* ~ The Eighth Year Universe Series ~ *
PART TWO

Last Call for Sin

Chapter 8: Another Head Aches

* ~ HOGWARTS CASTLE ~ *

It turned out to be a good thing that Draco was losing his mind and, therefore, barely sleeping. He was hunched over at the desk when the alarm sounded. He jumped to his feet, his hand wrapped tightly around his wand as he trained it on the doorway.

Sadie had charmed the doorway with a smart little spell that could tell if someone was under a mind-altering spell or potion. It scanned all of them every single time they walked into the room, and it checked for abnormal brainwaves. In the two months that they had been hiding out in here, it had never gone off before, which made Draco doubt that it was a false alarm.

"Blaise," Draco said as the dark-skinned man walked towards the sleeping quarters, "Where were you?"

"Trying to rescue Theo," Blaise replied, "Since nobody else would."

His eyes weren't unfocused, which suggested that it was a well-cast one if he was under the imperius curse. Then again, the Carrows were probably adept with every unforgivable curse.

Daphne had heard the commotion and gotten up. She stepped out from behind a curtain in one of her silken nightgowns, "Blaise, what's going on?"

Blaise turned to look at her sharply, and she was alarmed by the coldness in his eyes.

The alarm continued to sound, and the others all began to get out of their beds. Blaise ripped the curtain back and pointed his wand at Astoria as she stirred in her bed, "Avada-"

"No!" Daphne shrieked; she thrust her hands in Blaise's direction and blasted him through the wall with a powerful, speechless 'bombarda'.

Draco held up his hand before anyone could speak and pointed to the golden glimmer around the room. It was slowly fading, so he wrote in the air, Restore the wards, Sadie.

Sadie did so. It took a few minutes because she was weaker than usual. Her magic wasn't as powerful as it usually was, and she was also exhausted. Once the golden glow had been restored, Draco grabbed Blaise and threw him roughly onto the floor of the bathroom,

"Reparo," Tracey mumbled, pointing her wand at the wall into the corridor. The wall repaired itself, but a lot of water had come into the bathroom when the wall had come down, so Tracey and Sadie busied themselves with drying charms while Draco and Daphne stood over Blaise.

He lay in the middle of the floor unconscious, with a nasty gash to the side of his head. He was soaked to the skin from his dip in the dirty water in the corridor outside.

"He's under the imperius curse," Draco said.

"Why was he even out?" Daphne asked in disbelief.

"You tell me," Draco said, looking up at her.

"He said something about saving Theo," Pansy said from where she was sitting with Beatrice and Billie.

"Is he going to die?" Billie asked tearfully.

"No, Billie," Pansy assured the little girl, "But he is under the imperius curse, and until we can snap him out of that, he won't be himself."

"Was it the Carrows?" Beatrice asked.

Pansy nodded, "I think so."

"Why did he want to kill me, Pansy?"

Pansy looked from Astoria to Daphne, "I…don't know, Astoria."

"Because the Carrows knew he had feelings for you," Draco said to Daphne in a whisper.

"He didn't have feelings for me; it was just sex," Daphne retorted.

"To you," Draco said coolly, "It was just sex to you."

Daphne looked from Draco to Blaise.

"What now?"

"We tie him up in the broom cupboard across the hall. We can't risk him waking up with a Carrow in his head in here," Draco answered.

"And how do we snap him out of it, exactly?" Daphne asked. She was dreading the answer.

"Torture," Draco murmured so that Blaise's sisters wouldn't hear, "It's the only way I have ever seen anyone break free of the curse."

"I was worried you would say that," Daphne admitted.

"Come on," Draco mumbled. He reached down and grabbed her hand.

Daphne sighed, "Incarcerous," she said, using her free hand to point her wand at him.

The spell bound Blaise's hands and feet.

"Wingardium Leviosa," Draco said, pointing his wand at his friend's body.

"Are you two going to do what I think you're going to do?" Pansy asked, stepping away from the frightened younger girls.

