Draco approached his brother and had expected to remove his glasses since anytime the stayed up the raven-haired boy always forgot he was wearing them. This time they were already on the bedside table .

He sighed and rolled over while Draco stood there. He turned away and put his sneakers on before leaving their room as cautiously as he could manage. This was not normal behaviour for him, he didn't just wake and sneak out but that had been at the Dursleys.

Taking advantage of less limits while also searching for a moment alone, Draco snuck outside of the house (surprised that the back door was actually unlocked) and stared up at the large tree.

Draco bit his lip (a habit picked up from Harry) and glanced over his shoulder but the house remained as silent and still as ever. Reaching up, he grabbed hold of the first branch and within minutes he was nearly halfway.

It was different than the last time he had been in the tree, although it was harder to observe when he had been calling down to Harry and then hearing Snape's scowls. Draco sat there at the almost highest point of the tree and looked over at the darkened stone, still streets.

He still wasn't sure what had woken him so abruptly or if his nightmare had been forgotten as quickly as he had opened his eyes and looked around their room. Instead his thoughts fell on the recent events, while trying to push aside what had happened the day they require rescuing. Snape had somehow known what was going on and came to take them from such a place, Draco understood that now. The man actually wanted to erase the situation in which was causing them harm, so surely that was enough evidence that he didn't intend to enact the same harm? It didn't make him feel safer, but he did sense a sweeping calmness within himself until he thought back to even further events.

Before Hogwarts he and Harry had been quite alike. But now Draco understood how different they actually were. Harry had a loving family who fought against Voldemort's rise to power and had sacrificed themselves to save their only son. Whereas his own parents had become Death Eaters in favor of Voldemort and despite what they had been doing the night they had died...Draco could not ignore the darkness his history had in which Harry's did not.

And then there was Snape. A sour potions master who had noticed their trouble more than anyone else at Hogwarts, or perhaps he was the only one who actually cared enough to do something about it. He invited them into his home, assured them they were safe, allowed them to eat as they pleased and also magicked a nice room for them to stay in. If anything, the situation had potential.

It wasn't kindness, but the man had something to offer...protection, maybe? Either way things were going to be relatively fine until Hogwarts started again. But Draco felt further undeserving of it. Another difference between Harry and himself was that Draco was a pureblood through and through. He had no idea why he had a spot in the pit of his stomach that urged him to see the importance of that small fact. It was wrong to like Hermione, it was wrong to live as a muggle when he was so pure in magic, it was wrong to build attachments or not be guarded all the time...everything about his life was wrong. But it wasn't for Harry.

Draco sighed and continued to watch over the streets, pondering if there was more out there for himself? He remembered an aunt and a godfather in which he could have gone to, perhaps the option was available?The thought of separating from Harry made him sick with fear and anxiety while at the same time he felt refreshed, as though it was the right thing to do.

Climbing down from his tree, Draco made his way inside and wondered if he felt any better to discover Harry still sleeping and the house still perfectly motionless in silence.

Snape dreaded telling Dumbledore about the situation although putting it off longer wasn't going to make it easier. He grabbed a bag containing floo powder but paused when he could have sworn he'd heard the latch on the front door opening. Waiting for a moment and even heading upstairs out of his potions labs; he heard nothing more and so proceeded to call Dumbledore by thrusting a handful of powder into his fireplace.

"Ah, Severus" The aging man smiled at him from his desk. "And what do I owe this unexpected call?"

"I have something to report" Snape said. "Involving Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy" He added and noticed that while the headmaster's expression did not change, his eyes were less twinkling than usual.

"Come through, dear boy" Dumbledore invited.

"I cannot" Snape shook his head. "Perhaps it would be preferable if you stepped through as opposed to myself."

Dumbledore said nothing but stood and Snape stepped back to allow the headmaster into his once-dusty living room.

"I see you have been making some changes" Dumbledore instantly noticed the lighter and cleaner surroundings of the place.

"Not me" Snape muttered under his breath. "Headmaster" He cleared his throat and straightened up, as though it would make him any less unsettled about what he had to say.

"I apologize for not informing you sooner of the situation, however I was...preoccupied'. An understatement, of course.

"The boys are here" He added with a defeated sigh although his posture and tone remained the same while his eyes lowered to the carpet...the abnormally clean carpet.

Dumbledore stared at him for a moment and his tone was firmer as he requested a full explanation of events and what had led him to such decisions. After going into brief but still relative detail, Snape was aware of a sound upstairs and hoped that one of the boys wasn't waking until his ordeal with Dumbledore was over.

