𝐄𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐚𝐢𝐭

The sun was high up and the sky was a pleasantly clear blue.

Harry sat in front of six curious and somewhat frowning faces. His lips opened as if to say something before giving up and tightly closing again.

Harry looked at them and tentatively said, "How should I put this? Well, something happened….."

He silently looked at their reactions, "And I sincerely advise all of you to stay calm, alright?"

Harry kept his body stiff for any incoming outburst and tentatively called, "Draco, come out."

Numerous pairs of eyes stared focused at the flap of his tent as Draco took a poised step out holding a small bundle wrapped in a misty blue swaddle.

Harry got up to silently guard his side as Draco sat down. It was then that the small bundle in pale arms suddenly moved and a pair of verdant green eyes and pale silver baby hair were revealed as a milky cry echoed like drums in their ears, "Aaahh~"

Eyes widened and mouths fell open in shock.

Hermione said in a trembling voice, "Harry? This-... How?!"

"Do you remember the huge egg with us last night? She is what came out when it hatched this morning." Harry explained as if reading the newspaper.

"How is this even possible?!" Pansy shrieked in astonishment.

"We don't know either." Draco answered. His tone soo casual that it seemed like he was talking about what to eat for dinner.

The entire scene fell into brief pause due to their nonchalance.

A vein popped on Pansy's temple at their ignorant attitude.

When suddenly, Ron jumped up and exclaimed, "Harry! Mate! Tell me honestly. Is she yours?!"

"WHAT?! From where in the world did you get that conclusion?!" Harry jumped with a loud shout.

Ron argued back, "Mate! Look at her eyes!"

Every person in the surrounding snapped their gaze to look at the watery and shiny emerald pupils.

Eyes wide in wonder, George muttered, "It's true. Her eyes are exactly a copy of Harry's."

"Leave her eyes! Look at her hair!" Theo shouted.

Silver white hair shone golden in the morning sun, looking particularly matching beside Draco's own silky strands.

Draco and Harry looked at each other with the same eyes widened with horror.

Draco's throat was trembling slightly as he whispered shakily, "In the entire wizarding world, only the Malfoy have moonlight silver hair."

Harry whispered in desperate confusion, "No...This- this can't be true. It must be a coincidence. Right, Draco? We- we never ……."

Draco's face paled as the realisation struck, "Our blood…."

Words choked back in Harry's throat as he froze. His legs numbed and he plopped down.

Silence spread around.

The disarray in the situation alarmed Hermione, "We can't be sure until we confirm it. Don't jump to conclusions just now."

Pansy walked to Draco's side as well, "That's right. We aren't 100% sure, are we?"

Harry barely calmed himself, "You are right. Is there any immediate way to confirm it right now?"

Hermione seemed to be thinking about it when Pansy hesitantly gazed in her direction.

One look in Pansy's blue eyes and Hermione knew that Pany had a way through. Sending an encouraging glance at her, Hermione smiled.

"There is a way."

Hopeful gazes snapped towards Pansy.

"There is a way to confirm her heritage, right here, right now."

"Pansy…", Draco uttered in desperation.

"But !" Her eyes hardened, "But…. remember that the result might be either of the two- the one you want and the one you don't."

Silence echoed for brief seconds.

Amid the still world, Pansy's soft whisper swayed with the gentle wind, "Draco, do you want this?"

Haze swirled in Draco's confused eyes. Frowning, he looked down at the tender body in his arms. The small child clung to him, resting her small head right above his heart, hearing a lullaby that he would sing till the moment he died.

Sleepy emerald eyes grew more and more hazy and confused grey ones shone clearer and clearer.

Draco looked at Harry, "What does it matter if she has my blood or if she doesn't? What does it matter if she has my hair or your eyes? What does it matter if she is a wizard or something entirely different? She's already too precious. I say she is mine….So…" Grey eyes hardened as Draco made a choice that would change his entire destiny. "FROM THIS MOMENT ONWARDS, SHE IS MINE !"

"WRONG !" A gruff voice shouted.

Draco's enraged glare flew towards Harry at his balant opposition.

This time Harry's voice became incomparably soft, "Our, Draco. She's ours."

The rage in grey eyes resided a bit as bewilderment flooded in.

