Hello all. Here's the next chapter. The next one will be up next Sunday.

Review Responses:

harmoni, if you thought things were bad for Harry and Ginny in the last chapter, just wait until you see what I've got planned for them later on. And I had to be a little of quippy Buffy in there, she's been decidedly absent for a while.

clcountry, you'll just have to read on to find out what happens to Haldir. :)

John, I hope I don't disappoint too badly with this battle. I tend to detest writing them, as they are usually problematic for me. But I'm crossing my fingers.

Kyra2, trying to send Buffy back with the women would have overly complicated things, plus he had seen slight evidence of her abilities during the warg battle. He does have his people to think about. And I'm glad you liked everyone's reactions.

A/N:

I broke the first part of the chapter up into little scenes, but once the battle starts it starts to jump around from person to person.

Because fanfiction. net seems to have issues in allowing special characters used in these fics. When they are speaking Elvish it will look like this. When telepathy is being used, it will look like this.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Helm's Deep

"You guys try to stick close to Aragorn," Buffy told Harry and Ginny before she left to go stand with Legolas and Gimli.

"Wait!" Ginny cried. "Harry and I thought of something."

"What?"

"Could we use magic against the orcs?"

The slayer frowned. "Galadriel said not to."
"No. She didn't," Ginny said with a shake of her head. "She told Dawn not to use her magic. She said nothing about the rest of us."

"She didn't, did she?" Buffy asked with a grin. "Wand away then." Then she headed back.

Ginny beamed at Harry. "Advantage for us."

scenebreak

Buffy walked along the Deepening Wall until she reached her spot. "We should pass word along to the others that the kids are going to be using magic."

"Are you sure that is wise?" Legolas asked.

"I was making harder decisions than that at their age. They say it will be fine and I believe them."
Legolas studied her for a moment and then inclined his head slightly. "If you believe it, then that is enough for me. What about you Master Dwarf?"
"I'll believe it. Any girl who can fight like ten men has my faith."

scenebreak

Dawn bounced nervously on the balls of her feet as she looked out into the deepening night. Off in the distance she could see faint, flickering torchlight.

I do wish you were wearing more armor Amaurëa, Haldir said from beside her.

I may be tough, but it would just slow me down. I'm fine with this. Dawn said, pulling on the leather jerkin that Aragorn had finally found and told her to wear. She tilted her head to the side for a moment before saying, Buffy said that Ginny and Harry are going to be using magic. Might want to warn the others so they don't freak.

Haldir nodded and began passing the word.

She turned to Draco. "Buffy said you could use yours if you wanted."

"I might. What about you?"

"Too dangerous. It's too close to my elven magic."

scenebreak

Ginny turned to Aragorn. "Where's the burning pitch?"

"What?"

"In all the old stories from home about sieges there was always burning pitch to throw over the wall. Where's ours?"

"We don't have pitch," he said slowly.

"Then what about burning oil?"

scenebreak

Buffy's eyes widened as she looked out over the sea of incoming orcs. She knew when Aragorn said that there were over ten thousand that that meant there was a lot. She just didn't realize that a lot was that many.

She heard grunting and looked over to see Gimli hopping to try and look over the nearly chest high wall that served as protection for them.

"You could have picked a better spot," the dwarf grumbled.

Legolas smirked at him as Aragorn stepped up behind them.

"We ready?" Spike asked and the Ranger nodded in response.

"Well lad, whatever luck you live by, let's hope it lasts the night," Gimli said, resting his hands atop his ax.

"That's a jinx if I ever heard one," Spike muttered just before lightening flashed, followed by a crash of thunder.

"You just had to say it, didn't you?" Buffy accused him.

"Your friends are with you, Aragorn," Legolas said over the sound of marching orcs.

"Let's hope they last the night," Gimli said softly.

Aragorn clasped Legolas' shoulder one last time before going back to stand with Harry and Ginny.

"He's real talkative tonight," Spike commented to no one in particular.

"Perfect. Just what we needed," Buffy sighed as she could hear rain hitting the armor on those around her. "I hate rain." She looked at Spike and said, "This is all your fault."

The sudden silence distracted Spike from making a retort. They looked out to see that the orcs had stopped.

"What's happening out there?" Gimli asked, jumping once again.

"Should I describe it to you?" Legolas asked with a smile. "Or would you like me to find you a box?"

Buffy and Spike laughed along with Gimli. If they could only keep their spirits up, they should all make it through the night.

scenebreak

"This is going to be miserable," Dawn complained as water dripped off the tip of her nose. "Fighting is bad enough on its own, but to have to do it in the rain..."

Draco swallowed back his stomach's flip-flopping to smile at her. "Lodge a complaint with Mother Nature."

A lone arrow cutting through the night silenced her reply. She watched it strike an orc and it slowly toppled forward. The ones around it just stared in disbelief.

