Perseus
I heaved my heavy bag onto my shoulder and stood up, filing out of the Great Hall after the rest of my year. I'd just completed my last NEWT in Defence Against the Dark Arts, they were all over and done with now, I only had to wait until August to find out my results.
I hadn't really given much thought to what I wanted to do once I left school. When I was a kid, I was determined I was going to be a Quidditch player - the best seeker there was. But by the time I was 15, I'd realised that there was no point in that plan. I simply wasn't good enough.
Next, I considered a career at the Ministry of Magic. Perhaps I could wipe away the shame that tainted my family name, what with my father being a Death Eater and my uncle Sirius having been a mass-murderer (although Juliet told me that this wasn't true, he'd never killed anybody).
I never liked Sirius - he knew about my mother and I, and the fact that we had no money and often went hungry. Mother had to work in terrible, muggle jobs that she hated, so that she could earn just enough money to pay our rent and keep me fed. True, he was locked up in Azkaban for 12 years, but he hardly made any efforts to find and help us after he was released.
I'd been meaning to ask my sister what she thought I should do. My NEWTs had gone quite well and I was confident that I'd get good results. But I hadn't seen her since yesterday evening, before I'd left to take my Arithmancy exam. When I returned and asked about her, a first year told me that she'd disappeared with Draco Malfoy. Not wanting to be one to pry, I'd concluded to speak to her the next morning at breakfast.
But then neither she nor Malfoy turned up. I tried asking her friend Honey - practically having to pull her off a Hufflepuff's face - if she'd seen her, but I quickly got told that she and Malfoy had probably gone off for the day, and Honey returned to her victim.
I'd spent the few hours before my exam started revising, hardly having time to think about my missing sister. If she was with Malfoy, she'd be safe. I saw the way he looked at her - adoringly, like she was the only good thing in his dreadful life. Which from what she'd told me about him, was probably correct.
Surprisingly, the fact that Malfoy was a Death Eater didn't bother me as much as it should. After all, my father had been one. Father had been high up in their ranks, and he'd still seen the light and tried to get out. If he could do it, so could Malfoy. And if anyone was going to be able to help him, it'd be Andromeda.
I followed the rest of the Slytherins from the hall - through the open doors of the courtyard I could see the setting sun. I looked to my watch - 6pm - and decided that I'd have time to find Andromeda before dinner.
At that precise moment, Harry Potter came cantering down the steps, accompanied by Ron Weasley - Andromeda's adoptive brother. I watched them curiously, deciding to ask if either of them had seen her. "Hey, Potter!" I called, striding after him and ignoring the surprised glances of my classmates.
Potter stopped and looked around, catching sight of me. His eyes lit up slightly, and he grabbed Ron's elbow, dragging him over to me. "We've been looking for you!" Harry exclaimed. I frowned, "you've been looking for me?"
"Yeah" Weasley wheezed, clutching his side as he tried to regain his breathe, "we wanted to know if you'd seen Li?"
I frowned, it took me a few moments to realise that they were asking if I'd seen Andromeda? "I was about to ask you the same thing" I stuttered. Potter's eyes grew wide, "when did you last see her?" I asked them.
"After Transfiguration yesterday, she wanted to go and do some revision" Weasley mumbled. I nodded, panic filling me, "I saw her last night, before I left for my exam. When I came back, they said that she'd disappeared with Malfoy - they'd been arguing."
"You don't think Malfoy's done something, do you?" Weasley gasped. Harry shrugged his shoulders, "to protect her, I think he'd do anything."
Weasley ran a hand through his red hair. "We can check the common room" I said slowly, making a list of the places she could be. Weasley nodded, "I'll help you."
Potter disappeared, saying that he had to meet Dumbledore urgently and it couldn't wait. Left alone, Weasley followed me as I strode in the direction of the common room, pushing through crowds of milling students. It seemed as if most of Slytherin was out here - hopefully that would mean we could get Weasley into the common room without a riot.
We thundered down the steps towards the dungeons - I saw Weasley shiver as we wormed our way through the labyrinth that only a Slytherin could navigate until finally we came to the small door which led to the common room. "Viperidae" I announce, hardly waiting for the door to swing open upon hearing the password before shoving through. Weasley waits anxiously for a moment whilst I check for other students. By some miracle, the common room is empty. I beckon for him to follow me and run across the room, with Weasley quick at my heels.
