Here is the next chapter, a lot quicker than the last one! Thank you to my amazing Beta everfire! You are a great help!

You know what to do...

Harry

"Do you think we can do it?" Draco asked Harry when they were sitting together by the lake. The stars shined down on them both, sending sparkles dancing in their hair and making patterns appear on the surface of the lake.

"Do what?" Harry replied, skimming stones across the surface of the lake.

"This. Be friends and not let anyone know."

Harry shrugged. He wanted it to work. He didn't want to lose Draco, but he wasn't sure how long he would be able to lie to his friends for. "Maybe we could let some people know." He said slowly, turning to face Draco.

Draco raised an eyebrow at him, "Yes, let's shout it out to the whole school. 'I'm friends with Harry Potter.' Hey, how long do you think it would take until I'm killed?"

Harry gave him a push, "No, I meant…tell certain people."

"You don't want to lie to Hermione and Ron." Harry shook his head, "Well, I guess it's fair enough, as they are your best friends. Do you honestly think they would believe it though?" Draco asked him and Harry was surprised at how quickly Draco could guess exactly what he was thinking.

"Of course they would," Harry replied, but as he said it he had a feeling of doubt come over him. He paused, "Don't you think they would then?"

Draco shook his head. "No. Of course not you idiot. 'Hey Hermione and Ron, you know Malfoy? Yeah well, after all this time, we've actually become friends.' And do you know what their reaction will be to that Harry? 'Oh Harry!' 'He's a ferret!' 'Can you trust him?' 'Yeah, I bet he's plotting against you. He's going to kill you'!" Draco snorted, "It will go down well my friend."

Harry laughed, "It's kind of scary how well you know them."

"I've hated them for a long time. You have to know everything about your enemies. You have to know them so well that you can judge what they will do next." Harry gave him a look, which clearly said he believed that Draco was thinking far too much about it. "I've grown up with that being taught to me. Its one of the few things that's true. The whole, keep your friends close and your enemies' closer thing."

"Maybe that's right, but they are my friends, I can't not tell them."

"Why?" Draco quipped him simply.

"Because…" Harry began, but realized he had nothing to finish that sentence with.

"It's because you feel like you have to. You don't want to. You want to keep me all to yourself." Draco grinned and winked at Harry provocatively.

Harry felt himself blush and gave a small laugh. You don't know how much. Harry thought to himself. "Yeah well, why don't you feel like you have to tell your friends?" Draco raised his eyebrow again at Harry. "Don't do that, makes me feel stupid," Harry muttered and looked away from Draco and up towards the castle.

"Well, if you must ask stupid questions…Like I could tell any of them; it would be like giving me a one way ticket to Deaths Door."

"I think you might be exaggerating about that. What about Pansy? I thought you told her everything," Harry muttered, turning back to Draco.

"It's not an exaggeration, plain truth and I couldn't tell Pansy because…I don't know, I don't know how she would take it. She gets…I don't know, upset? And if I were to tell her that you and I were now friends, I don't know what she would do."

"Upset?"

Draco nodded. "She thinks, and I guess I do to a certain degree, that we will be there for each other until the day we die, literally. Her parents wish for her to marry me and I doubt my father will have any real objections. Her family is well thought of; both her parents are death eaters…nothing to stop us. If I were to tell her about you she would…feel threatened I guess." He shrugged. "So, I'm not going to tell anyone, unless they find out. Then I shall lie, say you have been following me, you are hopelessly in love with me, and that its all a plan I set up to give you to big old Voldie. Sound good?" He gave Harry a quick grin and stood up. "I better get back; people will start to wonder where I am. They get a bit lost without their wonderful leader."

Harry gave him a quick smile. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah." Draco murmured, the ghost of a smile playing on his lips.

The two boys looked at each other for a moment, neither of them knowing what to say.

"Well, see you then." Draco finally said and started to walk back to Hogwarts Castle.

Harry watched Draco walk away from him. It truly amazed Harry how well they were getting on, even though Harry felt Draco was keeping something from him, and Harry wasn't sure if Draco would ever tell him what it was. When Draco had talked about Pansy and him getting married, Harry had felt a surge of jealousy go through his body. He wanted Draco in every way possible, but he knew he couldn't have him. Harry could tell Draco didn't feel the same way about him, but Harry was slowly starting to see the way that Draco worked. He joked about the things that truly scared him as it was the only way he felt he could express them. He still tried to keep Harry at a distance, but Harry was determined to knock down the barriers that Draco had put up around himself.

