Epilogue:

Death of Life

"We shall live even in this state of living death, we shall love, we shall feel, we shall defy all who would judge and destroy us."

Darkness is here.
It is stronger than your hopes, your fears.
It will devour you the moment you give into it. You will become its very essence.
Feed off its strength, off its secrets.
Be one with it. With me.
Be the gift I've given you.

XXXX

Tears were stuck in her throat, her eyes had long since dried as they couldn't bear crying any longer. Her face was red, puffed, she clung to her unmoving, unfeeling boyfriend's side. They hadn't spoken, they hadn't moved from their spot slunk outside the wall of Dumbledore's office. What could they be talking about in there? Harry was dead and the adults only cared about formalities? They had been there, waiting, biding, hoping that when they were welcomed back into the office they would hear news of Draco's arrest or his demise, some kind of punishment for playing Harry the way he did. For using his sorrow, using his loneliness against him.

When the door creaked open to welcome them into the room they jumped to attention, their faces falling at the sullen looks of the two Professor's and the Headmaster that stared at them. "Have you caught the bastard?" Ron immediately growled.

"We have it under great authority, Mr Weasley, that he is still with Harry," Dumbledore spoke calmly.

"Headmaster, Harry's dead, what is that snake doing now...can't he at least leave his body to rest in peace?!" Ron was screaming now, his stomach filling with the limitless hatred for the blonde demon.

"It's Potter that has chosen to be with my son, to be the same filthy creature he is," Ron and Hermione snapped their heads at the man who had been lurking silently in the shadows of Dumbledore's office, they both looked equally upset and disheaveled at seeing Lucius.

"But we saw Harry die," Hermione said plainly, blinking at the older Malfoy.

"Here Ms Granger is supposedly the cleverest of her age," Snape scowled at the sneer Ron sent him, Hermione's face falling slightly, "You two should be well aware now that there are many ways one can die, what you saw was true death, when the heart stops beating-"

"-What Draco has given him, is the Death of Life," Lucius' voice was distant, cold.

"No," Ron said firmly, "You can't be serious...Harry...Professor," Ron turned to Dumbledore, his face ridden with understanding and confusion, "You have to do something, arrest Malfoy, he's forced Harry against his will! I know it, Harry wouldn't agree-"

"Mr Weasley," Dumbledore spoke calmly, "The students are not property of the school while they are on leave. As much as it haunts us to see it, it is the truth. Mr Potter has chosen to have young Mr Malfoy sire him. It has been done and cannot be changed. I saw this coming when he was questioned under Veritaserum,"

"You saw it coming?! Why didn't you bloody well do something to stop it then?" Ron screamed at the Headmaster, the other adults in the room were silent, watching the redhead's explosive temper calmly.

Hermione was frowning deeply, her eyebrows knitted as she softly spoke, "You didn't stop it because you saw this. You knew he could defeat Voldemort with Malfoy's help...you sacrificed his life-"

"He choose to sacrifice his own for a new one, that was beyond my control no matter the outcome of their decisions," Dumbledore spoke clearly now, "The Dark Lord has fallen, Mr Weasley and Ms Granger, that is what matters here, tonight. I suspect your Mother is greatly anticipating your arrival home, Mr Weasley,"

It was both Gryffindor's that scowled now, equally as enraged, "But where's Harry now?" Hermione asked, she still cared so much for him and Ron did, too, beneath his hatred.

It was Lucius who answered their question, "Where he will forever remain; with my son, with his Maker,"

XXXX

There he was again; at a loss for the word to pin to his emotions. He knew there was no need to pick one but he felt he needed to. He needed to put a sense to this feeling, the perfection in the collaboration of their minds, their bodies. They had moved as one, they fed as one, words rarely escaped their lips as speaking was unnecessary. Calmity, Harry decided, was the word for what Draco had given him with his gift, a perfection of calm nature.

It had taken the rest of the holidays to be able to understand his new self, the new urges that Harry found monumentally difficult to surpress. When the first day of the new term dawned, it was impossibly hard for Harry to choose to be at Hogwarts, mingling amongst the congratulating, overly glad crowds that swarmed him. He pushed past them, they gave his new strength, his new cold, piercing emerald eyes to the fact he had just freshly murdered one of the darkest, greatest Wizard's of all time. They didn't know. The Daily Prophet had no word. All that was confirmed was that the Dark Lord was vanquished, Harry Potter lived again, and for some reason his lover, always attached at his side, had something to do with it. Questions barked at them, they were silenced. It took not more than a half-day for the students to realize that the more they badgered, the quicker they would find themselves in a terrifying and compromising situation.

