The Three Broomsticks

The Lighthouse

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Rating: T – mild swearing

Written to the Starrnobella prompt Idea:

Lighthouse. Storm Cloud. Horizon. "How do you mourn the loss of someone who's still alive?"

This is un-beta'd – so mistakes are my own

The Lighthouse

June 1997

The sky was clear overhead; stars were starting to pop out more by the second as the horizon darkened quickly. Hermione had always loved the clear, clean northern skies of Scotland.

"Hermione –" The voice was defeated, it was a bid for forgiveness, a forgiveness Hermione couldn't give.

Dropping her gaze from the sky overhead she levelled her brown eyes with his grey ones. "Draco... I cannot walk this path with you – if you do what you plan to do tonight, you will be dead to me –"

She felt her own heart breaking as the words left her mouth, she had no idea what he was going to do, just that it was a mission from Voldemort himself. And that could never be anything but bad. She felt the tears stinging her eyes, and no amount of blinking could stop them. He remained quiet as he watched the drops starting to course down her cheeks, seeing that despite them her resolve didn't waver.

His eyes finally registered his utter defeat. She would never forgive him for what he had to do. With a slump of his shoulders, he withheld the shudder that wanted to run through his own body. A body he knew to be weak and exhausted from this year's stress and darkness.

Draco lifted his hand slowly and tucked a curl behind her ear, then he stepped forward and softly kissed her lips. She responded equally as gentle, the kiss lasted barely a few seconds and he tasted the wetness of her tears through it. When he pulled back his hand had circled the nape of her neck and he rested his lips against her forehead in another kiss as he breathed in the smell of her hair deeply.

Then he whispered against her forehead breathily, "One day I hope, that in the least you can understand, if not forgive – remember... I love you, Granger."

Hermione had closed her eyes with the kiss and not opened them again; her hands had clutched the lapels of his robes harshly. As he whispered to her she felt him letting her neck go and stepping back, she held on to his robes till her arms stretched and only then did she unclench her fists. By the time she dared open her eyes, she was alone.

XOX

31 December 1999

Hermione walked stoically forward; the Bella Tout Lighthouse growing larger as she neared it. It was one of her favourite places to be, she would come here whenever she needed to get away. Just standing on the edge of the cliff and watch the ocean below. Today was one of those days. One of those days that she just couldn't let go, those days where memories would just engulf her without mercy. So then she came here, the waves were symbolic with her memories she figured.

Hermione watched as the sky darkened and the storm clouds build up, it was going to be a huge storm she realised with a vague sense of the now. Yet, she only walked resolutely to her spot while her cloak billowed out about her as the wind picked up.

Reaching the edge she looked out over the grey water, the water was starting to churn with the strong wind. It was lapping below at the white coarse sand insistently as the water became rougher by the second. The wind had by now whipped her hair out of its restraining bun; it billowed in all directions around her head and into her eyes. Hermione hardly noticed it.