I push open the door to the bedroom corridor, running and crashing instantly into a slight figure who lets out a loud gasp as she tumbles to the ground. I groan immediately as I recognise her to be Andromeda's friend Sophia, glaring as she rubs her arm which she had landed on.
"I'm so sorry" I say, pulling her to her feet before pushing past. Weasley gives her an awkward smile. "Perseus!" Sophia exclaims, her voice thick and very French sounding. "Why on Earth is there a Gryffindor in here? You could get expelled for this, both of you!"
I shot her a look "you won't tell Sophia, besides, we're looking for Andromeda."
Sophia frowned. "Who?"
I remembered that Andromeda hadn't yet told her friends, but before I could reply, Weasley announced "Juliet. Please tell me you've seen her."
Sophia thought long and hard. "Not since yesterday, although I did see Draco sneaking out of his room about 2 minutes ago. I figured he was going to meet her."
I slapped my forehead and stormed towards Andromeda's door, banging loudly on it and shouting her name. "Why does he keep calling her Andromeda?" Sophia asked Weasley. He shrugged his shoulders, "long story," he replied and helped me to punch the door. I took a deep breathe and pushed him aside, clenching my fists together and then, with all my might, taking my shoulder and slamming my entire body weight into the door.
It hurt like hell, but the hinges cracked slightly, and I moved backwards to try again.
"Oh for goodness sake" Sophia stepped in front of me and drew out her wand, pointing it at the lock and quickly chanting "Alohomora!"
The lock clicked, the door swung open, and the three of us rushed inside.
My heart lifted slightly when I saw her, lying under the covers, fast asleep. Weasley rubbed his forehead and I placed my hand on my aching shoulder.
Sophia stepped forwards, crouching down beside my sister and placing her fingers on the base of her neck, checking for her pulse. "She's alive" she mumbled, before prising Andromeda's mouth open and tentatively sniffing it.
"She's been given a Sleeping Draught" Sophia hissed, swearing as she jumped up, "and her body has been petrified. Who could have done this?"
Weasley snarled, "my money's on Malfoy."
"Is there a counter-spell?" I asked Sophia impatiently, my fear suddenly restored. Sophia rubbed her forehead as she thought before nodding. "Yes, if we can get the Full Body-Bind Curse off her, then we should be able to give her a potion to wake her up. Check those books - there has to be something in there." She gestured towards the pile of potions books in the corner, books that I recognised as my mothers. Weasley rushed towards them, searching through the titles and grabbing the first book on the pile, flipping through the pages as he searched.
Sophia took a step back and pointed her wand at Andromeda. With a deep breathe, she mumbled "please work" to herself, before clearing her throat and shouting "finite incantatem!"
A flash of red light erupted from Sophia's wand and hit Andromeda square in the chest. Instantly her body seemed to writhe as if taking a deep breathe, her lungs that had been constricted allowed to breathe freely.
She was however still in a deep and inpenetrable slumber.
"Why did Malfoy do this to her?" Sophia asked, shaking her head in disbelief. "Probably to keep her out of something" I replied. Turning to Weasley, who had his nose buried in a book, I asked "where was Potter going with Dumbledore?"
Weasley looked up and stared at me, clearly fighting with whether to tell me the truth or not. "They were leaving the school to look for something" he said finally, "Harry didn't say what."
I nodded and grabbed another book from the pile, flicking through the pages and every so often, looking up to see if Li had stirred. Of course she hadn't, and the minutes passed painfully as the three of us racked our brains.
"Merlin, I wish I'd listened to Slughorn now" Weasley hissed as he slammed shut another book unsuccessfully. "Why can't it be as simple as it was when Harry cured me from that mead?" he mumbled, reaching for another book.
Suddenly, the penny dropped, and Weasley leapt to his feet. "It is as simple as that! A bezoar!"
Within a second he was at the large box of potions and ingredients that Andromeda kept on top of her cabinet, rummaging through the drawers until he pulled out a grey, boring looking stone.
I watched as he rushed over to our sister, opening her mouth and placing the bezoar inside, shoving it down her throat. He shut her mouth once more, his eyes full of desperation as we waited for a few, painful seconds.