She couldn't help it. She let out a giggle Elven eyes all around her turned to her in surprise and dismay, but she didn't care. Somehow the laughter lightened her spirits and she pulled an arrow out of her quiver with a smile. The others did the same, and together they waited for the signal.

Just when she thought the tension could get no thicker, she heard Aragorn cry, Prepare to fire! She obediently notched her arrow and waited again. After only a few seconds he commanded, Release the arrows!

Dawn let hers fly and watched as rank after rank of orcs fell lifelessly to the ground. As she continued to fire, she was dimly aware of arrows flying over her head. When she had first heard that they planned to place elven archers on the ground behind them, she had been a little skeptical, but had trusted Aragorn. Now, she could see that they, too, were able to eliminate orcs and not any of the good guys.

Arrow after arrow was fired and orcs dropped like flies. But for every one that fell, ten more took its place. They began to fire their own arrows and crossbolts at the defenders. Flashes of light could be seen coming from the Wall as Ginny, Harry, and Spike targeted enemy archers.

"Don't suppose you have a shielding spell?" Buffy asked Spike as the guy next to her was hit.

"It works as long as you don't want to shoot back," he answered after sending another curse.

"Never mind," she said.

"Ginny, try hitting the ladders!" Harry called out as the orcs began raising huge ladders so they could scale the walls.

She threw a fire spell, but it fizzled. "The wood is too wet!"

Harry cursed. "I don't know anything to knock it apart with."
"It's too late!" She cried as the orcs began to flow over the wall.

Draco had never been more thankful that Dawn had talked him into cutting his hair. The rain had caused it to become plastered to his forehead. Any longer and he would have problems seeing through the blond strands.

He clashed swords with an orc before kicking it away from him. Using the extra room, he quickly ran it through and then ducked under the sword of another. Before he righted himself, Dawn cut its head off. He took a half a second to assure himself that she was unhurt before engaging another.

Buffy was kicking an orc off the wall when she heard Gimli cry, "Legolas, two already!" Then Legolas' reply of, "I'm on seventeen!"

"Argh!" Gimli cried in outrage. "I'll have no pointy-ear outscoring me!"

"You have to do better than that, boys!" Buffy called out. "I'm on twenty-six!"

The two turned to look at her in surprise only to see her knives whirling in a deadly dance. Every attacker that came near her never had a chance.

"Thirty!" She blithely cried.

Grinning, the dwarf and elf returned to the battle and their competition.

Dawn frowned as she heard Gimli counting. "Eighteen! Nineteen! Twenty!" What on earth was he doing?

Counting his kills. Legolas, Gimli, and I are having a friendly contest. Came Buffy's voice in her head.

Did I think that that loudly? Dawn asked as she cut the arm off an orc before running it through.

Yes, you did love. Draco said.

Sorry.

She could hear Aragorn telling Legolas to bring someone down. She turned to see Legolas firing at an orc running with a torch towards the wall. The others had cleared a path for it and he ran like a bat out of hell.

Legolas had already hit it twice, but it wouldn't give up. Dropping her own sword, she drew an arrow and fired. The orc dropped when her arrow struck its head. But another picked the torch up and carried on.

It dove into the culvert that allowed the stream to enter the ravine through the wall and that's when all hell broke loose.

A huge section of the wall exploded sending rock and bodies flying in every direction. It had been such a shock that all movement stilled for a moment.

"Bloody hell," Draco whispered. Then his eye spotted several familiar figures lying motionless on the ground. "Shit! Aragorn and Ginny!"

"Go," Dawn said. "I'll cover you."

He took a running leap off the wall and rolled when he hit the ground. Recovering quickly he ran towards his fallen friends. Dimly he was aware of arrows hitting any orc that was near him.

By the time he had reached them, they were starting to come to. "You two have to stay separated from now on. Trouble just finds you," he said in relief.

They got shakily to their feet in time to see Gimli leap from the wall into the middle of the orcs that were streaming through the breached wall. The dwarf was knocking orcs out left and right, but it was clear that he would soon be overpowered.

Aragorn raised his sword and looked at the elves that had been left on the ground. "Charge!"

"I don't see Harry!" Ginny cried.

"I'm sure he's fine, let's go," Draco assured her.

Ginny and Draco charged forward minding the spears that were looking for a fresh body to slaughter.

"Gunpowder?!" Buffy cried as she cut down an orc. "No one mentioned gunpowder existed here! That's important info!"

"I don't think they knew either," Spike said, throwing an orc over the wall. "They seemed to be just as confused."

Dawn could hear Aragorn ordering them to the Keep. She had just slashed an orc across the chest when she heard Haldir cry out in pain. She looked up to see him pressing a hand to his side and an orc with a raised ax coming up behind him.

Not thinking, she raised her hand and cried, "Súrë!" A gust of wind sent it flying back, then she ran to the injured elf.

"You're glowing," he said softly, only his eyes betraying the pain he was in.

"Crap," she muttered. She forced her magic to calm and the green light died. "Let's get you out of here." Then she helped him make his way inside.

