10 Years later…
The doctor pulled out a clipboard from out of the top desk drawer. Five minutes before her session would begin, the patient seemed to always arrive a little bit early. She did not mind. There was not much else for her to do. He was her first patient in about a month.
At the top of the paper attached to the clipboard were the doctor's curvy handwritten letters reading "Session number thirteen. Patient is showing more improvement, as well as more openness and trust." She began to write, "Taking careful measures not to"- when there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," she said firmly.
The oak door slowly swung open. A pale young man, age 20+Ø, walked cautiously, but comfortably into the room. He brushed a few long, blond bangs from his eyes as he looked to the doctor.
"Hello, Mr. Malfoy, how are you doing today?" the doctor asked him.
"Fine, Dr. Smith, you?" Draco answered.
"I'm good," she answered. "Have a seat," she told him, pointing to a mauve lounge chair. She sat behind her own desk as though it were a bit like her shield to reality. "Please continue our conversation from the other day. I believe we were on the subject of this Hall of Essence."
"Right, right. I was finishing up when we got out of the Hall. Harry's shoulder hurt like hell, and I can only guess because of Amethyst. He and Hermione both ignored their pain, though, to see to Amethyst. By this time she had already lost maybe a pint of blood, it was literally leaking everywhere. Luckily, Professor Dumbledore came just in time and whisked us all back to the castle. Half the students were gawking at us in their pajamas. Weas"- Draco paused and looked at the doctor, who shook her head.
"Mr. Malfoy, remember what I said about using last names in hatred," she scolded.
"Ron," Draco corrected himself as he went on, "was there as well, very anxious to see what had happened. I'm surprised he didn't start pounding me right then in there. Maybe he was too stunned and worried to do anything. We got up to the Hospital Wing. Harry and I wanted to go, but Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let us. I watched her go through those doors, rosy red blood dripping from my cloak hanging loosely around her shoulders. It was the last time I ever saw her."
His psychiatrist looked slightly sympathetic at this. The look soon passed as she asked, "But you did see her brother, Harry, am I correct?"
"Yes," Draco replied, "But it was definitely not the same. Obviously there were subtle differences between the two, but more than that, there was a certain air around Amethyst I could find in no one else."
"Really…" Dr. Smith muttered, mildly interested.
"I sent her a brooch, but she never even touched it. She probably destroyed the letter I sent as well," Draco continued.
"What makes you think that?" the doctor asked.
"I put a spell on it," Draco explained, "It was a Portkey, a sort magical object that when someone touches it, they are brought to a different place." He looked at the doctor. She was playing with something in her pocket. "You don't believe me."
For a second time she asked him, "What makes you think that?"
"You don't believe in magic, so you think I'm crazy," Draco answered coolly.
The doctor got up from behind the desk and walked over to the mauve chair. She sat down on the opposite end. "You underestimate me. I believe in all sorts of magic. For example," she picked up a pencil and dropped it to the floor, "Gravity. That is magic."
Draco snorted. "It's a law of physics."
"Yes, yet birds have the ability to defy it without great big jets. Therefore, I find that to be magical," the doctor smiled. "So does that make me crazy, or just pensive? In a way, we are all a bit daft. Then again, if you weren't crazy, would you be here? It is all in the head, my friend."
Draco gave a small half-smile. He relaxed and sunk back into the chair. "You remind me a little of her…" he told the doctor.
"How so?" she inquired.
"Little things," he responded slowly. "Your hair for one, but mostly the way you speak. You both have this interesting way of bending the conversation to your will, and yet somehow all the facts stay absolutely intact. That I find absolutely fascinating. I've met few who could do that."
"Just that one characteristic reminds you of her?" the doctor queried. She found herself slightly edging over to the other side of the couch.
"Well, I suppose you both have green eyes, sort of powerful ones," he added. He moved slightly as well. "And you both make me want to question my myself and my judgment, the things I think altogether."
"What exactly are you thinking about, Mr. Malfoy?" she inquired. They both advanced slightly.
"I'm… actually wondering if you kiss as well as her," he replied carefully. He laughed. Dr. Smith laughed a bit as well. When it died down they looked at each other in unending silence.