"She is to me as much as she is to you, Draco. She's mine too."

Draco couldn't refute nor could he agree. He only looked at Harry wordlessly.

The spectating crowd beside them was silent and observing. Hermione sighed with utter helplessness. To her, it seemed as if even destiny was changing her ways to bring these two together.

She patted Harry on the shoulder and looked at Draco, "I think both of you should rest for some time. The child needs some sleep as well."

Both silently agreed. As Draco walked to the tent, Pansy soothingly whispered, "I'll bring in some fresh milk for her."

Draco smiled tiredly at her before slipping inside behind Harry.

Pansy turned back to meet Hermione's unfocussed and worried expression.

She calmly walked towards her, saying, "Are there any towns nearby?"

Hermione drew back from her thoughts, "There is a town 20 miles ahead. Do you want to buy something?"

"The child needs some milk."

"Oh…"

The worry didn't faze from Hermione's expression, so Pansy asked, "What are you worrying so much about?"

"The child…"

"What about the child?"

"Aren't you worried at all?! We are at war! There are people everywhere wanting to kill us! And at such a time, they somehow conjured a child!"

Pansy lifted a sharp eyebrow, "Do you think they don't know that?"

Frowning, Hermione looked at her, "What do you mean?"

Pansy had a serene expression, "I mean what I said. Do you think they don't know the consequences?"

Pansy's steps halted and she turned to Hermione, showing her a smile as if she could see through her.

"You think that sending her away is much safer, don't you? But tell me, is anywhere safe right now? Is there any place safer than in the embrace of Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy?"

Stunned silence followed her words as Hermione stood still as a statue. Her tight expression loosening as she realized her error.

With that, Hermione's nerves relaxed and Pansy continued forward again.

With Hermione behind, Pansy suddenly stopped and turned back, "And let's not forget. She isn't just any child they found. She's their daughter. "

—[Howard's School Of Witchcraft And Wizardry, Scotland]

In the Slytherin dormitory, Blaise anxiously paced back and forth.

Worry ate at him as his thoughts flew around.

'Why isn't Longbottom back yet? Is he safe? Did something happen to him? It's already evening and he still isn't back yet.'

Neville had unfairly been punished and told to collect some herbs from the forbidden forest. But these particular herbs were found deep in the forest, surrounded and shadowed by deadly dangers.

At last, his patience wore out and Blaise sneaked out of the Slytherin dormitory. His natural talent for illusions helped him.

On the other hand, Nevilled aimlessly roamed in the dense forest. The sun was about to go down and the night was almost settled.

The surroundings looked eiry and haunted. The owl's cry sounded akin to a whispered warning.

His hands tightly clutched the bag full of herbs hanging on his shoulder. The herbs had been collected almost an hour before sunset. But while returning back, Neville had inevitably got lost in the dense woods.

He had been roaming around trying to find an exit for some time but every tree, every scene looked almost the same, making him venture even deeper in the canopy of the lush forest.

His steps carried him forward, hopeful of finding an exit.

It was then that Neville noticed the unusual silence around him. The sounds of owls and cicadas and even the howling of the wind had stopped.

Goosebumps rose up his arms and cold sweat dropped down his back.

Something was there.

He looked around with shivering pupils but the blanket of darkness couldn't let him see through.

Suddenly, a crunch echoed and Neville snapped back.

His wand tightened in his hand, pointing towards the dense black in front of him.

"Who's there?!" Neville shouted. "Come out!"

The air swished beside his ear when, without a warning, something attacked him fiercely.

Neville hurriedly dogged, "Defendo!"

The creature flew and this time Neville caught a clear sight of its horror.

He saw his reflection in five humongous eyes, orderly lined in a straight line.

A clear drop of sweat slid down his temple. The humongous body of the spider stood before him, ready to strike.

A shrill yet hissing sound was uttered by the spider, making Neville's back drown in cold sweat.

A slight movement in one of the spider's leg and Neville sprinted in the opposing direction.

"Help! Help!", His pleading was desperate.

The monster behind him cleverly followed, jumping through the trees and swinging on its web.

Fear coursed through his blood as Neville took a look back and…

THUD! CRACK!

