Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling does. So there. :Draco-esque smirk:

Authoress Note: Oh my GOD and update! Who'da thunk it? :another smirk: Anyways, yeah….this chapter KILLED me to write. Something's bothering me about it, but I can't quite place my finger on it…..so……:bows to SolarCat: THANK YOU, ALMIGHTY BETA-READER!

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Chapter 4: Fugitives

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Draco was having the most wonderful dream. He was warm and cozy, back at Malfoy Manor, lying between his silk green-and-silver sheets, and curled around something that felt like a squishy teddy bear. There was a sharp rap at his bedroom door, and he blinked as his mother stepped into the room. Narcissa began going on and on about how he had responsibilities and how he was supposed to be home by now; just as Draco was about to reply that he was at home, the thing around which he had curled moved.

Harry Potter poked his head out from under the sheets and nuzzled Draco's chest warmly, smiling like a lovesick puppy. Draco remembered his face paling drastically fast before he scrambled away from Potter and fell promptly onto the floor.

That's when he woke up. But he wasn't on the floor. Au contraire, Draco was wrapped firmly around a young, messy-haired Gryffindor, who looked like he was quite comfortable and still asleep. With a hiss of disgust, Draco none-too-gently removed himself from the rather compromising embrace with Potter, and stalked over to the window, glaring out as he tried to remember how he managed to get into the bed in the first place. Oh, not to mention that his face was burning a bright red from embarrassment; imagine, him, a Malfoy, sleeping in the same bed as Potter. He really hoped that Harry didn't wake up anytime soon.

A soft groan from the bed caused the blond to stiffen. "Draco?" called a soft voice, and the Slytherin rolled his eyes as he tilted his head to look at the bane of his existence.

Harry was awake now, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he tried to get his bearings. He blinked sleepily at Draco and yawned. Draco clicked his tongue against his teeth.

"We're leaving today. I'm going to see if I can get anything for us to eat before we go, and then we'll head out." Harry nodded drowsily, almost as if he hadn't heard and was just agreeing for the sake of agreeing. Draco rolled his eyes and left the shack.

Draco was coming back from his rather unsuccessful hunting trip, cursing the damnable speed and agility of rabbits, when a voice reached his ears. He froze on the spot, and his blood ran cold as he recognized the voice as one he knew.

"They've got to be around here, somewhere, Lucius." It was his mother, Narcissa. "Draco couldn't have gotten far on his own, and Potter was far too wounded to make it to any form of civilization."

Draco stopped breathing. They were looking for him and Potter; did that mean that the Dark Lord wasn't dead, as he had hoped before? He shook his head slightly; perhaps this was a chance to reclaim his rightful place beside his father! They would surely take him back if he led them to Potter! But something in his mother's tone forced him to disregard those thoughts in an instant; they would probably kill him as soon as he appeared in front of them. Swearing softly, he came to the only possible conclusion.

He had to get Potter out of that shack.

He made his way as silently as he could through the woods, skirting around the sound of his mother's voice. He slipped quickly into the front door and locked it with a swift snap of his wrist. He turned back to Harry, who looked utterly bewildered.

"Draco? What's going on?" the brunet asked, tilting his head slightly. Draco shook his head and held a finger to his lips, gesturing for silence. Harry narrowed his eyes a moment, then nodded, and Draco made his way over to him.

"There are Death Eaters in the woods, Potter," the blond whispered urgently. His silver eyes darted around the cabin quickly, and he moved into action. He popped a handful of berries into his mouth, before offering the last few bites to Harry, who took them graciously. Draco slid the drawer back into the desk, and scoured the house for any other sign that they had been there, grabbing the remaining cloth from their bandages and shoved them into his pocket. "We have to stay silent, Potter, understand?"

Harry looked as if he was to open his mouth to say something, but stopped himself. He nodded slowly, but sent Draco a look as if to say, 'this conversation isn't over'. Draco rolled his eyes and pulled open the window, and peeked his head out, scanning the area before slipping out into the woods. Harry tilted his head at the blond a moment, before Draco motioned for him to do the same, and the brunet exited through the window in a much less dignified fashion than his companion. The blond moved to the corner of the shack, pressing his body firmly against the wall, and listened for any sign of his father, mother, or any other Death Eater that could be with them. When he heard nothing, he motioned to Harry to follow and they started off into the woods.

Draco froze at the sound of another voice, thrusting an arm out to stop Harry, who watched him with puzzled emerald eyes.

"Someone's been here, Lucius," said a male voice Draco didn't recognize. "There are small carcasses of some sort, probably rabbits or something like that, and they look like they've been cooked." The blond swore silently; he knew he had forgotten something.

"Well, there isn't anyone here now, is there?" snarled Lucius, sending a chill down Draco's spine; Harry, concerned, touched the Slytherin's shoulder gently, and then retracted his hand as Draco flinched away. "Fan out, and search the area surrounding this place. I want every stone upturned, and no one is to return without finding one or both of them." Draco could hear people moving behind them and he pulled Harry forwards.

"Listen, Harry. If anyone finds us, I want you to run; no matter what I do, you need to run. Understand?" Silver eyes locked with green, and Harry stared at him in confusion.

