A/N: This chapter was kind of hard to write. Don't ask me why. It's a short one! It sucks, I know. Yell at me later. Next one will be better.

But just so you know… it's basically a transition chapter from the beginning to the end. That's why it's so pointless and… angsty-ish.

Answers in the Intermissions

Part Two: Alive

Life still went on.

The boy didn't know why; didn't know how; but it did. The Sun; that got too much credit but was beautiful nonetheless, still rose in the east and set in the west, and the moon was always there. The stars still shone their twinkling little melody every night, and the owls still hooted their lonely, hollow hoots over the thick white blanket of snow that covered the ground.

Even on the busy streets of London, festivities had begun and cheerful salutations could be heard over the chatter wishing each other a Merry Christmas and dear Merlin was it that time of the year already?

But the sun wasn't as bright and the moon wasn't as silver and the stars seemed to dim just a little bit. Even the owls seemed to carry a mournful note in their calls now.

Even Christmas had lost its spirit. But then again, it had never had its spirit in his world.

He missed her. It hurt. And life became a piano tune that no one had the heart to practice anymore.

Anyone can get the notes right. And it will still be called a song - a melody, because it's basically there. But without the dynamics, it all means nothing. It's still a song, because it's there, but there's no point to listening to it.

But if you give up on it, after a while you forget how to play it. That was his life.

He was alive, yes. If being alive meant eating and breathing and blood flowing. Yet he wasn't living. And if someone were to look deep into his eyes, there'd be an emptiness in its silvery expanse.

Because what they said was true – the eyes really are windows to ones soul.

The boy began to sink back into his cave. He still read his fairy tales, though.

Living became a chore. Miraculously, his body still knew how to function everyday and get on with its routine. But his heart had forgotten how to live. Possibly, it had forgotten how to beat as well.

But really, it didn't matter how he felt. Because it had been the right thing to do.

The girl managed to go on with life almost normally. But then again, she had friends who cared and a family who nurtured and little dreams to chase.

She knew he didn't and she worried for him. And she wondered what had become of him.

Even though she understood why he had to go, she couldn't truly accept it. She was consoled by his promise to return one day. She wondered when 'one day' was in the land that he had gone back to. Was it in this life or the next? Or maybe – maybe 'one day' was a mirage in that place that he went to; that place full of the shadows and echoes of early morning nightmares.

Nonetheless she waited. Waited for a 'one day' that might not come, but would be worth the wait should it decide to.

She seemed to be waiting for an awful lot lately.

And while she waited, she watched the sky turn into a palate of gold and orange and red and purple.

She counted the stars each night and wished upon the brightest one to put an end to her waiting.

She inwardly blew kisses at strangers on the busy streets – to feel the holiday spirit… and because they might be him.

She gave in to their relentless pleas for her to join in the holiday preparations, and found herself actually enjoying it.

She even began to smile.

Many a day the boy found that his feet took him to the now deserted beach he used to love as a child. No one was there, for the seasonal chill had made beachcombing and unpopular sport.

He liked the ocean.

It made him feel small and safe. It hid him. It made him feel as if his troubles really weren't as big. As the ice cold waves tickled his feet and the sea breeze mussed his hair (it wasn't much of a priority anymore), it felt as if he'd never grown up.

The boy watched the currents laps the jagged rocks by the shoreline, mesmerized by the steady rhythm. Maybe this was how those lost at sea felt before the water overcame them. Peaceful. Calm.

He dreamed of a simpler time, when girls were still just a little bit frightening and days were spent sketching all the wonderful places he'd travel to and all the monstrous dragons he'd defeat.

He wondered when he would finally kill his dragon and save the damsel.

He wished life were back to a time when daddy was always right; was a role model and a hero. When mommy's kiss would make the biggest booboos and aches go away. When the future was so secure: be like daddy, be a dark servant, and always remember that right was power and wrong was weakness.

If only daddy could see him now.

As the boy gazed into the horizon, he marvelled at its serenity. Was the ocean waiting too? Waiting for something to disrupt its calm, bring life to its still skyline?

Perhaps… it was best to have left her. Because, if he had made such a good decision by coming to this world, how come he felt so terrible now? Something must have gone wrong somewhere in this whole mess. He must have skipped by a step while growing up. It wasn't supposed to happen this fast.

But then again, he had hurt back then, from where he came from as well. Even more so than now, if that was possible. So maybe he had done something right after all.

He wondered what she was doing, somewhere out there in this big, big world. He missed everything; her dreams, her fears, her smile. She was so wonderful. So innocent. So vulnerable.

She was vulnerable. Alone and vulnerable.

But… he had left her for a reason hadn't he? To save her from their wrath. So he had done the right thing. He had done the right thing. The right thing.

He found that the words began to lose their meaning after being repeated so many times.

Carried off by the wind to a land far, far away. You can chase it, but the breeze is always one step ahead of you.

Then it hit him. It hit him like a cold blast of air that chilled to his bones. It was a chilling thought that jumbled through his head like a lost traveller in a foreign land. It lingered there like a nightmare you can't seem to wake from. It nagged…

She was still vulnerable wasn't she? Endangered. Alone. All because he had left her.

They would have known about her long ago already wouldn't they? - This made no difference. If they'd wanted to hurt her, they would've done it long ago… and they still could. Maybe they were just biding their time, waiting for the perfect opportunity. A lion watching its prey, hidden in the tall grass. And when it was alone… they'd pounce.

And if they chose to make their move now, he wouldn't even be there to stop them. They'd tear her apart, rip her flesh.

Oh, the imagery.

Anyone could see that he still cared right? They knew that she was still his weakness.

And – and there hadn't really been a real reason anyways.

It just wasn't good enough. There was none. It was merely an excuse. Maybe he had been scared. Afraid of love; people are always afraid of the unknown. She had loved him. No one else had before. His mother and father, they were obliged to. It was their duty.

She chose to.

And he'd lost her already.

But Merlin, he was going to chase after that happy ending whether it wanted him to or not.

A/N: Well, one more chapter to go. Alright. I'm sorry about the God of fluff! Draco. Really, I am. You see, the fluff-o-meter quit on me because it felt it was being overused, so I had nothing to tell me to tone it down a bit.

So… now it's your turn. Leave a comment. Encourage me, inspire me, and give me a first degree burn with your flames.

Thanks for the reviews –insert thankful smiley- I love them hint, hint The idea came randomly. Out of the blue. But I like it. I honestly feel flattered to be considered that talented. – insert blushing smiley-

Next chapter next week.