f o r t y t w o

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The air is thick with smoke and the acrid scent of burning debris. I stand on a vast, desolate battlefield, surrounded by destruction and death. The ground beneath my feet is littered with rubble and debris, and the sky above is shrouded in darkness.

My heart pounds in my chest as I scan the horizon, searching for any sign of life. I call out, but there is no response. Only silence.

Then I see them.

The lifeless forms of my friends lying motionless on the ground.

Lily with her bright red hair is lying face down, her hand reaching out to the darkhaired figure next to her. James.

A little ahead, I see Marlene with a pained expression, her wand just out of reach.

I look around and gasp as Remus's body comes to view, half hidden under a broken  door with an open scar running down his torso.

And there, in the distance, lies Sirius, his body twisted and broken.

With a desperate cry, I run towards him, ignoring the chaos around me. Tears blur my vision as I reach out a trembling hand. But as my fingers brush against Sirius's cold, lifeless skin, his body dissolves into smoke, slipping through my grasp like a fleeting dream.

"Sirius. " I whisper, my voice choking.

There's no answer, only the deafening silence.

Suddenly, I'm jolted awake, my heart racing and my body drenched in sweat. I sit up in bed, gasping for breath, the remnants of the nightmare still lingering in my mind.

A sob escapes my lips as I bury my face in my hands, the weight of grief crushing me like a tidal wave. I scream, a raw, guttural sound that echoes through the silent flat.

Seconds later, Chris bursts into the room, his eyes wide with alarm.

"Ellie, what's wrong?"

I can't speak, can't find the words to articulate the horror of the nightmare that still grips me. I reach out to him, and he crosses the room in a few quick strides, gathering me into his arms.

"It's okay," he murmurs soothingly, holding me close as I cry. "It was just a bad dream. I'm here, Ellie. I'm here."

After what feels like an eternity, my sobs begin to subside, replaced by a deep sense of exhaustion. Chris eases me back onto the bed, tucking the blankets around me with gentle hands.

"Try to get some rest," he whispers, brushing a stray lock of hair from my forehead.

I nod weakly, too drained to protest. As Chris leaves the room, I lie there in the darkness, my mind still reeling from the vivid images of seeing Sirius disappear through my fingers.

ϟ

The next morning, I wake to the soft light filtering through the curtains. I sit up slowly, rubbing the sleep from my eyes and taking a deep breath to steady myself.

As I swing my legs out of bed, I can't shake the feeling that lingers in the pit of my stomach. The nightmare may have ended, but the image is etched into my retina.

𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐌𝐄 ☆ 𝑺𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒖𝒔 𝑩𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌 ✔️Where stories live. Discover now