´ll give you today´s homework, you can do that until you feel up to paying attention in class and not letting your potions explode or turning your classmates´ hair green in Charms."

Draco smirked. "It was Pansy, besides which she´s in Slytherin. Her hair was house oriented."

Dumbledore had to smile.

~~~~~~

/Draco walked into Malfoy Manor with apprehension, he could tell his father was mad and he could hear his mother screaming in pain. Draco rushed to her aid only to find her lying on the floor of his father´s study, her unmoving with her eyes opened and a look of terror on her pretty face. Draco knelt beside her and cradled her head in his lap.

"No, no, Mum, no," Draco kept saying as Lucius stood over him.

Lucius sneered at his child. "She was no longer of any use to the Dark Lord," he told Draco.

Draco closed his eyes and let out a long cry of sorrow. "YOU KILLED HER! YOU BASTARD, YOU KILLED HER BECAUSE SHE `WAS NO LONGER ANY USE´?! SHE WAS YOUR WIFE!"

"That´s right, she was my wife and now you´re going to join her," Lucius said turning his wand on his son. "Aveda---"/

"DRACO!"

Draco sat up quickly and looked at---

"Harry!" Draco yelled and hugged him. "I thought I had lost you," Draco said into Harry´s shoulder.

Harry stroked Draco´s hair. "I couldn´t leave you, I made you a promise," he told Draco. "We´re going to grow old and turn gray together, you reminded me."

"You heard me?" Draco asked incredulously as he looked into Harry´s green eyes.

Harry smiled sadly. "I heard everything, I just couldn´t respond. I didn´t mean to hurt you, Draco."

Draco´s eyes started to water. "I know, just don´t let it happen again," he told Harry.

Harry leaned in close to Draco and said, "I won´t, Snitch, and I won´t ever let you go." Harry kissed Draco gently before pulling him down onto the bed.

~~~~~~

"Look at those two, would you?" Remus Lupin said as he and Sirius Black watched Draco and Harry sleep.

Professor Snape looked in on them. "I don´t know about all of you, but I think they look quite--- not really sweet, but right. They look right together."

Professor Dumbledore nodded. "I believe you have hit the proverbial nail on the head, Severus."

"Who ever makes him happy," Sirius said, "what ever decisions he makes, I´ll stand by him."