the miracle of us || drarry

22 | epilogue

Harry stood with his son, Albus, in Platform 9 and 3/4, facing the Hogwarts Express. His hand, firm in Albus's, tightened slightly at the sight of the train. He heard, rather than saw, his son take a deep breath.

"You okay?" Harry asked, and Albus let out an unconvincing murmur of a yes.

They began to walk towards the train, blending into the crowd of parents sending their children off.

When they reached the entrance of the train, Albus pulled Harry's hand back reluctantly, and Harry leaned down to look him in the eye.

"I'm nervous," Albus said quietly. "Everyone's staring."

Harry smiled softly, meeting his son's striking grey eyes. The silver in them always reminded him of Draco.

"Ignore them. You'll be okay. Study hard, but remember to have fun. The magical world is full of wonderful things. Just don't get too tangled up in trouble," Harry added with a wink. This drew a laugh from Albus, who was shifting nervously on his feet.

Harry could tell that his son had something more to say, so he waited. When Albus finally opened his mouth to say it, his voice was small.

"You went to school with Dad, didn't you? What was he like?"

It was evident that Albus was not talking about Harry. Harry sighed through his nose, and let his mind fill with memories of Draco, just for a second. He let the smell of him, the feel of his lips, the way he smiled, consume him.

"He was the bravest man I'd ever met. The kindest, too. Now, we weren't all that fond of each other back at Hogwarts, but that certainly changed." Harry gave a little laugh, and watched the corners of Albus's lips tug upwards. "He was a little bit of a miracle, your father. Never let the darkness consume him."

Albus was smiling now, as well, and he asked, tone full of hope, "Will I ever get to see him again? In something other than pictures, I mean?"

Harry felt a wave of pain wash over him then, but it was not unbearable. The commotion around him faded, and his head went clear. For just a second, he could see the drawing Draco had made of them with a son, how different the child was in the drawing than Albus, how Harry was alone in holding his hand. He took in the sight of his son, preparing to board the train for his first year of studying magic at Hogwarts.

"Yes," Harry replied, and he meant it. "You will, Albus. We'll both see him again someday."

Albus's grin was wide, showing off his white teeth, and his bright eyes. He leaned in to give Harry a hug before turning and lugging his suitcase behind him towards the entrance of the train.

Harry watched him go, imagining a world where Draco was there beside him. A world where his hand was in Draco's, the two standing and staring beyond the crowd to the train behind, to their son boarding. A world where they argued about which house Albus would get sorted into, Gryffindor or Slytherin. A world where they returned home and found a warm house waiting for them, a house with life exploding within.

It was a beautiful world, and Harry hoped it was real somewhere. He hoped Draco was watching this scene, thinking that he was still grateful to have known Harry, even if he could not know Albus.

Harry smiled softly. There was a piece of his heart that still ached for the feeling of Draco's hand in his.

When he returned home that day, he reread Draco's final letter, which he had kept after all those years. He knew he'd never have the strength to throw it away.

—

whew!!! wow! so we have finally reached the end of this chapter, it's a super short one so sorry about that.

honestly, when i started this fic, i never imagined people would read it, much less that it would receive this much love. 47k reads!!!! wow!!!!!!!!

i know it took me a while to finish this fic but it was a part of me through all the most important parts of my teenage life.

i started this fic back in 2016, as a sophomore in high school, and now i'm a senior and graduating in 3 months, with a much bigger passion for writing.

i never imagined that people would read this, especially because it was so full of plot holes, with fairly lazy writing (because i wasn't as committed to this as i would be for say, a full length novel), but i appreciate all the love all of you have given me.

i know this isn't the ending most of you wanted, but it is an ending i envisioned since the beginning of the fic and something that i love writing (angst, sad endings), so i am very sorry if i disappointed you with it.

that being said, thank you for sticking with me through 2 and a half years of this fic because apparently it took me 2 and a half years to finish writing 20 chapters!!!!!!!!!

love you guys so much, and i doubt i'll ever post any more stories on wattpad because i just feel like i've outgrown it (as i am going to college soon) but if i ever do, please support me (: and i hope to become an author so if you ever see a book with my name on it sometime in the future it'd mean the world if you supported that too <3!!!

other than that, if you'd like to talk to me otherwise you can contact me through instagram (renaa_lin), or twitter (hugmvs)!

love you guys so much, each and every one of you is magic so never stop being you. thanks for everything!

rena 🥳