Draco caught his girlfriend's eye, "We're going to do what needs to be done, and I won't let you be a part of that. I can't, Pansy; I can't let you become like me."

"Like us," Daphne said, a dark look passing through her eyes, "You don't want to become like us."

Pansy looked like she wanted to object, but she didn't.

"Look after the girls," Draco said.

Without another word, he and Daphne left the bathroom and deposited Blaise in the broom cupboard. They had extended their charms to the corridor, the broom and the potions cupboard, so this entire area was now safe.

Daphne watched warily as Draco conjured up a bucket and filled it with ice-cold water using aguamenti. She felt sick, "Are you going to…"

"It's the only way," Draco said. His tone was emotionless, but she could see the pain in his eyes, "Do you want to leave?"

Daphne shook her head.

Draco gave her a stiff nod, then turned to Blaise and said, "Ennervate!"

Blaise woke up with a start, and Draco grabbed the back of his neck. He knelt down and looked into his eyes. They were cold and unseeing, so he plunged Blaise's head into the bucket. Daphne grimaced and looked away; she wasn't sure how much she could take of this.

It took three attempts before Blaise emerged from the bucket spluttering, his eyes swimming with fear and confusion.

"You're back," Draco said, looking at his friend warily, "Do you remember anything?"

"I tried to save Theo, and they caught me," Blaise said with a frown, "She used the imperius curse on…oh no! I tried to kill Astoria."

"Why did you disappear in the middle of the night to try and get Theo out?" Daphne asked Blaise coldly.

"I…" Blaise caught her eye, "I was doing it for you."

"For me?" Daphne hissed, "For me?"

"I heard you and Sadie," Blaise said honestly, "And I thought that if I got Theo out of the tower, you would respect me, and you would…"

"I would what?" Daphne shrieked, "I would think that you were a fucking hero? Well, I don't, Blaise. I think you're a fucking idiot!"

Blaise's eyes darkened, "I did it for you, Daphne, because I am falling in love with you."

Daphne drew back in shock, "What?"

Draco sighed, "I warned you."

Daphne shook her head, "No, no, you do not get to put this on me like it's my fault. I told you that it was just sex, Blaise, that was all it ever was, and now it's nothing!"

For a brief moment, Blaise looked genuinely hurt.

"Fine," Blaise said coldly, "But I was captured, and I was controlled. You know what that makes me?"

"A liability," Draco answered.

"And what do we do with liabilities?" Blaise asked calmly.

"I'm not going to kill you, Blaise," Draco muttered in disbelief.

"We dispose of liabilities," Blaise said, "So you need to obliviate me and implant a false memory. Then Draco, you can use your Death Eater magic to help me, Beatrice and Billie escape the school."

Draco opened his mouth then shut it again. He looked at Daphne for reassurance.

Daphne nodded, "He's right, he is a liability, and we did say that we couldn't afford them."

Draco sighed but nodded, "Fine, but you won't remember the last couple of months at all."

"I'm not convinced that's a bad thing," Blaise said, his eyes falling on Daphne.

Daphne scoffed and shook her head, turning away from Blaise.

Draco cut the ties that were binding Blaise. The dark-skinned man shut his eyes, and Draco said, "Obliviate!"

Daphne turned back and watched the silvery streaks of memory leave Blaise's head. Once they hung in the air, they formed a ball. Draco shut his eyes and focused on a new memory. It was vague, but it was of Blaise spending the last few weeks avoiding the Carrows. It culminated in a close call. Draco then inserted a thought, that thought was that he had to leave urgently and get his sisters to safety.

Once he was finished, he put the fake memories back into Blaise's head.

Blaise opened his eyes and blinked a few times. He frowned, "Draco, I need to get the girls. I need to get them out."

"I know, Blaise," Draco said, gripping his friend's shoulders.

"I'll go and get them," Daphne said. She left the room and took a deep breath to compose herself before going back into the bathroom.

"Is he okay?" Billie asked anxiously.

Daphne pasted on her best fake smile and nodded, "He is going to be just fine, but he has decided that he needs to leave with both of you so that he can keep you safe."