"But Draco—"

"No buts, Potter. Promise me." Harry swallowed hard and nodded, only a minute movement of his head that cause black locks to fall into his eyes again. "Good. Now get walking." Draco pushed the boy forwards, and kept his silver eyes watchful for any sign of activity that might cause them harm. Death Eaters were cunning folk, and were very good at tracking spells; especially if Lucius had either Draco or Harry's blood to be used in even the most basic of tracking spells.

Luckily for them, they didn't run into anyone, nor were they spotted. A few times, Draco nearly hexed some wildlife, thinking they were Death Eaters, but the creatures always bolted before his spell could do any damage. Harry laughed at him, but he was silenced when Draco shot him a dark look, looking down at his feet and blushing slightly.

The temperature outside was dropping as they walked, as was the sun; it would be dark soon, they had no shelter, and there was no sign of human habitation at all. Draco wasn't thrilled with the idea of sleeping outside where any Death Eater could just sneak up and murder them in the night without anyone being the wiser. Not to mention that it was crazy to be concerned about Potter's well-being…he should be willing to turn the brunet in to the Dark Lord's followers at any time. Sadly, he found himself very conscious of Harry's movements, and very much anxious about the boy's safety.

Harry, however, was having a wonderful time walking through the woods, seeing how many different kinds of trees he could spot, how many squirrels he could see from this distance, silly things like that. He seemed oblivious to Draco's anxieties as he moved on, grinning like a loon and laughing as some chipmunks chased each other around the base of a tree. As the time passed, Draco himself couldn't help but smile at the boy's obvious carelessness.

Neither boy really noticed that it had been growing steadily darker since they had left the cabin. In fact, Draco only noticed because he hadn't spotted a particularly vicious root sticking up from the ground, which caused him to trip and land sprawled on the ground with his face landing in a rather scratchy bit of moss. He felt his face flame with embarrassment as Potter's laughter rippled through the air and caught his ear. Scrambling to his feet, he shot a glare towards the other boy, before dusting off his robes and thrusting his nose into the air. Harry merely laughed again, and shook his head.

"We should probably find shelter soon," quipped the brunet, hands resting on his hips as he surveyed the area around them. "Soon it'll be too dark to travel." Inquisitive green eyes met silver, and Harry smiled at him, sending an involuntary shiver down Draco's back; hey, if you had gotten used to seven years of sneering and glares from a person, suddenly receiving a smile from them would creep you out too.

"Yeah," responded the blond, rubbing the back of his neck. "Any suggestions on where we can find shelter?" he asked in a slightly mocking tone, sweeping his hand wide to gesture to the surrounding trees. "We've seen nothing but trees for the last three hours, Potter."

"Harry," he corrected sternly. Draco blinked. "I don't like it when you call me 'Potter'. It sounds like you hate me when you call me that." Harry looked away, but not before Draco caught the slightest tinge of red on the boy's cheeks.

"Fine, Harry," he conceded. "So where do you suggest we spend the night? Certainly not out in the open with Death Eaters on our tails."

The brunet glanced about, before starting off through the trees again. Draco watched him go for a moment, before jogging slightly to catch up.

"Do you have any idea where you're going?" inquired the blond, arching a fine brow. A determined look flickered over Harry's face for a moment before he paused in his step; Draco had to stop very suddenly not to run into him. Harry frowned a moment, dark brows nearly meeting in the middle of his forehead, before a childlike smile crossed his face.

"Not a clue." Draco gave a tiny, frustrated groan as Harry started off again.

They continued on in silence for a while, with Harry pausing every few moments, looking around, and changing his course. Draco watched him with unimpressed eyes, but remained silent – after all, Potter was his nemesis…right?

"Ah hah!" Draco looked away from the trees he had been counting and towards Potter, who was standing proudly in front of a rocky outcropping – one of those random piles of rocks that are in the middle of forests that seem to serve no other purpose other than to get in your way. The blond lifted a brow.

"'Ah hah' what?" he said, folding his arms over his chest. Potter beamed at him.

"Shelter," he replied, pointing to a hole, barely visible, around a protruding rock. Draco sent the 'you're kidding' look to his companion, who grinned sheepishly. "Well, if you have any better ideas, I'd love to hear them."

Draco rolled his eyes, before stepping forward and clearing away some loose brush from the entrance with a flick of his wand. He muttered, "Lumos," and peered inside; it looked big enough for the two of them to fit in. Though, it would be tight, and they'd probably have to be touching each other while they slept in order to be comfortable. Draco wrinkled his nose at the idea, but it was all they had.

"Very well," he conceded, nodding to Harry, who smiled at Draco as if he had been given the best birthday present ever. The blond rolled his eyes and gestured for Harry to go in first, and the brunet didn't hesitate for a moment. Draco cast one glance out behind him, before he too slid into the makeshift shelter.

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Yeah, that's about it, folks! I didn't know when to end this chapter……yeah…again, much much much much much love to Solar Cat :hugs her:

Quick Poll!
Who would you rather see meet up with Harry and Draco?
1. Blaise
2. Neville
3. Seamus & Dean (or just one of them)
4. Snape

Let me know who you think they should meet up with! I'm curious to know as to whom my readers favour! :smiles: