The two women rushed through the darkened corridors of the castle to the
Hospital Wing and were both frustrated and shocked to find the doors locked
and Nearly Headless Nick standing guard. Ginny responded by sitting down on
the stone floor with a thud, helplessly wiping away tears. Hermione just
got angry.
"Let us in, Nick," said Hermione, attempting to catch her breath. Nick simply shook his head in response - causing a bit of a disgusting flapping motion of his neck. Hermione glared angrily. "Nick, if you weren't already dead, I would kill you. Let us in."
"I can't, Poppy said to make you wait until she had time to work on him," Sir Nicolas replied haughtily. "I am sorry, ladies."
"Who is it, Nick, who did Draco bring in?" asked Ginny.
"I don't know," said Nick. "Poppy summoned me after she had pulled the curtains. All I know is that it is a grave injury and I assumed it was one of your husbands, as I was asked to keep you out here while she worked."
Hermione sighed and pretended to turn away dejectedly. Instead she turned and surreptitiously grasped her wand. 'Ghosts can't be killed,' she thought, 'but I seem to recall they can be petrified.' She spun on one heel and brandished her wand: "Petrificus Totalis!"
Nick froze and Hermione easily levitated the ghost away from the doors. A quick tussle with the wards and they were bursting through and into the wing. Draco was standing outside a curtained bed and they dashed to him.
"Hermione! Ginny!" Draco's face was streaked with blood and salty tracks of tears. He looked exhausted and heartbroken, as if he were only holding himself upright by magic. And perhaps he was.
"Draco, what is it? What is wrong? Who is it?" they both cried. Questions and tears spilling over each other as they reined in their panic. "What happened?"
Draco pulled both distraught women into a loose embrace and attempted to control his own feelings for the moment, in order to comfort them.
"There was a duel with my father in his study," he said. "Snape, Harry and I fought him and my father and I both attempted the killing curse at the same time. It - backfired somehow and we were all knocked out, I think. I woke up and my father was dead. He wasn't breathing, so I brought him to Pomfrey as fast as I could."
"But, is it Snape or Harry-who is it?" pleaded Ginny.
"I'm sorry, Ginny, it's Harry," he said softly. "He was bleeding heavily, too. I don't know what happened." Ginny began crying even harder as Draco and Hermione pulled her into a tight hug. "Pomfrey can fix just about anything, Ginny. I know he'll be okay."
Hermione looked at Draco over Ginny's head and met his blue eyes. Sad blue eyes. Moments later Poppy opened the curtains to usher Ginny in to see her husband. She smiled reassuringly and nodded slightly at Draco and Hermione. Harry, it seemed, would live through yet another battle with evil.
"He was hit by Cruciatus several times," Poppy said. "And he had quite a bit of glass buried in his arm and face. Apparently he fell into a pile of broken glass when he fell. Ginny, come on in and you two, go get some rest and you can see him in the morning."
Slowly, Hermione and Draco made their way to the potions classroom. It had been a refuge for many months now and it seemed to be the best place to go. They entered and the candles and fireplace flared to life under Hermione's command. Draco walked soundlessly to their snack table and picked up a stale scone to nibble. He did not meet Hermione's gaze.
"Are you doing all right, Draco?" she finally asked.
"I'm fine. I just want Harry to be okay and we need to find Snape," he replied, stoically. "I don't know if we should go back to my father's house and see if our help is needed. I don't know if we should wait here. I don't know if we should wait in Dumbledore's office. I don't know if I should go back and -- take care of my father's body. After all, there isn't exactly a manual written about how to deal with your father's death - when you're the one to cast the killing curse."
Snorting, Draco finally raised his eyes to meet Hermione's. They were haunted and cold. He threw down the scone and began to pace the room. After a few moments, he said: "I'm sorry, Hermione, I don't know where he is. He could have been banished, killed and his body transfigured, he could have rejoined the battle upstairs, someone could have taken him to St. Mungos - I just don't know where Snape is."
Snape, for his part, wasn't exactly sure where he was either. Opening his eyes, he saw only darkness and where he was sitting was squishy and damp. In his hand, he clasped a Muggle house key tightly. 'What the hell just happened?' he thought. He sat up and tried to stand but winced at the pain in his leg, before abruptly sitting back down. Slowly, memory came back to him of the last moments of their battle with Lucius.
"Avada Kadavara!"