Suddenly the intercom on the desk buzzed loudly. "Dr. Smith, your brother is on line one, it's a girl!"
The doctor got up. "I should take this call," she said, "It shouldn't take too long." With that she left the room.
***
Soon after, the doctor came back. They moved on to a different subject. After about 45 minutes of that, the session ended. Draco left the office. Dr. Smith sank back into her chair and heaved a long sigh. "Cynthia, do I have any appointments for this afternoon?" she asked into the intercom.
"Only a short seminar at the high school," Cynthia answered.
"Is it mandatory?" the doctor inquired.
"No."
Cynthia looked up and saw Dr. Smith leaving her office. "I'm taking the rest of the day off. You and Bill can take it from here, right?" Bill was the other psychiatrist on the other side of the hall.
"No problem, A.S," Cynthia answered.
"Don't call me that."
She walked aimlessly around the busy streets of town. "I was so unorthodox in there today. How could I have let that happen? Next time I have to just buckle down, I can't let anything loose," she scolded herself.
Draco looked to the clock tower. The bus was 7 minutes late. He sat on the bench and leaned his head back all the way. He had just told his psychiatrist that he wanted to know how well she kissed. What was his big-as-Hades problem? His head rolled to the side.
Suddenly he sat up. At the other side and the other end of the street was Dr. Smith. He smirked. She was with another man. Her boyfriend, fiancé, husband maybe. No. Something was wrong with this picture. Draco looked closer. It seemed like she was trying to avoid him. Draco got up and began walking that way. Suddenly the man shoved her into an alley. Draco began running.
"Alright, sweetie, give me your purse," the man demanded.
"I don't have any cash with me," she replied calmly.
"Well then, maybe there's something else you can give me," he smiled. He put his hands on her shoulders and began to lean in. Seeing where this was going, Dr. Smith rammed her head into his and stepped on his foot. She tried to run away, but the mugger grabbed her and swung her around. Suddenly there was a gun pressed up against her lips.
"Kiss this, sweetie," he grinned. He noticed her fumbling with her coat pocket. "What's that in your pocket? Bring it out- slowly. Don't try anything funny."
"Is there a problem here?" Draco asked, walking into the alley.
"None at all. This lady here was just going to give me that nice piece of jewelry in her hand, weren't you? Now back off, you don't want anyone hurt, do you?" said the mug.
Suddenly, the man grabbed his face. Dr. Smith ran something sharp against his face, probably the piece of jewelry. He was about to shoot off the gun when Draco cried something unintelligible, causing the gun to fly out of his hand.
"Are you ok, doctor?" he asked, running over to her.
"Yes, I'm fine. What are you doing here?" she squeaked.
"I could ask the same of you, but that later. What did you do to him?" he began to ask. She didn't have time to answer. A gun went off, forcing Draco a step forward.
Before he could collapse, Dr. Smith caught him and felt his back. A bullet ran through his shoulder. She grabbed his wand and pointed it at the mugger and yelled, "Stupefy!" The mugger fell flat on his face. She stepped out of the alleyway, screaming "Somebody please help me!" Quickly, someone ran to a payphone to call 911. Soon enough the paramedics and the police came. "Hold on, Draco," she whispered.
***
Draco opened his eyes slowly. There was a room entirely of white and a pale, yet radiant face hanging above him. "Am I in heaven? I always though I'd be in the other place…"
The face above him smiled. "No… it's definitely not heaven, or the other place for that matter." Draco could see clearly now. It was Dr. Smith. "This is the county hospital, so you aren't dead."
Draco sat straight up. Heaven or not, she still looked like an angel. "What exactly happened?"
The smile vanished. She buried her face in her hand. "I'm so sorry, this is all my fault. I provoked him and you took the shot I should have received."
"No, it's ok. Chances are he would've shot either way," he tried to console. "But that's not really what I meant. How did you prevent him from shooting again?" She froze slightly. "Dr. Smith… what did you scratch him with."
She bit her lip, trying to avoid eye contact with him. Finally, she drew a small piece of jewelry from her pocket. It was a small brooch. "I flipped out the pin and scratched him with it," she tried to smile as she handed it to him. She still avoided eye contact.
