"What time were you born, Harry?" asked Ginny.
The four of them had been sitting on the benches in the court room or two hours.
"I don't know…" Harry replied slowly.
"Right…" Ginny said, faint pink rising in her cheeks. She still had her wand in her hand, but she was relaxed against Draco's chest, sitting between his legs.
Harry was stretched out on a bench, his hands behind his head. Remus was in front of the veil, pacing slowly.
Just then there was a click and the door swung open. The four of them all jumped up, raising their wands.
"Whoa…It's just us…" came Ron's voice.
"Ron?" Ginny and Harry both said at the same time.
"It's alright, you guys can go in," Ron said, directing his words back into the room behind him.
A small group filed in after Ron. Hermione, Dumbledore, Moody, Mr. Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and Tonks.
Hermione jumped from bench to bench until she was in Harry's arms.
"How come you guys are here?" asked Ginny, now settled back into Draco's lap.
"Professor Dumbledore figured there would be a fight here, considering You-Know-Who probably knows we're here tonight," said Hermione.
"Does anyone know what time it is?" asked Ginny.
"4:30," replied Luna almost immediately.
"I'm assuming we've got about twenty more minutes to wait," said Dumbledore wisely. "Harry was born at 4:50."
"There you go, Gin," said Harry.
The now significantly larger group settled in again. Ginny yawned and settle back against her boyfriend, closing her eyes.
The teenagers of the group were all gathered together in one section of the benches, whispering excitedly and nervously.
"Ten minutes," said Dumbledore.
Harry tensed a little. This was a lot more nerve wracking than a pre-quidditch match. His hands were shaking a little.
After five minutes, Luna started to become annoying, as every thirty seconds she recited how much time they had left. When she said 'One minute,' everyone started to get up, and pulling out their wands for the ones who hadn't already.
At 'Thirty seconds' the group began watching the curtain expectantly.
Suddenly, there was a loud bang at the back of the room. The entire group turned to see Lucius Malfoy standing triumphantly in the doorway. "I've found it, Master," he said to someone behind him.
Draco was shaking violently. Dumbledore, recognizing this, raised his hand, levitating the boy up and over the dais, careful to keep his face hidden from view. He landed safely out of sight behind the veil.
About a dozen men in black cloaks swarmed into the room. About 10 cries of expeliarmus were heard from the people who had already been in the room. Three or four wands flew up into the air towards them.
'That's four down,' thought Harry.
"Stupefy!" he cried loudly, waving his wand at Lucius. He dropped to his knees to avoid the curse, hitting his knees on the floor.
"You'll pay for that, Potter!" Malfoy pointed his wand at the boy. "Cruci-" he fell to the floor in an unconscious heap. Leaving Draco in clear view standing directly behind his father, wand pointed right where Lucius' back had been.
Draco's eyes were wide. All around him a huge fight was going on, but for him the world had frozen. "I…I-"
"DRACO!" Ginny screamed. She jumped on him, knocking him to the ground, just as a green light flashed across the room, right where he was standing. It hit the stone wall, having no effect.
Ginny stayed on top of him, blocking all the spells she could that came their way. Draco was in no state to be fighting.
The strangest thoughts were flashing through his mind, like the first time his father had beat him. When his father taught him to use the Cruciatus curse. When his father told him he was to be marked. When his father taught him Avada Kedavra. 'And now I don't have a father…'
He noticed the small form of his girlfriend climbing off of him.
The fight was over; all the death eaters were out cold or dead.
The room suddenly when silent as a deathly chill ran through all of its inhabitants, blowing the veil open. A man in a black cloak, hood covering his face, stepped out from behind it, wand extended. After looking around the room, he reached up and pulled the hood from his face, laying it down his back, revealing his identity…
