This chapter contains mentions of abuse and violent actions. Please read with caution.

I am so sorry.<3

_____

Amelie Avery Malfoy.

August 2015.

She grabbed another box, moving it out of the way to make more room. She didn't need more space. They had a whole Manor to store things in, but she wished to be practical, to save as much room as she possibly could.

Amelie smiled. A shy arch came across her mouth as she picked out the things filling the packages. Her eyes fell dearly over the stuffed animals placed in one of them.

They used to belong to Talia and Teddy.

Her little hearts, she laid them back down before turning to another box, and she did the same thing there. She smiled. She huffed out at the books crowded in that one.

It was Talia's old books. Amelie remembered reading to her when she was little, she wasn't as little anymore, but she still adored it when they read together.

Sometimes, when life got a bit too heavy for her daughter, she'd come knocking on Amelie's door, seeing how her mother was scribbling something in her leather book, and she asked if they could go downstairs. Amelie always knew what that meant.

They nestled up in front of the sofa, on the floor right by the fireplace, and it didn't matter if it was the middle of summer or if it was cold and gloomy outside, they ever so did that, and Amelie read. She read and read and read to her daughter, having her head on her lap, brushing her fingers over her hair. It was their favorite thing to do.

Talia didn't live to be too much like Amelie, not like little Teddy was.

He was her in the flesh. He looked like his father, the blond hair, the sharp nose, but he wasn't anything like him. Teddy was careful, gentle, calm. She would usually find him in the garden, picking flowers that later were placed on her pillow. He would talk to the birds, and he would make sure he gave them breakfast before eating anything himself. He had her eyes and her soul.

Amelie and Teddy were so much alike, as if he was a tiny version of her all over again.

While Talia was outspoken, open, straight to the point, she never stood down from a challenge. She was tough, honorable, good. She had the kindest heart, and sometimes, Amelie saw a little too much of Draco in her. She loved the spirit Talia carried. She loved that she reminded her of Draco.

Amelie shook her head, feeling the warmth as it spread through her. Sensing the bright feeling her perfect little family caused her.

Her arms dipped into another box. She smiled at the princess dresses.

Talia loved holding tea parties and would always throw a tantrum because her father wasn't wearing a dress. It went so far that he wasn't allowed to be near her when she was turning that side out. Narcissa made him one, and when Talia least expected it, Draco joined her parties in a princess dress.

She was never mad after that.

Amelie let going through that box, until her heart missed a beat. It was one of Draco's old suits, the black, handsome suit he ever so wore. To this day, she couldn't believe how one person was able to own that many of the same kind.

Bringing it up to her nose, she buried her face in the soft material. Him. It was his scent. The most perfect scent there would ever be. Home. It smelled like home, that never changed, and neither did he. Her Draco. Her beautiful Draco.

Act two.

October 21st, 2002.

She woke up with her breath caught in her throat. The late autumn sun flickered in between the curtains. Amelie sat up, quickly pulling the covers over her chest, and she looked around. Nothing. He wasn't there.

''No, no, no....'' She whispered to herself, crawling off the bed and reaching for her night robe. The silky material slipped over her bare frame, and she knotted it over her stomach. Running out of their room, Amelie didn't stop until she tore the door to her daughter's room open, and she saw their little life already sitting up in her bed, ready for her mother to pick her up.

Her heart dropped. Amelie's heart fell and ripped through her before crashing into the pit of her stomach. This couldn't be happening. This couldn't be true.

''Little love,'' Her tone was so thin, weakly walking across the floor and reaching down to take Talia in her arms. She hugged her so close, settling the tiny life over her belly, they made their way downstairs.

Amelie hoped and believed with everything that what she knew would be true wasn't. She knew he wouldn't be here anymore, that he would be gone. He said goodbye to her the night before, she remembered. It was one of the most heartbreaking nights of her life.

''Amelie...''

Narcissa was looking straight at her as she marched through the doors, Talia wrapped around he waist. There was a burst in her vocals, something that crackled, something Amelie hoped she was mistaken about, but she wasn't.

His mother looked at her with so much apology as it crammed her dark eyes. There was something so rueful stained in her irises. It broke Amelie's heart. She didn't even make it all way inside the kitchen until her lower lip began to quiver. Tears prickled in her bronzed eyes.

She couldn't breathe, Narcissa noticed. The lady hurried up to them, and she took Talia in her arms, running over to the pool of blankets on the floor, covered in toys and stuffed animals, and she let the little girl down before she was right back with Amelie.

Narcissa caught her right in time before her knees could bruise along the marble ground. She fell with her. Amelie couldn't think.

''Please—'' She sobbed out, her insides wrenching, ''Don't—''

Narcissa took her head in her palms, and she placed it on her shoulder, ''He'll be back.'' She tried to comfort, over and over, ''He will always come back for you.''

Her vision was blurry. Her mind was clouded and dark. It felt like she died. It truly felt as if a piece of Amelie's heart went with him, and it did because there she was, on her knees on the floor, begging over and over for this to be a trick, something not real. Something inside her head. Something wicked still lingering from the war, but it wasn't.

It was real

He was gone.

''He wanted this, Amelie....'' Narcissa pushed her lips into her head, ''He wants you to be safe.''

''But what if I don't—'' Her words rolled off her tongue in an utter mess. She couldn't shape her tells properly, ''I can't— I don't want to do this without him—''

''You knew that this was coming, sooner or later, Amelie. He needs to take responsibility for what—''

''Don't give me that!'' She snapped. Pushing herself off the floor, stumbling several steps back, ''Don't give me that moral talk. He saved everyone. Even if they don't know it, he fought for us, all of us. He doesn't—''

''Amelie, please...'' Narcissa could feel what that breaking girl was meant to do. She was heading towards the door, ''Don't do this.''

''Then what am I supposed to do?'' Amelie yelled out, turning around and facing Narcissa in a drastic move, ''Give up on him? Let him go? Let him take the blame for what that monster put him through?''

Tears were streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably, ''We have a daughter now. We have Atlas. What example am I setting if I just let him go without a fight? He's my Draco! He's my husband, he's her father—'' She pointed a direct finger at Talia, feeling as if she was losing her mind.

''He deserves to be fought for. He deserves that I at least try to fix this.'' Her voice thinned out, shaking her head as her hair spilled wildly around her, ''He doesn't deserve whatever they'll put him through. He killed for him. He killed their people, he—''

She was breaking. Amelie was crashing into the indefinite ground in the missing of him.

She swallowed the bitterness in her mouth, gulping on her sobs, ''I'm not giving up on him. I refuse to give up on him.''

Narcissa's lips parted. Her heart ached for that girl and what she still had to handle. They were supposed to be free. They had earned their peace, yet the world didn't seem to give her more than a second of it. This sphere, the life she lived, still robbed her of everything.

Amelie walked out. She left Talia with Narcissa, and she ran upstairs, taking her wand in her fist as she twitched her wrist.

The reality looped around her. Magic brought her to where she needed to be. It was a huge building. Glass covered the entire inside of it as people rushed around her.

She didn't stall a second, Amelie marched her way to the elevators, and she stepped inside one. The man already standing inside it looked at her bewilderingly. She stared back, not completely clear that the only thing still coating her body was her night robe.

''Ma'am?'' He questioned, tilting his head as the red hat on his head followed the movement, ''Where to?''

Amelie drew a breath, her bare feet stung along the cold ground, ''Where do they take inmates? People who turn themselves in?''

He blinked quickly. He didn't think the girl holding in a complete mess in front of her could get any stranger. Amelie's hair was tousled, her chin stained in tears, ''That would be to the criminal wing, but ma'am...'' He hesitated as the doors closed, ''That doesn't seem to be the right place for you.''

''Take me there.''

''But—''

''Now!'' She harshly whispered, wrapping her arms around herself and pressing her spine tightly against the wall behind her, ''Please.''

He shook his head, disappointingly almost, and with a thunderous sigh, he pressed a button.

She held onto the walls for dear life as the cube moved rashly.

It came to an abrupt stop, causing her to jolt forward. Her fingers grasped at the metal bars as they opened.