"Should we?" Hermione quipped, it was on their way to Potions class. They didn't know what to expect upon seeing Harry back at school, they actually hadn't expected him to return at all. It was hard to keep their breakfast down when Harry had waltzed into the Great Hall, his back straight and head high beside Malfoy, their hands clenched around one another's as whispers grew into shouts and some clapped, some scowled.

"No. He's a dirty rotten monster," Ron spat venomously, he knew his girlfriend was alluding to approaching him or speaking with him.

Just outside of the Potions dungeon stood the brunette they were speaking of. Harry was leaning against the corridor wall, his arms crossed, his unblinking eyes burning into his housemates. "Weasley, Granger," he nodded stiffly to be of them, Ron narrowed his eyes dangerously, he sounded to much like Malfoy who was thankfully absent at the moment.

"Harry, uhm, we're glad...you're not dead. We had thought-"

Hermione's words were cut-off by a dark, low chuckle. "But, I am dead," he leaned in towards her, his twisted smirk made her shudder all over. He seemed crazed, a totally different person, he was no longer filled of sorrow but there was something new there and wholly more terrifying than whatever was buried before.

"What do you want, Potter?" Ron returned, sure he was happy his friend hadn't been murdered but he certainly wasn't on any grounds to befriend him once again. There was no turning back, it was plain, Harry had chosen Malfoy over them.

Harry's smirk widened. He fed off the anger from Ron and the dread seeping from Hermione, it fueled him in an inexplainable way, he made his mouth water. How right Draco had been when he said the higher the emotions, the more sweet the blood smelt, the tastier it had been. Harry found his mind wandering to what their blood would taste like on his eager lips, his eyes began to dilate as he smelt the iron in his nostrils once again, he had an almost dreamy, twisted expression that caused Hermione and Ron to share a concerned look. "Do forgive him, even though he is mine he has not quite the control I do," Draco's voice sounded like silken ice, he stepped from the classroom, his arm snaking around Harry's waist and pulling him closer. The brunette perked his attention immediately to his Maker, his nostrils filled with his scent instead. His blood was the most savouring of all, Harry found himself craving it constantly.

"Bugger off, the both of you," Ron murmured and attempted to side step them into the classroom, Harry caught his arm and brought him to a stop, his eyes were intense as they met, his cold and stone-like skin alarmed the redhead.

"I wanted to tell you to stop thinking so loudly about me, it's peircing my head and rather annoying," Harry drawled, his stature and his voice sounded too akin to Draco's.

"Listening to our thoughts now?" Ron quipped, clicking his tongue, annoyed. He turned to Hermione who was just watching, staring at the powerful and daunting couple, "Your both bloody unnatural," he hissed beneath his breath and pulled her away and into the classroom.

Harry smirked as he watched them leave, Draco pulled him closer, purring as he spoke, "Here I thought you would get sentimental on me with those prats,"

"Draco, what do you take me for?"

"A Gryffindor," Draco grinned slyly, "Come, I'm not fond of the idea of classes this afternoon,"

Harry need not be told twice, he would give anything to slip away whenever the opportunity arose to enrapture himself in Draco's presence. This was everything he had hoped it could be. He felt no remorse of facing his old friends, no ill thoughts for his housemates or classmates or Professor's that frowned at his state or his interactions with his Maker. He didn't care. Truly, did not care. No longer did anger find him or hatred, the power that rushed through his thick, cold veins gifted him the truest feelings he had ever felt; of dominance over others and submission to his love, his Maker, his Draco. Harry had never thought that being owned would be so freeing, that being another's property so fufilling.

There were no doubts, no regrets, no second thoughts. Harry would follow Draco wherever he led. He would please him whenever he could, he would strive to see that blood-stained smirk that tantalized his very being. They would do as they pleased, they would separate themselves for the pitiful world they had known before and fall deeper than they ever could into the wonders of the greatest gift ever given; the gift of impenetrable darkness.

Fin.

A/N: I am horrible at endings, my apologies. It took great difficulty to be able to write this fiction after abandoning it for years. I did my best and hope to one day return to it to re-write many things and perhaps make additions, these are not promises though.

I want to give great thanks to my reviewers, you make stories worth updating and completing no matter how daunting it can be sometimes. Thank you eternally for reading my works! I will be cross-posting all of my stories, editing them as I do, for the next little while as I begin to work on my first ever Eighth Year Drarry FanFiction, I hope to begin releasing it within the next week so please look for it! I'm very excited for it, I've spent a lot of time contemplating it! :) Anyway, enough of my ramblings, I love you all and thanks for the support and reviews!

MystyVander.