Beatrice nodded, "Come on, Billie, pack your things."

Sadie and Tracey both frowned at Daphne, but neither of them said anything as they helped the Zabini sisters pack their essentials. The look Pansy gave Daphne wasn't one of confusion; it was a knowing look. She knew exactly what she and Draco had done in that broom cupboard.

Pansy crossed the room and grabbed her friend's hand, "You did it to keep us safe."

Daphne fixed her watery eyes on Pansy's, "That didn't make it any easier."

"Oh, Daph," Pansy breathed, "Come here," she said, drawing her friend in tightly. Daphne let out a shaky breath, and Pansy rested her hand on her back to calm her down.

"It was my fault, Pansy," Daphne said. She wasn't crying, but Pansy could tell from how rough her voice was that she was trying hard not to.

"Bye, Daphne."

Daphne sucked in a breath and pulled away from Pansy. She mustered up a smile and waved to Billie, "Bye, girls. You look after your big brother for me, okay?"

"We will," Beatrice said, "Bye."

"Bye," Daphne said weakly.

Tracey escorted the girls out of the bathroom to the corridor where Draco and Blaise waited for them. The moment the door shut behind them, Daphne let herself fall into Pansy's arms, "It was my fault."

"It wasn't your fault," Pansy assured her as she stroked Daphne's hair and held her tightly, "We're in a war, Daphne, emotions run high, and you are emotional at the best of times. It wasn't your fault."

Daphne let a few tears spill as she gripped Pansy tightly. She caught Astoria's eye, and her younger sister smiled sympathetically at her. That was the final straw that made Daphne break down. Her foolishness had nearly gotten her little sister killed.

Blaise's disappearance had caused a massive dip in morale. As they entered the third week of Theo's incarceration in the tower, most of them began to give up hope that Theo was still alive. All bar Draco and Sadie.

Draco sank deeper into his obsession to find a way into the Dark Tower, and Sadie was just as bad as Draco. She barely slept; she poured over plans with him all night long. Sometimes Daphne would wake up in the morning and find Draco wearing Sadie's glasses, examining a map while Sadie made a pot of coffee. The two of them had grown increasingly close over their mutual love for Theo. Not for the first time, Daphne wondered what it might do to Draco if Theo was dead.

She thought it might break him beyond repair.

During one of these nights, Draco eventually said something that had been on his mind for a while.

"I need Longbottom's help."

Sadie looked up into his bloodshot eyes, "Do you think he will help us?"

"Do you?" Draco asked in an undertone.

Sadie reached across the table and took her glasses off of his face.

"You were friends with him once," Draco added.

"So were you," Sadie pointed out as she put her glasses back on.

"He's a good person," Draco said. He frowned down at the desk, "I don't think he could refuse if I asked him to help save someone."

"I think he has a strong moral compass," Sadie said softly, "And an excellent heart."

"So you think he will help us?"

Sadie nodded, "Yes, I do. But how do we find him?"

"I know where they are hiding, but I can't just walk in there," Draco said, rubbing his eyes and blinking the sleep out of them, "They would kill me on sight."

"So we need to set up a meeting," Sadie said logically, "How do we do that?"

"We can't leave a note somewhere; it's too obvious," Draco said with a sigh, "The Carrows might discover it."

"A Patronus?"

"It could be intercepted," Draco answered, "And I can't conjure one at the best of times. I definitely couldn't do it right now. I don't think I've ever been more miserable."

"Me either," Sadie admitted.

Draco frowned, "I have an idea, but it's a long shot…I mean, I very much doubt that it will work, but," he clicked his fingers and shouted, "Dobby!"

Sadie raised an eyebrow at him, "Are you okay?"

Draco looked around the bathroom as if he was expecting something to happen.

"Draco," Sadie said, genuine concern shone in her eyes, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Draco said. He ran his hands through his hair which was floppier and longer than usual, "I knew it was a longshot."

Sadie opened her mouth to ask what he meant, but before she could, a loud crack made them both jump.