''The criminal wing, ma'am.'' The man said, shooting a puzzled glare at her, ''If you're absolutely sure you wish to jump off here.''

She inhaled sharply at the horrifying surroundings. The hallway was pitch dark. Black tile covered the whole corridor as she carefully stepped off, looking over her shoulder, ''Thank you,'' Amelie whispered before she walked down the hall.

Guards stood along the walls the further she went. Their inky suits strained across their tensed bodies, and their wands were held high.

Amelie was scared. She was terrified, but she was even more furious. The sparks of fire torched inside her the second her eye caught a desk at the end of the corridor. Her severe steps echoed along with the tile for each step she seized until she was standing in front of the man, sitting nonchalantly behind the wood.

Amelie cleared her throat, earning his attention almost immediately.

He gave her a dry look, tipping over his desk a bit to see her properly. He scoffed, ''Yes?'' He raised a brow, and it was the driest word she had ever heard anyone speak.

''I believe you have an inmate here that I'd like to see.'' Her voice was forceful, demanding, ''Draco Malfoy.''

The guard's eyes widened, and he sunk back into his chair, ''Never heard of that name.'' He stated shortly before he began fiddling with the papers in front of him again. He sounded nervous, she could tell.

''Rubbish,'' Amelie yanked her head back, glaring at him now, ''He's here. We both know he is. So why don't you save us the trouble and let me see him.''

The guard looked at her again, and it was a slight delay in his answer. His sight darted over her head, and he snapped his fingers, ''Unfortunately, Mrs. Malfoy, I won't be able—''

''How do you know who I am?''

Her words left him gulping. He couldn't answer that either. Dread grew to take over his sharp features, and he snapped his fingers again, harder this time. Two of the guards behind her slowly moved closer. When they were standing right next to her, practically breathing down her neck — Amelie snapped her own fingers while twitching her wand.

The two men flew back. She didn't even look at them. She bored her intense stare at the man in front of her, ''It's clear to me that you've been warned that I might show up here, so instead of wasting my time, let me talk to the person who told you not to let me in.''

He raised to his feet, pressing his palms into the table. His jaws clenched for a second, the ticking muscles in them tensed. He gave a quick nod of his head, allowing one of the still-standing guards to do as she told.

Amelie paced back and forth in front of that desk. Her sight grounded as she wondered if she took water far above her head with this. If she should've stayed behind with her daughter and let his mother come and reason with them, but she didn't have the patience for that. When it came to Draco, she wouldn't cave. She couldn't.

''Miss Avery...'' A man's voice mirrored through the hallway, ''Or should I say Mrs. Malfoy?''

She looked around. She didn't see anything. She didn't see anyone. The desk was gone. The men around it had vanished. Amelie scowled at the darkness consuming her until she faded. Her mind giving in to whatever was happening, and she fainted.

_____

It didn't take long until she woke up, her spine pressed against the cold ground, someone was holding her down. Slowly, she peeled her lashes wide. The bright light tore through her pupils, shining right at her.

''What—'' Her gasp echoed, reflected amongst every man standing in that tiny room they'd placed her in, ''Let me go.''

Someone cleared their throat, flipping something in the cool air. She winced as they promptly let go of her. Their hands allowing her to move now, and she did. Amelie jerked off that floor hastily. She stood up, trying to make out what was happening around her.

Her head was dizzy. Her vision was everything but clear as she wrapped the night robe tighter around her shaking body. She was scared again, holding alone in a room with over a dozen men.

''So, you decide to storm into my ministry and cause a scene?'' The man talking stood with his spine facing her, ''That's one foolish thing to do.''

Amelie shook her head. Her eyes grew broad in disbelief. She hardly grasped what was occurring, ''Who are you—''

Her breathing was shallow, non-existent, barely there.

''Isn't it obvious?'' The man gripped the ledge of the glass he faced, ''I'm the man in charge.''

''Minister.'' She didn't dare to look at him anymore, scared it would do more harm than good. He so clearly knew about her already, ''What are we doing in here?''

He huffed out a dry chuckle before he turned around, and he faced her, smiling devilishly, ''Isn't that a little too obvious as well? What house did your file say... ah, Ravenclaw. Could've fooled me.''

Her world couldn't get any darker. Her life couldn't fail her more than it had already. She didn't know him, and he was already taunting her. Her brows dragged together, frowning.

''But let's not be hostile with another....'' He continued, sucking his inner cheek in and facing the glass again, ''I suppose there's a reason you're here? In my Ministry?''

''I don't—'' She looked away, nearly sensing as her soul left her body, but the worry for Draco kept her sane. He was still in danger, ''Where is he?''

He tapped his fingers upon the glass, tipping his head and gesturing for her to stand beside him. Amelie hesitated as she snaked a glance across the room. She didn't stand a chance, and it left her with no choice.

She did as he wished for her to do. Amelie positioned herself next to him, watching the reflection of them in the glass. Only darkness scored on the other side, ''What is this?'' She asked, shockingly. Still not processing the fact that they took her into a hidden room, ''Why are we—''

''Turn the lights on, will you?'' He shot a quick look over his shoulder, talking to one of the guards, ''You see, dear....'' He huffed out, sounding far too amused, ''When Malfoy turned himself in last night, I figured you'd come running, so I orchestrated something for you.'' His hand splayed wide, smoothly signaling for the glass.

The light turned on.

Draco.

It was Draco.

''No!'' Amelie slammed her fists into the glass. Tears filled her eyes as she watched what they did to him. They beat him. They tortured him right in front of her. He wasn't conscious. His eyes were closed, his mouth hanging wide. His head tilted back, ''Please—''

The man stepped back, moving to pace around her, ''As you know, your husband isn't like any other Death Eater. He's the vilest one of his kind. He's a monster. He was as ruthless as the Dark Lord was, if not worse at times. I've seen it with my own eyes. I was on sight several times after one of his executions. It was a blood bath. He slaughtered people like they weren't living creatures to begin with.''

Amelie couldn't listen. She couldn't focus. She kept hitting the glass.

''And he was only seventeen at that time. He was a bloody child, and still, he held no remorse for human life. He took it like you take candy from a child. He killed and killed, and I see it highly appropriate that he pay for the sins he committed.''

Amelie's stomach flipped. She felt sick as it rocked within her.

''He will be put on trial after a month in isolation with the treatment I see fitting for this matter. What you're looking at right now is nothing compared to what they'll do to him if he doesn't plead guilty.''

Amelie was hyperventilating, ''Please, don't do this—''

The man locked his fingers behind his back, tilting forward a bit, ''I offered him a deal. He or you. Of course, he chose to give himself up, than to sacrifice you and your daughter.''

''Let him go—'' Amelie still tried to fight, even if they all knew it was in vain, ''Let him go, and I'll do anything. I'll do anything you—''

The Minister let his fist collide with the glass, earning her attention as she flinched back, ''Do you want me to lock you up as well? I would be delighted to do so, Mrs. Malfoy. From what I understood, you played quite a part in taking lives—''

''No,'' Her teeth gritted, tears spilled from her eyes, ''You don't get to pretend that you know what he's done and what he's been through. You said it yourself. He was a child. He was manipulated and forced into—''

The man merely looked at her. Studying the woman she'd become, she wasn't anything he'd read. She wasn't the abused child, the confused mind her files said she was.

''You are the Minister of magic, and still, you torture him. You know who's to blame for this, and it isn't Draco. You just want a scapegoat to blame this on because the Dark Lord is dead, and Lucius Malfoy is nowhere to be found. This has nothing to do with Draco. This has everything to do with you, needing to win the people over, to make them trust you. But let me tell you one thing,'' Amelie took a threatening step closer, ''As you said, you read my file. You know what I've done, who I am. You know what I have to protect and when a mother is in the survival mode for her child and that child's father... You don't know what she'll do.''

''Is that a threat?'' He cut her short, the evilness in his eyes flamed, ''Because threatening the Minister of magic might be the most foolish thing you'll ever do, Mrs. Malfoy.''

