The forest smelt of rotting wood and wet earth, and something more sinister, maybe some foul creature Hagrid was breeding. And there was the faint smell of smoke coming from the castle.
The moonlight was faint, barely enough for them to avoid hitting the trees, as they approached the clearing where their Lord had told them to wait for Potter.
This was the showdown. But for Narcissa, either outcome was a terrifying prospect. The Malfoys had managed to alienate themselves from either side. Once the Dark Lord won, they would no longer be useful to him.
The Death Eaters gathered in a circle. There was no longer a need to remain masked, not now the Dark Lord appeared to have all but won. Their faces though were hard to distinguish in the faint moonlight. However, she could recognize many of them from their figure and gesture. Lucius was there, and Narcissa was appalled to see how much his body language resembled the late Wormtail.
All three Lestranges could be found. They were standing proudly next to the place that was reserved for the Dark Lord.
Walden Macnair arrived together with Crabbe and Goyle senior. Behind them, they were dragging an unconscious Rubeus Hagrid. The half-giant's beard and hair were crusted with dirt and blood, but even in defeat he appeared menacing, as if he could wake any moment and tear himself loose to make one final stand.
But the figure Narcissa was most looking for could not be found. There was no sign of the thin, tall shape of her son.
"Please, let Draco be alive," she thought. "Let him be somewhere in the castle."
She didn't care about Potter and the Dark Lord any more. Too much death and terror she had witnessed over the last year, and especially during the last hours. She just wanted to get to Lucius and Draco, and apparate far away. Start a new life, wherever they could find refuge.
Finally, the Dark Lord emerged from the shadow of the trees. Narcissa cringed as she looked into the blood red eyes. The Dark Lord's gaze made her shiver with dread. This man with the snake-like face, less human than beast, could hardly be the same as the handsome wizard Bellatrix used to fancy when they were young.
She watched the hideous snake curl up at her master's feet as he lit a fire in the centre of their circle.
"Just five more minutes, then the ultimatum will be up," the Dark Lord hissed.
Harry Potter would not come. However foolish the boy was, Narcissa knew him well enough to be sure that he wouldn't just give himself up. He had decided to fight in the graveyard, he had decided to fight at the ministry and he had decided to fight at Hogwarts tonight. If Potter would show up, Narcissa was sure, he would have a plan, however desperate or foolish it may seem.
The Death Eaters were waiting in silence, when they suddenly heard the sound of wood breaking under feet walking cautiously.
"Someone there," she heard Greyback rasp. The werewolf had the best ears of all of them, and had noticed it first. "He's got an Invisibility cloak. Could it be-"
The Dark Lord turned his face to Dolohov and Yaxley. They lit their wands, and left the circle to look for whoever was nearby.
"I definitely heard something," Yaxley said. "Animal, d'you reckon?"
Greyback was looking skeptical, and Narcissa agreed with the werewolf that it had sounded more like a human.
Dolohov and Yaxley left, venturing deeper into the forest. The Death Eaters waited in anticipation as the ultimatum approached.
While Dolohov and Yaxley were searching, Voldemort turned his attention to the chained Hagrid. With a flick of his wand, Hagrid returned to consciousness.
"We don't want him to miss the hour of my triumph, do we?" he said. "It's as it always was, I'm on the winning side, and you are the loser. I had Dumbledore killed, and I'm about to kill Harry Potter."
"He's not coming," Narcissa thought. "What am I doing here, when I should be in the castle, looking for my son?"
She couldn't bear looking Lucius in the face. Her husband's face, once proud, now looked utterly defeated every time she looked at it. She couldn't give up. Not while there still was a chance to save Draco.
Yaxley and Dolohov returned to the circle as the final seconds to the ultimatum were ticking down. As much as she dreaded the battle resuming, at least it would be an end to this helpless waiting in uncertainty.
At last, the Dark Lord spoke again. "I thought he would come, I expected him to come," he said, sounding almost disappointed. "I was, it seems, mistaken."