Then, by some miracle, she began to cough. Sophia and I jumped up and flew to her bedside, amazed that Weasley's idea had actually worked. We watched as slowly Andromeda's eyelashes fluttered on her cheeks, and her eyes opened.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Juliet
I could remember nothing of my sleep. I didn't dream nor think, it was just constant blackness, surrounding and suffocating me.
Then suddenly, I was awoken. My eyes opened and at first the light blinded me, but after blinking a few times, my eyes adjusted, and I saw the relieved faces of Perseus, Ron and Sophia leaning over me.
My throat was dry, to my amazement I found myself able to reach for the glass of water beside my bed, and sat upright as I drank it, quenching my thirst. Then, the memories of Draco being the one to curse me, and what he was doing returned, and I spat my water everywhere.
"What day is it?" I croaked, trying to stand. My legs were weak and still tingling, but with Ron and Perseus on either side, supporting me, I regained my balance.
"30th of June, 6:20pm" Perseus recited.
"I haven't missed him!"
From the other side of the room, I grabbed my wand. "Ron, has Harry already left?" I hissed, wobbling slightly but staying upright. Ron nodded with a frown, "yes, about 20 minutes ago. Li, what's going on?"
I grabbed a hair band and hurriedly tied back my hair. In the coming battle, I'd need to be able to see. "Draco's going to get a group of Death Eaters into the castle, and then he's going to kill Dumbledore. You need to find the others and alert the Order, get them here!"
Ron's face turned deathly pale. He grabbed me and pulled me towards him. "Be careful Li, please?" he asked. I gave him a squeeze, "you too." Then we let each other go, and Ron cantered out of the room. I prayed that he wouldn't meet any Slytherins on his way.
"You two, you need to stay here, stay hidden. I don't want you getting hurt."
Sophia crossed her arms across her chest and raised an eyebrow. "You're not the boss of me, Juliet Weasley. Besides, I want to kick some Death Eater arse for what they did to Hervé."
I nodded, crossing my fingers that Hervé, Sophia's brother, wasn't one of the Death Eaters that showed up.
"I'm not letting you go and face them alone," Perseus told me pointedly, as stubborn as Sophia had been. I gave him a pleading glance, but we didn't have time to argue. I had to stop Draco before it was too late.
Knowing where he'd be, I started to run on my unsteady legs. It took me a few wobbling strides to get the hang of it, but I did, and then I was running, past the crowds of Slytherins returning to the common room, shoving through people and trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. "Get back to your common room" I shouted at a group of first year Hufflepuff girls as I ran past. The fewer people involved in this, the better.
"Li, I'll go and find Honey and the others" Sophia said, diverting left as Perseus and I turned right and began to canter up the steps. I cursed the Room of Requirement for being on the top floor.
"Pers, you need to go and warn the teachers. McGonagall, Flitwick..."
"What about Snape?" he asked. I stopped running and looked at him. "I think that Snape has betrayed us. Avoid Snape at all costs."
My brother grabbed me quickly, hugging me before following my command and running down the second floor corridor, heading towards McGonagall's office. With a deep breathe, I continued to canter up the winding staircase, my thighs burning as I ran.
Eventually I reached the top, speeding up as I slid down the corridor and turned right, to where the Room of Requirement was located. It must have heard my begging thoughts as I ran up the stairs, because the door was already there, waiting for me. I tugged it open, drew my wand defensively, and then ran inside.
It was exactly how it had been weeks ago, on my birthday. I knew Draco was here - I could hear him swearing to himself nearby. I ran along the trail he'd created between the mounds of furniture, my heart thumping in my chest. I was in so much pain, but I had to stop him before it was too late.
"Draco!"
The voice was not mine. I stopped running, crouching behind a desk as I watched the dreadful scene unfolding. The door to the cabinet - the one that I'd dismissed as merely a piece of furniture - was open, and from it, streams of black smoke. Draco was there too, staring impassively as the smoke formed into the Death Eaters he'd gotten into the school.
There was Fenrir Greyback, Amycus and Alecto Carrow, Thorfinn Rowle and Yaxley, all of whom I recognised from the Wanted posters. There were another two men I didn't recognise, and then the most dreadful figure of all.
It had been Bellatrix that had called Draco's name.
As hideous and malevolent-looking as ever, she strode towards Draco and kissed him on the cheek. "You've done well, nephew" she taunts, looking around the room curiously with one of her sluggish eyebrows raised. "Where are we?" the female Carrow twin, Alecto, asks.