''I was the Dark Lord's daughter for nineteen years, without anyone finding out.'' Amelie fought back. Her whole body was shaking, ''And when you did find out, you threatened my husband with it. You forced him into leaving his child, his wife, to be the reason you stay where you are, but I'm not ashamed. The world can know who I am. I'll be happy to tell them, but with that, Minister—'' She was intimidating now, ''With that, other secrets get out, and I will be the least of the world's problem when they find out what your Ministry let pass by because you were scared.''

''And who will believe you? You are a child. A child with the Riddle legacy, no one—''

''Are you willing to take that chance? To believe that I don't know what happened within those walls? You are torturing my husband as we speak, Minister. If anyone is the sinner here, it's you.''

''I am the man in charge now, Mrs. Malfoy, and when I say that Draco Malfoy will be held accountable for the things he's done. He will. For the public eye, I will keep my honorable facade up, and you will accept it. You will take whatever headline is written, and you'll stay quiet — he will be charged and convicted for being a Death Eater and the most ruthless one at that. That is how this will play out unless you want your name to be added to that list?''

''Don't—' She took her hand to her mouth, muffling the sounds that fled her chest at the vision of Draco nearly being killed behind that glass. Her throat closed in on her, ''He didn't do this. He's not responsible for what your Ministry failed to protect him from.''

''He's going down. One way or another, but the remaining question is, are you going with him? Or will your child have at least one parent standing when this is over?''

It was a threat. An indirect ultimatum. A warning.

Amelie didn't do well with his menaces, not when Draco was at stake, ''My daughter,'' She said, taking a step closer to the man now, ''My daughter will have both her parents standing when this is over. Draco Malfoy will be returned to me, and if you're not willing to own up and take accountability for what your Ministry failed to see, that's on you, but don't you dare drag my husband into your wishes to stay in power. He's not the one who should pay for this. He was a child.''

''What if I take your child?'' He sneered, growing impatient with her lack of standing down, ''What if I take that little girl away from you? What is she now, two and a half? She'd be put in a shelter—''

Amelie took three steps forward, ready to hurt that man standing in front of her, but she halted the second his men grabbed her shoulders. He stared at her wide-eyed, brushing the fabric of his suit off, ''You'll learn how to behave, Mrs. Malfoy. As I said... I read all about you before I decided to go after your husband. The best friend you sent overseas, the little orphan brother, the divorced mother-in-law. Adrian Pucey. Blaise Zabini. Hermione Granger. Pansy Parkinson—''

''Don't you dare!'' Amelie yanked her arms back, trying to free herself, ''Don't you dare speak their names.''

''He is responsible for their deaths, every last one of them, child.'' He seethed evilly again, ''You should take a look through that bloody glass, and you should see the refection of a killer. He might have helped this world free itself from the darkness keeping it locked down, but don't you forget how he poisoned it to begin with.''

Amelie kept yanking. She kept twisting and turning her body in panic at Draco's screams. She couldn't look at what they were doing to him. She wasn't strong enough to keep fighting if she did, so instead, she tried to get loose.

''Sedate her if needed, she's—''

Amelie, with all strength she had, managed to snatch one of the guard's wands out of his hand, and she aimed it at the window, whispering the explosive spell beneath her breath.

The glass shattered. Nearly the whole wall went with it as all of the men stumbled back. It all went by so fast — Amelie barely grasped what she was doing until it was done.

She pushed herself forward, jumping over the crushed pieces of glass, and she threw herself at Draco. His body was numb and lifeless on the ground as she tugged at the material of his shirt. She cried. She tried to force his frame up with hers, but it didn't comply. He was too hurt.

''I'll fix this,'' Amelie gasped, pushing her lips into his head. Her sight flickered, noticing how the guards began to wake up from her doing.

She kissed his head again and again and again, tears spilled, ''I'll fix it, Draco. I'll come back for you. I will always come back for you,'' Her voice cracking and breaking. It even hurt to blink now. It hurt to exist without him close to her.

It didn't take more than a minute until the men breathed down her neck, and they dragged her off Malfoy's body. The Minister stared at her, gapingly, before he took his eyes off her, and he gave a quick arch of his eyebrow, signaling for his servants to take her out of that room.

He was done with her. Finished. She heard what he wished to say, ''Don't you forget this.'' He warned her, ''He will go down, but there's no reason for you to go with him.''

Amelie was thrown onto her knees in front of the elevator. She rushed to get back up, and she glared after the guards walking away.

Still feeling his body against hers. The moment they had the night prior still haunted her mind. She could sense his lips on hers. His hands were on her body. His touch and his words in her ear — to now, where she heard his screams instead. His body bled, and his soul being drained.

She had to figure out a way to fix this. Amelie had to.

_____

The days passed so slowly. The minutes felt like hours. Every tick of that clock echoing throughout that quiet mansion caused her to squirm. It felt to her as if it was taunting her. As if the world was mocking one of the gravest losses in her life.

The universe she was trapped in took everything from her, over and over. Again and again. She saw nothing but darkness ahead of her, between the thoughts of Draco never returning to her, all the way to her daughter growing up without her father.

She was breaking, hurting, dying. She felt like she was dying.

The missing of Draco Malfoy was lethal, and for every day that went on without him close to her, dragged her below the surface a bit more. Drowning. She was drowning again.

She tried to go to the Ministry as often as she could, but they had banned her from even entering the building. Having no clue what to do anymore, Narcissa tried instead.

They fought and fought. They strived and brawled, but nothing. Draco couldn't be saved from what was waiting for him.

Death. They were going to kill him.

The Minister released articles following articles in different papers and posts, saying that Malfoy was the one to blame and the one that would take the blame for what happened to their world.

November 24th, 2002.

It felt like she couldn't breathe. She couldn't drag the air her lungs craved down her chest. Her throat closing in on her, her whole self caved. Amelie ruptured and broke as she heard the sound echoing throughout the bathroom.

She was sitting in their bathtub again. Her wand pointed at her stomach as she felt her whole world crumbling around her. She knew this would happen. Amelie knew there was a possibility for this to be true.

He wanted another baby.

They created something so beautiful again.

Amelie was carrying another little heart. She was pregnant. The heartbeat mirrored along the tile walls, nearly blooming as it caused rings to spread on the surface of the water she was seated in.

Her head fell back. Her eyes closed. Tears. The tears were there again. She hadn't cried in weeks. She didn't have the strength to cry. There were no tears left for her to give. The sphere had taken them all from her.

Narcissa came to her rescue that day. She took her hand and helped her out of the bathtub, she wrapped her into a towel, and she laid her down on their bed.

''And you're certain?'' She asked, looking down at Amelie as she shut her eyes, gritting her teeth, ''Do you know for how long? In order for the spell—''

''The night he left,'' She whispered, balling the sheets between her fingers. Amelie wanted another little human in her life too. There wasn't a thing she wished for more than this when she and Draco talked about it, ''He said—''

''Shhh, dear.'' Narcissa nodded, slowly taking the wand to her belly, ''You don't need to put yourself through that again. Think about this. This little miracle found its way to you at this time. It's almost as if this is Draco's way of protecting you.''

Amelie nodded. Her tears tasted salty in the corner of her mouth as she drew a breath, feeling the magic rising around her.

Narcissa hummed. She nodded and worked her wand above Amelie's tiny bump. Over another blessing in their lives. Pregnant. She was indeed pregnant.

''Something wrong?'' Amelie couldn't form her words properly. She couldn't comprehend a thing, ''Is it—''

''Do you want to know?'' Narcissa withdrew her hands, only letting the bright light swirl around them, ''What's growing inside you?''

She did, and she didn't. Amelie didn't know. She didn't know if she wished to know. Not without him here. It was as much a piece of him as it was of her. She shouldn't be doing this without him, but at the same time, she felt like she needed to know.

There was another little heart now. He wanted this. They wanted this, and that merely broke her heart more because he was supposed to be here. She wasn't supposed to do this without him. He left her with this. He wanted her to have something more when he was gone.

Her head brushed against her pillow, squeezing her eyes so hard that she saw stars, ''Tell me.''

