CHAPTER III

"Have you ever had a same dream over and over, Blaise? One that lasts for years?" Draco said pensively as he looked out at the window of his office, which was on top of a tall building not far from the Ministry of Magic headquarters. His back was facing his best friend since childhood, Blaise Zabini, who had been busy flipping over pages of The Daily Prophet but now stopped and stared at him upon hearing the question.

"No. Don't tell me you still dream about her. I thought it ended years ago," Blaise threw the newspaper on the table and slumped himself on the chair, crossing his arms over his chest.

"C'mon, Draco, it's been like 10 years since she … died. Sorry. But, really, you should really stop thinking about her. There's nothing you can do to bring her back. Just get over her and move on, will-"

"DAMN, Blaise! I've tried, I've tried, okay?" Draco turned around, walking abruptly toward the nearest couch and dumped himself there. He brushed his fingers through his very shortly-cut platinum blond hair in desperate gestures.

"Don't you dare accusing me of bringing those dreams intentionally! I've tried to forget her, I've tried to banish all I've ever felt for her! But, none of them have worked, Blaise. None. And, somehow, in these past few months, all those dreams are just coming back. I don't know why or how, but that's what's happening. And it's getting more intense each time. It's killing me, Blaise. Those dreams are killing me. I don't know what to do with them."

Blaise stared at his frustrated friend sympathetically. He knew Draco did not intentionally wallow himself in sorrow. He knew how his bestfriend had struggled for years to end his mourning and despair, and that he had somehow managed to move on, although Blaise regretted that the blond was never again the same person he had used to be. He was now a mere empty shell, gone had the Draco he had come to know very well during their teenage days. In fact, today was the first time he again saw a display of emotions from his usually emotion-deprived friend.

There had been so many things going on during those dark war times, and Draco had been at the center of all of those, what with the Dark Lord practically living in his manor and his father having been once among the highest Death Eaters rank. Not to mention he had been pressured to sneak in some Death Eaters into Hogwarts and thus contribute to the killing of Dumbledore when he had only been 17. Blaise had been lucky enough his parents had chosen to stay neutral during the war and run their family away to Italy during the peak of the battle. Otherwise he wasn't sure if he also would remain the same person he had been, that was if he were lucky enough to stay alive.

And Blaise knew how during those dark days Draco had been on the verge of committing suicide numerously. He also knew how she had been the only reason why Draco had never actually done that. He had lived, if only to ensure she would have been safe. Blaise could perfectly understand why it became very difficult then for his friend to move on, when his only reason to live had died before his very eyes.

"They're more or less the same, Blaise," Draco continued as his friend seemed to have no idea what to say.

"There are slight differences here and there, but basically in those dreams I saved her; again and again. I saw her opening her eyes and smiling, thanking me. I heard and felt her breathing; I felt her heartbeats. Merlin, I could even feel the warmth of her body! And, while having those dreams I always completely forgot the realities. So, you can imagine how I felt as I woke up only to find over and over again that those were not real, that what fucking real is that she was lifeless, and her body was cold and grew stiffened when I held her in my arms!" He growled, sounding very much like a wounded lion, and then suddenly he stood up and, in an unexpected show of strength, kicked the heavy marble table between them violently, flipping it over and breaking it into two.

Blaise flinched, but remained clueless as to what to say. He cast the repairing charm as soon as his blond friend returned to the window, staring out emptily at it once again. The table was back into its original condition.

Blaise sighed, and then stood up and walked toward his friend, giving him a light squeeze on shoulder in a silent attempt to console him. He stood next to him, leaning his forehead against the window.

"I'm sorry, mate. If there is only anything I can do for you …"

Draco said nothing, so Blaise continued, "Really, sometimes I wish I could turn back time and help you, accompany you along those hardships. If only I hadn't run away with my parents, perhaps … perhaps I could have done something to somehow fix the situation…"

Draco remained quiet for some time. But, then, although his empty stare was still fixed at the busy road down there, he laughed bitterly, and then spoke,

"I've been wishing the same, turning back time. I've wished countlessly that I could return to those times, and make earlier switch to the Light Side, or find her earlier during the Final Battle. I could have just neglected the battle and run her away to somewhere safe, maybe before she even took part in it. She might have been mad at me, but at least she would still have been alive."

He resumed his bitter laugh.

Blaise contemplated his friend's musing, and realized Draco had been haunted by those dreams partly because he had too many regrets, too many wishes that he could have really put to right the things he almost did right, although why those dreams had started attacking him again recently, after years of only some occasional appearances, was still a mystery.

"I've seriously thought about going back to the past, Blaise," now Draco tilted his head slightly toward his dark-skinned friend, before returning slowly to the window. "Unfortunately, Time Turners could only bring people back to hours earlier, not years…"

"Yeah … so unfortunate," Blaise replied.

They were both lost in their own thoughts then, before Blaise mindlessly added,

"This just reminds me of when I was in Moscow some time ago. I heard about this Russian wizard attempting to invent a Time Turner which he claimed could send people back to months earlier. Hell, they even said he claimed he could create one which could send people back decades earlier, if only anyone would help him with the funding-" he chuckled here, clearly disbelieving the claim, before continuing,

"He said he had found a formula or whatever for that. Of course, everyone mocked him because that's just ridiculous. He was known as this eccentric guy who always tries to invent ridiculous stuff. And people have accused him of simply trying to find some fools to pay his piling debts because of those failed inventions. I've never heard of him again after-"

Blaise was stopped abruptly as Draco pulled him roughly on his collar, almost choking him.

"Who is he, Blaise? Why haven't you told me earlier? Tell me where I can find him," Draco spoke in a low, dead tone. His eyes were indecipherable.

"Draco, you're not seriously thinking about seeking the man's help, are you? Everybody calls him mad, and making fun of him and calling him a failed inventor wanna-be who's gone insane because of the failed inventions. I wasn't meaning to recommend him, I-"

"I DON'T FUCKING CARE, BLAISE! This could be my only chance, and I've had ENOUGH with regretting what I should and could have done! This man could be my only chance to end all of these!"

"But, he may very well trick you into paying his debts, Draco, for NOTHING, NOTHING in return! He would only give you a false hope, and you'd end up in even more despair!"

"How would you know when you haven't even tried, Blaise? I DON'T fucking care if I have to pay all his debts. He could rob me of all my wealth for all I care! Help me find him, Blaise. Help me find this man," he almost whispered as he ended his sentence.

Blaise stared into the swirl of grey which was his friend's eyes, and saw a desperation THERE where only numbness had resided for years. He also saw a flicker of hope, and didn't have it in his heart to let it die so quickly.

Author's note:

What do you think? This story hasn't received as many attention as my other story; is it that bad? Please tell me if you think it is worthy to continue this story. And sorry to Toushirou no Hanabi, harrypotterbook4fan, YearOfJudges, Astanley1991, for forgetting to say Thank Youuuuuuuuu! for all of your precious reviews, though sadly I've got none for the second chapter :(