It was over. The battle was won. The battle was lost. Dozens, hundreds of bodies littered the floor; young and old, student, teacher, auror, bystander, Death Eater. Everyone.
The shots and screams and spells and falling rubble all made place for silence. Utter, deafening silence.
And then the whispers started. The cheers — once they realised they had won. The attempts to flee — once they realised they had lost.
The cries of anguish and denial when they found a loved one among the masses of dead bodies. The wishes and prayers of "Please, please wake up. It's all over, you can wake up now."
The weeping of lost mothers and left fathers. Of new-found orphans and of the dead, whispering and crying, "I'm still here, right here — please, see me, don't leave me."
Now and then a scream tore through the air — a new body found, another person captured.
Sometimes the echo of stone hitting the floor could be heard, when another part of the once magnificent castle collapsed in itself; leaving behind a broken shell of what it had once been; great and overflowing with amazing magic and happy laughter. Not anymore.
There was no happiness.
There was no laughter.
And the only magic in the air was that of death and destruction. Twisted to do terrible deeds.
And slowly, ever so slowly, some people stood up and began to move. And then, one by one, more followed.
There were bodies to gather. Kids to console. Wounded to treat. Rubble to remove. Hallways to be stabilised. And a castle to restore.
And it was a lone figure with dark hair and killing curse green eyes that stood and watched as another boy, not older than him, was manhandled and shoved to the ground; gagged and shackled in chains. A broken and lost look on his face, resignation in his eyes.
The fire the black haired remembered, that had always burned within the other, was gone. So was any will to fight.
The figure turned away. He picked up the first body he found to bring it to the others. And then the next. And the next.
Never once did he look back. Not even when there was a gaping hole in him so big it almost swallowed him whole. Because his fire, his fight, too, was extinguished.
And it was a lone figure, with blonde hair and shackled in chains, that watched as another boy, not older than him, picked up dead body after dead body and brought it to the others.
And he looked around himself and blinked, because, for a moment, he could have sworn he saw everything alive, and happy, and whole.
(In another reality,)
Saw everyone laughing and loving, no shadow of fear or death anywhere.
(They are happy.)
But then it was gone again.
(Sadly,)
And the dull and broken world returned with all its death and loneliness and devastation and heartbreak.
(In this one,)
An auror grabbed him harshly and shoved him away. For a moment, though, for a single, little moment, grey eyes met green ones and a tear rolled down both their cheeks. Because—
(Things didn't go that way.)