"I see" Dumbledore said, apparently unaware of such sounds or movement. "And they are here, you say?"

"Yes" Snape nodded.

"How have they been under your care?" Dumbledore asked.

"How...?" Snape narrowed his eyes, suspicious of such a question that he had clearly not been expecting.

"They are troubled" He answered quickly. "I have been required to inform them multiple times that I will not cause them deliberate harm."

Now Dumbledore appeared mad. "And how have they responded to that?"

"Skeptically" Snape sighed. "I have tried, Albus but the boys have clearly been suffering for quite a period of time. I believe that having each other is what keeps them striving."

Dumbledore knew now why he never regretted placing both boys on that doorstep so long ago, although he wished he had placed them elsewhere.

"Very well" Dumbledore nodded. "I will handle this matter in due time, for now I think it is best for them to remain here."

Snape was unable to contain his surprise once again. Anger and confusing mingled with the unexpected answer and he opened his mouth to protest but Dumbledore held up a hand to silence him. At first he thought it meant he wasn't to object, but it was rare for Dumbledore not to listen to his complaints before he manipulated and proved them all wrong. The real reason for the silence came in the form of another noise.

Snape frowned as Dumbledore discreetly left with a promise to owl him, until he focused on the sound and guessed it to be caused by two bare feet. Children feet; so one of the boys has awoken. And it was Harry.

"Where is he?" Harry practically fell down the stairs in his hurry. "Draco?" He looked around, his eyes wide and nervous.

"Sir, where's Draco?" He asked. "What have you done with him?" Harry then scowled and looked ready to fight the man if he didn't get his brother back.

"What are you babbling about, boy?" Snape frowned.

"Draco is GONE!" Harry declared. "I searched everywhere and his stuff...he..." Realization dawned on Harry just as Snape turned abruptly to confirm such claims.

"He left me" Harry sniffled. "But why?"

Snape wasn't hearing him as he cast locater charms and checked the wards. Just as he remembered the opening of the door latch earlier, all his results came to the conclusion that Draco Malfoy had run away (his stuff was gone and there was no clue to anything being forced or wards broken). Only a member of the household could enter through the wards and it was clear that he'd also left, willingly. And his face betrayed that fact as he frowned at the partially ajar door.

It was his second biggest mistake as Harry glanced at him and understood. It was clear to say the boy fell into hysterics while Snape tried to ignore him and make yet another call to Dumbledore.

Draco wandered the streets, clutching the handle of his trunk as he dragged it along. His had left his owl cage behind but the creature itself flew high above and kept up with him, or at least in his line of sight.

The sun was casting the morning glow over the streets now as Draco continued to talk, keeping his head low as he walked as though not to draw attention to himself but no one bothered to look at him for more than a second anyway. He doubted anyone apart from Harry would notice his absence or even care that he was gone. He felt terrible for doing this to his brother but surely with time he would understand. Maybe he could write a letter when he arrived to tell him that he was fine?

Draco paused at the end of a street and glanced around to check that he was mostly alone. Seeing no one else in sight, he pulled out his wand and waited. He'd read in a book about this that if someone was stranded a bus would come to pick them up. He feared it was too early yet but seconds later the purple, triple decker bus drove into sight and he climbed aboard although he needed a bit of help getting his trunk on as well.

"Where to, lad?" A voice asked but he hadn't glanced up while pulling a crumpled piece of parchment from his pocket and handed it over, written hurriedly upon it was the address.

Next he handed over the required money and chose a bed near the back to sit in, trying to ignore the regret filling inside himself as he hung his head and wished he'd just gone back to bed.

"Drink" Snape ordered Harry, holding up the vial of a calming drought but the boy stubbornly shook his head and pressed his lips tighter together. "Drink it, Potter!" Snape said in annoyance. "Or else I will force it down your throat."

After swallowing the potion, Harry curled back up on the couch and wrapped his arms around his knees.

It had been several hours since Draco had apparently disappeared and Snape was struggling to keep his head leveled. Dumbledore was out searching for the boy with several members of the Order assisting and yet he was to remain and watch Harry. The last thing they needed was for the boy-who-lived to go missing as well.

"H-he's not coming back, is h-he?" Harry gulped but the potion had calmed his hysterics and hyperventilating. He was scared without Draco around, since they barely separated and now his brother had just ditched him. It hurt more than he had expected it to when he found out but more than anything he was just terrified that something was going to happen or he'd never see him again.

