A/N - Right. I never thought it would take me another week to update, but my Dad (genius man that he is) thought that after three weeks in the Arctic Tundra, a camping trip would be just what I wanted. Nevertheless, here it is - the chapter you've all been waiting for! Enjoy, my lovely readers!

Discalimer: Moi? Own Harry Potter? No.

Scorpius heard Lily scream his name with horrible clarity. Though the sound was muffled by Goyle's enormous hand, Scorpius could hear all the fear, desperation and faith in that word. She thought he would help her, and as he met her frantic eyes he had to fight back tears. As he stared at Lily, he saw realisation dawn in her eyes as they hardened against him. Gone was the frenzied fear, to be replaced only by betrayal and hatred. He wanted to rip Goyle's arms off – anything to get her free – but he knew it was fruitless. He would have to keep quiet for now, let them carry her away, but his resolve was hardened. He would not let her die thinking he had betrayed her. It took all his self control to remain emotionless, rigid as Zabini revelled in his victory.

"Not so brave now, are we Miss Potter? Did you think you could really trust Malfoy?" He laughed darkly, "Unfortunately, you won't have any opportunity to learn from your mistake since we've got some friends in the Forest that we'd like you to meet. Get her tied up and silenced, Nott, I'm in no mood for her protestations."

Scorpius held his breath as the Slytherins cast binding and silencing charms on Lily, and finally hoisted her into the air and began to carry her towards the Forest.

"You know, Malfoy, I wasn't sure if I could trust you but I'm happy to say I was wrong. Have a good night." Scorpius watched Zabini retreat into the dark, and felt a surge of victory as his blood warmed inside him. He was free, and he was going to save the girl he loved from death in the dark Forest. He set off at a sprint back towards the castle, whispering to himself as he ran,

"You weren't wrong, Zabini."

He arrived back in the Great Hall, panting and out of breath, only to find it completely empty.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake! Where is everyone?" He cried, and jumped as he heard a voice reply,

"What's up?"

Scorpius could have jumped for joy as he saw Albus Potter wander into the Hall.

"Someone set off a load of Weasley fireworks in the Astronomy Tower and everyone's gone up to see them, Hugo denies it but... where's Lily?" Albus asked, and Scorpius felt his stomach drop.

"That's the issue. Err, Al, I need your help. It's a long story, but Lily's in danger – the Slytherins have got her and they've taken her into the Forest. If we don't find her she's going to die. There are Acromantula in that Forest and Lily's going to be Christmas dinner if we don't get there soon. Please, come with me."

Albus looked completely dumbfounded for a second before he stuttered,
"Shouldn't we... find a teacher?"

"We can't get up to the Astronomy Tower in time – Al we have to go." Scorpius almost shouted, and Al looked around for a second before he nodded. They we running from the Hall when Al stopped,

"If you knew about this, why didn't you stop it?"

"Look, I said it was a long story and you have no idea how much I hate myself for it but I was trapped into helping them though I never wanted to, now we have to save her. Once this is over, you have full permission to punch me in the face or curse me into oblivion, or both."

"I may hold you to that, if Lily doesn't get you first." Al muttered as they sped towards the Forest. Just as they reached Hagrid's cabin, Scorpius and Al noticed a small group of people coming from the Forest. Scorpius pulled Al behind the hut just as the Slytherins walked past; they stole quietly through the night back towards the castle. Albus and Scorpius looked at each other, and both could see the frustration and worry in each other's eyes as they let the Slytherins pass.

"We'll get them later." Scorpius promised as they emerged from their hiding place and took off towards the Forest again in the direction the Slytherins had come from. Once in the trees they stopped.

"Where now?" Albus asked, and Scorpius shook his head.

"I have no idea."

They stood in silence for a minute, staring at the surrounding trees hopelessly, before Scorpius exclaimed,

"That way!"

"How do you know?" Albus asked, looking at his friend in confusion.

"I remember that tree, the one with branches on only one side, from when we came with Hagrid. There's a path just beyond it that'll lead us to Lily."

The boys crashed through the undergrowth, not caring what heard them. Time was running out, and as Scorpius looked at his watch he saw that they had approximately ten minutes before the gruesome spiders would appear in that little clearing. Eventually they stopped near to where Lily had discovered Flitter.

"This is it, or near to it anyway. We have to be quiet." Scorpius whispered, and Al nodded. They both remained absolutely still and listened, after a few seconds they heard it – a small, strangled sob from their right. There was a gap in the bushes, presumably from where the Slytherins had entered, through which Al and Scorpius glimpsed a huddled figure, clothed in plum velvet. Her fiery red hair was now matted with leaves and twigs, and her dress splattered with mud. Her hands clasped her knees and Scorpius could see there were blue bruises in the shape of fingers already staining her ivory skin. Scorpius felt his breath hitch in his throat as he and Albus broke through the bushes and into the clearing.

