Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter, lucky J.K. Rowling does.

A/N: This is it. The last chapter. There is a better, more detailed A/N at the end of the chapter.

Chapter Seventeen: Ascension

As much as he devoted himself to Voldemort, Macnair simply could not stand obeying orders from Lucius. What gave him the right to order him around like Crabbe or Goyle? He was not an unintelligent crony. He sacrificed his freedom to serve under Voldemort, just like the rest of them. He chose to be a follower of Voldemort, not of Lucius.

Snap.

The sharp crack of several twigs under his thick boot startled Macnair. He shook his head roughly and slid his short wand out of his pocket as he reached the damp boulder he was looking for. He tapped three times and whispered, "Dissignare."

The boulder slid to the left and disappeared behind a heavy drapery of moss. Macnair lit his wand and entered cautiously, making as little noise as possible. The small beam of light darted around the floor of the miniature cave speedily, searching for a sign of the blonde-haired convict. The beam settled on a crumpled robe in the back corner of the cave, lying motionlessly. Macnair mentally cursed and approached Draco slowly, praying that he wasn't dead. If he was dead, Voldemort and Lucius would definitely not be happy.

His fears of Draco's death were banished when Draco growled and leapt up from his position and pointed his wand right at Macnair, who was so surprised that he dropped his wand onto the grimy cave floor. Though Draco was disheveled and fairly gaunt, he still held an aura of prestige that no other could replicate.

"What are you doing here, Macnair?" Draco asked heatedly.

"Your father wanted you to be home."

"What for?"

Macnair did not want to let Draco know that Lucius wanted him to witness Ginny's death, but he so wanted to see the look of panic on his face. "The Weasley girl is going to die, and he wants you to be there to celebrate the occasion."

Terror flashed across Draco's face in an instant. His lips tightened into a grimace and Draco uttered, "Stupefy."

Macnair instantly fell over, stunned. Draco stepped over him and ran out of the cave, careful to seal it again. He had to get to Malfoy Manor. If Ginny was in trouble, it was all his fault and he had to save her. They'd been apart too long and the feeling of being without her caused an emptiness that Draco had never felt before. It made him realize that Draco had never really experienced love, not even familial love. It was this that made him love Ginny even more.

Draco never Apparated much, as he hadn't had the chance to pass the test. He knew how, of course, but it wasn't within his nature to just go popping about Britain. He took a deep breath and concentrated on the Manor, feeling himself vanish from the cave and reappear instantly in the backyard of the Manor.

The house was dark, as usual, except for the glimmer of light in the top room on the left. It was Lucius's study, where he spent most of his time. Draco knew that Voldemort was there as well – no one else could create such a chill in the air.

Draco crept up to the door and carefully pushed it open (who would think of breaking into the Malfoy home anyway?). He knew where Ginny was. Just as he started to descend the stairs down to the basement, someone spoke.

"Malfoy!" Harry whispered, shocked. Hermione gasped.

"Shut up," he hissed. "We don't want to be heard. What are you doing here?"

Ron bristled. "We're here to save my sister."

Draco stayed silent and then sighed. "She's in the basement. My father and Voldemort are probably up in the study; Crabbe and Goyle are most likely somewhere in the house. They're not too tough to handle magically, but they're strong."

Harry and Ron both glared at Draco. Hermione noticed the animosity and stepped between them. "Look, I know you all hate each other, but we're trying to save Ginny. That's all that matters. You need to put all of this behind you and just work together. Now stop being stupid and let's go!"

Ron held his hand out. "Wait. What are we planning to do? Just storm in there and hope for the best?"

Harry replied, "What else is there to do? We haven't got much time."

Hermione thought for a moment, then said slowly, "There is a spell I read about. It's really difficult, though. Not a lot of really powerful wizards can handle it and there needs to be an element…"

Ron was too impatient. "Will you just tell us already?"

Hermione glared. "It's called the Joining Spell. You need at least four wizards to pull it off. The tough part is…there needs to be the element of love. That's what it is fueled by. That's why it needs four wizards – two couples. Two sets of people in love."