"He will return" Snape said although it sounded more like a threat than a promise.

"Why can't I help?" Harry switched from grief to rage in the space of a few seconds. "I might be able to find him!"

"You expect me to believe that a child such as yourself who cannot perform magic outside of school would have better luck than several highly-trained adults?" Snape rolled his eyes. "Do not fool yourself, Potter."

"So? He's my...my brother" Harry lowered his gaze to the floor and the anger faded way as he resolved to tears again.

Snape glance at the boy at those words and frowned. He never knew they had become so close that they referred to each other as siblings even though surely they both knew that they were not.

Unbeknown to Harry, Snape was quite agitated and annoyed that he was also unable to assist in the search for his godson. But unlike Harry, he was still trying to understand why the boy had done such a stupid thing to begin with and leave Harry behind.

While pondering those thoughts, he turned and glanced at Harry in curiosity. Just watched as the boy bit his lip and wiped his eyes, clearly trying to be brave even though it made no real difference. He frowned as he recalled when Lily had been upset and would curl up under a tree and suffer in silence until he found her. But Snape could not bring himself to give the boy the same comfort as he had to his mother many years ago.

"Harry?" Snape inquired as his eyelids began to close against his will and the boy constantly fought his grief-inspired exhaustion. "Rest. You are no use to anyone in such a state."

"No...I will..." Harry yawned. "I miss him. I don't w-want to lose him."

"He is not lost" Snape answered as he stepped closer to the boy as he curled further on the couch, mostly unaware of him. "And Draco will return. I will make certain of it."

Harry's eyes gave in and fell closed while Snape reached out and extracted the glasses from the boy's face. He placed them on a nearby table but did not leave. Instead he sighed and carefully sat beside Harry who had fallen asleep upright.

Rubbing a hand through his hair in stress, Snape tried once again to imagine why Draco had left because he could not understand why he would leave Harry behind. Although he wasn't going to let anything happen to Harry, he worried where Draco was and wished he could be out helping to search for him. Perhaps Draco had left knowing that Harry would be okay?

Snape frowned at those thoughts but felt a small pressure on his thigh and a tug at his robes. He glanced down and saw that Harry's head had fallen against him and as a reflex, the boy had grabbed a small hold of his black robes. Snape was shocked when he felt no desire to shove him away or recoil at the touch.

Instead he merely turned away and continued to think about Draco while stroking Harry's hair while remaining absentminded; it was almost a subconscious reaction to the boy being so warm and trusting in his sleep.

-------

Dumbledore stepped through the fireplace an hour later (Snape had his hand rested on Harry's shoulder but still neither of them had moved) and informed him that Draco was still seemingly nowhere to be found although he was picked up by the knight bus according to a squib witness.

By mid-afternoon, Snape was on the edge of a mental breakdown from all his worry over Draco and determination to figure out why he had left. But with coaching from Dumbledore, he forced himself to focus only on Harry for the time being since he was right there and Snape wasn't as helpless in that situation.

He moved his hand to stroke the boy's hair again (it was oddly calmly and had the same softness as Lily's had) but stopped when Harry began to stir. The boy mumbled and slowly sat up to look around in groggy confusion.

"Draco?" He hoped to see his blond-haired brother but all that greeted him was a dimly lit house and silent professor. He didn't even seem aware of the fact that he'd been resting on him.

"Draco was not taken against his will" Snape informed him while Harry shifted to look at him, his eyes pleading for answers. "A witness saw him boarding a magical bus and yet we are still attempting to track his locations."

"We've never spent a night away from each other before" Harry admitted sadly. "Not since Voldemort...you know?" He did notice the flinch Snape gave to the name but chose to ignore it as despair filled inside him again.

"Worrying is not going to bring him back, Potter" Snape said as he stood and made his way into the kitchen as he thought that Harry should at least eat something. He tried to ignore the voice that told him to follow his own advice while he continued. "There are numerous competent witches and wizard searching for him. I assure you that he will be found."

"I believe you" Harry sighed as he leaned back on the lounge, running his hand through his hair; it felt weirdly warm and in soft strands as though it had been brushed one too many times.

"Eat. There is no point in starving yourself" Snape ordered as he placed some pasta on the table. Despite his lack of hunger, Harry nodded once as he approached and sat down.

