never let me go

hindsight

Delacey – The Subway Song

"Take me home, I feel homesick

I don't know where I'm going."

Draco didn't know where he was headed, he had simply felt cooped up in his room and needed some air. And then, of course, Potter had cornered him with a proposal – that they start over. Draco didn't want to admit it, but the gesture meant so much to him that if he hadn't made a quick getaway after shaking Potter's hand, he might've done something stupid.

It was what he'd wanted from the beginning after all, to be Potter's friend. But his rejection in first year had led Draco to be resentful, causing him to lash out in ways that he hadn't truly wanted to.

But what did this mean going forward? Could they really be friends after everything that they had been through? It was a miracle that Potter would even consider it after all of the horrible things that Draco had done, the way he had treated him and his friends... Surely he wasn't worthy of his friendship, let alone anything else. Potter should hate him, but of course he's too good to even hold a grudge.

Walking down the castle's quiet corridors, Draco wasn't paying much attention to surroundings, and so he almost didn't notice the large ornate door that appeared next to him as he walked past. Glancing back, he was sure it hadn't been there a moment before, and that was when he recognised it.

The Room of Requirement.

Draco stood before it as emotions churned through him. This was the place that he had almost died, the place that Potter had saved his life. He was surprised that it hadn't been destroyed by the fiendfyre.

What would it show him now, he wondered? What did it think he needed? Draco decided he didn't want to know and hastily headed down the corridor. The Room only served as a reminder of the life debt that he owed to Potter, and how he could never possibly repay it. There were a lot of days when Draco wished that Potter had failed to save him.

It was that thought that carried him up to the Astronomy Tower. He wished it hadn't, as this place was only another reminder of his failings. He supposed, however, that he was glad that he had failed at that particular task. It didn't change the outcome, but at least Dumbledore didn't fall at his hands.

Draco stood at the railing, looking out over the lake, letting time slip by like sand. After several minutes, or maybe it was hours, he left and headed back downstairs without looking back.