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Harry was in front, with Hermione and Ron behind him only slightly. Dumbledore had instructed that as many students as possible were to remain safe from the war that was approaching the castle silently. The teachers were gathering, and Hermione knew that the Order was also being called, save for the injured Weasley parents and those who had already passed.

This would be the first battle of many, but the most important one. This was going to be the end of either Voldemort or Harry. Hermione felt the dread descending upon all that knew what was coming. Harry's shoulders were slumped, but his face was etched with hard determination.

They entered the Gryffindor common room, and found two people waiting for them. Ginny and Neville stood together, their faces reflective of Harry's.

"No. Dumbledore said we were to protect as many students as possible."

Ginny stepped forward, tears glistening in her blue eyes. "I'm not leaving you, Harry. Whether you accept it or not, I love you and I always will."

Hermione smiled sadly, and turned to Neville. "And you?"

He held up something in his hand, and Hermione gasped. He had a coin from the days of Dumbledore's Army, and it was glimmering with a powerful red light. A soft knock at the portrait revealed Luna, who was holding the same relic.

Hermione's eyes were wide, for she hadn't activated the coins. "They are just to show us we're needed, Hermione. And right now, we are." Luna's normally dreamy voice had an edge to it, and the six teenagers stood together in the dark room, their faces illuminated with the firelight and the glow form the coins. They looked around the room for what may be the last time and then silently filed out of the room. Harry's face was resigned as he stole glances at his friends, and Hermione touched his shoulder gently.

"Whatever happens, Harry, it's not your fault. It's nobody else's fault but Voldemort's, and we are going to end him forever today."

"And if we don't? You don't know what it's like to face him, Hermione. You can't even begin to imagine." Harry's voice was clipped, and Hermione withdrew her hand, stung at the remark. He turned away from her, and she briefly closed her eyes, dread tickling her spine. Dumbledore was right…her friend was slipping away.

Draco had joined the Death Eaters with the intent to hinder their efforts as best as possible without getting himself killed. Dumbledore had been adamant about that, and Hermione wondered what the old man knew about what was needed to defeat the evil Lord that he wasn't letting on.

As they exited the castle, Hermione shuddered. The wind was biting, and the cold sunk into her bones. The dim light of dusk was beginning to devour the sun, and Hermione knew that there was a little over an hour until they would be in complete darkness. Dark figures stood together at the base of the school, and Hermione felt a spark of warm hope as she saw the group's number increasing steadily as more shadows emerged from outside of the school's grounds.

Dumbledore's face shone above the others, and Hermione saw him glace at Harry, the apprehension easily read in his features. Then his bright eyes connected with Hermione's and he nodded gravely.

Suddenly, a deathly red light began to shine on the outskirts of the horizon, and Hermione watched with the others as white masks shining from black cloaks appeared. Fire seemed to ignite at their feet as they destroyed everything in their path. The scent of death and smoke began to fill the air.

Hermione scanned the faces of the approaching Death Eaters, but they were completely covered and she couldn't find Draco. In her desperate search, she found the red eyes within his ranks, glimmering with evil power. Harry had found him too, and took a menacing step forward.

Hermione grabbed on to her friend's arm. "Not yet."

The six teenagers stood in the back of their army, which now seemed small compared to Voldemort's. They looked at each other, memorized each face, knowing that by the end of this, they would probably never look at another face again. Colors would be gone forever, emotion would rot with the rest of their bodies, and they would never feel another person's touch.

Luna's eyes had maintained their dreamy gaze, but behind it was a fire burning with raw energy. Her blond hair looked ethereal in the red light advancing on them, and locks of it crossed her pale skin.

Hermione saw the fear cross Neville's face before he banished it for good. There was no place for fear in this war…it would cause hesitation and death. She knew he was picturing his parents alongside his friends, and that he would avenge them even with his final breath. His loyalty was unwavering, and his power was growing.

Harry maintained his stony gaze even as Ginny clutched onto his arm, fully knowing that it might be the last time she would ever get to feel his warmth beside hers. She had fallen in love with a fated hero and would never give that up, even if it meant she would live the rest of her life in pain.

Ron looked at Hermione, apologies for his trespasses visible in his eyes. She smiled at him, assuring him that she would love him as a friend for as long as she lived. He took her hand and she hugged him, breathing in his aura, the reality of what was about to happen settling in her stomach at last. This could be the last time she ever touched him or saw the light in his eyes…in any of her friend's eyes.

