August

July 31st 1998

I was walking, but it was mindless. My feet were moving rhythmically, my brain not keeping up. That was how I ended up here.

The astronomy tower seemed sinister at night, eerie almost. But all of that was forgotten when you reached the top of the stone spiral staircase, to see the sky stretching for miles. The inky black was peppered with glowing specks of fine dust. But the dust shined so bright, and in that second that you stare into the glowing depths of a singular star, you can feel your problems ebbing away. Gone for that moment. Enveloped in the stars and all that's in between.

I sat down on the harsh, cold stone and looked up at the stars. Sometimes I wished I could be among them, peaceful and serene. The emptiness would be enough to drown out the endless stares I still receive walking around the grounds.

There had been a truce called- after the war. The brave Hufflepuffs, defiant Slytherins, quick-witted Gryffindors and cunning Ravenclaws had called it evens. So all the eighth year students who had no place to go, no home to welcome them back or no place that they could stay were staying at Hogwarts for the summer. Professor McGonagall was doing everything in her power to find accommodation for those who required it. And it was a hell of a job, though some students stayed on to support their friends.

It must've been around eleven o'clock, after at least an hour of staring up at the sky, when I first heard them. The footsteps. They were light and feathery but in the still night air I could hear them very clearly. They were not too fast, more of a temperate, soft pace. I continued to look at the sky, hoping to not be seen. But that has never worked for me. Nor did it work now.

I feel the shadow from the figure, cast by the moon, looming over me. But this figure was not too imposing, taller and leaner than me, but it did not feel like anyone of this stature could take me.

I tried to stay turned, facing the moon and shimmering stars, away from the visitor. But then I heard their voice, a voice which would've had me at their throat in seconds last year. However, I feel impartial now, if anything I am in need of company and this unlikely ally would do. Would do more than just fine.

"Hello Po-, I mean Harry. Hello."

Draco Malfoy was standing behind me, and much to my surprise, due to his turn in character, he sat down beside me. It was unfamiliar, but I could feel something stirring inside if him. A torrent of emotion was threatening to break free. But for all I care, let it.

"I still think about it, you know." Draco said, unexpectedly after several minutes of sitting, content with each other's company and silence."That night, it crosses my mind everyday. The darkness, the loneliness, everything I was facing. I couldn't do it. I knew I couldn't. I never could've.

"I had no choice. Life or death. Snape saved me, but at a cost. I lost my mentor, head of house and my godfather that night. He had sealed his fate as my parents had sealed mine.

"God, I regret it. I regret not taking Dumbledore's offer. I regret becoming a death eater. I regret all of the things I said to you. I regr-"

But Draco couldn't finish his words. His tears were full flowing now and I couldn't do anything. I had always been awkward around crying people- emotional people in general. So I did the only thing that came naturally to me, I held his hand.

It was a purely platonic gesture, a way of comfort for this was all I could do. But he didn't pull away, intertwining our fingers together to create a weave of something new. I would be lying if I said I didn't feel a prick of emotion and a smattering of sympathy in my heart for him. But there was also something new. And definitely unfamiliar.