A\N-Please check out 2cool4you's amazing Twilight story, I guarantee it will leave you breathless! :)

-Cassia

Chapter 18-The Unforgivable Curse

My mind began to race wildly as he advanced even closer-my breath began to hitch in my throat, but I refused to beg for life, I wasn't going to spend the last few moments of my life grovelling to a bastard like him.

I wasn't going to die here...was I?

"Stupefy!" came a fierce cry from my left as Ginny Weasley blasted my attacker back, a blazing look on her face as she accio'd my wand back into my hand, and I became slightly panicked as I felt the reassuring weight of the wand back in my palm. The red light of a curse flew over Ginny's shoulder, the narrow miss almost suspiciously lucky. In fact, it seemed to have gone slightly askew at the last second before hitting her.*

"Thanks for that," I told her gratefully, breathing heavy. She nodded, quickly disappearing back into the fight.

"Aaaaarghhhhh!" a tortured yell rang from a nearby corridor, and as I was temporarily unengaged in a duel I ran toward the source of the noise.

And to my greatest fear.

Fenrir Greyback was in not in werewolf form, but he had enough wolfish characteristics in his inhuman face to alert me to what had just happened.

His enlarged and sharp yellow fingernails had slashed across Bill Weasley's face as he attacked him. He was blinking slowly and looking surprised up at Fenrir as if he didn't quite grasp what had happened. Then he slumped down on the floor from his bent over position, blacking out and leaving himself completely at the mercy of the werewolf standing before him.

Fenrir had not yet caught sight of me, but as he bared his teeth as if to take a bite out of Bill's face, he was alerted to my presence as I pointed my wand at him fiercely, glaring at him with a look of disgust.

My hands were trembling with pure rage rather than sheer terror now, and as he gave me the eerie smile that used to frighten me so much I believed I saw it falter for just a second as I returned his snarl with just as much vigor.

Greyback wasn't going to be harming anyone else today.

"Petrificus Totalus!" I screamed, running over as his whole body tensed, frozen, falling to the ground with an almighty crash. I ran over, still holding my wand in front of me in case another Death Eater ran in, or Fenrir somehow managed to revive himself. I straightened Bill out, lying him flat on his back so he would no longer be slumping over at the waist.

Footsteps came pounding around the corner, and the woman I had seen come in with him earlier raced toward us.

"Oh no...Bill," she gasped. "Poor Fleur-I'll take care of him, you go!" and with amazing speed she levitated him and was gone within seconds. Her hair was pure red-but I could have sworn it was blue when she had come in. Maybe I was hallucinating. I stood, staring after her, then turned around, looking down as I expected to see Fenrir still lying below me.

I jumped in surprise at the absence.

Swearing loudly I bolted down in the only direction he could have escaped to-the battle.

I caught him just as he was lunging through the air into the fray, obviously not caring who or what he landed on. Fortunately, there was screaming and a mass of movement as people scurried to escape his downward plunge, so he didn't crush anyone. After regaining his balance, he immediately lunged at the nearest throat-Professor Lupin.

"Stupefy!" I screamed at the same time as a seventh year Gryffindor, and instead of slamming into Lupin the added force of a double stunner sent him flying head over heels, slamming with an almighty crash! Into the wall behind him.

The battle continued-like his sister, Ron Weasley miraculously seemed to miss a killing curse fired off by a hex-happy Death Eater-unfortunately for him the brutality of the curse backfired, hitting one of his own comrades, causing the big, sandy-haired man to go down immediately.

By now the fighting had spread out more evenly and was no longer mainly in one area. I was pleased to see that, as far as I knew, no one on our side but Dawn was dead.

After sending a tall, lanky Death Eater reeling before he could sneak up on an otherwise occupied sixth year, I noticed something peculiar about the hole in the ceiling-it almost appeared as if two figures were flying across the night sky. I blinked quickly, and they were no more.

Yet, I was sure I had seen something...

Draco

Greyback is here, Greyback is here, one of the students is dead...this ran wildly through Draco's head as he made his way to the Astronomy tower.

Where it would all unfold.

Draco padded softly up the stairs, wand in hand, jaw clenched tightly with concentration.

For some unknown reason, his hazy mind was drawing a blank-what was he supposed to do again?