"Yes, young master Draco."

Draco grinned at the house-elf, "Dobby! Dobby, I could kiss you! You came!"

Dobby looked a little bemused.

"Can you please help me out, Dobby?" Draco practically begged the elf.

"Of course, master Draco."

Draco knelt in front of the elf, "I need you to get a message to Neville Longbottom for me. I was hoping you could ask him to meet me in the clock tower at midnight tomorrow night. Can you do that? Can you tell him that he must come?"

"Yes, master Draco," Dobby said with a vigorous nod.

"Thank you, Dobby," Draco said, and he actually hugged the elf.

Dobby disappeared with another crack, and Draco turned to Sadie with a grin, "It worked!"

"Uh…you're friends with your house-elf?"

"He's not my house-elf anymore; it's a long story," Draco said with a wave of his hand.

Daphne emerged from the girls sleeping area and yawned, "What's all the noise about?"

"Draco just summoned a house-elf," Sadie said; she sank onto one of the sofas and frowned, "He used him to arrange a meeting with Neville, and then he hugged him…"

"What?" Daphne remarked, "Longbottom?"

"We can't get Theo out on our own," Draco said, looking up at his friend, "We need their help."

"It's nice to see that even Malfoy's can swallow their pride sometimes."

Draco smiled and turned his head in the direction of the voice. Pansy was wearing one of his old Quidditch shirts and leaning against one of the bunk beds as she surveyed him.

"If it gets him out, I don't care about my pride," Draco said honestly.

Pansy smiled at him, "Come to bed, Draco. If you're meeting up with Longbottom at midnight tomorrow, you need some sleep."

Draco nodded. He shrugged off his jumper and abandoned it on the desk. Then he slipped behind the curtain after Pansy.

"Come on, sweetie," Daphne said, hooking her arm through Sadie's, "You need some sleep too. If Draco's midnight date with Longbottom goes well, then we have a rescue mission to plan."

Sadie nodded reluctantly and crawled into bed with her friend.

When a loud crack sounded in the Room of Requirement, everyone drew their wands and was on edge.

"Woah, stand down!" Neville yelled, "It's just Dobby."

The wands were lowered, and Neville knelt in front of the elf, "Hey Dobby," he said kindly. He knew of the elf through Harry.

"Mister Neville Longbottom," Dobby squeaked, "Dobby is to tell you a message from master Draco, sir."

"A message from Draco?" Neville asked in surprise.

"Yes, sir," Dobby said, he nodded violently, "He is asking you to be meeting him at midnight tomorrow in the tower of the clock, Mr Longbottom, sir. He be saying that this is so very important."

Neville nodded, "Got it. Thank you, Dobby."

The elf disappeared with a crack, and Neville waved to Ginny across the room. She abandoned her post at the door and tagged Seamus in her place. The Irish boy sat down opposite Michael Corner, and Ginny approached Neville.

"What was that about?"

"Dobby just showed up with a message for me," Neville answered.

"Dobby the house-elf?" Ginny asked in alarm.

Neville nodded and lowered his voice, "The message was from Malfoy."

Ginny's eyes widened, "What does he want?"

"To meet me at midnight tomorrow in the clock tower," Neville answered.

"You can't seriously be thinking of going," Ginny said, searching his eyes, "Oh good Godric, you are, aren't you?"

"I have to," Neville whispered, "What if it's about Nott?"

"What if Nott is dead?" Ginny asked bluntly, "It's been nearly a month, Neville, and we have no idea if Malfoy is under an imperius curse or not. He could have turned; it could be a trap."

Neville caught her eye, "I know that it could be Gin, but my gut tells me that it isn't."

"Will you at least take back-up?" Ginny asked, although she already knew the answer.

"I can't."

"You can," Ginny argued.

"I don't want him to think that we don't trust him," Neville said, "I'll go alone and take my chances. If I'm not back within the hour, you can send one person out to look for me, but it can't be you or Luna. Okay?"

"Okay," Ginny said, "But I think it's a suicide mission."