"The Room of Requirement" Draco mumbles. Greyback growls in a way that could be taken as his sign of approval. "And where is Dumbledore?" Bellatrix asks.
"He left the castle a short while ago, with Potter." Draco muttered, "they apparated from the Astronomy tower - I saw them - so I expect that's where they'll return to."
Bellatrix cackles as she draws her wand from inside her tattered black dress. "Excellent - I can't wait to see the old man's face when he sees his precious school burning."
Draco looked up suddenly in alarm. "But the Dark Lord said that we weren't to harm the school" he objected. Bellatrix roared with evil laughter. "What are a few mudbloods here and there? Maybe we can start with that Granger girl, the one Potter is friends with."
Greyback chuckled sadistically.
"Wait, please..." Draco called to his aunt, who had turned her back and started to walk in my direction. I stiffened up and crawled further backwards. Bellatrix turned back to face her nephew, amusement on her face as she crossed her arms across the chest. "We had a deal - if I kill Dumbledore, then nobody else gets hurt. You promised."
Bellatrix raised an eyebrow at Draco, and stepped threateningly closer to him. I pointed my wand as her, grinding my teeth and forcing myself to stay hidden. If she hurt him, I'd be more than happy to use the Cruciatus curse on her.
"Darling Draco," she cooed, "I promised not to hurt your precious Juliet, despite the fact that the Dark Lord wishes for her head on a plate. But I never said anything about the rest of them."
The rest of the Death Eaters screamed with laughter, and followed Bellatrix - clearly their elected leader - in my direction. I held my breathe as they passed, waiting for Draco, who was running his hands through his hair. Once they were out of hearing range, I stood up.
"Draco" I hissed.
He lifted his head, clearly under the impression that he was hearing things. "What have I done?" he mumbled to himself.
I stepped out from my hiding place, my wand pointed at him. He'd already cursed me once in the past 24 hours, I wasn't going to take the risk.
Draco saw me, and his face turned deathly white. "What are you doing here?" he mumbled, although he hardly seemed surprised. "My brothers set me free," I replied.
"You don't have to do this Draco, back-up is on the way, and Dumbledore can keep you and your mother safe. He won't be able to find you."
Draco shook his head. "I've already considered every option Juliet, and this is it. I don't have a choice. He can't hide me forever, and the Dark Lord has spies everywhere. He'll find me, he'll make me torture my mother and then he'll murder us both. Even worse, he'll kill you. You heard what Bellatrix said - he wants your head on a plate. This is the only way I can keep you safe."
"I'm only one person!" I argued, "if you kill Dumbledore, thousands of people will die. Do you want that on your concious?"
Draco stared at his feet, "it already is. I hear them in my sleep - the screaming. If I do this, it'll be the death of me."
"Then don't do it!"
"I have to!" he pleaded, tears filling his ice blue eyes. "Don't you see? I've tried to explain to you, but it's impossible. Like I said, maybe one day you'll be able to forgive me and understand why I've got to do this."
I shook my head. My eyes clogged up with tears, "I don't think I'll ever understand Draco."
He stumbled towards me and placed a hand on my cheek. "Go back to the common room, hide until this is over. There might be more coming through..." he gestured towards the Vanishing Cabinet, "...and I don't want you anywhere near when they do."
I pressed my forehead against his. "No Draco, I'm not going to surrender my school. We're prefects, remember? That means we have to take care of the younger students..."
"They won't hurt any Slytherins" he interjected.
"I want to protect all of them! My siblings are in Gryffindor, Ced was in Hufflepuff. Luna and Cho in Ravenclaw - I'm not letting any of them get hurt."
I stepped back from him. "It's up to you Draco - make your choice. Join me, or go against me."
Draco shot me a pleading glare "please love..."
"No Draco," I held up my hand for him to stop. "You can't put this decision off any longer. The time has come for you to decide - for you to pick a side. It's the Death Eaters or me. You can't have both lives - my father learned that."
Draco remained silent. I nodded my head slowly. "I thought that would be your answer." Stepping forward, I kiss Draco Malfoy for the final time. "Goodbye Draco."
With that, I turn and run, my wand raised and ready to attack. I allow my anger to fill myself, because at least if I'm angry, I won't be sad.