Narcissa smiled comfortably, her hands stroking along Amelie's jaw, ''It's a boy, Amelie.''

She sobbed out. She had tears left to cry.

''You're having a healthy little boy.''

January 7th, 2003.

He'd been gone for three and a half months, and she was dying even more now.

Amelie did everything she could, even if it was nothing to do.

She went through every book, every lead, every loophole. Everything. She dug, and scanned, researched, and studied but nothing. Their world had never seen a trial similar to this one. She was helpless.

Standing in their room, she peered around.

She hated that room now. She absolutely loathed it. Most nights, she'd sleep in the armchair Draco had placed in Talia's room. It was all she could manage, sleeping curled up with his night clothes on.

It went so far that she even considered bringing Theodore back home, granting his memories back, and having him help her. But Draco's words echoed in her head when those thoughts came to mind, how she set him free for a reason, how she wouldn't have done that if she weren't absolutely sure of her doings.

She let those thoughts go as quickly as they came.

''Amelie.''

She turned around. Her hands automatically fled to her stomach as she watched the little boy standing in the doorway.

Forcing a smile, she rested her brows, looking dearly at her little brother, who wasn't that little anymore. He'd grown so much over the past years, and it wouldn't be long until he would be gone too.

He was turning eleven next year, and a new life away from them in Hogwarts waited.

''Hi, love,'' She kept that smile, gazing down at him, nearly frowning at how he was looking at her, ''What's wrong?''

Atlas stamped on the same spot a few times, seeming nervous, ''Can I tell you a secret?''

She kneeled in front of him, reaching her arms out for him to take place in them, ''Of course you can.''

He stared down in his lap, almost shaking, ''Draco told me something before he left....''

She scowled now, confusingly, ''What do you mean?''

''He...'' Atlas drew a long breath, feeling as he was betraying Malfoy, but he couldn't see his sister this way anymore.

He couldn't have her hurt in the way she was. He couldn't miss Draco anymore either, ''He said I had to keep it a secret. You were already in bed when he came into my room, and he gave me something.''

''Atlas, what did he give you?'' Amelie shifted a bit in her position. Her eyes stayed on her brother. Her heart began to pound, ''What—''

''He said he was going away and that he couldn't come home for a while, and he said I couldn't tell you.'' Tears pooled in the little boy's eyes, ''I wanted to tell you, but he said—''

Her arms wrapped around him, dragging him closer, ''It's alright....'' She hummed, pressing her lips into his head, ''I know it's hard, but he needs us, Atlas, so if he told you anything that I can use to find him, you have to tell me.''

Atlas nodded, ''He said I could only show you this if it was an emergency, if something happens and we need help.''

Amelie's heart was bursting in the cage of her chest, hammering against her ribs at a feral pace.

''I know I'm late... I know I should have said something when he left, but he made me promise to wait.'' Atlas swallowed so hard. His face held a sad cloak, a hurtful one, as he dipped his hand down his pocket and brought a piece of paper up, ''Here.''

She took it heedlessly. Her fingers grasped at the tiny sheet. Her brows knitted, her mouth pushed into a firm line as she blankly stared at it. All it contained was an address. No name. No directions. No note. Nothing. Simply an address outside of London.

''Altas... did he say—'' Amelie dropped the paper to the ground, ''Did he say what this was? Who I can find here?''

The boy looked away. He felt so guilty. He had promised Draco not to say anything. Malfoy told him never to tell anyone about that little scrunched-up note, not even if he wasn't coming back. That address was something he had to keep to himself.

''Talia's grandfather.''

Amelie's eyes grew enormous. Her breath hitched in the back of her throat as she coughed out. Atlas flew to his feet, nearly holding his own breath. He was so scared that she'd be mad at him. That she'd do something or say something mean, but she didn't.

Of course, she didn't. She took a minute to collect herself before she crawled forwards, and her arms once again wrapped around her brother. She hugged him so closely because she knew what this meant.

It was a way out. She could get Draco back.

Cursing herself for not coming to that conclusion on her own, she kissed his head, ''Thank you.'' She whispered, ''Thank you for telling me, Atlas.''

Amelie didn't spare a minute. She went to find her wand, looking into the living room where Narcissa was playing with Talia, and she smiled. She felt hopeful. For the first time in months, she felt hope.

Perhaps it all would be alright after all.

Hugging her wand in her fist, she raised it, and she breathed the magic to take her to the address.

_____

Dark.

It turned dark around her. She could hardly make out a thing within that sea of trees she stood in the middle of. In front of a tiny cabin.

This looked nothing like a safe house Lucius Malfoy would choose. It looked poor. It was worn and weary. She was used to that man showering in wealth and luxury.

Her steps were so insecure, so tender. She couldn't know if it was a trap she'd walked in on. She couldn't know if this was someone tricking her, but Amelie was more than willing to take that chance. When it came to Draco being free and coming back to them — she'd do anything necessary to make that happen.

Her hand was shaking frantically as her knuckles collided with the wood. Knocking on the door confidently, even if she felt like she was crumbling within.

It turned still around her. Like the air stopped breezing, the world ceased.

And then, suddenly, the door slammed open, and a wand was aimed at her. His whole self startled as if he'd seen a ghost. ''What the hell are you doing here?'' The man snapped. His voice was rigid. His face told it all. He wasn't pleased with all to see her, ''You need to leave.''

Amelie took a step closer to him. Her wand tensely hugged in her fist. She was fearful when it came to him, ''Lucius—''

''No.'' He said, dense and serious, blocking her way. ''You can't be here. If anyone followed you—''

''No one followed me,'' She countered, her answer was fast, certain, ''No one knows where you are.''

He rose his brows, flipping a stray strand of blond hair off his shoulder, ''Then how come a witch like yourself found me that easily? He's only been in holding for a few months—''

''Three,'' Amelie swallowed the doubt she felt as it rocked within her, ''He's been locked up for three months, Lucius. Almost four now.''

The man scoffed, seeming unconcerned, ''Well who keeps count—''

''I do,'' Amelie spoke, taking another step into the house he was hiding in, he backed up, ''I do. His mother does. My little brother does too. All of us keep count.''

Lucius visibly tensed, his shoulders straight like he had something to prove for his nonchalant answers, ''I suppose that's why you're here? Because you believe I can do something for my son?''

She nodded, he scoffed again, ''Well, let me make this little visit a short one. I can't. I can't help you. So do us both a favor and leave.''

He turned around, waking further into his house, but instead of obeying his command, Amelie walked after him. All the way to his kitchen, where he turned back around and let out a displeased sound.

''I don't know what you expect me to do. They can not find out about me being alive. Everyone is in the belief that I went down with the Dark Lord. If the Ministry even gets a clue that I am indeed alive, we both will be put away.''

Amelie placed her hands upon the kitchen counter, staring blankly at the man and his ignorance for his son's well-being, ''He's your son.''

''Don't you think I know that?'' His tone harsher, ''Don't you think it kills me to know that he's in there, taking god knows what punishment for my actions?''

''Then why aren't you doing anything—''

''Because—''

''Because what? Because you're scared to take responsibility for your actions? For your doings? For what you let him do?''

''You don't know—''

''I do. I do know. I do know what you put him through. And I know that this makes you a coward. You're weak for letting your own child taking the blame for what you manipulated him into doing.''

Her words threw him off. His jaws clenched. His breathing stilled.

''He did wrong. I know he did things to humans without you asking, but who do you think he tried to please? Who do you think Draco is protecting as we speak? You don't think he knows where you are? Of course, he does. How do you think I found you?''

Lucius's shoulders sunk, ''What?''

''He gave my brother a note, with this address, before he was taken, telling him that he could come here if he ever needed help. That you'd help us in an emergency. Well, this is as close as an emergency we can come.'' Amelie didn't rest. She spoke her mind and her truth, ''Did you know we have a daughter?''

Lucius looked away.

''Her name is Talia, Draco named her. Talia Aimee Malfoy. Aimee comes from the child, whose death you were responsible for by letting Adrian out.'' Amelie dragged a deep breath, ''Draco is Talia's favorite person, and she's everything to him.''

