Author's note: Sorry, I've had sooo many assessments and I just haven't had that much time to put this up. I know that isn't much of an excuse but I promise to get them done faster. I do have exams coming up soon, so don't expect anything for the moment. After those I'll have the summer holidays so I should be able to get lots done then!

There are some parts of this chapter that I really like, and others that I hate. I don't have a beta reader yet as Tarni and Hanusia are still procrastinating and not reading this, no matter how much I pressure them… (insert evil glare of doom here)

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything related to it… blah blah blah…

The Prayer of a Dragon – Riverside innocence

Draco fell to his knees, gasping. His dry coughs echoed around the dark chamber, bouncing off all the hard, unforgiving stone. He felt a hand grab the back of his robes and he was roughly dragged to his feet, straining his eyes in the suffocating darkness. He felt like his entire world had closed in on him and for a moment is head reeled, his senses spiralling out of control. Draco staggered and swallowed, trying to calm himself. After everything that had happened, he really did not need to be stuck in a really, really small cave full of Death Eaters that would kill him if he made the slightest mistake.

A flickering green light was conjured, illuminating Snape's grim face. Blinking, Draco looked around him. He was standing in a cave far larger than he had imagined with an archaic, high, curved roof. It reminded him slightly of a muggle church that he had seen. Once his eyes had adjusted, he could vaguely make out some intricately carved eroded stone pillars, stretching high up to the far away ceiling. Draco stood in the centre of the chamber, craning his neck as he stared up in awe at the roof eerily lit up with flickering green shadows. He couldn't understand how a place such as this could go for so long without the ministry finding out about it.

The other Death Eaters did not seem as impressed as Draco was; they were instead stretching and sitting down. With a start, Draco realised that Solden had vanished.

"Where's Solden?" he asked Snape, who was staring into his fire with an incomprehensible expression on his face.

Snape shrugged. "Gone to announce our arrival, I expect." A sinking feeling materialised in Draco's stomach. He nodded as if it was obvious and walked over to a corner of the chamber where he settled down, trying to appear like he was bored.

The truth was, he was far from that. For almost a year now he had entertained the notion of swaggering into Voldemort's assembly in front of all of the other Death Eaters, successfully returning after murdering Dumbledore. That dream seemed like a far-gone wisp of hopeful reality now, never to happen. He had boasted about his important mission in front of all of his friends back at Hogwarts and had filled himself with a deluded self-importance. Now it was Snape who would be getting the glory. Snape who would be redeemed in the eyes of every Death Eater. For Draco there was only shame. He had the chance to finish Dumbledore, but he had proved himself weak and allowed the old fool to throw him off balance. It proved he was weak; not capable of being a true, ruthless, valued Death Eater. He shook his head. No matter what happened now, the past was the past. He could not change that; he could only shape his future. There could be no turning back now – he had to prove himself more than ever.

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Harry sat idly on a bench near the small pond near The Burrow, staring down at his clasped hands. He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn't hear Ginny slipping onto the bench beside him until he felt her arm around his shoulders.

She squeezed his shoulder gently. "I heard you're leaving tomorrow."

Harry nodded. "I have to go back to the Dursley's before I turn seventeen, to make sure that my protection with them still lasts." He sighed. "Everything seems so difficult now. When I was little, it was just to graduate Hogwarts. I then decided to become an Auror and somehow destroy Voldemort single-handedly along the way, as well as becoming Head Boy."

A choked laugh escaped Ginny. "You don't set high goals, do you?"

"I guess I was a tad delusional," Harry said, smiling.

Ginny playfully punched him on the arm. "Hah – I made you smile!" she said, triumphantly. "I haven't seen you smile since Dumbledore…" she broke off, mentally cursing her stupidity whilst Harry stared down at his hands, all of his troubles assaulting his mind once more.

A long silence fell between the two, broken only by the tree branches restlessly moving in the wind. A small duckling bravely dipped into the pond, braving the cold. Its long legs kicked everywhere, filled with adolescence awkwardness. It seemed to be caught between its fluffy babyhood and dangerous adulthood to Ginny.

After a while, Harry stood up stretching his legs. "I'd better go pack," he said. "I suppose we'll be leaving early tomorrow."

Ginny swung her legs around on the bench so she could see Harry better. "What do you mean, we?" she asked, raising one eyebrow.

Harry looked at her, surprised. "Ron and Hermione are coming with me. They wouldn't have it any other way."

"And neither will I" Ginny said, standing up. "I'm coming with you too."

Harry shook his head. "You can't come, Gin." She stared back at him, her mouth set in a determined line. Harry knew well by now that the expression on her face meant she would not be swayed. His voice softened and he put his hands on her shoulders, staring down into her clear eyes. "You're too important to me."

Ginny scowled. "I don't care" she said. "You're important to me too and you are not going to leave me behind. I'm not a little girl, I'm 16 years old! Wasn't I there with you at the Ministry? You were only 15 then, I…"

"I love you." Ginny was cut off mind-sentence in astonishment and Harry continued. "Every single person that is important to me is dead or in danger. My parents, Sirius, Dumbledore… I don't want to add your name to that list. As long as you are near me or 'with' me, you are in terrible danger." Harry sighed and gently squeezed her shoulders. "I love you too much to let you go."