I don't want them to see my tears.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Stupefy!"
I shot the spell at a scrawny looking Death Eater that was crouched over a terrified looking second year. As I'd hoped, he fell to his knees, dropping his wand in the process. I grabbed it and shoved it in my pocket - adding it to the growing collection I was gathering - and helped the girl to her feet. She was a Ravenclaw, with wild red hair and one of her teeth missing. Her forehead was bleeding heavily. "Get back to your common room, or anywhere safe" I told her, grabbing a tissue from my pocket and holding it to her head, trying to staunch the blood. "Can you do the disarming charm?" I asked her.
The girl nodded, clearly too terrified to speak.
"Use that if you run into any more - they often overlook the easiest spells."
Following my instructions, the girl took off, running towards a stairwell and cantering up. I hoped she got back to her common room safely.
I was heading for the Astronomy tower - I needed to warn Harry and Dumbledore and get there before Draco and the rest of them. It was proving more difficult than I'd imagined, since the school was suddenly swarming with Death Eaters, and only a few members of the former Dumbledore's Army had come out to fight. Down the hall, I caught sight of Neville duelling with a hideous witch, and shot a curse in her direction. I didn't stop running to see if it hit it's target.
I hadn't seen any of my siblings, but I didn't have time to find them. At that moment, Harry and Dumbledore were my priority.
I crashed into a stairwell, and saw a group of Death Eaters running upwards. Pointing my wand, I shouted "Confringo!" and watched with glee as the staircase exploded, the Death Eaters falling and screaming as they went.
Satisfaction filled me, but I didn't stick around to watch as they fell to their deaths.
Suddenly, a curse was shot in my direction. It narrowly missed me as I heard it whooshing through the air in time and dived around the corner. Pointing my wand, I jumped out and shouted "reducto!" A table next to the Death Eater exploded into ash, throwing him with full force against the wall.
"Petrificus totalus!" I chanted, freezing him before he could stand. I grabbed his wand also and took pleasure in kicking his frozen face. Hopefully I'd have at least broken his nose.
I continued to run through the castle, dodging curses and sending them back as I went. I caught sight of Remus and Tonks duelling side by side with the Carrow twins, and Mad Eye Moody managing to stun 4 Death Eaters at once with a single bang of his staff. As I passed, I could have sworn that his enchanted eye winked at me, before he returned excitedly to the battle.
The aurors that the Ministry had sent to protect Hogwarts seemed shocked as to how dozens of Death Eaters could have infiltrated the school right under their noses, but they were fighting strongly nonetheless, sending hexes and curses that I'd never seen before at their attackers. They were quick - although not as quick as some of the enemy. It seemed as if the Dark Lord had sent his best fighters for this mission.
Under my shirt, the Malfoy locket burned hot against my chest. I took it as a sign that Draco was still alive, and it encouraged me to keep advancing. I needed to reach Harry and Dumbledore before he did.
After what seemed like years, I came to the long twisting staircase which led up to the open Astronomy Tower. Praying that Draco and Bellatrix hadn't already arrived, I began to climb, taking two steps at a time as I strode. Please let me get there in time, please.
The tower was perhaps the highest in the school - on many evenings I'd stood on the balcony and watched the stars, admiring the constellations. Since I'd learned of my true family, I'd found myself up there quite often with Perseus, trying to recognise the constellations for which we were named. Andromeda was a princess in Greek mythology, I'd learned, who's mother Cassiopeia had claimed that she was more beautiful than the Nereids - sea Nympths. Poseiden, the God of the Sea, had been furious with Cassiopeia for her insolence, and so he had released a terrible sea monster on Andromeda's city, which could only be saved in exchange for the Princess Andromeda's life. The people of her city chained her to a rock in the bay, ready to be killed by the terrible monster, when her saviour, Perseus arrived. He slayed the monster and set her free, saving not only the princess but the people of the city.
It was a wonderful story, and my Perseus had joked on several occasions that maybe he was supposed to save me from a terrible sea monster like the one in the story had.
I couldn't help but wonder if in our version, the monster was actually the Dark Lord.
As I reached the top of the tower, I heard voices above. My heart pumped as I tried to recognise them, and I realised that it was Dumbledore and Harry. They were alone, and by some miracle I'd been the first to reach them.