Harry stood up and walked slowly back to the castle. He hadn't seen or spoken to Ginny since he had confronted her in the Three Broomsticks. For some reason Ron was being off with him, but trying to act like he wasn't. This annoyed Harry, but at the same time he found that he didn't care as much as he once would have. Ron and Hermione were mixed up in their own world, and seemed to forgotten that Harry was still there. It didn't really bother him; he had known it would happen. Whenever he found himself alone he would seek out Draco, and the two of them would find a place where they knew they wouldn't be disturbed. He and Draco had talked about everything apart from the things that both of them feared. They weren't ready to approach a subject they knew they couldn't change.

Harry reached the Gryffindor common room and went to sit on a chair near a fire. He saw Ginny enter the room, followed by her friends. Ginny looked at him for a second and then turned away, muttered something to her friends and they all burst into hysterics. Harry shook his head and looked into the fire until he felt someone sit next to him.

"Hey, Harry" Hermione said quietly.

Harry looked at her; he could automatically see that she had been crying. "Hermione, what's wrong?"

Hermione gave him a shaky smile. "Nothing, it's nothing."

"Hermione, you've been crying. What's happened?"

Hermione gave a sudden loud sob and threw her arms around Harry's neck. "He's…such a stubborn…person," Harry heard through the sobs.

"Who? Ron?" He felt Hermione nod her head. "What's happened 'Mione?" He urged again.

Hermione pulled away from and wiped away the tears that were now flowing freely down her face, "He's just being a complete and utter idiot!"

"Come on, let's go for a walk," He stood up.

The two of them walked out of the common room with everyone's eyes on them. Harry made his way down to the lake where he had just been, as it was the only place he could think of where nobody would interrupt them.

They both sat down and stared across the lake. "I'm sorry Harry." Hermione said after a while.

"For what?" Harry played with some grass.

"I heard about what happened with you and Ginny…I mean, about her making it up. I should have talked to you about it. I should have been there for you, but I wasn't…I haven't been. I feel like…I don't know, like I've lost you."

"You haven't lost me, Hermione," He uttered quietly.

She turned towards him. "Yes, I have. I got too caught up with Ron, we haven't even been going out that long, but I guess, because I have liked him for so long…I just got so excited when he finally asked me out. Everything else just, I don't know. I just stopped thinking about it and focused on Ron. When really, you were the one that needed me the most," She sighed sadly and looked back across the lake. "He still doesn't believe Ginny would do something like that, even after what happened at the weekend with you and her."

"I understood you wanted to be with Ron, Hermione. You shouldn't feel bad, I didn't, and still don't mind. I guess I have always expected you two to get together, so it wasn't really a big deal when you did."

"Well, I don't think we are together anymore." Hermione bent her head, trying to stop the next set of tears that were starting to fall.

"Why? Come on, Hermione, you two are made for each other."

Hermione looked at him and took a deep breath. "He won't accept that Ginny would do that, he's in a mood with you because you accused her of doing it. I told him today to stop being so stupid, that he was going to lose you, that he was already half way there. That everyone saw you two having a fight in the Three Broomsticks. He refuses to think Ginny would be as vindictive as that. To be honest, neither did I. When I met up with Ron at Hogsmeade, he told me what you had said to him and I laughed it off, but then I started to think about it. I know how Ginny can hold a grudge, but I never thought she would ever make up that you were going out, and she is still sticking to that story. So, I stopped talking to her, and then Ron had a go at me about that, saying that I was taking sides. He said that I should side with what he thinks because I'm his girlfriend. I said, 'but what about Harry. He's our best friend.' Then Ron said Ginny was his family and you were being an idiot for even thinking that she could do it. That you just want a load of attention from people; he said it was your own fault for thinking to much into a rumor. So I yelled at him and said he couldn't see what was right in front of him and that he was stubborn and that he was going to lose everyone that he loves. And…and he said that if that was how I felt then why would I want to go out with such a stubborn git. So I said that…that he wasn't the person I thought he was and that it was over." She stopped and didn't bother to wipe the tears away.

