Disclaimer: This always has to be here, doesn't it? You already know I don't own any Harry Potter-related nouns, so we're all good. The Same Sky You have no idea how cold It felt, on that lonely road…
You've never been all alone,
Never had to face your fears
With no one there to tell you
That it was going to be okay.
Maybe today will be the day, when all your fears go away.
This was what Draco Malfoy was telling himself on a cold, unforgiving January evening. He had snuck out of the castle, and now he stood, his cloak blowing out behind him, his hands in his pockets. He looked across the grounds dejectedly, wondering what he had done to deserve such abandonment. Leaning his head against a tree, he sighed. He had done a lot, and he knew it.
He had tortured many, taunted many, hurt many, hated many, and loved very few. But he was just doing his duty as a Malfoy. He had done exactly as his father told him, but now he was gone. Everyone was gone—his father dead and gone, his mother slowly perishing in St. Mungo's, having gone insane after witnessing her husband's murder, his friends killed brutally by a vengeful Voldemort (who later on died in the Last Battle that had just taken place that summer), and his fiancé gone, choosing to replace him with a wealthier, sweeter man.
At the youthful age of eighteen, this was a lot to have to go through. Even for a Malfoy.
While Draco was wandering the lonely grounds, Hermione Granger lay awake in bed, her eyes, blankly staring out the window. As she studied the starless black sky, she thought about all that she had gone through. She had watched many of her friends die, and watched her precious library burn to ashes.
She remembered the Last Battle as if it happened yesterday. And she also remembered her last battle, that damned fight that caused all of her pain. Because of her, Ron was gone. Although he would be just fine physically, mentally he would never be the same again. Because insanity had taken his mind prisoner and would not loosen the ties it held around his senses.
Of course, like everyone else, Hermione was relieved that Voldemort was finally gone, but his death was nothing compared to all the innocent lives that had been lost in the effort to overpower his numerous minions. So, so many youths had been killed, so many people who would've done great good for the wizarding world.
Hermione shivered at the realization, and she felt a tear roll down her cheek.
As a young girl, she was always scolded for crying too much. Well, this time she had a really good reason to cry. She deserved to cry for as long as she wanted to. But through her tears, she thought she saw a star. Her lucky wishing star.
Everyday, Draco wondered how differently things would've turned out had he been born into a different family. Of course, he had no wish to be anything but a Malfoy, but he often wondered… what his life be so horrible if he were born to the Zambinis instead?
Blaise Zambini and himself were good friends, and Draco remembered that he used to always envy Blaise's family, simply because they loved each other. It wasn't that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy didn't love their only son and heir to their fortune, but they never showed any affection. They just weren't warm people.
As he pondered this, Draco continued dawdling on the deserted grounds. Most people would've found the chill to be uncomfortable and an unnecessary burden, but Draco was quite fond of it. He liked how each blow felt like a slap in the face, he liked how he was so cold he felt it in his bones, and he even liked the numbness.
Why? Because Draco Malfoy was used to pain.
Hermione thoughts suddenly floated to Draco Malfoy. She certainly didn't consider him any more than an acquaintance that she shared the title of Head with, but he had stopped teasing them a while back. And Hermione knew how much he had been forced to go through. She knew that his parents were both useless now—one dead, the other crazy. She knew that his goons, Crabbe and Goyle, were dead, and she also knew that Pansy Parkinson, his fiancée through a previously arranged-marriage, had recently left him. But everyone knew the latter because Pansy had chosen to humiliate Draco in front of the entire school. To inform him of her decision, she had sent a howler.
Hermione couldn't help but giggle just a little at that, no matter how cruel it had been. After all, the man had spent a majority of his years at Hogwarts torturing, taunting, teasing, and ridiculing Hermione and her friends. Actually, he had spent a majority of his years doing this to everyone – the Golden Trio just seemed to be his favorite targets. However, she still pitied. No one should have to go through all of that in the space of just one year or so.
Not even a Malfoy.
Meanwhile, Draco's thoughts had somehow drifted to Hermione Granger. He thought about their history, and he had to laugh about it. All those years he had spent teasing and taunting her about her blood, all those years he had spent ridiculing her appearance. And to think, it was all because he couldn't have her. It was all because he was too afraid to show any attraction to her.
A while later, Draco decided to go back. Stealthily, like a true Slytherin, he snuck through the halls to the Head's dormitories.
Circe and Merlin were getting it on.
Draco coughed to announce his prescence, and the two quickly parted. Not paying them any heed, he whispered the password and stepped into the common room.
Stopping briefly to add wood to the fire, he went up to his room, and fell back on the bed. Just seconds later, he was lured and reeled in to his dreams, just like a fish to a fisherman's bait.
The next morning, Hermione and Draco woke up roughly at the same time, and as they met each other on the way to their shared bathroom, they each muttered a indifferent, "Hey, 'morning" and went to get ready for yet another day.
It was just another day.
Little did they know that just hours before, they had both been dreaming, dreaming of a land where there was peace, and all those who had died unjust deaths were given a second chance—a chance to live freely, to make better decisions.
Little did they know that just last night they had been looking up at the same starless, dark sky.
Author's Notes: Liked it? Hated it? 50/50? Let me know. (points at the 'Go' button) I think this story had some pretty minor plot holes, and there might be a few errors here and there, but I hope you enjoy it anyway. As for the title, well, what can I say? I really couldn't think of anything. Now, go review!