"I...I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight" Harry hung his head, feeling incredibly vulnerable without Draco around but somehow safe with Snape around. He wasn't used to not being able to confide in someone that wasn't Draco but with his grieving state he hadn't noticed the difference.

Snape didn't think he was going to sleep either but pondered if he had any sleeping drought left to slip into a cup of cocoa for Harry. There was no need for them both to suffer.

"I will be awaiting news" Snape told him. "I expect to be lacking sleep myself."

"Is it okay, I mean...if I stay up...with you?" Harry asked. He pushed the remains of his food away while looked as though he wanted to curl up again.

"You may" Snape nodded. "However you are expected to rest."

"I don't think I can" Harry sighed again but shrugged. "Thanks."

Snape said nothing else as he cleared away the table and then busied himself with some papers he had summoned and Harry retreated upstairs.

Within minutes, Harry had returned and curled up on the couch with a book although not once did he appear to actually be reading it or paying any interest to anything apart from his own troubling thoughts and concerns.

------

The time passed by, although neither were entirely aware of it. Dumbledore visited often but with no updates. Soon the night had dawned on them and continued to progress. Snape had moved from the table to an armchair and Harry had fallen to his side on the couch, still curled in a fetal position as he fought sleep.

Snape sighed and glanced away from his book as he noticed the time (it was past 10pm) and glanced over at Harry, noticing that his small sound of breath had startled him and his emerald eyes stared into his own. Snape watched the boy lower his gaze and now that he had given up on distracting himself just as Harry had several hours previous, he saw the trembling lips, reddened eyes and shaking form. It was so strange and alien to him, seeing another being so painful effected by the simple absence of another. He hadn't seen how close the boys really were and how they were like twins that couldn't survive without the other around.

He had overlooked his fact before because it didn't seem to be possible. How could Harry be in such a demented state of pain after hardly one whole day? Or was the possibility of danger also added into the mix? Was he even aware of the state he was in? Snape guessed he was, how could the boy not feel the aching, the trembling and haunted look about himself?

"Harry, you need to rest" Snape said without moving, still quite stunned by the effect Draco's absence was having on the boy, who looked a great deal younger than twelve.

"I-I tried" Harry sniffed, his voice sounded almost dead flat and defeated. It caused Snape to wince but he tried to hide it although he doubted Harry would notice.

Pondering on his plot to “drug” the boy's cocoa with sleeping drought, Snape got to his feet and began to make his way to the kitchen but paused at Harry's sniffles and choking sobs that he tried to contain. He did admire Harry's ability to hold himself together although he was clearly suffering profoundly.

"You are in a pitiful state, Potter" Snape turned to him. "Draco will be fine. This amount of concern is unnecessary."

"I can't help it" Harry rubbed his dry eyes and sat upright, uncurling slightly as he flushed in embarrassment to Snape's comments. "I just-I dunno" He mumbled and looked downward.

When Harry glanced up again, a cup was hovering in front of him and the scent of chocolate overwhelmed him.

"Drink" Snape instructed and found it ironic how the one time he had put something in the drink, Harry swallowed it without hesitation.

He summoned the cup before Harry could drop it. He had expected it to take several more minutes at least for the boy to fall asleep, but instead he seemed to have lost his battle and fell gently against the back of the couch, his eyes closing and his concerned face relaxed a notch.

Snape stood there, mostly interesting still in the effect Draco's absence was having on him while wondering when he had last seen the boy so fragile and lost. Then he recalled...when he's rescued him from that horrid muggle.

He frowned and stepped closer, pressing his hand against the boy's forehead and shivered involuntarily when he felt the lack of warmth there despite the small fireplace nearby.

Making a reluctant decision, Snape slowly lowered onto the couch and moved the boy cautiously. After a bit of awkward and careful maneuvering, Snape had Harry lying more comfortably on the couch with two patched blankets resting over him. His head was on Snape's leg as he brushed his hands through his hair again, calming himself while also making the boy more comfortable.

He was quite stunned when Harry suddenly relaxed and his breathing became more even, as though he wasn't being selfish but rather was helping the boy sleep.

"Rest, Harry" Snape said in a soft, almost caring tone even though the boy couldn't hear him in his slumber.

He sighed and lay back slightly, allowing himself to sleep also although he knew he would wake before the boy. He had no idea where Draco was or if he was even okay, but Snape remembered why he considered himself a villain, a bad guy and not someone to become comfortable with...when he thought of how he hoped Draco would stay away just a little longer because he was comfortable and enjoying a brief moment with the son of the woman he loved.