"Why wouldn't it just work with one couple?" Ron asked, paling.

"The book just said it needed four, all right?" Hermione replied irritably, blushing furiously.

Draco pursed his lips. "We have only one couple, then."

Ron swallowed heavily. "Maybe...maybe a friendship type of…love…could work," he suggested quietly. He seemed to have gotten very nervous.

"We can try," Hermione said, just as softly.

Draco turned. "Let's go get Ginny."

They all descended the dark and winding steps down into the basement, making no noise. The ponderous silence seemed to challenge them to make a noise, but they were so careful and moving so slowly that no one dared to breathe loudly. Hermione felt her heart would burst because it was thumping so wildly in her chest. She placed her hand on Harry's shoulder in front of her and squeezed tightly, silently asking for comfort. He responded by reaching behind him and grabbing her hand and holding on tightly. His fear was showing through, as his hand was slick with sweat.

They reached the bottom and could not see with the lack of the light, except for a candle in the beginning of a narrow passageway. Draco stopped and peered down the hall, noticing two large, bulky people standing guard at one of the cells.

Draco turned to Ron, Hermione, and Harry and pointed to them. It was Crabbe and Goyle, though they wouldn't be much of a fight. It was the noise they were worried about. Draco and Harry stepped forward and both said at the exact moment, aiming their wands at Crabbe and Goyle respectively, "Stupefy!"

Crabbe and Goyle hardly had time to react, as they both rolled onto the ground, unconscious. Draco grabbed the keys from Goyle's belt and unlocked the door hurriedly, rushing inside. Ginny was half-conscious, her head lolling around on her shoulders. Her feet kept slipping around on the floor and the shackles cut deeper and deeper into her pale wrists. Her arms were marked with tiny rivulets of blood and grime. She seemed to wake up a little the instant Draco walked into the cell. Ron, Harry, and Hermione entered as well, but stayed a little further back to allow some space.

Draco walked up to Ginny's frail figure and held her up to release the weight on her wrists. She breathed a sigh of relief and lifted her eyes to Draco, seemingly confused.

"Am I dying?" she whispered. She thought Draco was just a mirage.

Draco shook his head. "No."

Ginny smiled weakly and lifted her face to Draco, who in turn, held Ginny close and waited a moment before he kissed her. His warm breath tickled her face and she almost laughed, remembering the first kiss she thought condemned her to death. Her hands twitched with the promise of holding Draco once again, and he finally pressed his lips to hers tenderly, knowing that she was hurt. He broke away from her and raised his wand to the chains that bound her to the wall. They immediately burst open and she crumpled into Draco's arms.

Immediately she began to sob into his chest. "Draco, I thought I was going to die. I thought that I would never see you again. I didn't even know if you were safe."

Draco held her tightly. "It's okay. I'm all right, you're all right."

Ron cleared his throat behind them and Draco pulled away from Ginny instantly. Ginny rubbed her wrists carefully and tested her weight on her legs. She was just in mild pain, and she determinedly walked on her own.

"This is how the Joining Spell works," Hermione started explaining. "The four wizards stand in a line and the two couples have to be next to each other, holding hands. The tip of the wands must be touching. Then we all have to say, 'Convamoris' together and you must think about the person you love, otherwise it won't work. Got that?"

Ron nodded absently. "Who's going to take part?"

Hermione shuffled her foot. "Draco and Ginny, obviously, then…um…me, since I'm the one who researched it, and…" She stopped talking and pretended to be absorbed in cleaning her wand off.

Harry and Ron looked at each other uncomfortably. Ron cleared his throat again and ran a hand through his already messy hair. Draco and Ginny were oblivious to the discomfort, as they were too lost in each other to notice.

Ron finally worked up the courage to say something. "Maybe you should, Harry, since you've gone up against Voldemort so many times and…you know…yeah."

Harry noticed a hint of bitterness in his voice. "I think that if I'm not a part of it, I'll draw Voldemort's attention away and you'll have a better chance of it working. So you can do it, Ron." Harry tried to make it seem as though this was the only motivation.