Harry put his arm around her. "What a complete and utter idiot. I knew he was off with me. I'm the one that should be sorry, Hermione; I should have been there for you two, talked to Ron and asked what his problem was."

Hermione shook her head. "I feel like the three of us are drifting away from each other. I try to stop it but…" She sighed and put her head on Harry's shoulder. "I don't want to break up with him and Harry, I don't want to lose you. I hardly ever see you anymore, let alone talk to you. We should be getting closer together, not drifting apart. Especially with times as they are. I don't blame it on anyone, we just let it happen and now it's gotten even worse."

"Yeah, I guess we did just let it happen. I'm sorry that it did. Seriously though, Hermione, don't lose Ron. When you two are together, you are so happy, which rubs off on me."

Hermione lifted her head and gave him a quick smile. "He does make me amazingly happy, but not when he goes like this…he won't accept certain things and sometimes, it's so unbelievably hard to cope with. You know that, he's been like this since we met him, but he's always pulled through. This time though…I'm not too sure."

"He will, of course he will. He will know he was wrong and apologize to you."

Hermione shook her head, "He might know he was wrong but he won't apologize, he will act like it never happened. It would have hurt his pride to be proved so wrong. I don't know, I will try and talk to him, work it out."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, both looking across the lake, thinking what was in store for them. "So, what about you?" Hermione asked after a while, "Where have you been going to while I have been with Ron, I can never find you."

"Oh…nowhere, just here and there." Harry said, looking away from her so she couldn't see his face.

"Come on, Harry; please don't keep secrets from me."

Harry let out a small sigh and turned back to face her, "I've been talking to Draco."

Hermione pulled away from him and searched his face for any signs of a joke. "Malfoy?" Harry nodded. "But…you hate each other…he's a son of a death eater…following in his fathers footsteps…you hate each other." She ended feebly.

Harry shrugged, "Things change."

"That may be, but this is a huge change. Maybe he's got a plan…"

"A plan to do what Hermione? Befriend me, lead me to Voldemort and then Voldemort will kill me. Think about it Hermione, its Draco Malfoy…even he wouldn't be able to do that. It would disgust him to pretend to be friends with me. He's changed."

"Can you trust him?" She asked quietly.

"Yes." He said shortly.

"Then I will trust in the fact that you believe this won't end bad."

He looked at her, surprise written all over his face, "You don't mind?"

Hermione linked her arm through Harry's, "Well, I wouldn't say I am exactly ecstatic about it. You are a big boy now, Harry. You can be friends with who you want. I think it is good you have grown out of the childish fights that you and him were constantly having. I just want you to know that I don't think I will ever fully trust him, even if you do. If it wasn't for his family…then maybe, but families like that have such big influences over their children. You never know what will be told to him or done to him when he is at home. However, if this is what you want then I will stand by you. Although, I don't think Ron will have the same opinions as me. You know what he is like…"

Harry nodded his head and gave her a huge smile. "You are amazing, Hermione, did you know that?"

Draco

Draco walked slowly back to the Slytherin common room. It amazed him how easily he could read Harry now, even when Harry was trying his best not to show it. He had seen the flicker of shock go over Harry's face when he had said he was probably going to marry Pansy. He put it down to the fact that Harry hadn't even thought of his future plans in that aspect.

He was about to go straight to his room when he heard someone call his name. He turned around and saw Pansy and Blaise sitting by the fire. He moved over to them and sat down, wondering what they were talking about.

"Draco, where have you been?" Pansy inquired, trying to make it look like she didn't care.

"I went for a walk." Draco replied, sitting back in his chair and studying the look on Blaise's face. "Well, what has happened?" He motioned towards Blaise to answer.

"Nothing. Why do you think something has happened?"

Draco raised his eyebrow at them. "I've known you for all my life Blaise; I know when you are trying not to say something. Tell me."

Blaise gave a sigh of exasperation. "Just ask him, Blaise." Pansy said, giving him a nudge.

Blaise gave her a look and then looked back at Draco. "We were just wondering…that, well…we think…"

"Spit it out, Blaise." Draco said, rolling his eyes.

"We just want to know where you keep disappearing to." Pansy cut in, giving Blaise a quick glare.