Lily gave a tiny start and looked up at them, tear tracks staining her face and her eyes were wide with terror. When she saw that it was Scorpius, they hardened again, though she could not hide her surprise at seeing Albus.

"What are you doing here?" She whispered disdainfully, looking only at Scorpius. Despite the serious situation, Scorpius couldn't help but laugh a little, and rolled his eyes.

"Rescuing you, idiot." He knelt to free her of the cursed rope that had burnt dark tracks on her pale ankles, but she twitched away from him.

"Don't touch me." She said, power returning to her voice. She wouldn't look at him again, but stared past him to Al, who came forward. Scorpius withdrew his hands and stepped back, though every atom of his being wanted to gather her up in his arms and carry her away. He was jerked back to reality by Lily giving a shrill cry,

"No! It'll burn you if you touch it."

Al looked from Lily to Scorpius, panicked, before slumping and releasing a low moan.

"Well what the bloody hell are we going to do now?"

Lily opened her mouth to reply, but Scorpius had already produced his wand and was pointing it at the ground.

"Hold out your hands." He told Albus, who looked at him mistrustfully but did not move his hands. Scorpius sighed – he should have known better than to expect trust. "Zabini told me – if you wet your hands before you touch it, the water acts as a barrier to the curse. I'm just going to get some water onto your hands so you'll be able to untie the knot."

Albus simply sat, looking at Scorpius with suspicion in his bright green eyes. Scorpius knew he didn't deserve Albus's trust, but he couldn't help the annoyance creeping into his voice as he said,

"Look, do you have any better ideas, or a wand on you? No, I didn't think so. I know I have given you absolutely no reason to believe me, but I want us all to get out of here alive. The longer we stand around here the more chance there is that those bloody enormous mad spiders are going to arrive and... eat us. So let's get a move on, shall we?"

Albus sighed, and glanced to Lily before he turned back to Scorpius and held out his palms for Scorpius to cover with water as he muttered,
"Aguamenti."

Scorpius held his breath as Albus reached for the black rope attached to Lily's ankle, and breathed a sigh of relief as his hands began working the knot, unaffected by the burning curse that had caused red and black welts to appear on Lily's hands when she had tried in vain to save Flitter. The knot was tight, and as Albus's slippery fingers tried to loosen it Scorpius felt his heart give a jolt as he heard an all too familiar sound in the distance. The deep rumble of hundreds of legs running across the soil of the forest floor.

"Al..." Scorpius said, and he couldn't keep the tremor from his voice, "I don't want to rush you, but we've got about twenty seconds before the spiders arrive."

"Right then, I'd better get a move on." Albus replied; his attempt at humour lost in his trembling voice. Scorpius walked past them towards the rumbling sound, standing with his wand pointing towards the darkness. He glanced back briefly to Albus and Lily, though Albus's hands shook violently, Lily was still and silent. She looked back at him briefly, and he thought he saw a trace of forgiveness in her eyes before they filled with tears and she turned from him.

The sound was getting much nearer now, and Scorpius could feel his heart beating like a drum in his chest even over the ominous rumble. He could see shadows moving in the trees only ten feet away, and he blasted one enormous spider off its feet with a jet of red light which light up the forest and gave him a view of exactly how many spiders there were advancing on them.

"ALBUS!" He shouted, panicked, as he shot another beam of red light into the trees. "HURRY UP!"

As the first spider broke through the trees and tore towards Scorpius he reacted without thinking. He closed his eyes and thought of dancing with Lily, the feel of her waist in his arms, the smell of her flame red hair and the way her warm eyes danced when she laughed. He was in the Great Hall, with its grand hanging icicles and twinkling lights, not the dark, dank forest where he fought not just for his life, but for Lily and Albus's as well.

"Expecto Patronum!" He heard himself yell, and saw a mighty silver eagle burst from the tip of his wand and send the spider flying into the darkness. Scorpius watched it fly around the clearing as he concentrated on the memory of that past evening. He could see by the light of his shining Patronus that the spiders were recoiling from the clearing. Jubilation rushed through him, and the enormous eagle shone all the brighter for it.

Suddenly, he heard a joyous,
"Aha!" From Albus, and saw him pull Lily up from the ground. "Come on Scorpius, we're getting out of here."

Scorpius began to back away quickly, making sure his Patronus still kept the spiders at bay. They were nearly back in the trees when Scorpius heard a pained cry. He turned to see Lily on the floor once again; her skirt had ridden up to reveal the dark, black burns on her ankle for a second before the Forest became pitch black once more as Scorpius's Patronus faded rapidly.