''Why are you telling me this?'' He hissed, walking further away from her, hiding from what she was telling him, ''I don't need to know—''

''I'm pregnant again. It's a boy.''

Lucius looked up at her. His eyes were broad. Guilt.

''And Draco doesn't know because he gave himself up for us. He'd rather face your consequences than living with his child, than being home with his mother. He gave himself up for his family because you sacrificed yours.''

''Amelie...''

''No,'' She began to back away herself, disappointingly shaking her head at him, ''You don't have to put your son above yourself. You don't have to do anything. I know I can't do anything. I'm helpless in this, and I would be more than glad to turn you in, but I could never do that to him. Draco wanted to protect you, and I, even how much it kills me not having him here, could never go against his wishes.''

''Then why are you here? You know I can't do what you're asking me to do.'' He said. He wasn't as solid anymore.

''I hoped that you would do what he had spent the past years doing. I hoped you'd chose your family above yourself, but I guess I was wrong.'' Amelie felt like she needed to throw up. This was too much for her. His lack of compassion was too much for her, ''I'm sorry that he isn't as important to you as you are to him.''

He tried to call out for her as she stormed out but to no use. She was already gone.

January 10th, 2003.

''You can't be here!''

Narcissa's frightened voice ripped through the whole Manor, leaving a ringing noise as it bounced between the walls.

Amelie's veins froze at the panic she caught resounding. Her spine straightened over Talia's bed, and she snapped her head. Staring blankly at the door and wishing to everything that no one would find their way up there.

''Papa?'' Talia closed her eyes, drifting into her afternoon sleep. Her heart broke, shattered on sight at the belief her daughter held. Every time someone sounded from downstairs, she asked after Draco, hoping and wishing that her father would've found his way back to her.

Amelie stroke the tips of her fingers over Talia's forehead, hushing her as she fell asleep. Looking down at her one more time, Amelie turned to face the door before slipping out from it.

She snuck her way across the upper floor, trying to be as quiet among the bickering and shouting happening downstairs, ''Atlas?'' She whispered, slipping in between the crack to her brother's room, ''Can you help me? With something?''

''Yes...'' He pushed himself off the floor, his toys coated the entirety of his room, ''What happened?''

Amelie shot a quick look over her shoulder, making sure no one would come upstairs while Talia was sleeping, ''Can you go into Talia's room? Be with her for a minute? I have to go downstairs.''

''Yes!'' He burst out, pushing her aside and running to the room across the hall. He closed the door behind him, and she felt like she could breathe again.

Swallowing the doubt she carried, Amelie walked down the stairs hesitantly.

''If Draco finds out you were here, he'll never forgive me. You were supposed to leave us alone.''

''Narcissa, please. Just let me talk to the girl.''

''That is completely out of the question. Have you gone mad? Over my dead body.''

''Narcissa, this isn't for you to decide—''

''It's okay,'' Amelie stepped off the last step, facing the two arguing parents. Tucking the hair constantly falling in her eyes, behind her ears, she nodded at the lady, ''He's not here to hurt us, are you?''

Lucius cleared his throat, straightening his shoulders, ''No. I'm not.''

Narcissa's eyes grew wide. Her movements restrained as Amelie laid a hand on her shoulder, giving her all the permission in the world to ease in her former husband's presence. She backed away, but only enough to still be able to jump between them if anything were to happen.

Amelie stood right in front of him. Already debating the idea of allowing him to be in the house now belonging to Draco. He made it so clear that he didn't want him anywhere near his daughter or Atlas. Her lips parted, ready to speak, but he beat her to it.

''You said—'' Lucius nervously tugged at the collar of his coat, ''You said that I was a coward for not owning up to what I made my son do.''

Amelie nodded slowly.

''No one has ever spoken to me in the way you did. I always thought I put the well-being of my family above myself by making the choices I did.'' His eyes stayed locked in hers, ''You made me realize that it's not the case.''

She nodded again.

''I don't want to be a coward, Amelie.'' He said, lowly, ''I don't want my son to die.''

Her heart was beating again, hard. It hit so hard in her chest.

''I want my granddaughter to have her father....'' He peered over to Narcissa but was quickly looking at Amelie again, ''I don't want him to be anything like me.''

She smiled sadly. It wasn't a smile of happiness. She felt for him. He could tell, ''Can I show you something?'' She asked as he nodded.

The girl turned around. Her dress fluttered around her as they all walked up the stairs, and she halted right outside her daughter's door. She opened it, walking inside as he was right behind her.

Atlas was reading in the armchair, barely paying any attention to them until Narcissa asked him to follow her back to his own room.

Amelie looked up at Lucius, ''She has his eyes,'' She smiled, ''She has those big blue eyes you drown in.''

He had to clasp his jaws tight. Locking them shut not to feel too much emotion. He had never seen their daughter before. Lucius's hand gripped the edge of the bed as he stared down at the little life sleeping so peacefully.

''She's...'' He backed up just as rapidly. He didn't feel as if he was worthy enough to look at that little heart, ''She's beautiful.''

''She is,'' Amelie turned around, ''She's strong. She's so much stronger than me.'' She huffed out a weak chuckle, ''You think the parents are meant to keep the world together for them, to be strong and have everything under control, but I've been nothing but a mess without Draco, and she....''

Her spine arched, fixing the covers over her daughter's body, ''She's been the one keeping me sane.''

''You have a beautiful family, Amelie.'' He bowed his head, the cane in his hand struck the mat, ''What do you say about saving it?''

AUGUST 2015.

Amelie couldn't help but smile at that, putting his suit back into the box as she smiled so widely. They indeed saved her family that day, but they also lost a huge part of it. Lucius didn't live long after he turned himself in.

He was executed in front of hundreds of wizards and witches. Draco was there. It was a Thursday. The snow laid thick on the ground. He said he didn't want to go first. He said he wished this upon his father, but he went. He refused to let her come.

The night he returned, he cried. He cried, and he cried, and he cried in her arms. She held him. He sobbed. She kissed him. He couldn't breathe. She told him that his father was in a better place now, that his life had failed him and that he was well deserved of that rest. That made him feel better. They talked. They didn't only talk about the hurtful memories, but the good ones too.

She learned that they were a beautiful family. They weren't that different from their own little family. Amelie adored their home and everyone in it. It was complete. It was perfect. Even when they were younger, when Teddy was born, it turned absolutely perfect.

She saved another family once, another pack of people that now was closer to them than always.

Act one.

September 2005.

Amelie frowned. She peered through that window, and something was wrong. Something was so incredibly wrong. She didn't know what, but the way Teddy was staring out over nothing, how he was seated on that couch, with no sparks in his eyes.

She hadn't checked upon him in a while, between Talia being the storm she was and her own little Teddy growing, she didn't find the time. She didn't want to leave them for so a minute, but she wished she had now.

He didn't look happy. There wasn't a sign of Alessandro anywhere. She scowled at the darkness around her before she turned in her heel, and she marched away from the house.

Amelie apparated to the police station she knew Alessandro to be working in. She asked a kind officer where he believed his co-worker would be. A bar. He said that after work, Alessandro usually headed off to this bar by the beach, and he sat there for hours.

Walking through the doors, she peered around, her hair following the movements until she caught him. He was handsome, even she thought so. He was tall, muscular, had sharp features, dark hair. Teddy truly had a taste.

Alessandro was sitting at the bar, his shoulders sunken, his head dropped between them. Her heart ached. She had missed so much since she last traveled across the ocean to check in on them.

''I'll take....'' Amelie said, cutting herself off as soon as those words came across her. It hit her that she had no clue how to order something in a bar, ''I—''

Alessandro tipped his head, giving her a dry look as he muttered something to the bartender in Italian. He huffed out, looking down at his glass again, ''They don't speak English here.''

''Oh,'' Amelie was confused, it never really clocked her that people didn't speak English, ''Well, thank you, Mr...?''

''Alessandro,'' He said, reaching his hand out for her to take, ''I'm Alessandro, and you?''

''Amelie,'' She said politely. She could tell he was exhausted, torn, and drawn. He didn't have an ounce of energy to spare her.

