You sit with Draco in the courtyard, where the stone is still warm from the afternoon sun. The sky above is painted with that soft golden haze, and the air smells faintly of parchment and blooming lavender.

He’s quiet. Too quiet.

You nudge his knee with yours. “You’ve been… different lately.”

He lets out a low breath, eyes still on the horizon. His hands are folded in his lap, fingers twitching slightly—a habit he hasn’t quite let go of. “Different how?”

“I don’t know. Calmer. Quieter. Like you’re not constantly waiting for the world to collapse anymore.”

Draco laughs under his breath. Not the amused kind. The bitter kind.

“You want to know the truth?” he says, finally turning to look at you with his beautiful gray eyes. “I had to kiII a lot of versions of myself to get here.”

The words land heavy in the space between you.

You blink. “Draco…”

But he’s already unraveling.

“The boy who flinched at his father's voice. The one who thought cruelty meant power. The version of me who watched the world burn and still thought loyalty to a name mattered more than doing what was right.”

His voice stays steady, but his gaze flickers like a candle in the wind.

“I buried him. Them. All of them.”

You don’t say anything—you just listen.

“You think I’m calm now because I’ve healed?” he asks as his eyes search yours. “I’m calm because I had to make peace with the fact that I’ll never undo what I did. That some people will never forgive me. That I may never fully forgive myself.”

You reach out slowly, your fingers brushing over his. He doesn’t pull away.

“I’ve changed,” he continues. “But it wasn’t graceful. It was violent. And quiet. And lonely.”

You squeeze his hand. He looks down at your touch, then back at you—like you’re the first safe place he’s ever known.

“You’re not alone anymore,” you softly reassure him.

His shoulders drop just a little, like he’s been carrying something too heavy for too long.

“I know.” His thumb brushes over your knuckles. “That’s the only version of me I’ve ever wanted to keep. The one that found you.”