Neville shook his head and smiled at her, "It will be fine, trust me."

"Are you sure you don't want me to be your back-up?" Daphne asked Draco as it neared midnight that evening.

Draco shook his head, "No, I'm asking him for a favour. I don't want him to feel like he's being ambushed or that we don't trust him."

"What if he brings back-up?" Pansy asked, watching Draco with concern.

"He won't," Draco assured his girlfriend.

"All the same, be careful," Daphne said.

"I will be," Draco promised. He smiled at Daphne and pulled Pansy to his side. He leant down and kissed her, "I'll be back before you know it."

"You had better be," Pansy said, placing another kiss on his lips before she let him go.

"Last chance. Do you want back-up?"

Neville shook his head and holstered his wand, "No, I'll be fine."

They stood in front of the door together.

Ginny bit her lip, "Be careful then."

"I'm always careful," Neville promised her.

"Be extra careful in that case," Ginny said, her eyes meeting his.

Neville wanted to nod and leave, but he knew that there was a chance that he was walking into a trap. It was that tiny bit of fear and trepidation that made him lean down and capture Ginny's lips in a kiss. She was surprised after his reaction the last time that they had kissed, but she brought her hand up to the side of his face all the same and deepened the kiss, pushing herself up onto her tiptoes a little because Neville had gotten tall.

Neville pulled away before it could get any more intimate than that because he was well aware that they were in plain sight.

"Good luck," Ginny said, smiling at him with slightly flushed cheeks.

Neville shot her a smile and left the room.

Neville stepped into the clock tower and saw Draco immediately. He was sitting on one of the stationery cogs, waiting for Neville.

The Gryffindor boy crossed the room silently and came to a stop in front of Draco. He could instantly tell that something was seriously wrong. Draco looked like a shadow of his former self. He had stubble; he looked scruffy; he had completely let himself go.

Neville raised an eyebrow at the Slytherin, "You look like shit."

Draco shrugged and pushed himself to his feet, "They can't hear us up here. It's too loud."

Neville nodded, "Makes sense. Why did you go to such lengths to call this meeting?"

"Theo has been in the Dark Tower for almost a month," Draco said, and he couldn't hide the desperation in his voice, "I've gone over every scenario in my head, and we just can't get him out of there on our own. I don't even know if he's alive, but I have to believe that he is, and I have to try and get him out."

Neville looked at the blond man sympathetically. He remembered Draco and Theo as kids at Draco's fifth birthday party. Theo had dropped his toy Hippogriff into a lake, and Draco had handed over his brand new birthday present just like that. He remembered seeing the two of them board the Hogwarts express together, laughing and jostling at each other. He knew how close the two men were.

"You're just lost without him, aren't you?" Neville asked. It wasn't said in jest, and there was genuine sympathy in his voice.

Draco looked Neville in the eye, "Honestly? Yeah, I am. He's the real leader. I don't have it in me. I make all the difficult decisions, but Theo is the one that they respect, the one that they all follow, and he's my best friend."

"I get it," Neville promised, "If it was Harry, I would feel the same. What do you need from me?"

"Manpower, any secret tips on getting into the tower," Draco said honestly, "Anything, Longbottom. If you know anything, I need to know about it."

Neville observed the Slytherin for a moment.

"And in return," Draco continued, "We will help you get any supplies that we can. We're within striking distance of a good potions store, and we can help with food too."

Neville nodded. He held out his hand, "Deal."

Draco grasped his hand and shook it firmly, "Thank you, Longbottom."

"If we're becoming allies, I reckon it should be Neville and Draco again, don't you?" Neville asked with a smile.

"Don't try and bond with me," Draco remarked dryly, "I know our Grandparents used to date, but it's not enough to make us become best friends."

"I don't want to become best friends," Neville laughed, "But I do think it's funny that my Grandmother broke up with your Grandfather for being a dick."

Draco rolled his eyes.

"Must run in the family," Neville teased.

Despite himself, Draco did smile a little at that.