"Are you sure?" Ron asked suspiciously.

Harry nodded. "Yeah."

"I think it's a good idea," Hermione said quickly. "Now let's go."

An icy voice sent a wave of shivers as they turned around. "I don't think you're going anywhere."

Voldemort.

It was too premature – they needed time to practice, even if it was just five minutes. This was too sudden and Ginny was still too weak.

"Now why all the shocked expressions? This is what you wanted, isn't it?" Voldemort asked.

Harry could feel the anger and hate bubbling inside him. He would not be rash, he would control himself, he wouldn't provoke Voldemort…

Hermione looked around and grabbed Ron's hand. They had to do the spell, no matter what. They could try over and over again. Ron, startled, responded by grabbing Ginny's hand and forming the line. Draco handed Ginny her wand, which was in her pocket. He supposed that Voldemort didn't think it was necessary to take from her.

Lucius stepped out from behind Voldemort. "Are you all teaming up? Cute."

Voldemort turned his attention to Harry. "Harry Potter, we meet again. Perhaps you have not learned that you cannot beat me, you can only hold me off…purely by luck."

Harry couldn't control himself. "Or because you're just weak."

Voldemort's expression contorted and he shouted, "Crucio!"

Deafening screams erupted from Harry and bounced off the walls, clashing back together in violent shrieks. Ginny held her ears and screamed, "STOP IT!"

Voldemort lifted his wand off of Harry, whose shouts turned into a mere whimper. "Ginny, my newest Death Eater." Ron and Hermione both gasped, for they had not known Ginny was a Death Eater.

"No, Gin…" Ron croaked.

Voldemort chuckled. "Your own brother doesn't know? Lift up your sleeve, Ginny, and show him." Voldemort moved his wand and Ginny's sleeve was raised on its own, revealing the Dark Mark. Ron stared, appalled.

"Ginny, what did you do?" Ron asked incredulously.

Ginny looked down. "It was the only way."

Voldemort stepped closer to Ginny, but Draco moved her behind him. "Out of the way, you sniveling brat," he snarled, casting his wand over Draco and sending him into the wall. His body hit the rock with a dull thud and he fell to the floor, moaning. Ginny screamed and made to run to him, but Voldemort quickly whispered the Cruciatus Curse and once again, the room was filled with the haunting screams of agony from Ginny.

Ron immediately whipped his wand out at Voldemort but before he could do anything, Lucius pointed his wand at him. "Avada Keda—"

Hermione yelled and dove on top of Ron, knocking him to the ground and out of the way. The curse hit the wall and caused a tremendous amount of rock to fall upon them. Hermione covered her head and pushed Ron down as well. Lucius turned away from them and came face to face with Draco.

Draco held his wand up to his father. Lucius laughed. "Are you going to kill me, Draco?"

Draco shook. He swallowed heavily, and let the memories invade his mind. The punishments, the cruelty, the pressure to be a Death Eater. It was all too much. Draco narrowed his eyes and said stoically, "Yes."

Apparently Lucius was not expecting this, and his eyes widened in surprise as a blinding green light washed over him and swept his life from his body. Ginny was recovering from the Cruciatus Curse and Voldemort turned his attention to Draco when he heard the Killing Curse.

"That was not a smart thing to do, Draco," Voldemort hissed. He raised his wand menacingly and shouted the Killing Curse, but Harry took a running start and knocked Voldemort over, sending him to the ground. The curse shot towards the ceiling and sent a shower of pebbles down onto the group.

Hermione dragged Ron to his feet and grabbed his hand. "Come on, we've got to do it now!" Draco and Ginny joined them and they all pointed their wands at Harry while he struggled to keep Voldemort down.

Voldemort hissed and threw Harry off of him, slamming him into the ground. Harry coughed weakly and attempted to stand.

Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Ginny summoned their strength and energy, and shouted, "Convamoris!"

Except Ron, of course, forgot the incantation and shouted, "Cov—uh…ar—imis!"

