Chapter Text
Welp, I'm dying. Again. Marvelous. I knew that I didn't have much time. My body was heavy and aching, wounds oozing blood onto the ground below me. I had to cast cleaning charm after cleaning charm behind myself in order to cover up my bloody trail. Draped in my invisibility cloak, I ducked into knockturn alley and huddled in a dusty little alcove. I heard the rushed footsteps of my pursuers scuttle past like a pack of hungry rats.
"Come on, you lot! He's got to be here somewhere!" The voice of Ronald Weasley called out to the rest of the group traveling with him.
Idiots, the lot of them. How dare they do this to me. I gave them everything. Everything! My life was dedicated to protecting them and the world that they lived in from Voldermort and this is how they repay me?! By blaming me for all of the crimes Voldermort committed in this world, including the ones from before I was even born! How dare they!
I growled lowly under my breath before being cut off with a few hacking coughs. I cast a small silencing charm around my little hovel I was tucked away in. I hissed in pain as I pulled up my shirt. A large gash cut across my abdomen. Ronald had hit me with a pretty nasty cutting curse.
I was most definitely going to bleed to death. Bloody brilliant. I sighed softly as I curled up on my side under my invisibility cloak. As I lay on the ground, I let my mind wonder.
I thought about my friends. Or, rather who I thought were my friends. They used me. For the money. The fame. The spotlight. And once they got what they wanted, they turned on me. They started by blaming me for the deaths of Fred, Remus, Tonks and even Dumbledore. They then convinced the population of the Wizarding world that every single person who died at the hands of Voldermort was my fault. They even managed to convince everyone that Voldermort was following MY orders. Bloody ridiculous!
Then I thought about the Dursleys. Not much to say about them, really. Voldermort's Death eaters had infiltrated The Order and found out where they were. We only found out after the war that they had been tortured to death. Good riddance, I say. They were nothing but greedy assholes. They were being paid by Dumbledore to take me in and beat me. Apparently it was to make me more influential. I had to endure their torture just so that Dumbles could mold me into his little sacrificial pawn. Like a pig to the slaughter house. My blood was boiling in my veins with anger before a face flashed before my minds eye and his voice rattled my brain.
'You don't want to associate with the wrong sort. I can help you there.' l let out a shuddering breath and curled in on myself. Draco Malfoy. Now there was a complicated bloke. He tried to help me and I turned him away. Afterwards, he just did what everyone else expected from him. But I saw differently when I was in his manor during the war. He didn't want to tell them that it was me. He wanted to protect me, help me even though I had turned him away so long ago. After saving him from the fire, I had caught his eye. He had a look in his eyes that, at the time, I couldn't place. Now, as I lay in my own blood on the dusty ground, I know what it was.
He loved me. He loved me in the way I had thought Ginerva had. He was always there, subtly checking in on me, asking about my health, making sure that I was feeling well that day and keeping me on my toes. I had heard that Slytherins did everything they could to protect themselves and their loved ones. Now I know that's true. He did what he could to protect me, his family and himself from danger.
"I-I'm so-sorry Draco... I sh-should have taken yo-your hand..." I whispered in between coughs as I clutched my injured stomach tighter. If there was anything I regret about my life, it's turning Draco away and following Weasley. Now, it's too late to turn back.
Draco's Father and Mother had been killed by a few of Voldermort's Death eaters after I spoke up for them. Draco lost everything. His family, his friends, his home and his money. With just the clothes on his back, he curled up on my doorstep and cast the killing curse on himself. I found his suicide note after hearing his body collapse against the door. He told me everything in that letter. How he loved me from the first time we met till the end of his life. I didn't want to believe any of it, but now I know it's true.
"Draco..." His name rolled off of my tongue with such a soft clarity that I was stunned into silence. Suddenly, I felt a slight burning in my pocket and up my sleeve. I reached into both places and pulled out the resurrection stone and the Elder wand. I never got rid of either of them. I hid the real ones in my invisibility cloak and destroyed duplicates in order to get Weasley and Granger off my back. But, what was happening to them now?
I felt something shift on my chest and pulled out Granger's Time turner. My eyes widened. Could I actually have a second chance? Could I fix my mistakes? I set my jaw in determination. Only one way to find out.
I set the Time turner down with the Resurrection stone next to it and clutched the Elder wand tightly. I thought about where I wanted to go. Should I go back to my 11th birthday so that I don't have to deal with the Dursleys? No, my body is so weak by that time, I won't be strong enough to fight against Voldy and Dumbles once I get to Hogwarts. I need to build up my physical strength enough to handle my magic. Hopefully I can take all three of the Deathly Hollows with me. Otherwise, I won't be able to train like I want to.
I looked down at the Elder wand and felt it hum with power in my hand. It seemed to understand what I wanted to do and was assuring me that it was possible. I swallowed the blood in my mouth and held the wand out in front of me. I knew where I wanted to go. With a soft smile on my face and my destination in mind, I felt the world around me shift and warp out of shape.
"Draco..." I breathed out my last breaths in this world. This time line. His face flashed across my closed eyelids. His voice smooth in my head.
"Scared, Potter?"
"...You wish..."