She longed to shake Harry, to tell him that they were there for him and that all he had to do was reach out to them and accept their love. But he simply stood unmoving, and she bit her lip, looking back at the oncoming Death Eaters.

A scream pierced the air, the first scream of death. Hermione saw a witch she didn't know drop from their ranks, forever to be still. With that, curses started to light up the air.

The six remained behind, hidden in the shadow of the castle behind them. Hermione desperately searched the now bloody field in from of them, looking for a sign that Draco was still alive, that he was coming for her.

Dumbledore was slaughtering Death Eaters with a cold control that Hermione had never seen before from the old man. He was determined to keep Harry alive, and his love for the younger boy was overpowering any masked killer that came near him.

Harry was pacing, eager to into the fight, but his friends held him back carefully; know that the time wasn't right yet. Time passed slowly, people's moans of death filling the air as green light advanced towards them. Their bodies fell on the ground lightly. Their eyes were open, staring unseeingly at the battle that raged on. Tears streamed down Hermione's face as she spotted people she knew fall…Moody's eye was slowly rolling away from his still body, and Tonks' hair was covering her white face in a bright red wave.

Finally, the figures standing ceased their bloodthirsty massacre. Dumbledore was behind the few remaining members of his army, and only two Death Eaters remained by their concealed Lord. The reason for their halted fighting slowly grew clearer as the red light that had loomed over the battlefield drew into Voldemort, making his eyes shine out even more.

Potter…

The voice hissed out, and even though no words had been actually spoken, everybody felt them run through their minds. Dumbledore stepped towards the evil Lord and Hermione saw him in the light for the first time. He had been weakened during the fight, and blood was dripping from his wizened face like sweat. His steps were steady but she could see his fingers trembling from the effort it took to move.

"Harry…" Hermione's moan was barely audible. "He's going to be killed."

"No." Harry's voice was strong, and he began to step into the dim light where he would be seen by the Dark Lord and his followers. Hermione looked fearfully at the Death Eaters, and saw one of them turn slightly to meet her gaze. She finally released the breath that had been caught in her throat, and stepped forward to align herself with Harry.

Dumbledore paused, and looked at the group of six emerging from the dark. In his hesitance, Voldemort somehow cast a spell that enclosed all of Harry's other support, including the Headmaster, in a shimmering green circle of light. Dumbledore looked helpless for the first time, and Hermione felt her fear multiply at his face.

Voldemort stepped forward, ready to face Harry. "I will deal with your Headmaster later. Now…it is you and I." His sneer grew as he saw the six children in front of him. "Pathetic. Lucius, take care of the rest of these brats."

The Death Eater next to Draco stepped forward, his wand out. As he surveyed the students in front of him, his cold eyes rested on Hermione's. A smirk played on his lips, but as he prepared to cast the Killing Curse, his eyes suddenly widened, a gasp vanishing on his lips as the iciness melted and was replaced by death.

As he fell, Voldemort looked back at the boy standing behind him. A boy who had his wand pointed at his dead father, whose mask was off to reveal a look of dismay mixed with disbelief. He had just murdered the man who had brought him up, who had haunted him with torture and cruel words, yes, but who had gave him life.

He raised his eyes from the prone body at his feet, and slowly moved to join the group standing in front of Voldemort. The red eyes followed him, narrowing as they realized the betrayal. Now seven stood before him. Seven.

Hermione smiled as she realized the significance of the number. Seven signs pointed to Jesus as a Muggle messiah, Harry had a seven inch wand, there had been seven tasks guarding the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry was born in the seventh month of the year, and now seven teenagers stood together their own salvation, the salvation of their entire world. Things were finally falling into place, aligning for this final moment. But Harry had been slipping, and Hermione knew he wasn't ready.

The group encircled Voldemort as Harry stepped closer to him. The two wizards pointed their wands at each other, ready to duel, ready to kill or die trying. Voldemort quickly yelled the Cruciatus curse, hitting Harry square in the chest. Luna ran forward without a thought, and murmured Finite Incantum while flicking her wand at Harry. Her intelligence, the reason she had been sorted into Ravenclaw, shone as she completed the spell perfectly, allowing the sweet release of pain to seep through Harry's body. Voldemort scowled and sent a bolt of green light at the blond.

Hermione screamed as Luna's thin frame was illuminated by the light, but she saw her dreamy smile return as the girl crumpled. Neville let out a sob, and Voldemort turned back to Harry, who was slowly rising, fumbling with his wand.

