Ginny held on to Draco for dear life, her breath ragged and her heart beating a million beats per second. Draco was slipping fast, his blood loss so great that he could barely talk.

The wound had been deep in his side and it could have, for all they know, punctured things that couldn't be repaired.

"Look at me Draco, look at me!" Ginny cried desperately, cupping Draco's face in her hands as she laid him down on the stone floor. Her face was streaked with tears and her throat was dry from sobs.

She was going to lose the one thing she held most dear in her life. Why did life not allow her to be with the one she loved?

Harry ran over to them, stopping in front of Draco and pointing his wand at him. "We have to get him to the hospital wing."

Ginny nodded slowly and stood up reluctantly, allowing Harry to magic Draco onto a stretcher. He was unconscious now, his loss of blood tremendous.

Ginny reached over and clutched his hand, holding it tightly in hers as though if she let go he would leave her forever. Harry began to walk quickly through the tunnel, dragging Draco on the stretcher behind him.

Suddenly Draco came back to consciousness, his eyes falling on Ginny. He kept sputtering and blood was coming out of his mouth, but Ginny kept her grip on his hand strong.

"Ginny...are you okay?" Draco said groggily, his eyes opening and shutting, trying to focus through the searing pain.

"Yes yes...I'm fine...don't try to talk, you'll waste your energy..." Ginny said, the little hope she had left drifting away at the sight of his paler than usual expression.

"I...I love you Ginny..." Draco managed to say, feeling darkness come over him. Ginny looked down at him, a tear falling from her eye and a smile almost forming on her lips...before-

"Oh god NO!" she screamed, her heart tearing itself apart. "Draco please...stay with me! Keep looking at me, don't die on me...please don't die on me..."

Harry looked back at Malfoy and saw that he was almost dead. His own heart froze. Oh no your not, he thought to himself. You won't get out that easily. He set down the stretcher, magiking it away.

"Malfoy, listen to me. Your not getting out this easily, fight goddamnit!" Harry felt fear rise in his throat as Draco laid there, drifting away from them quickly.

"No...oh please no..." Ginny whispered, still clutching Draco's hand in hers. She kissed it softly, a tear falling from her face as Draco's eyes closed, his last struggling breaths escaping from his lips.

A familiar cry sounded behind them and Ginny and Harry both froze. They looked up and watched as Fawkes flew down towards them and landed pompously next to Draco.

He leaned over Draco's side, small teardrops falling from his eyes.

Ginny was stunned. Why hadn't they thought of that? Maybe because it seemed so far-fetched...how could tears heal such a deadly wound?

The tears mended the wound almost fully, healing the cut till it was merely nothing more then a quarter inch deep and stopping the blood flow entirely.

Ginny cried out as Draco's eyes flickered open, staring wide eyed at Harry and Ginny. The pain was still there but barely, and the darkness he had almost given in to was gone, replaced by the face of the woman he loved most and his new friend.

Fawkes beamed at Harry and Ginny and took off, flying through the long pipes.

Draco sat up and wrapped a devastated yet relieved Ginny in his arms. Harry gave him a pat on the back and stood up, watching Fawkes fly away until he was out of sight. How Fawkes had known they were down there, Harry would never know.

What he did know was that whenever he was in trouble at Hogwarts, Fawkes always managed to show up.

In some ways, he was a kind of guardian angel, only in the form of a phoenix.

Ginny helped Draco stand up, his legs still weak. Harry smiled at him, something he rarely did, though he was happy to see Draco actually smile back.

The three left the Chamber of Secrets, Harry clutching Godric Gryffindors sword in his hand. They shut the chamber hopefully forever, and began their way through the castle and out onto the grounds.

It was now early morning and the sun had yet to rise over the mountains. Cool morning dew kissed their faces as they stepped out onto the grounds.

Harry stopped walking and turned to face Ginny and Draco. "I guess I should be going now, I want to see Hermione." he said softly, smiling weakly at them.

Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry's neck, a kind of almost final farewell, even though she knew in her heart she would see him again. "Goodbye Harry...take care of yourself." she said, grinning at him as she pulled out of the hug.

Draco and Harry stared at each other awkwardly for a moment, each of them wondering what to say to the other. Something had happened that day, something that had never even been considered before.

They had learned to work together and even form a friendship. Grins crept up on both men's faces and eventually broke out entirely.

"You did good in there, Potter...I now know why your so famous." Draco said, his steel eyes resting on Harry's scar.

"You did alright yourself." Harry said, pausing for a moment and then holding out his hand. "I'll see you then."

Draco held out his hand, grabbing Harry's almost cautiously. They paused for a moment, their hands clutched together and their eyes resting on each other.

"Goodbye then, Harry." Draco said finally, his smile flickering slightly but nonetheless one of friendship.

"G'bye, Draco."

Ginny couldn't believe what she was seeing. Two rivals, two men who hated eachother more than anything, had learned to come together and form a bond that was unbreakable. And why? Because they both cared about her.

One as a friend, the other as a lover. Who knew what the world had in store for any of them next.

Harry waved goodbye to Ginny and Draco one last time as he turned and began to walk towards the road leading to the train, his hands in his pant pockets.

Draco wrapped an arm around Ginny as they watched him walk off, the sun still not rising beyond the mountain.

"What do you say we go sit by the lake, watch the sun rise?" Draco said finally, looking down at Ginny. She looked up at him and smiled, something she hadn't done much of that past night.

Without saying anything, the two of them walked through the still morning air towards the lake's shores. Sitting down underneath a tree, Draco wrapped Ginny up in his arms and they both gazed off towards the mountain top.

The sky was turning orange, preceding the rising sun. The air was still and the lake like glass. Nothing was moving and there was no sound, there was just blue melting into orange.

The tip of the sun rose over the mountain, it's first rays of light hitting the tops of the trees.

Minutes passed and they sat just like that, holding each other and thinking of nothing but the sun.

When the streaks of light reached them, it's warmth was so welcoming that Ginny closed her eyes and could have fallen asleep.

"Ginny..." Draco said quietly as the sun began to fully reveal itself, it's rays touching every revealed inch of landscape around them.

"Mmm.."

"Marry me."

Ginny felt her heart skip a beat and felt her face warm up, only it wasn't the sun this time.

She turned and looked up at him, seeing that his eyes were still fixated on the horizon. She could see a grin twitching on his lips, and watched as he turned at last to face her.

God, she thought. He is so handsome right now...

"For a long time I was scared I'd never hear those words...now that I have I'm glad you were the one saying them." she said finally, after staring at him dreamily for a moment.

He smiled and touched her cheek playfully. "Is that a yes or a no?"

"I think you know what it is." Ginny teased as she kissed his lips gently and then rested her head on his shoulder. She knew he was smiling and couldn't help but smile as well. She felt Draco suddenly sigh beneath her.

"I wonder what our future holds." he said thoughtfully, his eyes resting on the sunrise once more.

Ginny thought for a moment, looking off at the horizon. "Only our hearts can tell."

~*~