"Can I ask why you think that would be any of your business?"

"Because we're your friends Draco," Pansy stated.

"And, because if it's to do with the Dark Lord, we have a right to know." Blaise added.

"You have a right to know?" Draco sneered at them. "If, I was doing something for the Dark Lord, what makes you think I would tell you two?"

"So you aren't doing something for him?" Pansy ventured.

Draco shook his head at her. "No. I'm not. Now, if you are done with this little 'investigation' I would really like to go to bed."

"Where have you been going then?" Blaise probed, "If you aren't doing something important."

Draco looked at him for a minute, "Maybe it is important."

"Then why won't you tell us!" Blaise hissed angrily, "I would tell you!"

"Then that would be your first mistake. I wouldn't tell you, Zabini, because, to be honest with you, I don't trust you. You would run off and tell your father. Maybe they are some of the reasons you have yet to be invited to a meeting? As I said, I am not actually doing anything for the Dark Lord, it just so happens that I like to get away from you for a while." He stood up and walked over to Blaise. "You need to be careful what you do and say Blaise. Your father is not as well thought of as he once was…or so I've heard." He whispered into his ear. He gave a nod to Pansy and walked up to his bedroom.

He went over to his bed and lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling. He knew he couldn't tell Blaise or Pansy that he was hanging around with Harry Potter, let alone let them know that he was falling in love with them. He rolled over onto his side and stared at the wall. He could see that things were happening that were out of his control. Blaise was constantly getting letters from his father, but Draco had still heard nothing, from either of his parents. He was used to getting letters from his mother every week but he hadn't had one since the beginning of the term.

His mother was the only person that had ever cared for him. She had acted as a real mother to him, unlike his father who only paid him attention to teach him the Dark Arts. Draco turned onto his back again and closed his eyes. He listened as his friends came into the room and got ready for bed. Eventually he fell asleep, but his dreams were filled with screams and dying green eyes, pleading for his help.

The next morning Draco went down to breakfast on his own, but Pansy quickly caught up with him.

"Hey, Draco" Pansy said, giving him a timid smile as she sat down next to him.

"Morning." He replied and looked towards the doors as Harry and Hermione entered. He noticed that Ron was nowhere to be seen and wondered what had happened for Harry to be spending time just with Hermione. He saw Harry give him a nod and a quick smile, and was surprised when Hermione gave him a shy smile as well.

Draco was about to get Harry's attention when he was distracted by an owl soaring directly towards him. The owl stuck out his leg when it landed on the table in front him. Draco leaned forward and slowly took the letter out. He recognized the writing immediately and a sense of calm went through him.

My Darling Draco,

I am sorry that I have not written for quite a while. There are many reasons for this, none of which I can say in this letter.

As I am sure, you will have been hearing things from your friends concerning certain matters. I must also say here that there is a reason why your father hasn't written to you telling you what is happening and unfortunately this is yet another thing I can not explain to you.

Draco, you must listen to me. You can not come home for Christmas. Promise me son, promise me you will stay at Hogwarts. Your father will soon write to you, asking you to come home, but you must refuse.

I know that your father wrote to you a while ago, telling you the…great news. It is a privilege, but it is a privilege I do not wish for my son to go through.

I miss you with all my heart and I love you. I shall see you soon, but you must stay at Hogwarts for Christmas my darling.

Narcissa Malfoy.

Draco read the letter through and looked up at the owl that seemed to be expecting a reply. He got out some parchment and scribbled his promise to his mother. He attached it to the owl and watched as the owl made its way out of Hogwarts.

"Draco, who was your letter from?" He heard Pansy ask him.

"My mother." He replied, still looking in the direction the owl had just gone.

"Did she say anything interesting?"

"That really is none of your business, Pansy," He snapped at her. He stood up quickly and saw Pansy making a move to join him. "Stay here Pansy; you don't have to follow me everywhere." He stuffed the letter into his pocket and strolled quickly out of the Great Hall. He found an empty classroom and walked in. He sank onto the floor and pulled his knees up. My mother is warning me about something, something is meant to be happening this Christmas holidays that she doesn't want me to see, no that she doesn't want me to participate in? The letter from my father…she mentioned that…He looked up quickly when he heard the door of the classroom open quietly.