"...I will be present in the Astronomy tower, I believe. Draco, you will find yourself in the Astronomy tower with me. Now, this is of utmost, vital importance...you must never drop character. No matter how alone I seem, you must never reveal your true intentions..." Just as hopelessness was beginning to course through Draco's veins, Dumbledore's trusting voice slipped through the corners of his mind, an echo-y reminder of what had once been said. What did it mean, anyway? What was going to happen? Dumbledore was asking for Draco to trust him blindly, something that went completely against Draco's nature. But he would have to try, wouldn't be? Because this was the future that he wanted.

So he gritted his teeth and prepared himself to burst into the room before he could talk himself down. As he was nearing the door, he froze as voices caught his ear-

"...go and wake Severus," came the faint voice of Dumbledore. What was he talking about? "Tell him what has happened and bring him to me."

The next part was muffled-and before Draco could give what he was about to do a second thought, he burst into the tower room.

"Expelliarmus!" he shouted, flying through the door, wand pointed as Dumbledore's own wand flew out of sight over the ramparts. He was trembling, terrified, horrified that at any moment Voldemort would appear, identify him as a traitor, kill him, Dumbledore, Astoria, his family, everyone-

"...no matter how alone I may seem..." suddenly the words made sense. But now what? An overpowering sense of doom threatened to overwhelm Draco as he began to sweat nervously, his composure slipping a bit. Enough for Dumbledore, pale-faced and sickly as he looked, to sense Draco's fear.

"Good evening, Draco," Dumbledore's calm voice greeted him.

Anyone else would have missed it, but not Draco-a secret wink and an almost imperceptible nod was all it took for Draco to say aloud his next line-but not before his eyes fell upon not one, but two broomsticks lying on the floor. A reminder to stay in character.

"Who else is here?"

"A question I might ask you. Or are you acting alone?" Dumbledore's encoded way of asking Draco if the plan was unfolding as it was supposed to be.

"No," Draco told him, desperately searching his eyes for another slight hint, for any small encouragement. "I've got backup," he said meaningfully. "There are Death Eaters in your school tonight." And Fenrir...and someone dead...

"Well, well," said Dumbledore, eyes flitting to the door like he was expecting someone. Who was supposed to come? Who was here now? Voldemort? How could he keep stalling? The backs of Draco's eyes began to hurt. "Very good indeed. You found a way to let them in, did you?" Something in his tone calmed Draco's racing heart, his panting, his sweaty, shaking hands. Almost as if he was assuring Draco that it was going to be alright, that everything was running smoothly. But how was Draco to determine that?

How could it?

"Yeah," Draco panted, clenching his fist and straining his ears for any sound from the staircase. "Right under your nose and you never realized!" Draco found the irony in this statement, realizing at the same time how tensed up his shoulders had become.

"Ingenious," Dumbledore played along. Draco was now sure that he and Dumbledore weren't alone. But who would be with them? And where? "Yes...forgive me... but where are they now? You seem unsupported." Draco began to tremble again. Was that Dumbledore's signal to keep stalling, that help was on the way? Or...that help wasn't coming at all?

"They met some of your friends...students are there, also," Draco begged, pleaded with his eyes, trying silently to convey that they should both be fighting against the Death Eaters as well, who cares if his secret was out? This was ridiculous! "They're having a fight down below...but I came to find you. I-I've got a job to do," Draco wanted to scream, he was so confused. He added that last bit to convey the urgency to Dumbledore-he couldn't stall for much longer. Then what was he to do? Pretend to faint?

Right now, it looked hopeless that anyone would make it through the night,

Astoria

The Death Eaters began to back off, leaving in their midst frantic teachers and exhausted, injured students.

It all happened in a blur-teenagers were all ordered back to their common rooms immediately, while those injured were treated right there in the halls. Dawn's body was found and covered.

I had a thick yellow paste handed to me as it was being passed around and I rubbed a glob onto my forehead and to my other various cuts and bruises.

I was one of the most battered-thankfully, it hadn't gotten much worse than me. I was more exhausted than hurt, as were most of the other students. Bandages were applied as well, one around my head, and I was sent off to bed with the others with promises that action would be taken first thing tomorrow.

What were the teachers bloody thinking? Did they really think we would just go back to sleep after everything that had just happened?

But it didn't stop there.

"No, no- argh!" there were several loud bands from the floor up, and with that, the battle began again-it had never ended.

The Death Eaters hadn't been retreating-they had merely been moving. And who knew where they were going?

Those who were still fighting were now being pushed away by the Death Eaters-they looked like they needed to be somewhere, and fast.