"Lily, you have to run." He shouted, hauling her off the ground with one arm and passing her to Albus, who put his arm around her waist to help her along.

"Stupefy! Stupefy! Stupefy!" Scorpius cried as the spiders began to attack again, taking out the fastest as they hurtled towards him before turning and running out of the clearing, shooting spells behind him as he went, not knowing whether or not he hit anything. He could hear Lily and Albus's footsteps ahead of him, and the low roar of oncoming Acromantula behind him. As long as he could keep that delicate equilibrium going until they reached the edge of the Forest, it would be alright. The spiders wouldn't stray too far from the webs - that much he knew- and they were getting close to the borders of the Forest now, as more light began to penetrate the darkness. Hope was beginning to blossom in his heart when the ground was no longer beneath his feet, and he was falling through space.

He landed with a soft thud on the forest floor, and whirled around just in time to send a spider flying through the air and landing with a sickening crunch against a tree. He had half scrambled to his feet when he felt a huge weight crash down on his chest and found himself staring into the many eyes of a huge spider. Its enormous pincers were dripping with venom and gnashing fiercely at him. Scorpius felt himself winded completely, and gasped for air beneath the creature; he gave a strangled cry of,

"Reducto!" And took another great lungful of air before springing to his feet and stupefying another spider as it hurtled towards him. He was running faster than he had ever run before, terror and adrenaline coursing through his veins. Lily and Albus's footsteps drew closer as he pushed his feet hard against the soft ground, propelling himself towards the outskirts of the Forest, where he could see Lily and Albus emerging into the moonlight. He felt a lightness as the sounds of pursuit faded and he broke through the final line of trees and into the clear night air.

He stood, legs shaking violently, revelling in being alive for a few blissful moments before reality hit him hard in the form of Lily's hand slamming into his cheek with frightening force.

"I hate you!" She screamed, and the fear that had once filled her eyes was gone, only to be replaced with anger, anger at him for betraying her. "How could you do this to me? I thought... I thought you were my friend, but apparently not, apparently you're just another of Zabini's bloody tools!"

At that, the mess of emotion had been building inside Scorpius burst out, indignant at Lily's accusations.

"Has it ever crossed your mind that I didn't ever want to be a part of this? Did you not even consider the possibility that since I've taken my own life into my hands to get you back, I may be a little bit more than just a "tool" as you so kindly put it?"

The blazing rage in Lily's eyes dulled with confusion, and she couldn't look Scorpius in the eye for a few seconds before she retorted,

"How do I know you haven't just yanked me out of there so Zabini can play with me some more? This is all just some sick game."

Scorpius resisted the urge to roll his eyes; she was the most stubborn person he had ever met. Still, as she stood before him with her hair in a flaming halo around her head and her eyes boring into his, he wouldn't have wanted her any other way. He had been stupid, that much Scorpius knew, but he wasn't going to let her get away from him now. Heart beating faster than he imagined it could, Scorpius crossed the short distance between them, took Lily's face in his hands and kissed her.

Lily jumped a little at his touch, but she couldn't help yielding to his soft, warm lips as they pressed urgently against hers. She kissed him back, and her heart betrayed her as it swelled in her chest to feel him twine one of his arms around her waist to pull her closer while his other hand tangled in her hair. She could smell the clean scent of his skin beneath the musty odour of the forest mud that covered his face, and she let herself be engulfed in him as she wound her arms around his neck.

It was reluctantly that they broke apart, and Scorpius rested his forehead against hers.

"Now, why would you think that?" Scorpius whispered, and Lily felt a smile break across her face, only for it to fade as he continued, "I'm sorry, Lily. I didn't have a choice – I walked in on them planning it and then I was in or hexed into jelly. I thought if I knew what was happening I could keep you safe, and I know I failed miserably but..." He stopped as Lily put a finger to his lips.

"No, I'm sorry." She said, "I shouldn't have gone off at you the way I did, after all, you just saved my life."

Scorpius started to reply, but she silenced him this time with another kiss.

"Don't blame yourself. You said yourself you didn't have a choice. Now we're safe, and that's all that matters." Lily looked up at Scorpius, and was surprised to see a fresh fear on his face.

"I don't think we're entirely safe yet." He choked, and before Lily could even open her mouth to ask why he explained hoarsely, "Your brother's still over there."

Lily whirled around to see Albus staring at Scorpius as though he wished he had an oversized arachnid to hand. His hands were balled into fists at his sides, and his jaw set in a hard line. He met his sister's pleading gaze and closed his eyes in an attempt to control himself. Lily watched him slowly relax, and when he opened his eyes again, there was a ghost of a smile on Albus's face as he said,

"Malfoy, you are bloody lucky James isn't here."

A/N - Ta da! You like? I'll only know if you review, my lovelies, and that would be very nice :)