"So," Neville continued, "You need to get Theo out of the Dark Tower."

Draco nodded.

"I guess we'll have to create a nice little distraction and keep those Death Eaters on the sixth-floor corridor busy then."

Draco looked up in surprise, "Thank you."

"We're on the same side, Draco," Neville said, patting the other boy on the arm, "It will need to be after curfew tomorrow. Hide on the sixth floor tomorrow and prepare us to create a distraction at 11 pm sharp. You won't have long, so the moment you see the sign, you get your arse up the stairs, then you Accio a couple of broomsticks out of the shed in the grounds, and you make an aerial escape. Got it?"

Draco nodded, "How will we know what the sign is?"

Neville smirked, "Trust me, you won't be able to miss it," he promised.

Draco just nodded once more.

Neville held out a galleon, "If you need me again, just hold this and say the code word. I have a matching one which will burn, and we'll meet here at midnight."

Draco looked down at the galleon, "What's the code word?"

Neville shot him a grin, "Dumbledore's Army," he said as he left the clock tower.

"Of course it is," Draco said, shaking his head in amusement and slipping the galleon into his pocket.

At 10.45 pm the following night, Draco stood at the bathroom door, "Are we all ready?"

Daphne, who was his second in command with Theo gone, stepped forward and nodded, "We're ready."

Pansy nodded her agreement. Tracey stepped forward too and nodded, "We're ready."

"Sadie," Draco said, turning to look at her, "You need to stay here. You love him. You can't stay objective."

"No!" Sadie objected.

"Sadie-"

"No!" Sadie snapped, "You love him too! If I can't stay objective, then neither can you! You were losing your mind trying to get him back, Draco!"

"She has a point," Tracey admitted.

"Draco, please," Sadie begged, "I have to go, please."

Daphne shot Draco a knowing look. Draco sighed and looked from Sadie to the clock on the wall, "Fine, but if you get hurt or…something else happens, …we warned you."

"She will be fine," Daphne said firmly, "She's a good fighter; you just never give her the chance to show it."

"Then she can show it tonight," Draco said shortly, "Come on, we need to go now, or we have no chance of helping him."

Daphne nodded and followed him out onto the second-floor corridor with Pansy, Tracey and Sadie in their shadow. They made their way down the empty hallway into the central tower, and Draco turned around.

"Sadie, you can guard the tower-"

"No, Draco," Sadie said with a shake of her head, "He saved me, and now I'm doing the same for him."

Draco opened his mouth to object, but Tracey cut in, "I'll stay here."

Draco glanced at her, "Are you sure?"

"I'm the worst fighter. Put me in the place where we are least likely to encounter the opposition," Tracey said logically.

"You need to get Theo out of there," Daphne agreed with a nod, "You and Sadie."

"Right, come on, then you three," Draco said to Daphne, Pansy and Sadie. The four of them made their way up the central tower as fast as they could. This was the first time Draco had let Sadie come on a rescue mission, so it was a new experience.

"Okay, we need two people to guard this end of the tower," Draco said when they reached the top of the central tower, "And I've got a feeling that little miss perfect is going to refuse."

"Draco, you saved Pansy because you're in love with her. Aren't you?" Sadie hissed.

"Of course I am," Draco said, his eyes falling on the girl in question.

"Well, I am in love with Theo, and I don't care if he doesn't notice me or have any idea about the way I feel, but I am going in there, and I am going to save him. I will not let him die," Sadie said intensely, her gaze burning into Draco's.

"Okay, you made your case," Draco said with a small, almost proud, smile, "Daphne, Pansy; stand guard."

Daphne shot Pansy a fond smile and pulled her wand out. Pansy chuckled and pulled out her wand, "Good luck, Sadie."

Draco turned away from the two girls to look at Sadie, "Come on then, warrior princess."

Sadie didn't smile; she couldn't, not when Theo was in danger. She knew that he could be dead up there for all that they knew, but she was trying not to think about that possibility.