Green, deathly light bounced crazily around Lucius'study as Snape and Harry shouted counter curses and blocking spells. After slamming into Lucius and dropping him, the light faded in intensity, but continued to ricochet off walls. Books fell off of shelves; pictures off walls and the overdone chandelier looked like it could go any moment. That was when the eerie light turned on them and swished through Draco and Snape, finally fading out as it gently bounced off of Harry's chest - barely causing him to flinch.
Draco was knocked cold, he remembered. He was dizzy and flat on his back, the room spinning crazily around him. Harry, damn him, had managed to stay upright and was busy checking to see if Lucius was truly dead.
"Yep, he's dead," Harry muttered, before turning to wryly grin at Severus. "Draco is going to need some help when he comes to. I'll stay with him, you Portkey back to outside Hogwarts and make sure someone looks at that gash before you bleed to death."
Gash? What gash? Snape had thought. He looked down at his arms, torso and -- - ah, that gash. A framed wizard picture had fallen from the walls during the green lights assault on the room - the glass had shattered and a large shard had embedded itself in Snape's leg as he himself fell. He had already lost a lot of blood.
"Shit!" hissed Snape as the pain and realization hit him. "Gods that hurts."
At that moment, they heard voices coming their way. Harry bent over Snape, dug through the professor's robes and found the small Portkey he knew Snape had, as they had each prepared one before the meeting.
"Harry, I'm fine, help me to Lucius' desk chair and I can be upright to cast," said Snape.
"No, you are going home to Hermione," said Harry. "I'll deal with this, you get home."
"Gryffindor glory-seeking, idioti-"
Snapes tirade was cut short as Harry simply shook his head and pressed Snapes Portkey into his hand, muttering the charm to activate it. The voices became clearer and louder while the room blurred. Snape sneered at Harry as the familiar tug in his belly hit him - and he was unceremoniously dumped in the darkness.
It was the darkness of the Forbidden Forest. Snape's eyes began to finally make out the shapes of his favorite spot in the forest - a small clearing full of medicinal wild herbs and mushrooms. Exactly where the Portkey was supposed to take him.
"It appears that my Portkey worked," he said to the darkness. "Now, let's get back to Hogwarts and see if the raid by the Aurors worked as well."
If everything went well, he thought as he prepared to apparate to the gates, he had a wife to kiss, a daughters arrival to prepare for and a happy life to live.
"Let us in, Nick," said Hermione, attempting to catch her breath. Nick simply shook his head in response - causing a bit of a disgusting flapping motion of his neck. Hermione glared angrily. "Nick, if you weren't already dead, I would kill you. Let us in."
"I can't, Poppy said to make you wait until she had time to work on him," Sir Nicolas replied haughtily. "I am sorry, ladies."
"Who is it, Nick, who did Draco bring in?" asked Ginny.
"I don't know," said Nick. "Poppy summoned me after she had pulled the curtains. All I know is that it is a grave injury and I assumed it was one of your husbands, as I was asked to keep you out here while she worked."
Hermione sighed and pretended to turn away dejectedly. Instead she turned and surreptitiously grasped her wand. 'Ghosts can't be killed,' she thought, 'but I seem to recall they can be petrified.' She spun on one heel and brandished her wand: "Petrificus Totalis!"
Nick froze and Hermione easily levitated the ghost away from the doors. A quick tussle with the wards and they were bursting through and into the wing. Draco was standing outside a curtained bed and they dashed to him.
"Hermione! Ginny!" Draco's face was streaked with blood and salty tracks of tears. He looked exhausted and heartbroken, as if he were only holding himself upright by magic. And perhaps he was.
"Draco, what is it? What is wrong? Who is it?" they both cried. Questions and tears spilling over each other as they reined in their panic. "What happened?"
Draco pulled both distraught women into a loose embrace and attempted to control his own feelings for the moment, in order to comfort them.
"There was a duel with my father in his study," he said. "Snape, Harry and I fought him and my father and I both attempted the killing curse at the same time. It - backfired somehow and we were all knocked out, I think. I woke up and my father was dead. He wasn't breathing, so I brought him to Pomfrey as fast as I could."
"But, is it Snape or Harry-who is it?" pleaded Ginny.
"I'm sorry, Ginny, it's Harry," he said softly. "He was bleeding heavily, too. I don't know what happened." Ginny began crying even harder as Draco and Hermione pulled her into a tight hug. "Pomfrey can fix just about anything, Ginny. I know he'll be okay."
