Author note: This is my first sad an pathetic attempt at a slash fic... I know that I posted "Gambling, Girls and Rish Taking" first, but this is the ACTUAL first.... Hehe!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot. All the characters and places are copyright of the wonderful JKR.

Warning: This story contains both male Slash (male/male) and Het (Male/female) relationships. The rating of this story is PG-13, and I don't plan to change it, at least not over sexual situations, so neither will be unbelievably graphic. If you are offended by either of these I suggest that you hit that little "Back" Button now and don't flame me about it later. Or keep reading and attempt to open your mind. Yeesh. But still, no flames over the pairings. Any other reason, be my guest... Well, unless its spelling, If you complain about that, you have officially named youself my beta!

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Once Upon a Time's and Happily Ever After's

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Prologue

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You ain't going nowhere
You got no chance to see
There's no way home

The Mad Caddies, No Hope

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Once upon a time, long, long ago in a far off land, there lived a Handsome Prince. This prince lived in a castle where he had the finest chefs, thousands of servants, and many beautiful ladies who would give up everything for just one kiss from the prince on her hand. This, of course meant nothing to the prince, for he only wanted one particularly beautiful woman: a princess who was locked away in a cursed tower, with no way to escape without breaking the curse with the most powerful type of magic known: True, requited and endless love.

The prince arranged an army of his finest knights, and on the eve of his twenty-fourth birthday, they rode for twenty hours straight. The prince's white horse was the finest in the land and led them meritoriously to the tower.

The prince raised his blade, and road steadfast towards the tower. He fought with trolls and Dragons before reaching the base nearly thirty feet below the princess's window. He dismounted his steed and cried, "Fair Princess, Fair Princess."

She appeared at the window, raven hair spilling over her shoulders surveying the prince. "You have summoned me, brave prince?" She asked.

"You shall be free to be my bride and to allow me to love you until the end of our years"

And they bloody well lived 'happily ever after', didn't they? They always do, right? You never see a prince who divorces the fair virgin Princess after she has an affair with a Russian weightlifting champion, and is forced to work three jobs just to pay spousal support and look after fifty billion little ankle-bitters, eh?

What type of fairy tale would that be?

I used to think that me and that prince weren't so different. Six years was a long time ago, and it was in a far off land, and Hogwarts is a castle, hell the food wasn't bad either. I might not have really been a prince, and I certainly didn't have women fawning over me... Or, well... appreciate it if they ever did.

I did have a princess. Well ... no I didn't, that would be ... weird. However, there was a guy I liked: another prince maybe? But, he wasn't locked up in a tower. Well, we shared Gryffindor tower, but we were never locked away or cursed to stay there. And he didn't love me back like the princess loved the prince. Which I am thankful for, because if this particular 'Prince' ever found out that I would like nothing more than to ride up on my noble mount and rescue him from an enchanted tower ... he would probably personally escort me to the hospital wing. After causing the injuries.

And I'm not one hundred percent sure that I ever love loved him. It was more that he was very good looking, and we happened to be best friends, and he had an amazing personality and I wished that I could spend every moment of my life with him and stuff. Not like I could have helped it.

It doesn't matter anymore though. He went to bleeding 'America' after Hogwarts: A Magical Art School of some sort. I bet now he's married to a perfect woman with three kids living in a nice suburban area with a dog.

If it were me, I'd've got a cat.

SIX YEARS EARLIER:

The little bubble of anticipation that had been brewing in Seamus's stomach all week had boiled over. He had just graduated. He was a fully-grown wizard. He was an Adult. He actually felt a little faint.

He was sitting cross-legged on the roof, leaning on the cool stone. This would be the last time he would sit up here looking over the grounds. It was his place. Well, his and Deans'.

He could get up to it by opening up out window in the Gryffindor Boys Dorm and then grabbing the ledge right above it. Then he'd walk across that a bit and climb above the little stone lion (he had to grab part of its mane to pull himself up) and voila, he was on the roof.

He discovered it in fifth year- the rest of the dorm wasn't talking to him, so he would magically shrink his guitar and put it in his pocket, and then go up there to play or sing. It was really nice at the time. Nobody could hear him or bug him about not knowing what to believe. Or at least that's what he thought....

"That was really good." Someone said behind him. He whipped his head around.

"Dean? What are you doing up here?" He wasn't really going out of his way to talk to Seamus at the time.

"I heard music." And he sat down next to him, looking in the same direction, over the lake. It was still a bit cold out so he could see his breath. They sat there for a long time. Seamus felt like it had been hours, but it couldn't have been that long.

"What are you doing up here?" He asked, and Seamus gave him his best 'well, if you want me to state the obvious...' smile.

"Playing guitar."

"Oh. Do you come up here lots?" Dean didn't look at him, but picked at a little piece of string on his cloak.

"Yea, well, it's this or hang around with Lavender." Seamus smiled. Dean looked up at him.

"She likes you, you know."

"I know."

"She's looking for you."

"I know." He said with a little smile "That's why I'm up here."

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He felt himself grinning at the memory. The next day he had gone to his first DA class. It was amazing to be friends with everyone again, and he cherished that very deeply, going out of his way to not screw it up... er ... again. In sixth year he made the Quidditch team as a chaser and he had the closest friends that he had ever known. He wished that he could have stayed in sixth year forever.

