A soft, almost cruel smile was present on his face. He felt a pang of remorse over what he had become. But it was far too late to change now and, really what would be the point? He had only hours to live.
His death, he mused, was inevitable.
There was that word again. Inevitable.
It was almost as if it had become Draco Malfoy's favorite word for his situation. He had lost count how many times it had been said about a variety if things. His life in its entirety was inevitable, it seemed.
The Malfoy child was placed in Slytherin House and made friends with his fellow Slytherins. He did not get along with the Gryffindors and especially hated the Weasleys.
He came into his Veela inheritance at the exact age and was fawned over by most every girl at Hogwarts. Draco eventually found himself falling in love. But that had taken a long time and by the time he himself had realized his feelings, nothing could be done.
She did not love him. She could never love him. Instead, she had found who she believed to be her soulmate. And he could not take her away from the other man, no matter how much he longed to. He could not bring himself to hurt her in such a way.
Draco had fallen in love and then broken his heart.
His cold, hardened exterior had crumbled away to reveal the soft, melted heart inside. It was then he began to hide himself away from the world. The bond that would see him become the happiest man on earth instead tore away his very heart and soul.
As he began to get closer to his birthday, the effects began to show.
A heavy weight situated itself in his chest. He couldn't breathe and it seemed worse any time he so much as thought if her. Her presence made it burn and his heart felt as if were going to explode.
He lost the ability to sleep not long after that. Instead he just spent his nights tossing and turning in agony.
Eating soon followed that and each bite felt like he was swallowing glass.
She knew none of this. Each time her eyes would find his, his heart would stop just before his heart ached heavily. But she would glare and make her hatred known.
Every time she and her boyfriend would touch, his skin burned. Each kiss sent him into cardiac arrest. But a stupidly determined part of him would not give up. Instead, he grew weaker still.
He had finally gotten to a point where he was content to just watch her enjoy life and that was enough. As long as she was happy.
It all seemed inevitable now.
He would of course fall for the girl that did not want him. The Gryffindor princess would never fall for him, though.
And so he would put her before his own needs. As long as she was happy, it was all worth it. It was inevitable that he would become such a romantic, he supposed grudgingly.
He'd long been waiting for the eventual deterioration that had almost come to a close. This and his death were also inevitable.
From the beginning, he'd been doomed. But she would be the happiest witch in the world. When he had given up in the world, he had only hoped and prayed for one more inevitability - her happiness.
As his soul burned and his heart shattered, he gave a broken smile.
Thinking over everything that had ever happened, he couldn't imagine it could ever have gone differently. It all seemed every bit as certain as the sun rising.
He supposed it was all planned out before he was even born. It was all inescapable. He made his peace knowing that his entire life had always been leading to this point.
His death had always been inevitable.