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A/N: SORRY this is taking so long to get posted. I've had it written for a while but I wasn't able to post it. Anyway, here's chapter eleven.

Chapter Eleven

Life and Death

Draco's father's words echoed in his ears. "Good work. . . ."

For a moment, Draco wasn't really sure what he meant by it. Then he realized – he'd played right into Lucius's hand. He'd been expecting that Draco would bring Harry with him. And without even thinking about it he'd done it . . . he'd brought Harry to his death.

Draco sure didn't like Potter, but he didn't want him dead. Even in the first few years at Hogwarts, when he'd been obeying his father, he hadn't really wanted to kill him. Not really anyway . . . except maybe when he won every single Quidditch match against Slytherins and always got the Snitch before him. But the feeling normally went away, and he sort of regretted thinking such things.

Draco stepped away from his father now, wondering how he could have been so naive. He felt someone staring at him, and looked up to see Ginny. The look on her face made something jolt inside him. She looked like she was going to burst out crying at any moment, but also looked furious. Her expression clearly said How could you do this?

He scowled and glanced away.

Three Death Eaters grabbed Harry, Ron, and Hermione, somehow finding their wands, and took them. One Death Eater released Harry and grabbed Ginny instead. They looked at Voldemort expectantly, waiting for instructions.

Voldemort simply raised his hand and flicked his unusually long fingers towards the door, indicating that they should leave.

Lucius once again grabbed Draco's shoulder and started to steer him out. The only people who were staying were Harry and Voldemort.

Draco glanced back once, and saw that Harry looked so scared he would pass out at any second. He felt a pang of guilt and pulled his eyes away. The Death Eaters who held Ginny, Ron, and Hermione led them down a separate hall and he knew they were taking them to the dungeon.

Lucius ran his eyes over Draco, and said quickly, "Get some rest." Then he and the rest of the Death Eaters went the opposite way and Draco was left alone outside the door.

Many thoughts ran through his mind. Most of them included just bursting in the room and somehow saving Harry. Then he realized he must have been over-tired and wasn't thinking rationally – how could he save Harry from the most powerful person alive?

I need sleep, he thought, and headed to his room.

Once there, he fell face down onto his bed. But he didn't fall asleep as quickly as he had anticipated. When he closed his eyes he kept picturing Ginny's accusing expression, and then Harry's terrified face.

It's too late, he told himself. Even if I free Ginny, Ron, and Hermione they'll just want to save Harry. They'll kill themselves in the process. Potter's probably dead by now anyway.

He felt sort of bad thinking that, but he forced himself to know that it was the truth. There was no use hoping . . . Harry most certainly would be dead in less than an hour if he weren't already.

But I can save Ginny, he contemplated. Even though she hates me now. If I manage to save her, she'll still hate me for bringing Harry to die.

It wasn't like he'd meant to do it. He just had been in such a hurry to get here and bring Ginny back safely that he hadn't taken the time to think it out. If he had, then maybe Harry wouldn't be seconds from death.

But for how much longer? Someday Voldemort will eventually kill him.

At least when Voldemort killed him some other time, Draco wouldn't feel so terrible. It wouldn't have been his fault Harry's life would have been shortened.

And if I hadn't brought Potter then Ginny would probably be dead right now, he figured. Either way I kill someone.

He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. Should he try and save them? It wasn't like they'd get very far anyway. The place was crawling with Death Eaters – someone would see them. And he knew they'd want to check and see if Harry was alive. They wouldn't leave without him, even if he wasn't breathing.

Not to mention the fact they'd know that Draco had let them out of the dungeon. He wouldn't die as quickly as them – his father would be sure to make him suffer long and hard. Or maybe he would just keep him alive and knowing the fact that he'd been responsible for four deaths.

You're just being selfish, he told himself. A coward. Who cares what they do to you? At least you'll die knowing you tried to save someone else's life.

But he was used to being selfish. His whole life had always been about . . . well, him. The only time he'd ever really not thought about himself was when he refused to tell his father things about Potter. Every other time he always considered something before doing it, wondering, What's in this for me? Will I benefit from it at all?