"She is dead because of you, Potter…" The snake-like voice seared through the air, and seemed to pierce Harry, as his green eyes rested on the pale figure lying on the ground. His resolve weakened even more, and Voldemort sneered as he raised his wand again. Harry wasn't going to fight back, his eyes were dull again as he looked at the body.

"No, it's not because of you Harry." Neville's voice held the same note it had when he had stood up to his friends in fourth year. Voldemort hissed, and turned to the pudgy boy, releasing Harry from the influence of his outstretched wand.

"You are nothing but a Half-Blood leader who relies on his Death Eaters to carry out his dirty work." Neville's face was steady, and his voice openly defiant. Harry was staring at him in disbelief, until a glance from the other boy brought him back to reality.

"Everyone always told me I didn't belong in Gryffindor, that I was too weak, too cowardly. But looking at you, you are the real coward." Voldemort shrieked, and lashed his wand at Neville. But before he could cast the curse that would end the boy's life, Harry screamed, "Expelliarmus!"

Voldemort's power kept the spell from casting his wand away, but he flew in the air, twisting himself so that he landed on his feet, turned towards Harry. Hermione glanced back at Neville, who was trembling with the effect of what he had just done.

"Poor little Potter…not even powerful enough to effectively disarm me." His smile was cruel as he glared into Harry with his gleaming red eyes, advancing on the boy with his wand ready.

"Expelliarmus!" Harry's wand flew into the air and landed too far away for him to even think that he could grab it before Voldemort's next spell would land on him.

Hermione was tensed, her wand ready in her wand to attack Voldemort before he could kill her friend, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. "It is our turn now."

She met Draco's silver eyes, and she finally realized what must be done. They both reached for the necklaces that hung, gleaming, from their throats, and removed them. Suddenly, a band of light shot out from their intertwined hands, and hit Voldemort in the chest. He spun around, glaring at the two lovers standing beside him.

They walked toward him, a gentle light surrounding each. Their love was strong enough that it combined their Dark and Light magic, strong enough to weaken the Lord who would never understand what it could do. He flung curse after curse at the pair, but they remained untouched. Hermione knew that they would never be able to kill him… only Harry could do that, but they would weaken him enough so that it was possible. Harry would have been able to do the same if he hadn't given up on love so quickly.

As they advanced, Voldemort's eyes lost some of their glow, and when they reached out together to grasp his papery skin, he screamed as the light burned through his veins, reaching for his nonexistent heart.

Hermione turned to look at Ron, who was staring at the spectacle playing out in front of him, unable to understand. She would have to explain to him and Harry that she was in love with the one person they had hated for so long. But he had turned to their side, and Hermione knew that they would have to accept this love.

Ron slowly nodded, deciding to cast away his confusion, and walked towards Harry, laying his hand on his friends shoulder. The friendship between them was strong enough so that Harry could draw strength when he needed it from Ron, and Hermione saw the red-head sag slightly as Harry drew the energy he would need to end Voldemort from the boy.

Harry's eyes finally regained the glow that they had lost over the past year, and he slowly raised his wand, pointing it at Voldemort's heart. Draco and Hermione released the Dark Lord, and backed away, their hands clasped as if they would never let go. Voldemort's eyes shifted to Harry's, and he barely had time to shout out before Harry shot the Killing Curse at the weakened creature.

As green light enveloped the powerful wizard, it seemed to explode from Harry's scar, throwing the boy on to his back. Blood started dripping down his face, and the green eyes closed. Ginny ran toward him as Voldemort's primal shrieks filled the air. As she took Harry's head in her arms, her loving tears fell onto the lethal wound opening on his forehead, healing them as a phoenix would. His eyes opened again as the still figure of Voldemort began to crumble, turning into nothing but dust.

And then, all was silent.

A/N: Two things:

First, thank you sooo much to all those people who supported this story. I am considering a sequel, but I'm not sure yet. If you have any thoughts on this, please leave a review and let me know.

Second, I just wanted to know what people thought about my seven theory: that seven people (definitely Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, and Luna…I think Draco as well but it could be somebody else) face Voldemort in the end. It's supported even more in HBP, but since I didn't talk about Horcruxs in this story I left that out…Voldemort wanted seven Horcruxs…it's such a reoccurring number that I feel like it's going to play a huge role in the Final Battle. Thoughts?

Review Please!