the miracle of us || drarry

01 | finding him

The woods near the Ministry headquarters had been under close scrutiny ever since the war, and Aurors and other Ministry officials had been trying to find any Death Eaters that were still on the run.

Harry Potter was one of those Aurors; having survived the battle (not to mention having come back to life and defeated Voldemort), Harry was offered a job at the Ministry as the Minister for Magic's right hand man, but Harry refused that job, preferring a job as simply an Auror.

But Harry still had nightmares of the war, waking up in a cold sweat every morning, sometimes screaming himself awake. Faces of the passed and of his deceased friends kept flashing in his mind; some might've thought he'd been going insane.

Harry had not a lady or a wife to call his own; Hermione Granger ended up with his best friend, Ronald Weasley, and Ginny Weasley had married Dean Thomas, which left Harry alone, living in 12 Grimmauld Place, trying not to think of all the people who ended up dead because of him.

On the morning of April 3, Harry was sent to the woods to investigate, and search for any Death Eaters in hiding.

Harry doubted there would be any in the forest, considering how close it was to the Ministry, and how smart most of the Death Eaters were meant to be.

There seemed to be only a few still in hiding, a few who's wanted posters were hung up all around the Ministry.

"Harry," called an Auror named Alastair whom Harry had become close with. "Maybe we should split up. It'll be easier and faster to search that way?"

He said it almost like a question, but Harry nodded his head, and they set off in separate directions.

He believed that there surely wouldn't be any Death Eaters in those woods, at least, ones who still wanted to survive. He searched half-heartedly.

After thirty minutes of nothing, Harry prepared to make his way back to the Ministry, when something caught his eye. He thought he saw the swish of a tattered robe.

Furrowing his eyebrows, Harry speeded up his walking and followed. Glancing around, he searched for any other sign of life.

Maybe it was just some kind of animal, he thought. Nothing ever happens in that forest anyway.

He planned on turning back again, when he heard the snapping of a stick. He took a breath, closing his eyes, and opened them again before turning to investigate.

He treaded attentively, careful not to frighten whatever was there.

After moments of silence, he heard a crash and a whimper that was definitely not animal-like.

Harry approached it, wand out in front of him, and popped out from behind a tree, ready to cast a spell.

What he saw was not what he expected.

His long sworn enemy, Draco Malfoy, lay, groaning, massaging his back. His face was dirtied and his white blonde hair crusted with blood and dust. His tattered robe clung to his body sweat.

"Malfoy?" Harry said, disbelievingly.

Draco froze, lifting his head up tentatively. An unwelcome expression plagued his face.

"Potter," he growled, and scrambled to his feet.

"Merlin, Malfoy, you gave me a scare. What are you doing in these woods anyway?"

"I fell in a hole."

"I can see that," Harry deadpanned, quirking an eyebrow, his wand still at the ready. "Why in the world are you hiding in the forest closest to the people who are trying to catch you?"