His face planted in the ground. His leg stuck in a slender vine growing on the forest floor. He urgently flailed his leg in an attempt to get free but only entangled his foot further.

His head snapped up as the monster stepped on his wand. A painful jolt went through his body as, his companion and friend, his wand broke.

His honey brown pupil quivered with unprecedented fear and unwillingness. The leisure form of a huge monster reflected in the moist and reddened eyes.

A moment went by and the shivering eyelashes slowly dropped as if giving up hope. As if accepting their doom.

Neville's entire body slumped down with defeat and hopelessness.

A pair of hazel green eyes flashed behind his eyes and a hushed voice affectionately called, "Longbottom."

Neville only regretted that he couldn't see that enchanting man once again.

He only regretted that he couldn't see his beloved one last time.

'Oh...beloved, huh?' he chuckled.

'The first time I fell in love…. only to realize that I love him while my life seeped away…'

The spider slowly pulls his silky white thread, leisurely wrapping it around the pliant body like wrapping a precious present.

'Such a tragic fate… even I pity myself…'

The thread reached his neck and rapidly climbed higher and his last words were uttered, "I fucking fell for a Slytherin."

His muffled chuckle flowed through the air. The thread climbed up to his eyes. His breath was already choked.

Neville's world fell in a deadly silence. The moonlight shone serene in his eyes.

"Crucio!", Suddenly a familiar voice rang.

The fatigued eyes instantly became alert and caught the sight of beautiful bronze skin.

'It's Blaise…', Realisation struck Neville and he struggled desperately.

"Defendo!" The fight went on.

The threads on his body broke one by one as Neville's struggle increased.

"Blastindo!" The voice shouted.

By the time Neville freed himself, Blaise was already wrung out of his magic.

The last bit of the thread freed Neville and a pained cry was heard, "AAH!"

His head snapped towards the cry.

The sight he saw made his blood run cold. One of the legs of the monster was firmly stabbed inside Blaise's abdomen as it pinned him to the ground.

Neville desperately ran towards him, "No!"

The bloodied wand still tightly held in Blaise's hand shot towards Neville, "Revolare!"

The spell struck Neville and he flew back to painfully fall on the ground.

In an anguished last attempt, Blaise raised his wand to the monster, "Avada Kedavra!"

Piercing green light blinded Neville and a shrill scream sounded, "Blaise!"

Neville hurriedly got up. Falling and tripping towards The huge body of the fallen monster.

Tears gushed out of his eyes, "No!"

Flushed eyes searched here and there for his beloved. But found no one.

"No!"

Bare hands despairingly pushed the thorny body of the monster, trying to save Blaise.
The hair-like thorns were long and slender, smoothly inserting themselves in the tender fair palms of the youth.

A rain of blood and tears showered the soil under Neville. The dormant seed buried under soil, drinking these blood and tears of pain and love, slowly sprouted.

The enormous body shifted slowly and was gradually overturned.

Neville crawled towards the bloodied figure.

His trembling hands held the head to his chest, staining the bronze skin with warm crimson, just like the evening sky was flushed by the setting sun dying the pale blue into hues of saffron and purple.

The hole in Blaise's abdomen passed through his back entirely. Rivers of blood flowed out.

Neville blankly pressed the wound to try and stop the blood.

"No! No! No!" He kept chanting and kept praying.

It was then that he heard the crisp sound of branches breaking nearby. Fear grew in his heart and Neville tightly clutched Blaise's head to his chest.

His body shadowed Blaise's, hiding him. His eyes were trained vigilant towards the sound.

The leaves ruffled and a half human, half snake being slithered forward.

Neville fearfully looked at it. The top half of the being was a woman while the bottom half a snake. The fair and full breasts with pink tips exposed in the air as long black hair flowed down her back to reach below her seductive waist.

The sharp and beautiful face calmly looked at them, "Well, well. Look what we have here."

Neville was shivering badly but still firmly protected Blaise in his arms.

Her slender, forked tongue shot out, tasting the air.

"Wouldn't you make a delicious meal? Young and plum and a virgin.", Her eyes squinted in eagerness and hunger at Neville.

"Please, don't eat him." Tears shone in honey brown eyes.

The being frowned invisibly, wondering why someone would beg to save a dying person but not even mention himself.