''That's a pretty name.'' He sighed, his arms fell flat to the table, and he buried his head against them, ''Well, Amelie. Miss English, I ordered you a glass of wine. You look like someone who drinks wine.''

''I do?'' Amelie had no idea what that meant, ''Well, thank you again, I suppose.''

''You don't quite strike me as a cocktail girl, and you definitely don't do shots. Do you have kids?''

He was truly straightforward. He was kind, caring, even if he wasn't in the mood at all — he still did his best for her to feel welcome and safe.

''I do,'' She smiled, taking a seat next to his, ''Two, a girl and a boy.''

''Really?'' He looked up at her again, a bit more doubting now, ''How can that be? You don't look a day over twenty.''

Her cheeks burnt, she stared down at the counter, ''Twenty-five,'' She corrected him, trying to hide that arch on her lips, ''But thank you for a third time, then.''

''For believing you're younger than you are?'' Alessandro straightened his spine, keeping one elbow on the wood, turning the rest of his body towards her, ''How old are your kids?''

She let her hands stay in her lap, meeting his curious gaze, ''Five and two.''

''Really?'' He questioned, now even looking surprised, ''So you were...what? Nineteen when you became a mother?''

Amelie nodded, ''I was, and twenty-three with the little one. You like asking questions, I hear.''

''I do,'' He grinned, reaching for his glass and taking it up to his lips, ''I like learning things about other people, even strangers. I make them feel important and heard. That's important to me.''

The bartender placed her glass of wine in front of her before sprinting off again, ''Well, come on, stranger. Try it, see if I'm right.''

Amelie made a face. She made such a grimace at the wine that Alessandro burst out in laughter, clutching his stomach and nearly falling off his chair. She swallowed the dry taste, shaking her head at it.

''Not a wine-drinker then?'' He settled his glass upon the table. She kept shaking her head, ''Me neither, I hate wine, but I learned to like it because of my boy... ex-boyfriend.''

Amelie coughed out the bitterness, furrowing her brows, ''Ex-boyfriend?''

Alessandro shrugged, trying to seem unbothered, but she could feel his pain from miles away, ''I was acting stupid over something, and I walked out on him. Worst mistake of my life.''

''Can you fix it?'' She sounded worried. She was worried, her tone shaking.

''I don't think so.'' He admitted, the smile on his face faded, ''I think I hurt him, like really hurt him. I don't think he'll forgive me. I don't even think I want him to.''

''Well...'' Amelie turned to face him, ''If I've learned something in my life, and if you care to listen to a stranger....''

He smiled faintly.

''Forgiveness isn't up to the person who hurt you. It's up to the one getting hurt. If you did something that you know hurt someone else, apologize, and be sincere. He might forgive you, he might not, but that should be his choice to make. You can hurt people unknowingly, and you never know if you do if they never tell you the truth, but if you know in your heart that you did something that hurt him. Apologize, and leave the choice of forgiveness up to him. Don't take that away from him. Let him hear what you have to say, if he wants to, of course, and let it be up to him what he wants to do with it. Then you know you did everything you could to make him understand.''

Alessandro blinked quickly.

''And if he doesn't understand, if he doesn't forgive you — that's his choice too, but at least it was his choice to make.''

''You really thought about this, didn't you?'' He let out in a whisper, ''Do I have to beat someone up for hurting you?''

Amelie chuckled, shaking her head. If he only knew how many people had hurt her, ''A lot of people hurt me. Some of them demanded forgiveness. Other people left it up to me... But either way, I ended up forgiving them all. I believe in happiness. I believe that what you give has a way of coming back to you. Poor choices don't make a bad person, you know.''

''Some people are bad,'' He stated, putting on a serious face, ''Some people are just cruel and evil.''

''They are...'' Amelie knew that there were some people that never earned any forgiveness in this world. She'd seen it first hand, ''I knew this boy once. He was truly dear to me, but he was the best example of evil. He hurt me in ways no one ever has, but he worked his way back from it. He became one of the most kind-hearted, sweet souls I've ever known. He was my worst nightmare, and now... Well, now my son has his name.''

''Really?'' Alessandro bent over the counter, resting his arms upon it, ''That's truly something, isn't it?''

''People can surprise you,'' Her voice riddled with honesty. She smiled at the memory of Adrian. Oh, how she missed him, ''And it was all my best friend's doing.''

''Is that so?'' He seemed so interested in what she had to say. As if he didn't want her to stop talking, as if it was more than nice to talk to someone that didn't know anything about his past, to hear someone else's troubles, rather than to focus on his own, ''Why do I feel like this someone isn't your best friend anymore?''

''Oh, he is,'' Amelie took her glass of wine up, tracing it back to her lips, ''He will always be one of the most important people to me. In fact, the reason I'm visiting here is because of him.''

He was even more intrigued now, ''You traveled across the earth for him?''

''I did. I do, often. I want to make sure he's okay.''

''Is he?''

Amelie gazed at him, nodding softly, ''Something tells me that he'll be just fine.''

They sat there for hours, talking and laughing about life. He drank his cup of water, and Amelie tried with all she had to finish her wine, but it was nearly impossible.

''So about that ex-boyfriend,'' She changed the subject, ''Tell me about him.''

''Where do I start?'' Alessandro dragged his hands through his hair, scratching the back of his neck, ''He's a doctor, one of the best. He's... he's astonishing. I have never met anyone like him. He's kind, caring, considerate. He has the worst taste when it comes to decorating his home, knows nothing about color or how to match them, but somehow... that only makes me love him more.''

''Do you?'' She was feeling so warm within, so happy to hear this, ''Do you love him?''

''I do, more than I thought I ever could, and it makes me feel guilty because I used to... I used to be married before him, but I lost both my husband and my daughter... and that brings me back to why I am the worst type of person to him.''

''Why?''

''Because I'm scared that I'll never be able to give him what he wants, and he doesn't know if he can give me what I want... I told him that I loved him once, and he froze. He said he couldn't say it back because of his past. Apparently, he lost someone... he says it's a best friend, but I feel like it's someone much more important than just a best friend.''

Amelie's heart ached. Theodore was so much more than just a best friend to her too.

''He said he's scared that he'll never feel for someone like he felt for her, she was the most important person in his life... and now, well. Now she's not there anymore, and it's making him believe he doesn't deserve another chance at happiness....''

Alessandro was heaving, his chest rising and falling with force after blurting out everything he'd ever felt, ''I love him. I want this.. life with him, but I don't know if he wants me.''

''Then ask him,'' Amelie had that gracious curve back on her lips, ''He sounds like a reasonable person, and if you tell him what you just told me... I don't think anything will stand in the way of you two.''

He cocked his head, snapping it to see her properly, ''You know what? I will.'' He pushed his chair back, reaching down into his pocket, and he hauled some money up before throwing it onto the counter, ''That nasty wine is on me, stranger.''

''Good luck,'' Amelie looked after him as he stormed off, but he halted. Alessandro stopped abruptly in his steps, and the next thing she knew, he was right next to her again.

''Are you going to be okay?'' He was so tall. She had to arch her neck to see him.

''I will,'' She nodded, she knew she'd be okay, ''Now go — go get that man back.''

''Thank you,'' Alessandro looked at her, nearly memorizing her and everything he was grateful for about her. She saved his relationship, without even knowing him, ''Thank you, stranger... and perhaps, don't be a stranger anymore if you find yourself back here.''

He walked out.

August 2015.

Amelie never reflected much on that day because the next time she stopped by and checked upon them, they were happy. He gave Teddy a chance of owning his own forgiveness, and he took it.

Her hands pushed another box to the side, taking the lid off, and she gasped. Amelie gasped so loudly. It was her old Romeo and Juliet book.

Their old book, her and Teddy's.

Lifting it and brushing her fingers across the cover, her heart nearly stopped beating. She hadn't seen that book in years, decades, not since she was a teenager.

She almost feared to open it, to see all the small notes her and Teddy used to leave each other as they kept giving it back and forth, but as the soul Amelie lived to be. She opened it anyway, and she saw something, something she'd never seen before.

'My dear Amelie.

