Written for Sing-Me-A-Rare: The Remix. Much love to my Beta iwasbotwp.

Song Prompt - Time After Time - cover by P!nk

Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended. No profit is being made from this creation.

"If you're lost, you can look and you will find me
Time after time
If you fall, I will catch you, I'll be waiting
Time after time"

Sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace in her flat, Pansy stared at the flickering flames, contemplating her life's choices and feeling lost. The bottle of firewhisky beside her knee was nearly empty now and she drunkenly groped around in the darkness for her glass, hoping to save the last bit of her dignity rather than drink the final sip straight from the bottle. It was nowhere to be found. Seeing as nobody was around to see her sink to a new low, she gave up on the glass and brought the bottle to her lips, draining the last drops and letting the burn of the alcohol ground her on its way down.

She was alone. Again. Though it was possible she had never truly been this alone.

Still, she had never been through anything this difficult without having Draco there to lean on and it hurt more than she wanted to admit. From the very first time her father had thrown a Crucio in her direction, through a war, an unwanted betrothal, to her body's multiple betrayals as she begged the gods to give her a child, he had always been there to catch her. Time after time.

Until this one.

She supposed she couldn't complain, it was her own fault. It wasn't surprising that her husband had left, she had expected it weeks ago when he had pulled away from her after yet another loss. It was supposed to have been their miracle, one last try, but the universe seemed to have other plans. And though she had still been reeling from that loss herself, she had pushed Draco away, intent on sparing him from having to carry her through any more of her struggles when he had his own life and family to care for.

The Floo Powder was taunting her, as though daring her to give in and call for him. But it was three in the morning, and she couldn't handle the guilt of pulling him from his bed- his wife, his family- in the middle of the night.

Though she wasn't too proud to admit she was tempted.

Being alone left her too much time to think. Anyone else might have spent the time wondering how they had gotten where they were, had they been in her place. But she didn't have to wonder, she knew. She was keenly aware of every mistake and every failure that had brought her down this path. The weight of them piling up had been slowly drowning her for a long time and now she would pay for them. She couldn't think of much worse than being unemployed, childless, alone, and unloved at her age. She had nothing left to live for. It felt a little bit like teenage angst to admit to it, frankly, which was another embarrassment to add to the pile of them she had already accumulated in her thirty-eight years.

Maybe she had a right to be maudlin, maybe she didn't and she was simply indulging in self-pity. After watching so many people abandon her over the years of her life, it was all too easy to conclude that she was the problem. She was no fool, she could see her own flaws, even if she didn't have the energy to begin rectifying them. At what point was she too broken to fix? Perhaps it was now.

The flames in her fireplace flared a brilliant green, startling her, and the bottle in her hand fell to the floor and rolled towards the open grate as someone stepped through the Floo and into her space.

Draco bent down to pick up the empty vessel and surveyed her without comment. He placed it on the end table nearby and dropped to the floor beside her, embracing her in one fluid movement. Her tears came without warning.

"Why?" She whispered. "Why wasn't I enough for him on my own?"

Before she could process what was happening, she was cradled in Draco's lap, soaking his shirt and clinging to him as she fell apart. She dimly registered the loud sniffles and wailing sounds that filled the room as her own, but she had no hope of quieting them. Her emotions felt like a wild animal that had been caged in her chest for as long as she could remember suddenly being set loose. She had been holding so much of her grief in for so long and the freedom of letting all of it go was intoxicating.

As her sobs turned to hiccups, Pansy focussed on the feeling of Draco's hand gently running through her hair and the soothing noises he seemed to be making almost without conscious thought, and she managed to collect herself.

"How did you know?" she mumbled with her face still buried in Draco's nightshirt.

He sighed. "I woke up to use the loo and found an owl waiting for me, from Flint. He may be an arsehole, but he cares enough not to want to see you harmed."

Pansy snorted. She supposed it was true, even if she didn't want to admit it.

"Why didn't you Floo me?" Draco continued, visibly emotional. "What possessed you to decide it was wise to go through this alone?"

She could tell he was hurt and worried. He'd never done anything to deserve the way she had treated him the month since they had last spoken and the sudden guilt of that was overwhelming.

"I... didn't want to be your burden to carry any longer. You've always been the one walking ahead, dragging me along with you as I fall further and further behind. I just... I couldn't do that to you anymore. You deserve to be happy!"

She glanced up at him to find him looking at her with an expression she couldn't identify. He took her hand in his and swallowed loudly.

"You're my best friend, Pansy. You could never be a burden to me, and if you truly think you are then I've failed you." Pain painted his features and he stared into her eyes. "I don't know what I would do if I lost you…"

Draco wrapped his arms around her tightly and squeezed until she hugged him back. The anxious feeling in her abdomen started receding and she carefully wiggled out of his grasp and settled back on the ground beside him.

"I'm not sure what I did to deserve you, Draco. But I'm so glad you're here," she said quietly, measuring her words carefully.

"That's what friends do. If you fall, I will be there, waiting to pick you back up. And don't be so quick to forget all the times you've been there for me, too."

Pansy smiled despite herself and then rolled her eyes. "Merlin, if we get any sappier we're going to sound like we've walked right out of the coming-of-age story from some book."

"Alright, alright. Too many feelings for one day, I get it." He grinned good-naturedly back at her.

As the full weight of her situation suddenly settled on her, Pansy had to fight the urge to pull back and shutter herself away. She'd never been one for being vulnerable, but she also knew she could trust the man in front of her with absolutely anything without fear of his judgement.

"Draco? Could you stay a little longer? It's all just too much when I'm alone..." Her voice cracked and she looked down at her lap, trying to hide fresh tears.

"Of course. Whatever you need," he said, resting his hand on her knee. After a pause that felt like it stretched the silence around them, he spoke again. "And tomorrow, we can start untangling everything else. Because you deserve happiness, too."

Pansy leaned her head on Draco's shoulder and took a deep breath. If he truly thought she was worth the effort, maybe she was. Either way, this kind of friendship didn't happen every day. It was worth holding on to it even when things got hard.

She opened her mouth to speak, but the words got stuck in her throat and she closed it again with a snap, swallowing loudly. Draco gently squeezed her knee.

"It's okay. I know," he said. "I'm not going anywhere. And I love you, too."