Spike reached the gateroom of the Hornburg shortly after the gate had been breached. He had gotten separated from Buffy during the retreat, but he knew she was fine. He could see Aragorn and Gimli slipping out a side exit and followed them.

They stepped onto a small ledge just to the side of the main gate. Aragorn peered around the corner to see the orcs storming the gate.

"Come on! We can take 'em!" Gimli encouraged.

"It's a long way," Aragorn informed him.

Gimli took a look and mumbled, "Toss me."
"What?"
"I cannot jump the distance! You'll have to toss me!" Aragorn nodded and went to grab him. "Don't tell the elf."

"Not a word," Aragorn promised before throwing him. Then he and Spike leaped over.

The causeway was barely wide enough for the three of them to stand next to each other. One by one, the orcs fell before them. They could hear sounds of the gate being braced behind them.

"Aragorn! Gimli! Spike! Get out of there!" Théoden ordered before the last timber was in place.

They couldn't go through the gate and they'd never make it back to the ledge so they fought on, until they heard Legolas' voice from above and saw a rope lowered to them.

"Go!" Spike told Aragorn and Gimli.

"What about yourself?" Aragorn asked.

"Don't worry about me, just go!" Spiked ordered. He shoved them towards the rope and turned back to the orcs.

Not worried about hiding who he was, he let his game face come forward. With a vicious roar, he let his demon tear into the orcs.

When his enhanced hearing told him the two had reached the top, he reined his demon back in. Cutting down two more orcs to give him room, he looked up and gauged the distance. He crouched and pushed off. Reaching out, his fingers grabbed on to the ledge and then two men helped him over.

"How did you..." Legolas started.

"Not now, later," Spike said.

Harry saw Draco slip and fall back in the mud. As the blond recovered an orc came up on him. The Gryffindor made a flying tackle and knocked it to the ground. Rolling off of it and onto his feet, he quickly cut its head off.

"Thanks Harry," Draco breathed.
"Don't mention it."

Ginny heard the call to retreat inside and she began herding the teenaged boys around her. One, who was not much older than herself, had become paralyzed with fear as an orc came at him.

Anger boiled in her blood that the orcs were taking so many lives, but she would not let them have that one if she could do anything about it. She knew she'd never reach him in time so she raised her wand. "Avada kedavra!"

Green light speared the darkness and hit the orc, killing it. The boy looked at her with wide eyes before finally following the others. It was only then that she realized she had used an Unforgivable.

scenebreak

"Are you ok?" Dawn asked Ginny when she had joined the others in the Great Hall.

Ginny's face was pale and her eyes full of pain. "Yeah, just a little tired."

Dawn looked at her in disbelief, but didn't say anything. There were bigger things to worry about, like the army of orcs beating on the door.

"The fortress is taken. It is over," Théoden said in defeat.

"What?" Buffy cried.

"You said this fortress would never fall while your men defend it!" Aragorn reminded him. "They still defend it! They have died defending it!"

"I for one am not giving up until I'm dead. And even then, I might keep fighting," Buffy added.

"Is there no other way for the women and children to get out of the caves?" Aragorn asked.

"There is one passage," Gamling said. "It leads into the mountains. But they will not get far. The Uruk-hai are too many."

"Send word for them to make for the mountain pass. And barricade the entrance," he ordered.

"Ginny and I will go," Dawn said.

"Me too," said Harry, and the three headed for the caves.

"So much death," Théoden said sadly. "What can men do against such reckless hate?"

Aragorn's eyes shined in desperation as he said, "Ride out with me. Ride out and meet them."

"For death and glory."

"For Rohan. For your people."

"The sun is rising," Gimli said and they all looked to see pale sunlight shining through the windows.

With renewed vigor and determination, Théoden cried, "Yes. Yes! The horn of Helm Hammerhand shall sound in the Deep one last time!"

"Yes!" Gimli cheered and he ran up the steps to the horn.

There was a flurry of movement as the horses were brought into the hall to make the charge.

Buffy knew that this was a final act of desperation. She hoped Dawn, Ginny, and Harry would find a way home one day. She wished Draco had gone with them, but she could tell by the determined look in his eye that he wasn't going anywhere.

She pulled Spike to her for one final toe-curling kiss. "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you, too. But we're going to make it," he assured her, but she didn't answer.

They mounted their horses and waited for the signal.

"Fell deeds awake!" Théoden exclaimed. "Now for wrath! Now for ruin! And a red dawn!"

A deep horn could be heard as the door finally gave way. Holding his sword high, Théoden commanded, "Forth Eorlingas!!"

The horses surged forward, knocking down and running over any orcs in the way. They rode through the fortress and out onto the causeway. Buffy's stamina began to wear thin as she swung her sword time and again.

However, a bright light on top of the ravine caught her eye. She could see a lone rider looking down at them. The fighting around them slowed as a huge body of horses came charging down the ravine with Gandalf in the lead.

"Whoo hoo!!" She cried as the orcs began to break and run.