"Draco, are you in here?" A voice whispered.

Draco peered over the desks and saw Harry standing in the doorway. "Yes." He whispered back, his throat sore with trying not to cry.

"Are you ok?" Harry asked, moving over to him slowly.

"Great, thanks." Draco muttered, "Why are you here?"

Harry sat down next to him and looked at him. "I saw you get a letter…the colour practically drained out of your face when you read it. Then, you just got up and walked out of there. So I figured you needed someone to talk to, so I followed you."

Draco just nodded his head, "You didn't need to."

"You're my friend, Draco, it's what friends do."

"Thank you," Draco said, looking back down at his knees and pulling the letter out of his pocket. "It's from my mother." He stated, looking at it.

"Is your mother really that scary?" Harry joked.

"No." He whispered, his voice catching in his throat, "She says I can't go home for Christmas…I had to promise her." He looked towards Harry; his eyes glistening with tears he was hoping weren't going to fall. Draco watched as concern filled Harry's eyes. He really cares for me. Draco suddenly realized.

"Is something happening?" Harry asked quietly. Draco just shrugged his shoulders in response, "Can I have a look at the letter?"

Draco nodded and passed him the letter, watching Harry's face as he read it.

"What's the privilege Draco?" Harry whispered and Draco could tell that he was scared to hear the answer.

"To be a Death Eater: the youngest to be exact."

"Did you accept?"

"My father did for me. I have no say in the matter."

"Yes you do, if you don't want to…then…you can get out of it…go to Dumbledore, he will protect you…" Harry started to say.

"No." Draco interrupted. "I will not go to him. Harry, I knew this day would come ever since I was old enough to understand such things. I've been expecting it." He stopped and looked over the letter again. "My mother knows that if I go home this Christmas then it will happen. She is scared for me," He paused. "I'm scared for me." He whispered and looked over towards a window.

"Surely there is something you can do!"

Draco gave him a sympathetic look. "I've gotten use to the idea Harry. I once would have been happy at this you know. In fact, I would have been ecstatic. I would be rubbing it in Blaise's face. You know, when I was younger, I wanted to be exactly like my father, even after everything he put me through…Then I came here and met you. He told me to make friends with you that it would be of great use…so I tried, but you rejected me, so I turned to hating you, but the thing was…you were so similar to me. I could see it, even on that day I first saw you. You didn't understand what you had to do, what your part was in all this."

"Well, I had only just found out about the wizarding world, what do you expect?" Harry muttered.

"That might have been, but you didn't and neither did I. Then you did what you did in your first year…and then the second year…I had always heard what my father said about you, that it was pure luck that you weren't killed. I believed him; I believed everything he told me. But, yet again, you proved me wrong because you kept doing all of these things, saving all these people over and over again. It wasn't pure luck, you have something…And then, in the fourth year you came out clutching Cedric's body and something changed in you. I could see it; I could see that you needed somebody to understand you, to help you. That's what I needed, but I was scared of doing anything so I continued to pick on you. I was still trying to make my father proud of me. Not that it ever worked. Then, fifth year…when I heard about what happened in the ministry I knew you wouldn't be the same person. I saw it, you know? The first day of this year, I saw you in the Great Hall, laughing and eating with your friends. I looked at you and you looked at me, and your eyes…they were dull. All I could see in them was pain and suffering. I was so use to seeing them so bright but everything had left them, leaving this…hole. I remember last summer. My father was in Azkaban and I was truly free. My mother told me that she feared what was going to happen, that she didn't want her only son to go the way her husband had. That's when I truly started thinking that what I had been taught my whole life was wrong. I didn't want that life, I don't want it, but I have to Harry. I don't have the freedom of going to Dumbledore, and having him protect me. I would be killed instantly; you don't understand how easily things can get back to him. I don't want to die. I want to live like a normal child does, without the pressure of knowing that you have to go out and kill people you went to school with," He stopped suddenly and stared at Harry, "I can't kill these people Harry." He finally felt the tears starting to flow down his face and he turned away from Harry, embarrassed at Harry seeing him this way. He felt Harry put a hand on to his shoulder and twist him round to face him.

"I won't let anyone hurt you Draco." Harry whispered, and as Draco sat there looking at Harry; he knew he would be safe.