Maybe it was because he hadn't slept in twenty-four hours and wasn't thinking straight, but right then and there he decided to do something. He nearly jumped off his bed and headed towards the room where all the Death Eaters normally lounged around when they weren't doing anything. He pushed open the door and stepped in.

The Death Eaters all went silent and looked at him.

One good thing about being a Malfoy – most people listen to you, he thought smugly, sticking his chin in the air to show how much better he thought he was. "My father wants the prisoners' wands. To destroy them."

"Why didn't he come here himself?" one Death Eater demanded suspiciously.

"Because he wanted me to come," Draco snapped.

"Tell him to come himself," the Death Eater retorted.

"All right," Draco said, turning and starting to leave. "But he won't be pleased to hear you refused –"

"Just give them to him," another Death Eater said wearily.

The first Death Eater reluctantly reached into his robes and produced the three wands. He placed them in Draco's outstretched hands, muttering something rude. Draco smirked and left the room, feeling very smooth.

Ginny, Ron, and Hermione were placed in different cells, but they were right next to one another. The cells had absolutely nothing in them but a wooden chair that groaned under Ginny's weight when she sat down on it.

Because the floor was damp, she tried to keep her feet up. The temperature in the room she'd been in before was nearly a sauna compared to where she was now.

She sat cross-legged in her chair, her head propped up by her hands. She was thinking many things . . . half of her wanted to believe that Draco hadn't done what he had. The other half, the smarter half, knew that he had done it – he'd brought Harry to die.

Ron was pacing in the cell beside Ginny's, muttering to himself.

"So stupid . . . actually trusted him . . . Harry trusted him . . . should've known. . . ."

"Aren't we even going to try and get out of here?" Hermione demanded, gripping the bars and pressing her face between them, staring into Ron's cell. Her cheeks were wet from tears but she managed to keep a relatively sleek voice.

"What can we do?" Ginny said helplessly. She hated sounding so whinny, but everything seemed so hopeless.

"They wouldn't put us in cells that we could actually escape from," Ron said realistically. "Even a Malfoy wouldn't be that dumb."

"Well . . . we should try," Hermione said, tears dripping from her eyes too quickly for her to stop. "I mean, we've got to try for Harry. He might be still alive – what am I talking about, of course he's still alive – and we could probably still save him."

"Hermione, you know that I would like nothing in the world more than to save Harry right now, don't you?" Ron said, crossing over and grabbing both of Hermione's hands through the bars. "But even if we manage to escape it will take hours. And even when we do get out, and Harry's alive, we can't possibly be strong enough to be able to distract You-Know-Who long enough to save him. It would result in at least one of us dying."

"That's three less than if we sit here and do nothing," Hermione said firmly.

Ginny was amazed at Hermione's strength. Of course she wanted to get out there and save Harry, but she agreed with Ron. There was no way they could do it. And she was feeling so torn up inside at the moment she wasn't even sure if she wanted to live. If she did manage to get out alive then she'd hate herself forever, knowing that she'd been responsible for Harry's death.

"And we don't even have our wands," Ron added softly, wiping Hermione's tears away with his thumbs.

Ginny looked away, feeling awkward. Her brother kept talking softly with Hermione in a reassuring way, and Ginny couldn't help but wish he were comforting her, too.

It's all because of Draco, she thought with a sudden rush of anger. If I hadn't been so stupid . . . if I hadn't gone off with him, Ron wouldn't be so cold with me right now.

But she had been stupid . . . she had brought all of them into this mess. And she had no idea how to get them out.

Just when she was about to break down sobbing, she heard footsteps. She straightened and looked in the direction they were coming from. Ron stepped away from Hermione and went to the front of his cell, peering out of the bars.

It was Draco.

Ginny felt slightly speechless for a moment, staring at him in shock. Fortunately, Ron shook her out of her reverie.

"You stupid son of a bitch!" he shouted at Draco. "How can you even show your face to us right now? Don't you have any heart at all? Do you realize that you practically gift-wrapped Harry to the one person who wants to kill him the most?!"

Draco's face was unreadable as he replied in a grim tone, "I am aware of that."