"Harry, Professor!" I shouted as I cantered up the last few steps. There, I saw them, and was met by the horror of their appearances.
Harry had come out of it relatively unscathed, although he was still soaking wet and had a cut through his lip. It was Dumbledore that had clearly seen the brunt of the battle. His face was haggard and the skin seeming to droop - the skin having turned a colour of grey that one would only turn if they were dying or already dead. He was clearly weak and frail, leaning on Harry for support and looking grateful as Harry helped him towards a step he could sit and rest on. He clutched his wand tightly in his hand, his old eyes relieving the horror they had faced in the cave over and over again.
For the first time in all of the years I'd known him, Dumbledore looked his age.
"Li! You're safe!" Harry exclaimed, hugging me tightly. "What happened to you?"
"We haven't got time for that now, the castle is under attack. Death Eaters have infiltrated the castle, and they're on their way here right now, for you Headmaster."
Dumbledore looked up slightly, gave me a brief smile, before returning to his thoughts.
"We've got to get you out of here" Harry said, crouching down to help Dumbledore. The old man shook his head, "no Harry."
"But sir!"
There was the sound of a door opening below. I shot Harry a look of panic. "Hide yourselves below, don't speak or be seen by anybody without my permission" Dumbledore whispered, pushing himself to his feet. Harry stared, about to move before I grabbed his arm and stopped him.
"Whatever happens, it's imperative that you must stay below," Dumbledore added.
I shook my head at him, tears filling my eyes. "Miss Weasley, do as I say." He nodded at me, warning me with his eyes not to say anything to Harry. "Trust me" he whispered, nodding once more. "Trust me."
Harry grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the staircase. I followed him numbly, tiptoeing down the steps to the lower level and hiding behind a large telescope. I kept a firm grip on Harry's hand, terrified to let go.
Through the floorboards, I could see Draco appear, his wand pointed at Dumbledore as he stepped slowly forward. "Good evening Draco" Dumbledore said calmly. I clasped my hand over my mouth to stop myself from whimpering. "What brings you here, on this fine Spring evening?"
"Who else is here? I heard you talking!" Draco shouted in reply, his fear quite clear. Harry pulled me closer to him and I buried my face in his shoulder.
"I often talk aloud to myself," Dumbledore replied, "I find it extraordinarily useful. What you been whispering to yourself Draco?"
Harry moved slowly to get a better view through the circular shape in the ceiling. I reluctantly followed him, watching as Draco kept his wand pointed on Dumbledore, but seemed to be arguing with himself in his mind.
"Draco, you are no assassin" Dumbledore pleaded. "How do you know who I am? I've done things that would shock you!" Draco shouted in reply.
"Like cursing Katie Bell and hoping in return she'd bear a cursed necklace to me?" Dumbledore said calmly. "Like replacing a bottle of mead with one laced with poison. Forgive me Draco, but I cannot help feeling that these actions are so weak that your heart can't really have been in them?"
"He trusts me! I was chosen!" Draco lowered his wand just for a moment so to pull up his left sleeve and show Dumbledore the hideous dark mark on his forearm. As I always did, I reflexively pulled my own sleeve down. Harry's eyes flickered sympathetically to me for a second before he returned his attention to Draco.
"Then I shall make it easy for you" Dumbledore held his wand out, to be met with Draco's "Expelliarmus!" The wizard's wand flew from his hand and clattered onto the floor a few yards away. Harry drew his own wand quickly and pointed it upwards to the ceiling, to where Draco was standing. I found myself doing the same.
Draco was shaking now, as Dumbledore complimented him for his use of the disarming charm. Please stop Draco, I pleaded with myself. I begged for him to look down, to see me beneath the floorboards. To stop.
From inside my shirt, I pulled out the Malfoy locket and pressed it to my lips, shutting my eyes firmly. There was a clatter as the door opened again and several pairs of footsteps thundered through. Draco's accomplices had arrived. Harry grabbed my wrist and dragged me backwards, so we were hidden from the view of the stairwell. I kept the locket pressed to my lips and watched as Draco stiffened even more.
"You are not alone?" Dumbledore murmured. "There are others, how?"
"The Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Requirement. I've been mending it."
"Let me guess, it has a sister, a twin."
"In Borgin & Burkes, they form a passage."