Her face twisted in disgust as she looked at Blaise, "I don't prey on the spoils of others."

Once he was sure of the being's intellect and intentions, Neville visibly relaxed and took a look at the face of his beloved and lifted his head to look at the naked beauty.

His voice trembled, "I beg you, help me. Please, save him, please."

The woman raised a mocking eyebrow.

"Help you?" She laughed out loud. "Why should I?"

"Y-you can eat me. I-i am willing"

The beauty's eyes widened and shock filtered through them.

Neville crawled to her on his knees. Bowing his head, he pliantly knelt, begging, "Please..."

The beauty looked down at the juvenile boy kneeling beside her tail. His eyes trained down in submission, just like a virgin offering presented to a goddess.

She frowned as her eyes swirled with complex emotions. Entanglement is clear in her expression.

Neville knelt still, waiting adamantly. He hesitantly looked up with teary, pleading eyes.

Suddenly, her tail swished past Neville and firmly wrapped around Blaise's body. She turned around and slithered towards the deep forest.

Neville was shocked and ran behind, "Wait! Where are you taking him?!"

The snake lady looked back with annoyance, "Do You want me to help him or not?"

Neville cleverly shut up and vigilantly followed behind her.

The canopy of trees grew thicker with the darkness around.

They finally reached a dark cave mouth curtained by green vines. The snake lady pushed aside to enter.

She layed Blaise down on a stack of hay there. Soon, bringing different herbs and fruits to remedy his condition while Neville could only stand in the corner.

A dozen or so minutes passed and Blaise was already covered with paste of different herbs.

The snake lady calmly turned to Neville, "I have done what I can do. His body is fine but his soul is torn into two because of using a dark spell. He should be able to wake up in an hour."

Hearing "soul torn into two", Neville panicked hastily asking, "Torn into two?! What do you mean?! Is he alright?!"

The slitted eyes glanced nonchalantly at him, "No need to worry. Both parts of his soul are still there. Your soul did a good job of tightly holding them."

But Neville couldn't even hear what she said as the worry ate his heart.

Looking at him, Neville slowly walked to Blaise. The wounds in his abdomen had already closed but the blood loss was too much making him unable to regain consciousness.

"He'll be healed with a night's rest", the snake lady said.

A strange relief flooded Neville. He turned to look at the snake woman and uttered, "Can I take him back now?"

The woman looked at him, for a split second, disappointment filled her eyes. Why did she even expect anything other than being lied to again ?

But the emotion disappeared in a flash, making her face cold and expressionless.

A frosty voice replied to Neville, "Get out. Don't let me see you again and expect mercy."

Neville frowned but quickly used Blaise's wand to levitate Blaise and make his way out.

The moon was already high in the dark sky. The snake woman wordlessly looked at the direction the two young men left and coiled her tail to sleep. It was as if nothing happened. As if whatever she experienced today was just a daydream.

Her eyes closed amd she was about to drift to sleep when she suddenly heard the familiar footsteps coming closer and closer.

Vigilantly sitting up, she stared at the door of the cave as Neville walked in again. Her eyes widened in astonishment.

"Why are you here again?", She asked.

Neville looked at her unwillingly and sorrowfully but still explained in a low tone, "I promised to let you eat me."

"..."

The snake woman looked at him blankly and then started laughing loudly, "AHAHAH!"

"Are you stupid, boy?!" The woman asked, trying to control her bubbling laughter.

This time Neville was the one confused, "Why are you laughing? Don't you want to eat me? Don't I look appetizing enough?"

Neville hesitantly looked down at himself, "Is it because I am dirty? Should- should I take a bath and then come back?"

The woman laughed louder, "HAHAHA!"

She looked at him with mirth filled eyes, "Silly boy, It has been a long time since I have laughed."

Pure honey eyes looked at her, clearly confused.

Her eyes shone with satisfaction as she mercifully said, "Since you have such a good sense of humour, I'll be merciful and let you go."

Neville's eyes brightened, "Really?!"

But suddenly her eyes hardened, "But!"

Neville patiently waited only to hear the snake woman jokingly threatening, "But only if you come to visit me now and then. It gets terribly lonely here, you know."