He glanced at Ginny, whose mind was reeling. For a moment there she'd thought he'd come to let them out. Is he just coming to tell me what a fool I've been, believing that he actually liked me? Is he here to rub it in all our faces?

Then he reached into his robes and pulled out three wands. Ginny recognized them as Harry's, Ron's, and Hermione's.

He handed all three of them to Ron, who took them, looking a bit speechless. Ron gave Hermione hers and put Harry's away in his robes, keeping his out, pointing it at Draco.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't do it," he spat angrily.

"You won't have a chance to save Harry," Draco replied instantly.

"Is he still alive?" Ron followed, not lowering his wand.

"I don't know."

There was a long silence.

Draco pulled out his own wand and stood in front of Hermione's cell. "There are hexes on these cells as well," he said. "This might take a while. Alohomora."

Hermione's cell door sprung open, but she made no attempt to leave. Draco got down on his knees and started murmuring a lot of words Ginny couldn't make out. He did that for nearly twenty minutes before standing up and moving to Ron's cell. "You can come out," he said tightly.

Almost an hour later, they were all out of their cells. Ginny wasn't sure whether to hug Draco or hit him. Instead, she just didn't look at him at all.

"Where's Harry?" Ron asked Draco harshly. He was in the process of draping his robes over Ginny, who could no longer feel her fingers or toes and was sure she was trembling like a leaf.

"Probably in the same room we left him in," Draco answered simply, his gray eyes expressionless.

"Then take us there," Hermione spoke up sharply.

"If you're seen by anybody you'll be killed," he told her truthfully. "I can lead you out a secret way that no one will see you –"

Ron grabbed Draco by the collar of his robes and shoved him against the wall. "We're not leaving without Harry," he hissed.

Draco didn't look the least bit disturbed by Ron's fit of fury. "I figured. So if one minute your walking and the next your dead, it won't be my fault."

"It will be entirely your fault," Hermione said heatedly.

Ron took a step back and reached into his back pocket. He pulled out the Invisibility Cloak, which by the size of it never looked like it could've fit in his small pocket.

"How did you hide that, Ron?" Hermione asked in surprise.

"I put an Enlarging Spell on my pocket and put it in there. Then I put an Anti-Bulge Charm on it so no one would see," he explained quickly. "It was when we first walked in this place."

"Now we have a way to hide," Hermione said, barely able to contain her relief.

"Follow me," Draco said simply, and started to leave without even giving them a chance to throw the cloak over themselves.

It was a tight fit, the three of them under the Invisibility Cloak. They had to hunch over so it would cover their feet, too. It was not the most comfortable walk of Ginny's life, but she figured she should be grateful that they were at least trying to save Harry.

About a minute later, they stood in front of the door they had seen just a couple of hours ago. Draco opened it (it was unlocked) and they all went in, throwing the cloak of themselves when the door shut behind them.

Ginny's eyes scanned the room, but Hermione spotted it first. She let out a cry and covered her mouth with her hand, pointing. Ginny followed the direction of her finger and saw the still form of Harry in the corner.

The three of them moved as one and were crouching beside him in less than a second. He had been on his side, one arm thrown over to cover his face. Ron rolled him onto his back and they stared down at him.

Ginny grabbed his hand. It felt like ice.

Harry had many small cuts on his face, but only one had really bled a lot. His lightning bolt scar was bright red, standing out against his pale skin.

"Is he . . . he isn't. . . ." Hermione whispered, reaching up to wipe some strands of hair off his forehead.

"He's alive," Draco said suddenly. Ginny hadn't noticed that he was standing over them. "He's breathing."

He was right. Harry's chest was moving up in down as he took shaky, nearly silent, breaths. Ginny nearly collapsed with relief.

"But he's so cold," Hermione said.

"He's just barely alive," Ron commented, his voice as panicked as Ginny had ever heard it. "I guess Voldemort thought he killed him but hadn't. Otherwise he would be dead now."

"He won't make it back to Hogwarts," Ginny said softly. "He needs help now."

"Yeah, okay, Ginny, then you go and ask Voldemort for some help," Ron snapped.

Ginny tried not to appear stung by his words. "I was reading a book of medical spells once," she said quietly, "and I read about something called a Life Spell."