Ginny bit her lip and looked down at the ground. "I love you too, so much that I'm not going to let you go into danger alone."

"I won't be alone; Ron and Hermione will be with me…" Harry protested, but Ginny took no notice.

"I don't care about what V-Voldemort may do," she looked up at him, her eyes bright with tears and determination. "I'm coming and that's final." On a sudden impulse, she leaned in and kissed him. Ginny felt his surprise, then relaxation as he bent in and kissed her back. She wrapped her hands around his shoulders and kissed him again. He dug his hand into the side of her and she pulled away, gasping in laughter. Harry looked at her, his eyes amused.

"So you are ticklish, then," he said.

Ginny was half laughing and half crying, tears running down her cheeks. "You are so stupid" she said, giving him a push on the shoulder.

"Whoa!" Harry staggered backwards, slipping on a patch of mud. He grabbed her arm as he fell and in surprise, she was jerked forward with him. They fell into the river with a splash, sending the duckling far away rocking on the turbulent waves.

With a laugh, Harry got up and splashed Ginny, who shrieked and fell on him again, pushing him under the water. With some effort he picked her up and dumped her on her back in the water, managing to get her thoroughly wet. Ginny laughed and stood up, shaking her wet hair out of her eyes. Harry bent down and lifted her up by the arms. Instead of dumping her back in the water again, he bent down and kissed her. She kissed him hungrily back, not noticing the water lapping around their waists. Slowly the couple sank down, the water washing away all of their troubles.

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Solden lead the group of Death Eaters through a labyrinth of passageways dimly lit by flickering green candlelight casting ominous, flickering shadows on all the walls. Draco tried to memorise the path that they were taking but he found that after the 7th turn he had lost count. He suspected that Solden was purposely taking them the long way round, but he did not know why. They had all been hand-picked by the Dark Lord for this mission –why should there be all of these unnecessary precautions? Unless... Draco tried to push the thought from his mind as with a start he realised that they had stopped at an inconspicuous-looking blank stone wall.

It reminded him somewhat of the entrance to the Slytherin common room at Hogwarts. Snape crouched down and ran his fingers over the wall. With a grunt of satisfaction, he found what he was looking for and rolled up his sleeve. The Dark Mark that they all bore was revealed and Snape pressed it against the thing he had found on the wall. Immediately, iridescent green lines came out from that spot and spread all over the rock, revealing a larger glowing replica of the Dark Mark. It brightened, then faded as the seemingly solid rock wall disappeared into nothingness. A large chamber was revealed, even more ornately carved than the one that Draco had first seen.

It was lavishly furnished with rich tapestries, deep green upholstery and burning torches and was filled with other Death Eaters. A green runner carpet ran lay on the floor, leading from the entrance to the end of the chamber where a large throne was. Draco's mouth went dry as he recognised the figure sitting on the throne.

Voldemort, the Dark Lord.

Draco had bragged to his friends about meeting the Dark Lord and receiving an important mission from him, but he had never told them what it actually felt like to be in Voldemort's presence. He acted like it was all glory, but in reality all Draco felt was a cold fear.

The band of Death Eaters strode towards the throne and Draco instinctively raised his chin and fell into his usual, arrogant swagger. He was painfully aware of all the other people in the room watching him and beads of sweat started to roll down his cheek, hidden by his mask. Draco thought that for an instant he glimpsed his mother, but under the heavy black hoods and stark white masks it was impossible to tell.

They reached throne and as one, they lowered themselves down on one knee, their heads bent.

"Rise" a deathly cold voice hissed, coming out from the hood that covered the Dark Lord's face. Draco got unsteadily to his feet and raised his eyes. Slowly, Voldemort pulled his hood down, revealing his face. His eyes swept over each person before him. When they reached Draco they lingered there. A sharp, fierce intrusion knifed though his mind and he heard Voldemort's voice echoing in there. 'So... you did not kill Dumbledore yourself…' Draco bit his lip and tried to stand up straighter, a feat that was becoming increasingly more difficult. 'You will be punished for this…' Mercifully, the voice disappeared and Draco heard Voldemort speak out loud to all of them.

"Tell me, Snape. Why did you kill Dumbledore yourself?" Snape opened his mouth to speak but Voldemort ploughed mercilessly on. "Was it that Draco was too weak? That he could not bear to kill anyone?" Voldemort smirked. "I must remind you Draco – failure to perform duties is punishable. Be glad that I am merciful and will not kill you instead."

He raised his wand and Draco shut his eyes, bracing himself for the inevitable pain. "Crucio!" Draco fell to his knees, screaming aloud. The pain was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. He writhed on the ground as Voldemort stood over him, a cruel smile on his face. He lowered his wand and the pain stopped. Draco was aware of the room emptying. He was left alone in the huge and he curled up into a small ball, sobbing.

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