"Ingenious" Dumbledore muttered, more to himself than Draco. His eyes flickered upwards, and he gave Draco a pleading glance. "Draco, years ago, I knew a boy who made all the wrong choices. Please let me help you."
"I don't want your help!" Draco snarled in return, tears streaming down his face, "don't you understand? I have to do this - I have to kill you. Or he's going to kill her."
"Don't use Miss Weasley as an excuse Draco - I can keep you both safe. I kept her mother and brother safe for 17 years, I can do the same for the pair of you. Please Draco."
I shut my eyes and clutched the locket even tighter, begging for Draco to accept his offer. I'd run forever, if it meant that I could be with Draco and that he didn't have to go through with this. I opened my eyes and watched him as he flinched, then frowned as my thoughts entered his mind. His eyes flickered downwards and he caught sight of me. Miraculously, his gaze softened, and he began to lower his wand.
There was a crash as Bellatrix Lestrange stormed onto the balcony, gasping in delight when she saw that Draco had managed to disarm the greatest wizard of all time. Draco raised his wand again once his aunt was there, and I shook my head. It was over - Draco had made his choice.
"Well, look what we have here..." Bellatrix cawed, her voice laced with venom as she glided forward towards her nephew. "Well done Draco" she whispered, kissing his cheek lightly. I watched as Draco winced at having her touch him.
"Good evening Bellatrix" Dumbledore greeted the female gently. "I think introductions are in order, don't you?"
"Love to Albus, but I'm afraid we're on a bit of a tight schedule" she hissed in reply.
Harry moved forward slowly, stopping beneath Dumbledore so that he was directly facing the Death Eaters. I followed him and stood by his side, keeping my wand fixated on Bellatrix. It would be my honour to blast her into a thousand pieces.
"Do it!" she hissed at Draco, egging him on with a malevolent smirk.
"He doesn't have the stomach, just like his father" Fenrir Greyback crowed. Draco shot him a glare before looking back to Dumbledore. "Let me finish him in my own way!"
"No!" Bellatrix screeched at the wolf man. "The Dark Lord was clear that the boy was to do it."
I felt a hand on my shoulder. I spun around suddenly to see Snape there, raising a finger to his lips and ordering us to remain silent. Harry seemed to breathe sigh of relief - Snape was in the Order after all - but since the Dark Lord somehow knew about my father's spell being broken, Snape was the only suspect. I didn't trust him one bit.
"This is your moment" Bellatrix hissed in Draco's ear. "Do it. Go on Draco, NOW!"
Draco flinched, but still didn't send the Killing Curse in Dumbledore's direction. "Draco, don't you remember what the Dark Lord threatened to do to your darling Juliet? Imagine her dead body Draco, and it would be all your fault."
Harry grabbed my wrist and stopped me from running to the stairs.
"No..."
Draco breathed a sigh of relief, as Snape appeared behind him. He threw his wand down and rushed backwards, glad to be the centre of attention no longer.
Dumbledore frowned at Snape, clearly shocked to find somebody that he had trusted among his enemy. How had Snape done it, managed to deceive the greatest wizard of our time?
Dumbledore's eyes flickered down to use momentarily, full of regret. I felt Harry stiffen up, elongating his arm even longer so that his wand nearly touched the ceiling.
"Severus" Dumbledore whispered, his voice nearly breaking at the thought that somebody he had trusted had betrayed him. Everybody fell silent, their eyes locked on Snape. The moment had come when he could finally show where his allegiances lay. "Please..." Dumbledore whispered.
It all happened in a blur. The sound seemed to pour out of the world; the colour too. Everybody else disappeared. It was merely Snape and Dumbledore, together in this final moment. It seemed unreal, could this really be happening? Surely Snape wouldn't betray the man who'd given him everything?
"Avada Kedavra."
There was a burst of deathly green light from Snape's wand, that hit Dumbledore square in the chest.
Then he was falling, over the balcony and down, plummeting to the Earth below. My heart rose to my throat, and I went numb.
Maybe he had survived like Harry did. Maybe he knew the secret to escaping the inescapable curse. Harry had done it as a mere babe, surely Dumbledore would be able to as well?
No. Dumbledore didn't.