I won't tell you about this. I don't think I have to. You know how I like mocking you with these things.

I don't know what you are planning, but I know that you are planning something, and I don't like it. I don't like it at all, because I feel like you are planning something without me. I don't want you to plan anything without me, but if that is the case, if you are indeed planning your life in ways I won't be a part of, I need to tell you this.

I need you to know. Perhaps not today, not tomorrow, not five years from now, maybe not even ten years from now, but someday.

Someday, I need you to find your way back to this book, and I need you to know what I am about to tell you.

Some people, Amelie. Some people are too good for this world. Some people are pure angels sent here to make the rest of us happy, to give us meaning, and to give us life before they travel along, before they see all the good they've caused and all the happiness they gave the people lucky enough to get to know them.

In some ways, I'd like to call them healers. They see something broken, someone broken. Someone that has given up all hope in themselves, someone that keeps breathing just because they have to. They see these people, and they heal them.

They come into their lives like a mighty storm. They wash all the pain and sorrow away and replace it with the sunshine that always follows. It's like that crack in the heavy clouds, where the sun breaks through, and the world feels a bit lighter.

Other times, I like to see them as angels. Something too good for this world, someone too pure and honest to stay here with us. Someone that is passing through, giving hope and meaning before traveling along.

That's who you are, Amelie.

You are that healer. You are that storm. You are that angel.

Do you remember the night you found your Patronus? The night you finally earned it?

I do. I remember, and for all those years, I never realized how or why your Patronus lived to be so different from everyone else's. There wasn't anything like it.

But I do. I do understand now.

I realized it one night when I saw you sleep on the sofa with Talia in your arms. I finally saw everything there was to see about you. And that was when I finally figured it out.

Grief.

Your patronus represents your life, Amelie. Every last perfect, chaotic, sad, happy, heavy, light, dark, bright part of it. All of it.

You always told me how you mourned the life you never thought you'd have. How you already, when we were kids, mourned your life and everything you never thought you'd have.

Stages, Amelie. Those birds are stages, one for each part of you, six to begin with, and none at the end.

Denial.

Amelie looked up from the book, and she found herself standing in front of the graves she once placed in that tiny glade down the Malfoy property. She adored that glade. That little break in between the trees, where the sun always crackled through, and the wind seemed to be still.

She smiled. She smiled because she found her way down there.

Her spine felt heavy upon one of the rocks. She leaned against it. Adrian. She was sitting at his grave, her legs crossed, the book tightly hugged in her hands as she thought of it.

Denial.

Oh, how she had lived most of her life in denial.

Amelie lived in denial for almost all of her life. There wasn't a day that passed before the age of eighteen where she didn't close her eyes for things she didn't wish to see, where she turned away for things she didn't want to face, where she hid not to accept the truth as it so solidly stood before her.

Denial was something she was trapped in, forced, and kept inside. Until she broke out, she finally saw her worth on this earth. She was worthy. She was loved. She was important. She was cared for. They could never take that away from her. She wasn't in denial any more. She hadn't been for years now. And it never hit her when it happened, but it did. One bird had faded.

''Hi,''

The voice made her look up, placing the book in her lap as she smiled. Atlas. Her little Atlas.

''What brings you out here?'' She asked, patting the grass next to her, ''It's late.''

''Well, I'm an adult now.'' He chuckled, his mouth curling, ''I'm allowed to be out late now.''

''You will always be a little child to me, I hope you know that,'' Amelie nudged him a bit to the side, causing him to chuckle, ''What's on your mind?''

He sighed out, ''Am I selfish?'' He whispered, looking down at his lap, ''For leaving? Do you think I should stay?''

Amelie felt so much in her heart. She was so proud of what that boy had become, ''I think your whole life was decided for you. I think your life was mapped and planned before you were even born. I think that everyone, even strangers had something to say about your life, except you. Never, Atlas. Never feel guilty or believe that you are selfish for putting yourself first. It's about time.''

His cheeks stained in a feverish color.

''Besides, Teddy is lucky to have a healing student like you in his hospital.'' She brushed her hand against his, ''Something tells me that you are going to be just fine, Atlas.''

The time for Atlas to move on was, at last, here. He had fought and battled his entire life. Even before he was able to breathe, he had the world working against him, but not anymore. Atlas was free, and he used that freedom to heal others, to become someone who mended what he was never given.

''Are you going to be alright?'' He asked, his voice laced with concern and worry, ''Here? With everything? I know I'll be okay, but will you?''

She didn't know if she would. She hoped she would.

''Except dying from missing you?'' Tears began to prickle, the lump in her throat grew, ''I will miss you so much.''

She would. Oh, how she would miss him. They had been inseparable for sixteen years, ever since she found him, playing in the grass outside that cabin, it had been them. It had always been them. Atlas and Amelie.

He reached for her hand, taking it in his, ''I'll miss you more, Amelie.''

She smiled, closing her eyes as he stood up. She didn't want to watch him go. She knew he still had a few more days at home before he would leave for a life with Teddy, learning and living in the way he wanted to.

Magic always failed Atlas. He was never free of it, and neither would he be, so he stepped away. He spaced himself from it, and he became something he truly believed in. A doctor. A real, practicing doctor. Just like Teddy.

She peered down at the book again, picking it up and burying her face in the letters.

I bet you thought about all the things you once denied. Beautiful, isn't it? How far you've come? Because you have, Amelie. You have come longer than anyone ever believed you would.

The world never treated you fairly.

It hurt you. It burnt you. It cut you. It wounded you. Still, you always faced it with such grace. I never understood how you were able to do that. How you could crumble, break apart and still stand.

That is one of the many things I admire about you, Amelie. The way you always choose to meet betrayal, so effortlessly, so beautifully, never with anger.

Anger.

Her eyes flickered, watching the Manor as it stood massive in front of her.

Amelie never felt rage. She never let that spark of fury consume her. She saw the good in people, the worthy parts of their souls. She was it all, good and bad, yet she'd always choose the light, but there were certain parts in her heavy life where she'd been angry, and this Manor was one of them.

It was where Draco had kidnapped her, taken her, and locked her up against her will. It was where he let her go after she finally started feeling, where she lost a dear friend and a little heart, where she was taken from and placed back without anything, where she lost and found herself, where she fled from and where she came back to.

Feeling. This home caused so much feeling to sore through her, and for that, for that, she was thankful. She wasn't sure she would ever be angry again, and she never was. Another bird faded.

See? There wasn't much to that, was it? But the main thing is that you felt it, Amelie. You could feel it. You did feel it. All of it. Anger, fury, rage. Even if the times were few, you did.

But it wasn't that often. You always tried to think your way out of feeling. You always tried to convince yourself that your feelings weren't yours to have. You tried to bargain.

Bargaining.

That one made her think. That one caused her to stop as she stood on the upper floor of their Manor, outside Teddy's door. Her little Teddy. She opened it, closing it behind her, and without truly understanding how she got there, Amelie stood with her lips, pushing into her son's head. She kissed his hair, breathing in that scent only he had.

Her little Teddy. He came into their lives at the worst possible time, and he made it all right. They became whole because of him.

She smiled shyly as she whispered that she loved him. Over and over, she whispered that, again and again, until she was scared that she'd wake him up, and she walked out.

Standing outside of Talia's door, she knocked on it carefully to see if her daughter was awake. No answer.

Amelie stepped inside, seeing how Talia had fallen asleep in the midst of the chaos of books and spells spilling around her. Her little girl. Their little girl. Their little miracle.

Amelie's life never turned the same after Talia, after their little thunderstorm. After their rain. She took the air from inside them, both her and Draco. Talia robbed them of their breaths and gave them proper meaning with their lives when they needed it the most.

She smiled. Arching her spine and kissing her daughter's head. I love you, she said over and over. Whispering it, lowly.

Amelie was thankful that she didn't bargain her life as she used to.

What if this was her fault after all? What would have happened if she didn't leave Adrian? What would've happened if she just obeyed her father without blinking. What if she didn't kiss Malfoy back that night in the library? What if she simply stayed at that cabin and hid for the rest of her life?