And suddenly, it dawned on me where the fight had been going-in the direction of the Astronomy tower. Where I knew that Draco would be.

Soon I found myself separated from the rest of the battle-several Death Eaters had stayed behind to keep the remaining students busy while Professor McGonagall and I were being driven toward the staircase of the Astronomy tower.

And we were far from alone.

No, it was both the Carrows, Greyback, and three strangers.

"We must block the stairs!" McGonagall stared at me wildly as I blocked the terrifying "Imperius" curse.

"Reducto!" I yelled, sending chunks of the ceiling rained down. After the rubble cleared, the four Death Eaters had vanished, leaving only two remaining.

Harry

But suddenly Harry heard footsteps were thundering up the stairs, and a second later Malfoy was buffeted out of the way as four people in dust-covered robes burst through the door onto the ramparts. Still paralyzed, his eyes staring unblinkingly, Harry gazed in terror upon four strangers-it seemed as if the Death Eaters had the upper hand in the fight below.

Draco, with an odd look on his pale and peaky face, glanced behind him in terror as a barely audible yell of "Crucio!" sounded from below. Strangely enough, Draco's already pale face drained itself of color even more.

Astoria

I dove out of the way, barely in the nick of time as an unforgivable curse-Crucio-sailed over my back.

Pulling myself up quickly from the rubble, I began to fight again, exhausted and sore.

It was two hardy Death Eaters against an older woman and a sixteen year old girl. There didn't seem to be many options left.

Draco

"Do it," Fenrir ordered Draco as he stood with his wand pointed at Dumbledore. He was trembling for many different reasons, and sick to his stomach-what was he to do? He had just heard the Cruciatus curse used, and probably on a student-but there was no scream that followed, so Draco allowed himself to believe the possibility that it had missed.

"Is that you, Fenrir?" asked Dumbledore.

Hang in there, just wait, Dumbledore seemed to be silently telling Draco. But how could he continued stalling?

The clock was ticking.

Harry

"That's right. Pleased to see me, Dumbledore?" Harry heard the huge man rasp.

"No, I cannot say that I am."

Greyback grinned, showing his pointed teeth. Blood trickled down his chin, and he licked his lips obscenely.

"But you know how much I like kids, Dumbledore."

"Am I to take it that you are attacking even without the full moon now? This is most unusual...you have developed a taste for human flesh that cannot be satisfied once a month?"

"That's right," said Fenrir. "Shocks you that, does it, Dumbledore? Frightens you?"

"Well, I cannot pretend that it does not disgust me a little," said Dumbledore. "And yes, I am a little shocked that Draco here invited you, of all people, into the school where his...friends...live." Dumbledore and Malfoy's conversation was off-it seemed not to be about what it would have appeared to anyone else...rather, it seemed to be existing on two levels.

And Draco's reply, as Dumbledore's statement, seemed to be two things at once.

"I didn't," breathed Malfoy. He was not looking at Fenrir, he did not seem to even want to glance at him. "I didn't know he was going to come-"

"I wouldn't want to miss a trip to Hogwarts, Dumbledore," rasped Greyback. "Not when there are throats to be ripped out...delicious, delicious.." and he raised a yellow fingernail and picked at his front teeth, leering at Dumbledore.

"No," said the fourth Death Eater sharply. He had a heavy, brutal looking face. "We've got orders. Draco's got to do it. Now, Draco, and quickly."

Harry saw the Malfoy was showing less resolve than ever-he looked terrified as he stared into Dumbledore's face, which was paler and rather lower than usual, as he had slid so far down the rampart wall.

Astoria

"We must block the door!" Professor McGonagall said again. I looked up at her, a bit dazed. Why were there two of her? Why was everything vibrating slightly? I shook my head and the vibrating stopped. I realized I was sitting on the rubble where I had taken quite a hard fall-not for the first time that night. I blinked several times more. My double vision cleared, allowing me to reach down to my feet for my wand, which had slipped out of my fingers when I was blasted backward, hitting my head.

The Death Eaters were rushing at McGonagall now as I was still disoriented, but she was holding them back nicely with her dueling skill and carefully aimed hexes.

"Reducto, I hissed under my breath, flicking my wand.

The top of the ceiling collapsed, leaving a gaping hole, causing giant chunks to fall to the staircase, obscuring the last few steps.

"Stupefy!" McGonagall took a stunner directly to a chest-she hit the floor and did not make a move to stand.

The Death Eaters looked to me.