Hermione looked at Draco over Ginny's head and met his blue eyes. Sad blue eyes. Moments later Poppy opened the curtains to usher Ginny in to see her husband. She smiled reassuringly and nodded slightly at Draco and Hermione. Harry, it seemed, would live through yet another battle with evil.
"He was hit by Cruciatus several times," Poppy said. "And he had quite a bit of glass buried in his arm and face. Apparently he fell into a pile of broken glass when he fell. Ginny, come on in and you two, go get some rest and you can see him in the morning."
Slowly, Hermione and Draco made their way to the potions classroom. It had been a refuge for many months now and it seemed to be the best place to go. They entered and the candles and fireplace flared to life under Hermione's command. Draco walked soundlessly to their snack table and picked up a stale scone to nibble. He did not meet Hermione's gaze.
"Are you doing all right, Draco?" she finally asked.
"I'm fine. I just want Harry to be okay and we need to find Snape," he replied, stoically. "I don't know if we should go back to my father's house and see if our help is needed. I don't know if we should wait here. I don't know if we should wait in Dumbledore's office. I don't know if I should go back and -- take care of my father's body. After all, there isn't exactly a manual written about how to deal with your father's death - when you're the one to cast the killing curse."
Snorting, Draco finally raised his eyes to meet Hermione's. They were haunted and cold. He threw down the scone and began to pace the room. After a few moments, he said: "I'm sorry, Hermione, I don't know where he is. He could have been banished, killed and his body transfigured, he could have rejoined the battle upstairs, someone could have taken him to St. Mungos - I just don't know where Snape is."
Snape, for his part, wasn't exactly sure where he was either. Opening his eyes, he saw only darkness and where he was sitting was squishy and damp. In his hand, he clasped a Muggle house key tightly. 'What the hell just happened?' he thought. He sat up and tried to stand but winced at the pain in his leg, before abruptly sitting back down. Slowly, memory came back to him of the last moments of their battle with Lucius.
"Avada Kadavara!"
Green, deathly light bounced crazily around Lucius'study as Snape and Harry shouted counter curses and blocking spells. After slamming into Lucius and dropping him, the light faded in intensity, but continued to ricochet off walls. Books fell off of shelves; pictures off walls and the overdone chandelier looked like it could go any moment. That was when the eerie light turned on them and swished through Draco and Snape, finally fading out as it gently bounced off of Harry's chest - barely causing him to flinch.
Draco was knocked cold, he remembered. He was dizzy and flat on his back, the room spinning crazily around him. Harry, damn him, had managed to stay upright and was busy checking to see if Lucius was truly dead.
"Yep, he's dead," Harry muttered, before turning to wryly grin at Severus. "Draco is going to need some help when he comes to. I'll stay with him, you Portkey back to outside Hogwarts and make sure someone looks at that gash before you bleed to death."
Gash? What gash? Snape had thought. He looked down at his arms, torso and -- - ah, that gash. A framed wizard picture had fallen from the walls during the green lights assault on the room - the glass had shattered and a large shard had embedded itself in Snape's leg as he himself fell. He had already lost a lot of blood.
"Shit!" hissed Snape as the pain and realization hit him. "Gods that hurts."
At that moment, they heard voices coming their way. Harry bent over Snape, dug through the professor's robes and found the small Portkey he knew Snape had, as they had each prepared one before the meeting.
"Harry, I'm fine, help me to Lucius' desk chair and I can be upright to cast," said Snape.
"No, you are going home to Hermione," said Harry. "I'll deal with this, you get home."
"Gryffindor glory-seeking, idioti-"
Snapes tirade was cut short as Harry simply shook his head and pressed Snapes Portkey into his hand, muttering the charm to activate it. The voices became clearer and louder while the room blurred. Snape sneered at Harry as the familiar tug in his belly hit him - and he was unceremoniously dumped in the darkness.
It was the darkness of the Forbidden Forest. Snape's eyes began to finally make out the shapes of his favorite spot in the forest - a small clearing full of medicinal wild herbs and mushrooms. Exactly where the Portkey was supposed to take him.
"It appears that my Portkey worked," he said to the darkness. "Now, let's get back to Hogwarts and see if the raid by the Aurors worked as well."
If everything went well, he thought as he prepared to apparate to the gates, he had a wife to kiss, a daughters arrival to prepare for and a happy life to live.