1906 [h.s.]

thirteen

"I knew you would have run off in the Hospital, to be fairly honest" Harry said looking up as soon as he heard my steps coming closer.

I gave him a shocked look, a shiver running down my spine as I glanced at him, at his stained, white shirt, his somewhat messy hair, and most importantly, his green eyes. I stared into them, not a single word coming out of my lips, trying to make sense of everything that was going on.

"Is something wrong?" He asked politely, a frown finding its way onto his face, stepping closer to me.

I took a step back almost instantly, lifting my arm between us to make sure he wouldn't have got any closer than he already had. I took a deep breath to try to calm myself down, the tensed muscles of my legs, ready to bolt, starting to hurt.

He furrowed his eyebrows, not understanding the meaning behind my scared actions. "Emma?" He asked quietly, the slightest hint of nervousness in his voice.

"Why's there a headstone with your name?" I asked fast, my eyes wide as I stared into his irises. "Tell me!" I said louder, the tremble of fear making my voice shake in my throat.

The confused look didn't leave his face at my words. "What are you talking about?" He asked faintly.

"Your name! Your fucking name!" I shouted at him, taking another step away from him. "Your fucking name is etched on a headstone in the graveyard of the asylum!"

He widened his eyes. "No, it cannot be. I'm here" he said confusedly, as if he was trying to reason with what I'd just told him. "I'm here."

I blinked a few times, trying to get rid of the sudden wetness that had polled in my eyes, letting my arm drop to my side as I stared at him, the look on my face just as shocked as the one into his green eyes. "Harry..." I said quietly as the truth started to find its way into my mind, looking at the way the light coming in from the window enlightened his irises, making them shine of golden speckles. I let my gaze fall down to the ground, a sudden weight falling down on my chest as I noticed something.

It was the first time I saw Harry in the sunlight, despite the by then couple of days we'd spent together, given it'd been dark most of the time. But standing there, in front of him, bathing in the sunlight of the end of summer, it was impossible not to notice that there was a single shadow on the ground, instead of two.

He followed my gaze, his eyes widening when he noticed the same thing. He took a step back, shaking his head, his eyes becoming glassy as he kept staring at the floor, as if he expected it to just appear due to the shift in position. "No" he said faintly, blinking fast, his breath stopping in his throat. "No, it cannot be." He shook his head again in a nervous motion, looking up at me, a terrified look in his eyes, as if he expected me to explain what was going on.

"Harry" I choked out, the fear leaving me as I realised that he was just as terrified as I was. The realisation of what it all meant struck me, really struck me, only in that moment, and I felt my head spin. I looked up at him, meeting his petrified stare, matching it with my own. My heart beating faster and faster in my chest, I slowly lifted my hand to close the small distance between us.

He stared at it, horror in his eyes, before glancing between me and my hand, that was just a couple of feet away from him, almost inviting him towards me. A shaky breath left his lips, the trembling of his figure being so harsh that I could see it from where I was standing, lifting his hand as well. He kept it there, his palm just a couple of inches away from mine, for a couple of seconds, before hesitantly closing the distance.

For the slightest second his hand brushed against mine, just before passing through mine as if it'd encountered no opposition at all.

I hissed, retracting my hand fast as a sudden coldness washed through it, so penetrating that it raised goosebumps on my skin. I pressed it against my chest, squeezing it hard with my other hand as the warmth Harry had stolen from me slowly came back to it, making the aching subside.