Seventh year was hell. Death Eaters. Killings. War. Oh yea, there was war. A war that ended on the first day of the New-year, actually. He had witnessed it, but then again, he had witnessed a lot of things.

Like watching his mother being tortured. His best friends were risking their lives for the Order. He saw death too... A little child, apparently the daughter of a witch with a Muggle father.

That hit close to home.

And he witnessed the fall.

He saw when Harry stood up almost like invisible hands were holding onto his own, insuring that he wouldn't have his wand ripped away, making sure that the thin gold light that was ever so slowly increasing in thickness from the Dark Lords wand did not get broken. And he heard it.

He didn't know what it meant. It was in Parseltongue, Hermione had told him later, but all the white gold light that had been glittering between Harry and Voldemorts' wands seemed to dull for a second, and then in a bright flash rose again, blinding everyone. And then it was gone. And so was the Dark Lord. Harry was standing there for a second, a shocked look on his face. Then a look of victory. Then he collapsed.

He didn't wake up for two weeks, but he got daily updates from Ron, Hermione and Ginny on how he was. Seamus even went up to visit him once. He was very pale, making the scar on his forehead look darker and deeper than ever. It was very scary, but it was then that he told Harry everything. How he was sorry that he had ever doubted him. How he knew now that Harry was truly a hero. And his friend.

It wasn't hard to tell an unconscious man all your secrets.

He found out a few days after Harry woke up that he had heard everything... That was embarrassing. He cornered Seamus in the dorm after Potions one night (they were in a lot of the same classes. Healing and becoming an Auror were both very academic professions to go into) and thanked him. It was one of those moments that true, unbreakable Friendships were made.

And then... it was back to normal. The last half of the school year was just like it should be. No evil wizards, no fighting, no death. The most Seamus had to worry about was his exams. That's what a normal eighteen-year-old should be worried about...

"Now, how did I know you would be up here?" Seamus jumped a bit, but looked down to see Dean sticking his head out the window. "Can I come up?"

"Yea," Seamus smiled, getting on his knees and offering Dean a hand. He scuttled up the smooth stone, and took a seat gracefully beside Seamus. That was one thing that people who didn't even know Dean could identify right away: His Grace. It was evident in every aspect of his life. The way he dressed, the way he would draw or write notes. He seemed catlike; he just flowed.

Silence was another thing that set Dean apart from most other people. Silence was never uncomfortable with Dean, which is possibly why when they weren't talking in fifth year Lavender would huff when Seamus started to talk too much. It wasn't his fault. Seamus hated awkward silences.

"Scared?" Dean said, shocking Seamus a bit with his voice. Scared? Scared of what? Oh. Right. They were legal wizards now. They had to go off and start their own lives.

"A bit." He said, looking over the black lake. "Terrified."

Dean smiled, "You have nothing to worry about, Doctor Finnigan."

Seamus flushed and Dean laughed, pinching his cheeks, "Shut up." He muttered. "What about you, then?"

He knew that Dean had applied to get into a few art schools, two of them that were magical, and a handful that were Muggle.

Dean stopped laughing. He looked out on the grounds, leaning back on the cool stone. "I'm ... petrified." Seamus nodded.

"Any idea where you're going to go yet?" Seamus asked the lake, which was still except for a little ripple where he assumed the giant squid was.

Dean seemed to take a deep breath, and only let it out when he nodded. "Yea."

Seamus started at him for a few seconds, and when he didn't continue said, "Well, where?"

"Uh ... The school that I really wanted to get into." He said. Seamus broke out into a grin and pulled him into a hug.

"That's wicked Dean! When do you leave?! Where is it?-" Dean stiffened "-What is it?" He questioned slowly, releasing his friend.

Dean cleared his throat and looked down at the stone roof. "I leave tomorrow, I have to go to be there by the morning after tomorrow so I have a plane ticket at 3:00 in the afternoon-"

"Won't you be on the Hogwarts express?"

"I'm not taking it," He said quietly. "I'll floo home and get all my art stuff, and then drive to the airport."

Seamus raised his eyebrows, "Why cant you just floo to the school afterwards." There was silence, but unlike every other silence that had passed between himself and the other boy, this was hardly comfortable.

"Well...?"

Dean looked up; dark brown eyes stared right into Seamus's golden-hazel ones. The expression on his face broke Seamus's heart; he looked so scared and ... so sad. He swallowed.

"Its in New York."

It felt like someone had punched him in the stomach. He must have forgot to breathe, because everything was going fuzzy. 'Dean's going to ... America?' That wasn't right. No. No, Dean wouldn't leave him. Dean would not go away without Seamus. His best friend Seamus?

Never.

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But he did.

I didn't nod. I didn't even acknowledge it. I just sat there staring out at the very dark grounds ahead of me, which seemed to just get darker by the second.

I knew that he was staring at me, too. I knew that he was waiting for an "Oh, Dean. I'm so happy for you." But I wasn't. I should have been, but I am a selfish, selfish person. He left me.

He didn't want me anymore.

I couldn't bring myself to say anything. Or even look at him.

So he just got up and went back into the dorm. I stayed up there for a few more hours, and when I dot back he was already asleep, buried in his blankets. The walls surrounding his bed were blank, all photos, posters and drawings that had been there earlier had vanished. He sighed somewhere in his dream world, and I couldn't look at him any longer.

He was gone in the morning before I woke up. That was the last time I saw him.

And I lived happily ever after...

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Finished September 3, 2004

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I shall beg for your reviews now...