Voldemort sneered and advanced. The group gasped and collectively moved backwards, but a strong bolt of red light came from behind Voldemort and he stumbled. He turned around and saw Harry, weakly swaying. Voldemort raised his wand, but Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Ginny finally summoned the strength to try the Joining Spell again. Draco thought of Ginny, and how much he loved everything about her; her hair, her eyes, her smile, her laugh. Ginny, in turn, thought of the first time she told him she loved him; how everyone thought he was a jerk but only she knew the real him. Hermione gripped Ron's hand tightly and thought of the times they had spent together, and how she had grown to love him…as a friend? Ron, thinking the same, kept becoming increasingly nervous as his memories of Hermione flashed by. He thought of the way she always knew what to say, and how to say it. She was always concerned about him, and suddenly, a voice within him erupted and they all shouted together:

"CONVAMORIS!"

The resulting light was so blindingly white that no one could see what was happening. Hermione shouted in delight and Ron just yelled and shut his eyes. Draco gripped Ginny's hand and tried his best to hold onto his wand – they had all become white-hot. Someone was screaming – not one of them, but they couldn't tell if it was Voldemort or not. The screaming was agonizing, almost as agonizing as the light and the heat from the wands.

The light faded away gently, and as if on cue, they all dropped their smoking wands. Hermione looked around for any sign of Voldemort, but he was gone. There was no sign he had been defeated, yet he had vanished. Hermione rushed over to Harry. He was lying on the ground, somewhat conscious.

"Did we win?" he asked faintly.

Hermione smiled. "Well, he's gone. We didn't see anything; it was too bright."

Harry pushed himself off the ground and stood. Ginny was hugging Ron and Draco was standing over his dead father. Hermione helped Harry take a few steps over to Ron.

"You did well, Ron," Harry said, grinning.

"Thanks, mate. Couldn't have done it without your help." They were about to hug, but decided to have a manly handshake instead.

Hermione looked up at Ron and blushed again. Ron looked everywhere except at Hermione. Harry, noticing this, stepped away from them and motioned Draco and Ginny away as well.

Ron looked around at them and started to protest, but Hermione's voice shushed him. "What did you think about for the Spell?" she asked boldly.

Ron's face became even redder. "Erm…well, you, because we were supposed to, right?"

Hermione nodded. "Yeah. But I mean, did you…did you think about friendship?"

Ron chewed on his lip for a moment and said, "I thought about all the times we've spent together. For seven years – we've been through a lot. I thought it'd be enough to get the spell going."

Hermione's face seemed to falter for just a second. "Oh. Yeah, me too. We should get going. It's probably morning." Hermione grabbed Ron's hand with one and Harry's hand with the other and began to lead them out of the room.

Draco stood at the base of the steps with Ginny, holding her hand. It was still fairly dark in the house, but a beam of light from the early sunrise shone through the window directly across the basement door. He looked up, directly into the sunlight, and squinted. Perhaps he'd be ascending into something better, a life without the threat of death hanging over his head. The fact that he was supposed to be in Azkaban didn't faze him. Maybe he'd be able to be with Ginny in peace.

Draco squeezed Ginny's hand and began the ascension.

THE END

A/N 1: Dissignare means "to break open a seal" in Latin. I needed a word, okay?! And the whole Joining Spell thingy…well, based on Latin words, convenio means "to join together" and amor obviously means "love." So I just kind of squished them together, thus making convamoris. The big conflict scene is kind of hard to understand because there were so many people involved. I'm sorry, but I tried to make it so no one was just standing around. Also, I know that the light in the stairwell would have to be bending in impossible ways, but can we just pretend that it's just magical light?

A/N 2: I want to thank all of the reviewers for staying with me even though I went on hiatus twice and left no indication of whether or not I was going to finish the story. I'm really glad I did, and even though I know it's not perfect and there are obvious flaws, overall I'm really proud of MVV and I hope that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I want to thank Ashley, my best friend and beta-reader, for pushing me to finish it and always saying the right things. I don't know if I'm going to write a sequel or not, but keep on the lookout. Thank you!

Love,

Lindsay