Draco stared in horror, trying to rush forward and stop Dumbledore's dead body from smashing into the ground. "Arresto momen..." he tried to shout, pointing his wand at the falling body, before Snape grabbed him and dragged him backwards, pushing him towards the steps. Bellatrix roared in glee, rushing forward to the spot where Dumbledore had fallen and raising her wand to the air. "MORSMORDRE!" she screeched, summoning the dark mark in the sky, indubitably the sign that Dumbledore was dead, and the remaining Death Eaters were to retreat.
Snape pushed Draco down the steps, away from the scene, and they were quickly followed by Bellatrix and the others. Harry had collapsed in the corner, buried his head in his hands and was trying not to scream.
In the end, Draco hadn't killed Dumbledore, but he'd made his choice.
He hadn't chosen to save him either.
He'd chosen the Death Eaters.
I stumbled backwards, crashing into one of the models and dropping to my knees. The locket hung limply at my neck, cold as my link to Draco had been severed. He'd betrayed me.
It was over.
Suddenly, Harry was on his feet, and pulling me to mine. "Come on, we can't let them get away" he muttered, pulling me into a run. We thundered down the steps, but they were ahead of us already.
The fighting had stopped in the castle as the other Death Eaters had retreated. The other students stared in disbelief as the Death Eaters passed, led by Snape and with Draco in the centre, and directed us in the way they'd gone. It became clear that they were heading to the Forbidden Forest, where they could apparate away from the school.
We passed the Great Hall, where all the windows and glasses had been smashed. Every single candle that floated above the tables - one to represent every student at Hogwarts - had been put out. Perhaps it was an omen of what was to come now that we didn't have Dumbledore to lead us.
We tore out of the castle and cantered through the Forest - where were the creatures that had sworn to protect the school? They were nowhere to be seen, scared into hiding by the dark mark floating in the sky above, a reminder that Dumbledore, our leader, was dead.
Finally, we caught up with them as they reached Hagrid's hut. I watched in horror as Bellatrix set it on fire, cackling for the half-giant. I prayed that Hagrid wasn't inside.
"SNAPE!" Harry roared beside me, sending a curse in the professor's direction. "HE TRUSTED YOU!"
Draco stopped with Snape to look around, catching sight of me hobbling after Harry. Draco shook his head, begging me to hide myself, but I refused. If they wanted to kill me, let them do it.
"Go on," Snape ordered Draco, poking him with his wand to follow his aunt and the others. Snape stayed where he was, waiting for Harry to reach him. "INCARCEROUS!" Harry sent in Snape's direction. Snape blocked the spell easily.
"FIGHT BACK, FIGHT BACK YOU COWARD" Harry screamed.
From nowhere, Bellatrix appeared and prepared to curse Harry. I drew my wand and before she could, screamed "CRUCIO!"
The Unforgivable Curse hit Bellatrix straight in the chest, and she screamed in pain. I watched as she fell the the floor., her body wracking and writhing in agony. It wasn't me controlling this spell - rather it was the dark mark on my arm. The part of myself that had been made into a Death Eater was overpowering the rest of me, and I wanted nothing more than to watch her die.
I stumbled over to her, keeping my wand fixated on her and listening to her screams with glee. Simultaneously, my dark mark acted on it's own accord, controlling me to block the curses that her companions sent at me, whilst still focusing on her.
Bellatrix screamed in agony, and I drew her pain into me like a life force. To hear her hurt, it made me happy.
No, it made me feel euphoric.
It was as if I'd been trying to stifle my want for pain all year, and now finally I was getting what I needed. With every scream Bellatrix let out, the stronger and more powerful I felt. I pushed the curse further, filling her mind with images I know she would hate - a muggleborn as the Minister of Magic, pure-bloods and muggles freely breeding. That caused her more pain than the curse itself.
"Enough" Snape said behind me, and suddenly I was flying backwards, landing with a thud. The spell was broken, and Snape grabbed Bellatrix's arm, dragging her to her feet and kicking my wand from my hand. I had fallen beside Harry, who was silent and also missing his wand, and from my frozen position watched as Snape and Bellatrix apparated away, followed by the other Death Eaters, and then finally, with one more glance over his shoulder, Draco himself.
Tears rose to my throat, flooding from my eyes and falling onto the grass beneath Harry and I. Dumbledore was dead, Snape had betrayed us, and Draco was gone. I'd never get to feel Draco's arms around me again, his lips against mine, and the warmth of the locket as he thought about me. We were separated now.
Although this battle was over, the war had only just begun.