Hey guys! Here is chapter 8, and we are coming to the end of this little story. It's my first so it's only short. Anyway, thankyou to all my reviewers, and Rose and Marigold, dear sisters of mine, THIS IS SO NOT THE BEST STORY U'VE EVER READ, SO STOP TELLING ME WICKED LIES!!! Phew! Well, here we go…
A Life that Starts Again
Yes, there was Voldemort, standing before them, a vision of darkness and death. Victoria's breath caught in her throat, and she heard Hermione let out a small whimper. "Voldemort," said Harry softly.
"Yes," said the Dark Lord in his snake-like voice. "You knew I would see you again Harry, and I made it my business to see you. You are after all my most hated enemy, but you could become my most trusted and faithful friend…"
"What are you saying?" said Harry boldly.
"Oh come now boy," hissed Voldemort. "Don't play games with me. You are after all a powerful and intelligent wizard, why don't you put that power and intelligence to good use?" Harry was silent, he thought he knew what was coming. It had been asked of him before.
"Join me Harry," said Voldemort. "You are on the losing side; nobody can withstand me for long, not even the great Harry Potter and that muggle loving fool Albus Dumbledore."
"No," said Harry firmly, the hatred audible in his voice. "How on Earth do you think I could join the side of evil, pain, and death, and the man who murdered my parents?!"
"Ah Harry," sighed Voldemort. "I see that Draco Malfoy had no trouble in changing sides, and you are stronger than him." He glared at Lucius and Narcissa.
"That's only because I had a reason to switch; Victoria!" shouted Draco. "Potter has no reason whatsoever to change."
"Well, I can give him a reason…" hissed Voldemort. And with that he shouted "Accio!" and Ron and Hermione shot towards him, where he grabbed them by the hair. Hermione and Ron shrieked in panic to Victoria's cry of "No!".
"Well Harry, it appears that I definitely have the upper hand," said the Dark Lord. "Join me, or your little friends will die!"
Harry was torn between two decisions, it was a lose/lose situation. Whatever he was to do, he had to think fast. But Draco got there first.
"Petrificus Totalus!" he yelled, and Voldemort went rigid and fell. Ron and Hermione scrambled free while the Death Eaters rushed forward with the counter-curse.
"What the hell was that Malfoy?" said Ron. "You saved our lives, sheesh, what's gotten into you?"
"If we get out of this alive Weasley," sneered Draco. "then do me a favour and never tell anyone that I just did that!" Ron nodded, a bemused expression on his face.
Meanwhile, Voldemort was back on his feet, and incredibly angry. "Lucius!" he snarled. "I will leave it up to you to deal with your treacherous son!"
"Certainly, my Lord," said Lucius, and he turned to Narcissa, who nodded. For a fleeting moment, Victoria saw an expression of pain and remorse on their faces. It soon vanished when Lucius pointed his want at Draco and yelled, "Crucio!"
"NO!!!" screamed Victoria, but Draco was already rolling around on the ground, yelling and writhing with an expression of agony on his face. Victoria broke free of the Death Eater holding her and ran to Draco's aid. She grabbed him around the waist and yanked him out of the way of the wand's beam and into a corner, where she lay huddled over him, her body shielding him from his angry father.
"Stand aside, girl!" barked Lucius Malfoy. But Victoria gave him a look that made him stop dead in his tracks. He had never seen a look of such anger, hatred, love, and fierce pride on a face so young and innocent before. He slowly backed away.
"Oh Draco, oh honey, are you okay?" she whispered to Draco.
"I…I think so," he stammered. "Thankyou Victoria. Just promise me never to let them do that to you."
"I won't let them, don't worry," Victoria said, still protecting Draco from the Death Eaters.
In the meantime, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were fighting a losing battle with Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Try as they might, the teenagers could not overpower them, they were too powerful. But Harry had said to Ron and Hermione that if he had to die, he would die fighting. They had of course agreed with him, so they pressed on and on. But all the while they could feel all the energy and life draining out of them. They knew it would not be long now before…
Before they had realized it, the Death Eaters had backed them into Victoria and Draco's corner. There was nowhere to turn, and they were certain that this was the end. "Goodbye my friends," Harry whispered to Ron and Hermione as Voldemort had stepped forward. "I'll find you in death and stay with you forever."
"No," said Voldemort. "I won't kill you Harry, if you join me. I will not kill your friends either."
"I…" Harry began, but before he had realized what was happening, the Dark Lord had lifted his wand to point it at Harry's face. "Avada…" But someone got there before he had finished the curse. Victoria flung herself into Voldemort's line of fire and got the full blast of the incantation. She was dead before she hit the cold stone floor.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!" screamed Draco, Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Then looking at each other, they knew what they had to do.
"Damn!" yelled Voldemort, but before he could try again, the four teenagers had lifted their wands and yelled, "AVADA KEDAVRA!!!" with as much force as they could muster. Voldemort's red eyes widened, then there was a crack of what sounded like thunder, a blinding flash of green light…and Voldemort had disappeared. They did however see a kind of grey mist floating up, up, up, and out of sight. Harry turned on the three stunned Death Eaters. "You'll be next if you don't all get out of here within the next five minutes!" he said. "NOW MOVE!" they obediently scurried off. True to their word, every Death Eater was out of Hogwarts in three minutes time.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned to look at Draco and Victoria. Draco was sitting with her in his arms, silent tears rolling down his face. "Victoria, I'll always love you," he said. "and I vow here that someday, Voldemort will pay for what he's done to you!"
"And we'll be by your side - Draco," said Harry. Soon all four of them were in tears. "Come on," said Harry, we'd better go and find Dumbledore. Draco, you carry Victoria."
Draco nodded, and picked her up like a baby, "Oh, my love," he murmured, still crying. "My only love."
An hour later, Victoria's body was lying in a hospital bed with Draco next to her. Dumbledore, who had been locked in a trunk with the other teachers, had agreed to give him a few moments alone with her.
"I don't know if you can hear me," Draco said. "but if you can, then listen. I have loved you from the first moment I saw you walking through the Great Hall door. Ever since then this feeling that I have never really had before has grown stronger and stronger. I will always love you, no matter what happens to me or to anyone else. Goodbye Victoria, until our souls meet again." A tear trickled down his cheek as he kissed her ice cold lips. He stood up to leave her forever, when he heard a voice behind him. "Draco…" it said softly.
Draco jumped about three feet, then slowly turned around. "Draco," the voice continued. "It's me. I heard you calling me, I heard you loving me…" And then Draco realized that the voice belonged to Victoria.
"Victoria?" he whispered.
"Yes," she said softly. "It's me."
"VICTORIA!" he shouted, and bent over her bed to kiss her again and again again. "How can you be alive, you were cursed, what the hell happened?"
"I heard you Draco, from wherever I was, I don't remember. I heard what you were saying, and I felt your heart. My soul somehow knew that my life wasn't over yet, so I came back."
At that moment, Dumbledore, Harry, and the others came rushing in, and got they shock of their lives.
"What happened?" breathed Harry.
"I've returned," said Victoria, smiling. "I've returned for Draco."
TA DA!!! Did you like that? Well, this is pretty much the end of my first fanfic, but I still have one more little prologue left to write. Tell you what though, there will definitely be a sequel to this story, when I find the time to write one! Please review for me!