They exited the tower and emerged on the sixth-floor corridor. It was swarming with Death Eaters, as they knew it would be. They sheltered behind a suit of armour and waited for Neville's 'sign'.

The clock hand on Draco's watch ticked silently to 11 pm, and a mighty explosion racked the entire floor of the castle.

"That will be the sign," Draco muttered.

The Death Eaters panicked and ran towards the grand staircase where the noise had come from. Draco grabbed Sadie's hand, and they ran down the deserted corridor together towards the Dark Tower.

They thought they were safe until they encountered Filch and Mrs Norris on the stairs into the tower. Draco had barely raised his wand when a flash of light flew past him, and Filch and his cat fell to the ground. They both lay stiff as boards, not dead but frozen.

Draco turned to Sadie in surprise. She was holding her wand and glaring at them.

"Petrificus Totalus," Draco mumbled as he looked at the frozen bodies, "You can do speechless magic, impressive."

"I told you that I could be useful," Sadie remarked. She ran up the staircase, and Draco followed her. In seconds they had reached the top of the tower.

"Get Theo, I'll keep watch," Draco said, holding his wand at the ready and standing atop the stairs. He was half-expecting a horde of Death Eaters to thunder up them at any moment.

Sadie looked through the windows of the cells until she found Theo in the last one.

"Theo," Sadie called through the gap in the door.

"Sadie!" A weak voice called back, "Is that you?"

"It's me. I'm going to break you out. Stay away from the door," Sadie called.

"Okay."

Sadie waited for a moment, then pointed her wand at the door, "Bombarda!"

There was a small explosion at the base of the door, which unhinged the lock. The door then came off its hinges and fell backwards into the cell. Sadie rushed in when the smoke cleared and found Theo sitting on the floor at the back of the cell. He looked exhausted and weak like he hadn't eaten for days. But he was alive.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Sadie whispered as she drank in his features; she had genuinely been worried that she might never see him again.

"Me too," Theo said with a small smile.

Sadie leant forward and caught his lips in a gentle, soft and passionate kiss. After that, he fainted.

"Is he alive?" Draco asked from the corridor.

"Barely," Sadie replied.

Draco ran into the room and picked his best friend up, "Come on, let's escape via the roof while Longbottom keeps that lot busy."

Sadie followed him onto the roof.

"Accio broomsticks!"

Two brooms broke out of the shed in the grounds and flew up to them. Sadie jumped on one, and Draco got on the other, supporting Theo as he did so. They flew down into the grounds before the Death Eaters could even begin to climb the tower.

They disembarked by the lake, and now that he was out of the tower with its extensive surveillance charms and wards, Draco could use his unique brand of Death Eater magic. He disappeared in a puff of black smoke and reappeared in front of Tracey on the second-floor corridor.

"Theo," Tracey breathed.

"Get him to safety," Draco said as he disappeared again.

He went back to the lake and got Sadie. He transported her to the second-floor corridor, then he ran up the central tower and yanked Pansy and Daphne away from the ongoing fight between Neville's band of merry men and the Death Eaters.

They ran as fast as they could back to their bathroom lair, and once they were all safely locked in, Sadie sank to her knees as Theo stopped breathing and everyone scrambled to save him.

She was pushed aside as electric spells were shot at his chest, and Tracey tried mouth to mouth. The world around her blurred, and tears stung in her eyes.

"Move," Daphne shouted, shoving them all out of the way.

She brought her fist down as hard as she could and whacked Theo in the chest so hard that something cracked. Theo spluttered and sucked in a breath.

They all breathed a collective sigh of relief when Tracey announced, "He's back."

Sadie threw herself into Daphne's arms and cried while Tracey performed healing charms on Theo, and Draco forced blood replenishing potions down his throat. Pansy mixed regenerative potions and handed them to Tracey. Theo coughed, he tried to reject every potion that was forced down him, but they kept his mouth closed and forced him to drink them.

They sat on the cold, hard bathroom floor all night long in terrified silence, praying that he would wake up, and it was the longest night of all of their lives but for no one more than Sadie.

* ~ TBC ~ *