After sneaking through the school and trying a barrage of potential Honeyduke's candy passwords (finally succeeding with Tooth-Flossing String Mints), Draco, Hermione, and Harry safely made it to Dumbledore's office with Narcissa.

"Professor," said Draco, pulling the invisibility cloak off and handing it to Harry.

"I know, Draco," Dumbledore interrupted gravely. "We have no time, we have to get her to St. Mungo's."

"How did you know?" Harry asked quickly.

"I am much more than a foolish old man, Harry," sighed Dumbledore. "And you know that I do not need a cloak to become invisible. Imagine the other things about me that you may not know. But there's no time for that now. We must tend to your mother, Draco."

"We can't take her to St. Mungo's, Professor. They'll ask us what happened... I can't... I don't... I don't want to go to Azkaban," he stuttered. Today, more than any other day in his life, Draco was truly afraid.

"Nonsense. People don't go to Azkaban for defending themselves."

"But, I —"

"Of course, you'll have a hearing, but don't worry. Just tell the truth," said Dumbledore, walking to a portrait on the wall, pushing it aside, and pulling out an old tin can, "Tell them that you came home from St. Mungo's and your parents had an argument. Lucius threatened to kill your mother, you cursed him with the first thing you thought of. It was all just a horrible accident. Harry and Hermione witnessed the entire ordeal, they'd snuck away to visit you on your first day home from the hospital."

He held the can in his left hand, and performed a spell on it with his wand, clutched delicately in this right hand.

"Grab on," Dumbledore said, holding out the can, "It's a Portkey. Draco, keep a tight grip on your mother. Wouldn't want to lose her, would we?"

Harry was, at this point, rather confused. Dumbledore was willing to lie to the ministry to save Draco from going to Azkaban? And he himself was an accessory to murder, along with Hermione. I should have known this was going to be a bad day from the moment I got out of bed, thought Harry as he felt that familiar hook latch on behind his navel, and the world became a blur.

Everything came sharply back into focus in a very sparsely, but nicely, furnished office, where a cheerful but surprised healer sat behind her desk.

"Lovely to see you again, Albus, love," she said brightly. "You've brought guests."

"Patients, actually. I was hoping you could do some of your magic, so to speak," answered Dumbledore.

"I assume you mean the lovely young lady hanging there," she said, still a smile on her face. She was looking at pointedly at Narcissa. Dumbledore nodded. "Well, bang her down on the sofa, then," she said, twirling her wand and producing a brown leather couch. "Go on, lad."

Draco laid Narcissa down very carefully, and took a tiny step back. He obviously wanted to stay close.

"Scatter off then, you all. I need my work space, darlings," said the cheerful witch.

"Else, you don't know how much I appreciate this," Dumbledore said sincerely.

"'Course I do," the witch, Else, answered happily. "Now you all leave me be. You too, Albus, I'd like some space. I don't mind if you put some chairs out in the entry there, if you'd like to sit down."

The four of them walked out into the small anti-chamber entryway, Dumbledore conjured them each up a chair and they sat to wait. Draco sat with his head on his knees, one hand on either temple.

"Are you alright, Mr. Malfoy?"

"Please don't call me that. Draco is fine with me, sir," said Draco quietly.

"Would you like me to give you a headache cure, Draco?" asked Dumbledore asked politely, leaning a bit closer to him. "You look as though you might need one."

"Actually... erm... no. Thank you." Draco sat back in the chair, trying to relax. He dropped his arms to the side of the chair, and Hermione, sitting next to him, grasped one of his hands briefly in hers and then let it go. Harry turned his head quickly away, looking toward the healer's doorway. He could see a light flashing behind the frosted glass door.

Else slipped her head out the door, her face was fixed in a stiff smile.

"Erm, Albus, love, could you come in here for a moment? I need to talk to you," Else said, her voice a mask of cheerfulness. Dumbledore immediately disappeared through the door.

Draco stood and pressed his face against the glass, trying desperately to see through the frost. Hermione shifted in her chair, wanting badly to get up and comfort him, but knowing she couldn't. She hugged Harry instead, even though by that time he felt rather numb to the whole situation. He managed to pat her on the back before writhing out of her grasp. He looked at Draco, studying the side of his face, which was the only part of him Harry could manage to focus on. He'd begun to feel sorry for Draco, and almost counted himself lucky to have been too small to remember his parents' deaths. The whole situation brought back terrible memories for him, though. Draco's pain was a perfect mirror of himself, almost a year earlier. Losing Sirius had been worse than losing a parent... Sirius was not only a guardian, but a friend. It felt like losing his father all over again. He looked away, not wanting to think about it any longer. It made Draco feel too real, and much too close.

Draco could see figures moving behind the door, but couldn't make out what was happening. All he knew was that the movements were rushed and urgent, and that didn't sit well with him at all. He moved back to his chair, and resumed looking at his feet, which he often did when he felt unsettled.

The door opened a crack, and Dumbledore's thin nose and long white beard could be seen.

"Draco," said Dumbledore, and he immediately stood and hurried to the door. "Come in here, please," he said, just before shutting the door behind Draco.

"I wonder what's happened?" asked Hermione, speaking for the first time in a while.

"Dunno," answered Harry, unable to tell her that he expected the worst.

Draco walked through the door quickly, and within seconds was by his mother's side.

"She's barely awake, but she can hear you if you want to talk to her," Else said, her voice no longer happy. "I don't know if she'll respond, though."

"I can wait till she comes out of it," Draco offered cautiously.

"She won't come out of it, darling," Else said quietly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "She hasn't got much longer. Talk to her while you can."

"We'll be outside if you need anything," Dumbledore said, giving Draco an encouraging sort of nod. Draco nodded back, and sat lightly on the sofa by his mother.

"Mum, can you hear me?"

"Yes, I can hear you," Narcissa answered weakly.

"I'm sorry this happened, mum, and I'm sorry we went through all this."

"Not your fault, love."

"Mum... I love you," he said, struggling with the words, and the thought that he may never say them to her again.

Narcissa smiled lightly, the corners of her mouth turning up in a way that told Draco she was really pleased. He smiled back.

"I love you too, sweetheart," she said, still smiling. She laid her head down again, and closed her eyes. Draco took her hands in his and sat with her so long that he was unsure of what day it was, until her grip on his hands went limp and her fingers grew cool. He folded her hands together on her stomach, and brushed a gold strand of hair from her face and without a look back, he left the room.

"She's dead," he said quietly to Dumbledore, who nodded and put a hand on Draco's shoulder. His expression said that he wanted very much to say something comforting, but Draco turned away before giving him the chance.

"I want to go home," he said simply to Hermione, and then walked away down the corridor. She followed after him, catching up easily.

"You have a broken leg. Were you going to walk? Go back, Dumbledore can get you a Portkey home," she said, her voice almost pleading. Suddenly he turned around, his eyes shining and empty, his face pale as parchment. Immediately Hermione reached out to him, and he fell into her arms.

"Just get me away from here," he said, the sounds muffled by her shoulder.