When the Snow Melts

The Best Laid Plans

NOTE: THIS IS AN ALTERNATE ENDING. IF YOU HAVE SKIPPED TO THE END TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS, THIS WILL BE CONFUSING.

Harry's breath quickened, the sound of it drawing Narcissa's worried gaze. He reached out his hand, lost in a dream somewhere far away, "Don't go," he cried. "Please, don't leave me again. I don't want to be alone anymore."

"I'm right here, Harry," she soothed, grasping his outstretched hand. "I'm not going anywhere."

His green eyes fluttered open weakly, tears trailing down his bruised face.

"It's okay," she whispered, fighting back tears of her own, all the while knowing that it wasn't okay - nothing would ever be okay for him.

"She tried to take him away from me," he moaned, a small shudder racking his battered frame. His eyes grew distant and haunted.

Narcissa swallowed the lump forming in her throat and took a steadying breath. "That's not going to happen," she promised. "Just get some sleep. This will all be over soon."

Tears continued to roll down his face, it wasn't clear if he had even heard her. "I'm losing everything," he whispered solemnly. "My memories - they keep slipping away. I don't want to lose him again."

She gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, trying to put as much of herself as she could into it. It was poor comfort, but it was all she could do for him given the circumstances.

Suddenly, his eyes fixed on her, their intensity burning a hole through her fluttering heart. "Please take them," he begged. "Keep my memories safe for me."

Her eyes widened in alarm. "It won't work," she cried, vehemently shaking her head.

Tampering with memories was a risk she wasn't qualified to take. At her skill level, when she went to put the memories back they would always feel surreal somehow. It just wouldn't be the same. Removing Harry's memories of Draco like that - it would be like watching him die all over again. She couldn't bring herself to do it.

"Please," he begged, gripping her wrist in wild desperation. "I can't lose him again... not like this."

They were both afraid of the same thing, both clinging to that last tiny spark that kept Draco alive for them. His emerald eyes were pleading with her, tugging at her heartstrings until they snapped.

"Okay," she finally whispered, a turbulent storm of unease settling in the pit of her stomach. "I'll...," she swallowed the sick feeling bubbling up. "I'll do it."

It was either remove them herself or let Bella purge them from him. At least this would be on their terms. Whether those memories ever felt real for him again was another matter entirely. All she could do was hope as she reached into her pocket.

On reflex, Harry tensed at the sight of her wand, shadows of fear dancing in his eyes as she pressed it to his temple. She choked back a broken sob and squeezed her eyes shut against the flood of tears. "I'm so - so - so sorry."

"It's okay," he whispered, his voice trembling in fear and uncertainty.

She probed the chaos of his mind, hunting down memories of her son and ripping them away. Dozens of glistening strands, his very purpose for existing, shimmered as she deposited them into an empty potion bottle. The more she pulled, the more relaxed he became until finally he was left staring at the walls with a heartbreakingly innocent expression on his face.

"Please forgive me," she cried, gripping the bottle of memories to her breast as she fled the room and the sight of what she had done. She had effectively murdered him. She had taken away everything that gave his life meaning, leaving behind only the bits that would make him useful and obedient. He would never be the same again. How would Draco ever forgive her for this?