Sapphire (Lazuli Book #3) - Harry Potter Fan Fiction (Draco Malfoy)

Chapter Twenty-Four

Cedric chuckled and plucked a daisy from the grass. "Well, I definitely won't care what house you're in. You're my best friend Jule, and you will be forever.

"Always."

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The final vision isn't a memory, because I know that it has never happened. It's what could have been, had I accepted the Dark Lord's offer, or had none of this ever happened in the first place.

I am watching a slightly older version of myself, perhaps in my twenties. A golden wedding band sits around my finger, and my dark hair has been tied back away from my face with a golden ribbon. I'm dressed in a long white nightgown, and in my arms there is a bundle of white swaddling cloth. At closer inspection, it's clear to see the face of a baby - my baby - buried within it, his blue eyes open and staring up at his mother in wonder. He is a beautiful baby, and my heart bursts with pride as I watch him.

The door opens, and in walks Draco. He looks tired - his blonde hair is dishevelled and there are bags beneath his eyes - but he looks completely and utterly ecstatic. He grins as he lays his eyes on me and the baby, and approaches carefully, sitting down on the bed and kissing our son's forehead tenderly. "My boy," he whispers, shutting his eyes for a moment as the baby gurgles in delight. Then he lifts his head and kisses me, with so much love that it makes my heart flip in my chest just watching him. "My wife," he adds.

"Have you chosen a name for our son yet, love?" he asks as he strokes the boy's cheek softly. I purse my lips and then smile. "Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy," I whisper. The boy's lips twitch, as if he likes the name, and Draco nods in approval. "Scorpius," he murmurs as he reaches out and strokes our son's cheek again. "Yes, it's a good name. A strong name."

I gaze down at my baby and kiss his adorable button nose. Scorpius blinks a few times and then coos loudly, making Draco and I laugh in adoration. "He's our son, Draco," I mutter in amazement, the bundle in my arms wriggling slightly. "He's our boy."

"And he's beautiful," Draco adds.

The real me tries to step towards the baby, but I am stuck to the spot. I cannot move, nor talk. But I could have sworn that little Scorpius' head turned towards me, the real me, and that he saw through the dimensions of time and space that separated us and he saw me.

I wanted to hold him, to kiss him and love him.

But I couldn't, because I was dead.

That was when I woke up.

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When you're alive, you don't notice every small detail.

The wind in your hair, the sound of laughter in your ears, the smell of freshly cooked bread and the first sight of spring. You take that for granted when it's always there.

When you're dead, when there's nothing, you realise what you had, and you crave it. It hurts more than anything in life ever did; knowing that you'll never feel the wind, hear the laughter, smell the bread or see spring again. That you're going to miss all of those little things and so much more because in death, there is nothing.

The first thing I noticed about death is that it isn't black, like I thought it would be. Instead, I find that I am in a large space that has no end, it seems to go on forever. Everything is white here, even though there is nothing but space. The white is blinding at first, but then I grow used to it. I'm not sure how long I've been here, only that it's all I remember, and that a great measure of time has passed since I first opened my eyes.

Is this what Heaven is meant to be? Or have I been condemned to Purgatory, my sins far outweighing my good deeds. Is this what death is like for everyone, or is this personal to me?