"Protego!" I screamed, aiming the spell toward McGonagall's body so they couldn't do any more harm than they had already inflicted.

"Stupefy!" I screamed. The Death Eater dodged it easily as they both advanced slowly, grinning cruelly.

I noticed one had begun to sneak to my left, and whirling around to hex him I realized my mistake too late. Turning to watch one of them left my back undefended to the other. And with a body-bind curse, I fell to the ground, my limbs freezing up. I supposed I was lucky it wasn't worse-my eyes were locked on the ceiling as I begun to hear shouts-

"They've blocked the stairs! Reducto! Reducto!"

I almost didn't hear the pounding footsteps over the yelling but as the person entered my limited field of vision I caught a glimpse of his face-Severus Snape. My heartbeat quickened in fear and I struggled to move-I tried to remind myself that Snape was on our side...right?

Harry

"Come one Draco, do it!" yelled the stranger Death Eater. But at that moment Harry heard renewed sounds of scuffling below, and a voice shouted-"They've blocked the stairs-reducto-REDUCTO!"

Harry's heart leapt- so these last four had not eliminated all opposition but merely had broken away from the fight to come here. By the sounds of it, someone was attempting to stop them.

"Now Draco, quickly!" said the brutal faced man.

But Malfoy's hand was shaking so badly that he could barely aim.

Astoria

I strained to move against my confining bonds, but how could I, when the spell was so strong?

But like all spells-it would wear off, as this one had already begun to do, slightly.

I blinked my eyes slowly, the only part of my body I could move.

But I was on the way.

And then I would burst straight into that Astronomy tower and find out what in Merlin's name was going on up there.

And at that moment, Severus Snape had made his way to the door and was opening it.

A growing sense of dread rolled over me as I laid there helplessly, unable to move.

Draco

"Draco, do it or stand aside so one of us-" Alecto began to yell at a trembling Draco. What was he waiting for? What did Dumbledore want him to do? But Alecto just said that one of them would do it if he wouldn't-was that what he was waiting for? Did Dumbledore want him to step aside so someone

else could finish the headmaster?

No. Draco expelled the ridiculous thought faster than it had taken him to conjure it. Draco could see in Dumbledore's eyes-he was still waiting for something. Or someone. At that precise moment, the door to the ramparts burst open once more and there stood Snape, his wand clutched in his hand as his black eyes swept over the scene, from Dumbledore slumped against the wall, to the four Death Eaters, including the enraged werewolf, and Draco.

The others were too busy gawking at the newcomer, but Draco's eyes shifted back to Dumbledore. Even as he was slowly sliding down the wall Draco saw the tension in his shoulders disappear, the cloud of doubt that had been hovering in his eyes float away.

Was Snape going to save Dumbledore? For a moment, the world seemed to stop spinning. The air seemed to thicken into honey, and Draco and Dumbledore seemed to be the only people in the room.

A wild thought entered Draco's mind, bordering the line of impossible...did Dumbledore want Severus Snape to kill him?

Was that how Draco would get out of this? Draco froze in terror, unable to move as his heart hammered violently against his ribcage.

As he looked at Dumbledore in terror, into his bright blue irises, words began to flow into his mind, cool as water, clear as if Dumbledore was speaking to him aloud.

You have done well, Draco and Astoria, both of you as well, and more than, I could have possible asked. And to both of you-I am happy to see more love in the world, especially your own for each other. Hold onto it. This was the way it was meant to be.

Astoria

I lifted my head as the voice of Dumbledore drifted through my mind. How had he done that? And why did he feel the need? Why couldn't he just tell Draco and I after the battle? I felt the curse begin to lift-soon I would be able to drag myself to my wand. And most importantly, what did he mean by "This is the way it was meant to be?"

Harry

"We've got a problem, Snape," Harry heard lumpy Amycus say, whose eyes and wand alike were fixed upon Dumbledore, who, oddly, was smiling just the slightest bit at Draco, who to Harry's surprise, had a tear slipping down his cheek, unseen to everyone except Harry and the headmaster. "The boy doesn't seem able to-"

But someone else had spoken Snape's name, quite softly...

"Severus..."

The sound frightened Harry beyond anything he had experienced all evening. For the first time, Dumbledore was pleading.

Snape said nothing, but walked forward and pushed Malfoy out of the way. The three Death Eaters fell back without a word. Even the werewolf seemed cowed.