A smile bloomed on Neville's face as he uttered gratefully, "Thank you! I will surely come to visit you again."

The snake woman smiled, "Off you go now. Better return to your boy before he wakes up."

Neville quickly rushed back.

Blaise felt his entire body, especially his abdomen, wrecking in pain as he woke up. His body sinking in the comfortable bed as he opened his eyes to look here and there.

His eyes caught the gloomy figure of Neville sitting beside his bed. His head bowed and his expression hidden behind his hair, Neville looked eiry and strangely pained.

Blaise chuckled as he looked at the figure and chuckled, "Longbottom? Why are you sitting there like a widow at her husband's funeral?"

Neville didn't respond.

"Longbottom?" Blaise called again, his voice a little more solemn.

Blaise struggled to sit up. His hand reached towards Neville's shoulders to shake him.

It was then that he noticed how tense Neville was and how his body was trembling.

"Longbottom?!" Worry evaded his tone as Blaise reached his other hand to Neville's face.

His hand just grazed the fair cheeks when Neville abruptly snapped his head up.

"Do you want to die so much?"

Blushing and teary eyes glared at Blaise, spitting hellfire.

"Tell me. Are you so tired of living?"

Blaise was stunned and speechless.

Neville stood up and the chair fell back with a bang.

"ANSWER ME !" He roared.

Blaise looked at him with wide and unmoving eyes and watched Neville force himself to not let his tears drop.

He sighed and tried to calm Neville down, "Longbottom, I-

But Neville didn't even want to hear these excuses. In rage, he swiftly climbed the bed to pin Blaise down and strandle him.

"IF YOU WANTED TO DIE SO MUCH, WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME, HUH?! I COULD HAVE JUST KILLED YOU AND THEN KILLED MYSELF ! IF YOU WANT TO DIE SO MUCH THEN LET'S JUST DIE TOGETHER ! WHY DO YOU WANT TO DIE ALONE AND LEAVE ME BEHIND ?!"

Shock filtered Blaise's face as Neville's heaving breath caressed his face. But, the shock soon turned to fear and then anger.

"YOU DARE?!" Blaise shouted furiously.

"I DARE ! WHY DON'T I DARE ?!"

"YOU-" Blaise had just uttered but suddenly stopped.

Warm and wet. That was how Neville's tears felt on his cheeks. He looked at the aggrieved and reddened eyes above staring at him in despair.

The warm tears suddenly felt like burning acid on his skin as Blaise stared blankly. They burned through his skin and tangled with his being as if sweet wine in crimson blood.

"Everyone leaves me behind." Neville said in a choked whisper, "Mother and father, my grandma, my uncle, Harry, Hermione, Ron, everyone. But, it was fine. I didn't stop anyone. I let them go. But-"

Neville looked into Blaise's eyes with a pleading gaze, "But now you want to leave as well. If you leave, then where should I go? If you leave,...."

A small sob echoed in the room.

"then I'll have no one."

Blaise heard Neville's selfish words and selfish demands with no consideration as to why or for who he did it.

It was then that he understood that Neville wasn't in his right state of mind. Maybe it was the excessive fear and trauma that affected him temporarily.

Blaise reached up to hold his neck and gently pull him down to lie beside him.

Neville instantly collapsed, burying his face in Blaise's side and silently sobbing as he soothingly caressed his back.

Some time went by and Neville regained some of his sanity back. The sobbing ceased and Neville looked up at Blaise with glassy threatening eyes, "If you try to do something like that again, I swear I'll tie you up and then lock you in the Longbottom Manor."

Blaise looked at the lovely face with rosy cheeks and red nose. The angry expression on it made his heart tickle.

Blaise chuckled with squinted eyes, "Sure!"

Neville then again stuffed his face in Blaise's side while his entire body relaxed.

A hand came up to hold his hand and he heard a muffled and tired voice, shyly saying, "I hate you."

And Blaise could only reply, "You are a terrible liar."

"..."

"Can you say it again?"

"I hate you. I hate you. I hate you……", Neville continued to utter but in his happily thrumming heart, the song went rather different.

In his heart, the song went, 'I love you. I love you. I love you….'

As sleep evaded him, Neville heard a hoarse voice reply, "Me too."

TBC