"There's no such thing," Hermione told her immediately.

"There is," Ginny argued. "I even went to ask Madam Pomfrey about it because I wasn't sure if it was true or not. She agreed, reluctantly, that it does work."

"So what does it do? It can't bring people back from the dead – nothing can," Ron said. He gently slapped Harry's cheek. As if he'll wake up, Ginny thought sadly.

"I never said it did," she answered. "It's when someone gives some of their life to another person – someone who was near death. If the person has a life-threatening disease, like cancer, it'll only keep that person alive a little longer. But if someone had been suffering from an accident that was not growing in his or her body, like someone in a coma, then it could work. And it just might work to keep Harry alive long enough for us to get him to a doctor."

"Are you sure about this, Ginny?" Hermione asked.

"It's worth a try," Draco said icily.

Ginny didn't even flick her eyes at him. She kept her gaze on Harry. Of course, she hadn't told them that when she'd asked Madam Pomfrey about it, the nurse had said it was very dangerous to do. "Some people die trying to give their life to other people," she had informed her. "They don't know when or how to stop. It's very dangerous and no one ever attempts it much . . . only very strong wizards and witches."

But Ginny had caused all of this to happen. It was her fault Harry was minutes from death in front of her. And she was going to save him, even if she died in the process.

"You don't have your wand, do you?" Ron asked.

"I don't need it," she replied.

She positioned herself so that her palms were flat on Harry's cheeks. Hermione was right – he was very cold. If he hadn't been breathing he would've looked and felt dead.

Closing her eyes, Ginny tried to remember the spell. It was one of those things that you had to chant, not just a simple little word. She had memorized it, having thought that it might come in handy some day. She was glad she did.

"From the lowest point the water rushes, to the highest place the wind runs through," she recited softly, "I hope that you will live with my life I put into you."

Instantly she felt different. It was as if someone were sucking the strength out of her. Her muscles felt like they were draining power. In less than a few seconds she already felt weak at the thought of even lifting an arm. Images ran through her mind, and it was of her life. She was actually seeing her life being played by her, from the time at her third birthday party (the earliest she could remember) to kissing Draco by the lake. It all went by so quickly, and yet she saw everything perfectly.

Then even thinking became an effort. A little voice in the back of her head was telling her to stop, that she was going to far, that she would die if she didn't pull away. But it seemed so far away, and thinking about moving was too tiring. All she wanted to do was sleep and never wake up –

"Ginny!"

With effort, she opened her eyes. She felt drained, but at least she could move. Ron had pulled her hands off of Harry's cheeks, and both him and Hermione were staring at her.

"I thought you were going to pass out," Ron said. "I had to stop you."

He didn't realize he'd saved her life. But before Ginny could reply, Harry stirred and all eyes went back to him.

For a little while, he just moaned and his eyelids fluttered. Finally he woke up, blinking repeatedly as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Ron?" he said, his voice crackling.

Ron laughed in relief and helped him into a sitting position. "You did it, Gin!" Hermione cried happily, throwing her arms around Harry's neck.

Ginny remained on the floor while Ron, Harry, and Hermione stood up. Hermione chatted nonstop while Harry listened and Ron grinned.

She felt a lot better suddenly. Everything looked a little brighter. Harry was alive, and they had the Invisibility Cloak. They would be able to get out of there . . . all of them. She glanced at Draco, who stood apart from them, his expression blank. Well, almost all of us.

"He kept going on about the Brother Amulets," Harry said to Ron and Hermione. He was obviously referring to Voldemort. "He said when they were joined . . . something about power. . . ."

Ginny jumped to her feet and joined their conversation.

"Do you have the gold one, Ginny?" Harry asked her.

She pulled it out from underneath her shirt. "Yes. Why?"

He gave her a brief smile and took it from her. "I have an idea."

A/N: Hee hee. You didn't really think Draco would leave them there to rot, did you? Of course not. But will Ginny forgive him? Well, I guess you'll find out soon . . . but not before Harry puts his plan into action. You'll find out what the plan is next chapter ;) Well, off I go now, please review or I just might stop here! ::gasps:: Wouldn't that be terrible?