Perhaps everyone would still be here. Perhaps they all would be alive. Perhaps it was all her fault after all. Those thoughts could still circle at times, even up to this day. She couldn't get them out of her head even if she so wished to, but she didn't blame herself anymore. She wasn't at fault for all of this. She knew that now.

She knew that even if lives were lost and souls let go to live freely, their lives bloomed. It flourished. It grew. Amelie lived for all of them. The third bird had faded.

Amelie breathed in, standing in the doorway to her daughter's room and smiling. Okay. It all would be okay.

How many times did I tell you not to think that it was your fault? That everything that happened in this life, on this earth, wasn't your fault, Amelie? But you never listened to me. And I never blamed you.

I'm not much to listen to anyway.

But don't you see, Amelie? Don't you see how far you've come already?

Don't you see how you turned that denial into truth? That anger into love? That bargaining into reality? Don't you see, Amelie, how proud I am over you?

How incredibly happy I am for you, but you weren't always happy.

Do you remember how I used to dry your tears? How I kissed them away and how I told you no one deserves them?

No one does, Amelie. No one deserves those pretty tears of yours. Not even me.

Depression.

Amelie stood in front of her mirror in the bathroom. She put the book down on the counter.

She wasn't smiling anymore.

Her eyes fell upon the scars that still showed on her chest. Marks, cuts, burns, and wounds. She still had them. All of them.

Earlier in her life, she used to be ashamed, embarrassed for the way her past caused her to shine, but not anymore. Now she carried them with pride, with honor. She was so proud of herself as she let her dress fall to the floor, tracing the tips of her fingers up the faded marks on her body.

She won the fight with her devil. And he helped her take her shame away.

Her Draco. The most honest love of her life, the purest, most heartbreaking love of her doomed life. He took all her pain away, always. The fourth bird didn't fade because of her. It vanished because of him.

''After eighteen years, you'd think I would be used to how beautiful you are....'' He mumbled against her neck, pressing his lips against her skin, ''But you never stop taking my breath away.''

Amelie was smiling again. He always made her smile.

Her eyes dragged up her own reflection until it met his. Silver and bronze. Ice and warmth collided as he placed his hands along the curve of her waist, kissing that soft spot behind her ear, ''You are beautiful, Amelie.''

She spun around, his hands moving to her spine as he held her. Draco always loved holding her, ''You are not so bad yourself, Draco.''

Her hair leaked wildly across her shoulders as he leaned in. His lips caught hers, ''I have a beautiful wife.''

''I have a handsome husband.''

Draco groaned against her lips, holding himself from praising her body with the strength of his, ''Are the kids asleep?'' He asked as he stepped back, taking another long look at the woman who saved his life.

His heart. Amelie was his heart.

''They are,'' She turned back around, taking the book in her hand and striding past him out in the bedroom, ''I checked on them just a few minutes ago.''

''Of course, you did,'' He gave an amused chuckle, ''And Atlas?''

Amelie folded the covers off the mattress, slipping down below them with her spine as it so heavily rested upon the headboard, ''Asleep.''

Draco hummed something from the bathroom, turning the shower on. She smiled, flipping the worn book open again.

Acceptance, Amelie.

I always believed that you came to mind with your faith after Talia was born. I ever so thought you'd find the peace this life had in storage for you, but it never seemed to come. I hope, today, when you finally found your way back to where it all started, that it, at last, came to you.

Peace. Heaven. Your heaven.

As I said, some people aren't made for this world. They are given to show us everything good this life has to offer, and then they leave when the time comes.

Angel, Amelie. You are an angel.

You were always too good for this world, for this life, and I think that somewhere underneath everything you are, you know it too. You weren't supposed to stay.

You were sent here to heal, to save, and to mend the torn souls in your life. You were meant to be everything we all couldn't. And oh, how you saved us, Amelie. From everything.

The healer, the storm, the angel.

The most beautiful kind of all of the above, you are.

You won. You lived a life that was meant to break you. You never stood a chance, but you took that, you took all that pain, hurt, and sorrow, and you turned it into you, a human in the purest form.

And that only leaves one more bird.

You.

The last one standing. The one who made it. The one who survived. The one who lived, loved and gave.

The angel sent from above. The healer meant to mend others. The storm that came into our lives and took our breaths away.

The rain, Amelie.

You are the rain.

The kind that comforts you when you are in need of it, but still soaks you with all of its sorrows when you're not. You could listen to it all night but despise it in the light of day, and you... You miss it terribly when it's not raining anymore.

I think we all were your favorite feeling on your bad days, but you, you were all of our good days.

But that's the thing about rain, isn't it? Eventually, it stops pouring.

And god, how we all will miss the rain, Amelie.

You saved us from the most vicious downfall, but don't you see love?

It finally stopped pouring.

You are free now.

I love you forever.

Until we meet again.

— Teddy. '

She cried.

Amelie closed her eyes at the stars prickling in them, the tiny dots of light as it so alluringly waited for her. That light. That shine of heaven was tempting her to follow.

She'd seen it before. She wished to follow it many times, but she couldn't. Everything hurt too much to give up. The world seemed so weighed upon her shoulders.

It didn't feel as heavy anymore. Her chest didn't ache. It didn't hurt to breathe.

She came to the realization of something as she settled that book back on the nightstand, sinking down in their bed. Acceptance.

Perhaps she wasn't meant for this world after all. Perhaps Amelie Avery was meant to do so much more, be so much more.

She smiled. Amelie smiled through her tears, looking like she accepted what was coming to her.

She had spent thirty-five years in a world, trapped and chained in a life that was meant to free her a long time ago. She was never supposed to stay.

Tired, Amelie was so tired as she felt Draco's arms tucked around her, dragging her into his chest. It felt as if he knew, as if he understood what was happening to them.

She was exhausted. She was worn, drawn, fragile. She was finished. She had done her part.

Amelie had given Draco everything he never thought he needed. She gave him peace. She gave him two beautiful children. She gave him life. She loved him. Amelie Avery loved Draco Malfoy so much, and he loved her even more.

Soulmates, he thought as he felt her chest slowing. She was so tired, so, so tired. He held her tighter, keeping her there for one more minute.

He cried. He cried silently into the back of her head, ''It's okay.'' He kissed that soft spot behind the shell of her ear, ''It's alright, Amelie. You can go now. You don't have to hurt anymore.''

Malfoy couldn't breathe. He felt her hand slowly loosening from his. He held it tighter. He held her harder. He was falling again. He was falling and crashing, but this time.

This time he was falling with her. He pressed another kiss against her, closing his own eyes in the darkness within the walls of the room it all seemed to have started. Them. It would always be them now.

He swallowed. Draco swallowed his tears, and he whispered, ''I'll be right there.'' He said, holding her body so close to his. He was protecting the last pieces of her that were still there, ''I'll be right there, Amelie.''

She didn't have to fight anymore.

Amelie fell asleep with his arms around her. She went into that sleep she was so well deserved of while being held by that blond man. Her Draco. She could leave in peace now. She knew she could.

Her children were safe. Atlas would be okay. Teddy was happy. She didn't have to hurt anymore. She didn't have to struggle. She won, and she had finally earned her rest.

Amelie left the world that failed her so badly. The world that let the sinners feast on her kind heart and the purity of her soul. She didn't have to let them do that anymore. She was gone now. She was free.

Amelie Avery was free. She faded from this sphere in the arms of the most significant love of her life. She and him. Always.

He couldn't breathe. Draco Malfoy couldn't breathe, knowing she wasn't breathing the same air he was anymore. Amelie was gone. She faded in the hold of his arms, and he was right behind her.

Because soulmates that found themselves lost in the midst of a storm, lovers that loved in symphony with the pouring rain, and hearts as they stopped beating in sync with another, it would always be him to her.

There was no secret that Draco lived for Amelie, and he did so till this day. He faded as she did. He left when she did. His heart couldn't beat unless it were in bearing with hers.

He didn't have to fight anymore.

They didn't have to fight anymore.

They were free. They finally earned the rest they so well deserved together.

And at last, the rain stopped pouring.