Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and I don't own "In the Arms of an Angel" by Sarah McLachlan. For best affect read story with song playing in background.
He was dead. It was hard to believe that someone so famous for his survival could die. It wasn't like he had anything left to live for. All his friends had died, or moved on. Even she had married Ron. She hadn't seen him for two months before his death. She guessed she betrayed him as much as anyone else. The world didn't need their savior anymore, so they had left him and moved on.
Spend all your time waiting for that second chance
For the break that will make it ok
There's always some reason to feel not good enough
And it's hard at the end of the day
Harry wasn't very sane. His memories of the war haunted him. They wouldn't take away the memories. They didn't want to remember, but someone had to. They really should have. Maybe then he wouldn't have died so soon. He lived in a cold apartment room.
I need some distraction oh beautiful release
Memories seep from my veins
They may be empty and weightless and maybe
I'll find some peace tonight
She knew that he was rarely home, he drank himself into oblivion every night. It was heartbreaking to see. This shell of a warrior. He was nothing like the boy she had known. She should have stayed and helped him. Told him to come over more often. She shouldn't have tried to forget the war and the trauma it brought. She should have cared more.
In the arms of an Angel fly away from here
From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie
You're in the arms of an Angel; may you find some comfort here
The rain poured down on the grassy hill. A willow's branches hung, soaked in the raindrops. The rain water was cold down her back, splattering the white roses in her hands. The delicate petals stood now chance against the harsh water. She moved the branches to see one solitary gravestone.
So tired of the straight line, and everywhere you turn
There's vultures and thieves at your back
The storm keeps on twisting, you keep on building the lies
That you make up for all that you lack
He always told her he was fine on their infrequent phone calls. He didn't work for the Ministry anymore. He received a monthly pension, and he had the gold from the Black and Potter accounts. He didn't need to work anymore. She should have known he was lying. No, she knew that he was, she should have done something. She had been sure he would come to her if something was truly wrong.
It don't make no difference, escaping one last time
It's easier to believe
In this sweet madness, oh this glorious sadness
That brings me to my knees
She had been just as shocked as the rest of the world when the headlines came out. Headlines of the unimaginable. Harry Potter had died. It seemed impossible. Wasn't he the boy who lived, how could he die now? She had fallen in the kitchen chair. She should have known. At first she felt betrayed, why didn't he tell her? But she remembered the never returned phone calls. She remembered the 'Not now Harry, I'm busy" excuses she had given him. What if he had tried to tell her and never could? Then it was her fault.
In the arms of an Angel far away from here
From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie
In the arms of an Angel; may you find some comfort here
The dead flowers she had left there last week, she grabbed. She replaced them with the new ones. The grass was tall, someone hadn't cut it. But then again, she was the only one that visited here. She sat down in the damp grass. Her fingers traced the writing on the gravestone. She felt tears fall down her cheeks. She brushed them away, when she finally stood.
You're in the arms of an Angel; may you find some comfort here
I'm sorry Harry for not being there when you needed me. You should have lived a life filled with love instead of dying alone like this. I can only hope wherever you are now, you're with them all. I'll miss you Harry.
Okay, italics are the song lyrics, regular is Hermione's thoughts, and bold is what Hermione is doing. Make sense?