Title: the world seemed a restless place
Summary: Anything has to be better than happily ever after.
Word Count: 434
Rating: PG-13
Warning: This contains a pretty strong swear word (hence the rating). Other than that, though? There's a lot of angst. Too much, I think, but oh well.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter's not mine - it's all J.K. Rowling's. The title of the drabble isn't mine - I shamelessly stole it from "Song For Ten," which comes from the official Doctor Who soundtrack. Itbelongs to Murray Gold and by extension the BBC.
Notes: This takes place directly after DH (not the epilogue though since that didn't exist in the first place). So yes, this contains minor spoilers. Oh, and it also ends in Harry/Hermione. 'Cause the canon ships are overrated and not very interesting.
To all my readers - I'm sorry I haven't posted anything in a long time. The past few months I was getting ready for college, and when it finally started, I became so busy I barely had time to breathe. Now, I've got a bit of free time, so I'm going to spam your inbox with fics. I just want to say this..thank you so, so much for all your comments and support. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. So..thank you.
This was written for my best friend Jennifer. I know your birthday's a month away and everything so..think of this fic as my way of saying thank you. Thank you for being my best friend and one of the most amazing people I've ever met. (Don't argue with me!) I hope you like it.
- - -
He haunts her. (She feels him in every way possible.)
She wishes she could let him go - she has to settle for second best now.
They've gotten too close - so much that they've become inseparable from one another. It's hard to tell where she ends (begins) and he begins (ends).
She wonders if true love stories are the ones that don't happen.
-
These days she keeps herself distant from everyone. Him mostly.
She knows what's expected of her - go with the obvious. Forget about the boy she can't be with and go for his (her) - best friend instead. The safe choice.
She nearly fools herself too.
It's surprising, really, how naïve she still is. Even with an adult's eyes and a heart so bright it could burn up a thousand suns, she's a child. She still doesn't know anything. Doesn't know that letting go isn't the answer.
Holding on is.
-
She knows what's expected of him too. It's a fairy tale all over again - he's the hero, the other she is the fucking damsel in distress.
It's never 'the hero gets with the girl who helps him become the knight in shining armor.' No, it's always 'the hero ends with the pretty girl who does absolutely nothing to save herself.' No one writes about the other girl, who means more to him than anything (anyone else) will.
She wishes for a different ending.
Anything has to be better than happily ever after.
-
She realizes they are a love story waiting to happen.
-
In the end, it always goes back to the two of them. She still needs him and he still needs her.
Some things don't change.
Her mouth quirks a thankful smile at that.
-
It's always been him. She knows that (has known since the beginning). Always has. Always will be. He's her number one every time.
He doesn't need to say the same about her - she can tell from the way he sucks in a breath and nearly faints from relief when he hears she's alive, how their eyes speak in a language no one can understand, when he looks at her like she's most important to him - she already knows.
(Everyone had gotten it wrong - the person he would miss the most wasn't Ron.)
They never needed explanations.
-
What's right over what's easy.
The simplest decision she has ever made.
She sees him standing in the shadow of the light and without saying anything she rushes over and flings her arms around his neck. He puts his hands over hers and entwines their fingers together. This tells her everything.
She's home.