The Death of Love

I ran. Faster than I had ever run in my life, I ran. Even though I knew it was too late. My love was going to be dead. My footsteps echoed loudly through the cold, empty chambers and my heart was leaping with fear. I reached the door and flung it open only too late. I was too late.

As the deafening shot sliced through the air like a knife, the whole world turned to nothing. The gently falling snow surrounded me and I saw nothing but white. I was blind not to see it was him all along. The pure white sheet had been covering my eyes and the innocence was shielding me from seeing the truth all along. I was so stupid not to see who it was all along. And my love lay there in the snow, bleeding to death.

I needed to escape, to run away, to hide from it all. But this was the truth, my love was dying, and I knew that time would not erase those precious few seconds when I could have saved him. He needed me. My muscles leapt into action as I ran to him, my heart beating like the dull drums of a death band. I knelt down and looked into his eyes. His gentle face was twisted in pain, and I saw the crimson blood seep through his robes. No shade of red had ever seemed so painful, as I felt my heart melt, fade away, never to be recovered again. I ran my fingers through his soft hair, savouring every inch of his dying body, as I knew this was the end.

The silence around us was killing me, and finally his eyes met mine and his face returned to the kind, gentle loving expression I had known for so long. I could feel his chest grow tight with the effort of breathing and I could hardly watch his once gentle, relaxed figure jerked and shuddered from trying to live. His eyes were glassy and I saw a single tear fall silently down his pale cheek. He opened his mouth and the whole world stood still.

"Hermione? I think...I think I'm dying", he said, more tears falling from his eyes.

I felt my whole body break down. I fell onto him, weeping into his shoulder. The freezing snow was soaking my robes through and through and freezing my heart. My soul was aching as I cried for him, my body shaking and trembling from the utter desperation of needing him with me. My whole life with him flashed before me, a life I needed to live and which would be over in a few seconds. The pain was searing through my brain, screaming and kicking for him to stay alive.

"No," I said clinging to him. "You can't leave me, don't leave. I need you, I love you, I love you so much....I..."

The snow fell heavier as my tears fell into his hair and blinded me as waves of despair washed over me and drowned me. My world was black, blacker than anything I had ever imagined, it was immortal. My lungs were weak; my soul was tearing my heart to pieces, like a soft autumn breeze carrying the crisp brown leaves away. Draco. That name. It will haunt me forever. My lungs were dry as I tried to breath, gasping and choking on my tears.

"Don't leave me, please, I love you."

His eyes fell onto my face as his body fell weak beneath mine. The breathing stopped and his eyes grew wide with despair. He gasped for one final breath and said his last words to me.

"I don't want to die."

He gasped once more and his heart stopped. I stopped breathing, stopped moving. No. Not yet. I didn't want to live. My body was screaming, shrieking and sobbing and yet my tears stopped falling. I looked into his dead eyes.

"Harry?"