Then, the unexpected happened. Between two trees, Harry Potter appeared, where, Narcissa could have sworn, no one had stood the moment before.
"You weren't!" Potter declared, stepping into the circle of the assembled Death Eaters. His voice sounded neither desperate and scared nor triumphant. He appeared to be eerily calm for someone who just stepped into the circle of his enemies, outnumbered thirty to one and facing the most powerful wizard ever.
Hagrid yelled in despair, and was promptly silenced by Rowle. Many of the Death Eaters gasped in surprise. Bellatrix and Rabastan gave triumphant laughs. Narcissa forced herself to a neutral expression. But she was disappointed with Potter. He better have a plan, or she would have no chance to return to the castle to fetch Draco and escape in the chaos of the battle.
The Dark Lord let out a cruel, high-pitched laugh. "Harry Potter, the boy who lived," he said, eerily soft for the monster he was.
Potter and the Dark Lord were staring at each other. The Dark Lord drew his wand. Potter just stood calmly in the middle, without intention to fight back. He had no plan, he was just surrendering, he was about to die like his foolish mother.
Yet, she couldn't help but feel pity for the boy. Just like Draco, he had got caught up in the schemes of greater wizards.
She barely heard the Dark Lord speak the curse, but a bright green flash illuminated the forest as it struck Harry, who crumpled to the ground.
It was over so quickly. She stared at the lifeless figure of Harry, lying face down on the soft forest ground. She couldn't keep her gaze of him, and couldn't help imagining Draco in his place. Where was Draco now? Was he still alive?
Suddenly, she realized that all the other Death Eaters were watching the Dark Lord with a rising sense of panic. He was clutching his head, apparently in pain, and then collapsed next to Potter.
No one was sure what was happening any more. Bellatrix was hurrying over to her master. Narcissa bit her lips in anxiety, filling her mouth with the taste of blood, reminding her of all the blood that had been spilled this night already.
Bellatrix was helping the Dark Lord back up. Coolly asking her to leave him alone, he turned his face towards Potter. He looked at his defeated enemy, as if he couldn't yet believe his triumph.
And then, he turned to Narcissa. She let out a small hiss of pain as he shot a stinging hex at her, and he told him to examine Potter.
She approached the motionless boy on the forest ground. He appeared so weak now. No longer the mortal enemy of the Dark Lord, but just another murdered child. Revolted, but unable to disobey her Lord, she knelt down next to him, her hair falling into the boy's face as he turned him around. He was still warm, of course he was, the Dark Lord had only killed him minutes ago, even if it felt much longer.
She pulled back an eyelid. Was he imagining things, or did he flinch slightly? It was probably just her losing her mind. After all, the killing curse had hit him right in the chest. But she knew the expression of terror in the eyes of those who died from that curse, and this eye looked very much alive.
She moved her left hand down to his heart. Was it his or hers she felt beating? It was both, she realized, as she felt his breath against her cheek.
She just had to ask the question that had been on her mind ever since the battle started.
"Is Draco alive? Is he in the castle?" she whispered.
There was a faint breath against her ear. "Yes."
Suddenly, she felt more alive than she had done for months. Draco lived! She needed to get to him, needed to get away from the Dark Lord. Even if she had not felt so grateful, she couldn't have betrayed Harry to the Dark Lord. The boy had proven to be pretty much immortal, wasn't it now time to gamble on his victory rather than the Dark Lord's? She had nothing to gain from Voldemort's victory. But she had to get away from here, had to get to Draco.
"He is dead!" Narcissa declared.
She felt the eyes of the Dark Lord on her, knowing that he was probing her mind. She couldn't let him know that Harry had survived. She tried to only think of Draco, emptying her mind from any other thought.
The Dark Lord turned away from her, apparently unable to detect her lie. The Death Eaters broke out in shouts of triumph, as the Dark Lord declared his victory. The apparently dead Harry was placed in the arms of the desolate half-giant, and the triumphal procession made its way back to the castle. Back to Draco.