"But… but this is…" Draco realized. "So it's my turn to sit in a hospital bed because of you. And now you are handing me the white rose, Amethyst." She got up and began to leave. "But there's one small difference. This time I'm not going to hold any of my feelings back. I won't loose you a second time," he declared.
Amy turned around. She ran back to his bed and held him tightly. "I've missed you so much."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Draco wondered.
"I am your psychiatrist, I wasn't about to rush back to you and declare I still loved you. You were coming to me for a problem, and that would be all, especially after the letter you sent me, saying we could never be together," she explained.
"And still you kept the brooch. After 10 years you still haven't changed," he smiled.
"After 10 years, you still conquer my heart."
"You got married," Draco recalled. "Or did you legally change your name for fun?"
"I tried to move on. But don't be jealous, I'm a widow. The marriage lasted two days and then Voldemort took him," Amy replied. "Does it feel like we're moving?" she asked suddenly.
"A bit like we are flying?" Draco asked.
Amy then remembered that their hands were wrapped around the brooch. "The brooch! You terrible wizard! You made a duo Portkey! We both had to be touching it! That's why we it never worked!"
They landed in a room that seemed to have no ceiling. Sunlight poured in to reveal a great area, a bit like a garden. The walls were covered in millions of vines and white roses. It looked like a hedge maze almost.
"Where are we?" Amethyst asked.
"Every great evil should have an antithesis. This is the Hall of Essence's opposite," Draco replied. "Come on, I'll race you to the end." He began running through the maze, which was actually just spiraling, not really maze.
Amy watched him and realized that he was wearing a pair of school robes. She looked at herself and found she was wearing a pair as well. "No fair! Head start!" she called out, running after him. Suddenly she could be 1+Ø again.
She raced on when out of nowhere Draco jumped out at her. He grabbed her shoulders and fell backwards onto a bed surrounded by lilacs, roses, and daisies. They both laughed like school children. Slowly the giggles died down. Draco reached a hand up and stroked Amethyst's cheek. She leaned downwards until their noses met.
"You said I make you think about your judgment. What is it telling you now?" she asked.
"It still wonders if Dr. Smith kisses as well as you," he answered. He lifted his head up until he could feel her lips pressed against his own. He then began removing her robe. His hands then traveled up her back to remove the sweater vest.
"Draco… are you sure this is what you want?" she asked between kisses.
"Every time you ask that, I always tell you that I've never been more sure," he answered. "This time, I just want to make one small adjustment." He grabbed her waist and rolled over. "I'm on top," he grinned, shirking his robe.
***
"Won't they wonder where you are? Back at the hospital, I mean," Amy asked, lying next to Draco.
"Time here stops. When we get back, it'll be like we never left," he answered. "Which is good, for I could spend an eternity here with you."
Amy moved closer to Draco. "So are you planning to ever tell me why you are in a Muggle town in Louisiana?" she asked.
"I left Malfoy Manor about six years ago. Everything was a mess. We were loosing money. My father got drunk very frequently. Even my mother wanted to leave. One day I found an ad in the Daily Prophet for potions teacher. The position also required I not be too conspicuous," Draco explained. "I also came for a second reason. Harry once mentioned that you lived around New Orleans, so I tested my luck. It worked, so I'm going to test my luck once more." He rolled and looked at her. "Will you marry me?"
Amethyst was a bit stunned for a moment. "Do you have a ring for me?" she smiled.
Draco rolled out of the bed and searched his pockets. Amy sat up and giggled, watching him search frantically. "I was only kidding you know," she told him.
"I know, but I refuse to do this unless it is remotely official," he said over his shoulder. "Ah well, this'll have to do." He plucked a daisy and began to twist it. He then turned to her and knelt on one knee. "Amethyst, will you marry me?"
Amy looked at him, speechless. Draco was proposing to her. No. Draco was proposing to her, NUDE. What else was she going to say? "Yes, of course!!!" she cried happily. Right then and there, every moment of despair and pain from their Ø year disappeared forever as the two looked forward to spending the rest of their lives together.
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