Draco

Draco was numb, the air was still like honey, and he couldn't move-he had just been pushed to the side, but his brain was slow to process. He stumbled, not realizing that he was falling until he was almost level with the ground. What was Snape-what-

Snape gazed for a moment at Dumbledore, and there was revulsion etched into the harsh lines of his face.

"Severus...please..." Draco's mind struggled to fit the pieces together. Was Dumbledore pleading for...Draco began to tremble furiously, hunched over, on the verge of throwing up.

Snape raised his wand and pointed it directly at Dumbledore.

Draco's body gave a little lurch like he was about to jump forward, but he pulled himself back. Snape wouldn't-couldn't-kill Dumbledore, Dumbledore wasn't going to die, he must still be waiting for the solution-

"Avada Kedavra!"

Harry

A jet of green light shot from the end of Snape's wand and hit Dumbledore squarely in the chest.

Harry's scream of horror never left him, silent and unmoving, he was forced to watch as Dumbledore was blasted into the air. For a split second, he seemed to hang, suspended beneath the shining skull, and then he fell slowly backward, like a great rag doll, over the battlements and out of sight.

Astoria

I begun to pull my still-petrified body along with my arms toward my fallen wand, which had flown behind the pile of rubble. The upper part of my body had unfrozen completely, leaving my lower torso and legs still unmovable.

From her spot on the floor, McGonagall was beginning to groan, muttering.

Propping myself up on my arms with my back up and my legs dragging heavily on the floor, I maneuvered myself around a particularly large chunk of ceiling, bringing me even closer to my wand but still a good fifteen feet away. By the rate I was going, my curse would wear off before I reached my wand.

Bt the time I had dragged myself behind the pule my arms gave out from exhaustion.

As I found myself on the floor, unwillingly again, palms throbbing, a picture of Dawn flashed through my mind, making me wince as I saw her marred and bleeding face looking up at me, the light leaving her eyes.

I jolted myself out of my reverie, heart heavy with sadness. I pulled myself up to drag my body once again. After picking out the small pebbles that had embedded themselves in my palms, I reached my wand at last. I preformed the counter-curse on myself. Pulling myself to my feet and about to do the same to McGonagall, I was stopped cold by the worst two words known to wizards and witches.

The worst of the Unforgivable curses. The spell that ruined lives, ripped apart families and cut through friendships like a knife through butter.

The curse that turned its caster into a murderer.

"Avada Kedavra!" I froze with just the tips of my fingers touching the wand.

Someone-had-died-killed-

I was unable to form complete thoughts. Heart beating erratically and breaths coming with odd sounds from my chest, I dove behind the pile as I heard voices.

"Out of here, quickly," that was Snape. Something in my brain screamed in protest-something was not right. But first-first I had to find out who had died.

There were the noises of footsteps pounding down the staircase, but I wouldn't dare to look.

"Come on, Draco!" came the harsh voice of Snape.

An enormous weight was lifted off my chest as I saw the top of the familiar blonde head pass over the top of the pile where I was hiding. I realized I had been unconsciously thinking it was he that had died.

Then something clicked into place, jolting me with pure horror. My heart skipped a beat, plunging violently into my stomach. My blood ran cold.

Snape had been the one that had killed. But who had died?

I ran to Harry, who had just sent a spell-and missed-at a Death Eater, a wild, desperate look on his face as he bolted down the staircase.

"Harry!" I screamed. He barely glanced at me as I approached."Who died?" I cried desperately.

He didn't stop running, only taking time to turn his face over his shoulder back to me, looking with his eyes full of wild denial and desperation.

"Albus Dumbledore!"

Harry

Harry leapt the last ten steps of the spiral staircase and didn't stop, using the impact to propel himself forward and keep running. He barely registered as he told a bloody, dusty Astoria Greengrass who had died, he just kept running. He had to see-he had to check if Ginny was alright, if Ron and Hermione-

The dimly lit corridor was full of dust; half the ceiling seemed to have fallen in, and a battle was raging from this corridor to the next, but even as he attempted to make out who was fighting whom, he heard the hated voice of Snape shout-"It's over, time to go!" and saw him disappear around the corner of the far end of the corridor; he and Malfoy seemed to have forced their way through the fight unscathed.

But Malfoy seemed to be insistently pulling at Snape, forcing him to stop.

"What, Draco?" He demanded.

"I lost my wand! I-I have to go back!" Malfoy's voice had a most unusual quality to it-he was lying, Harry realized, and he was terrified.

"Fine, go! If you are not back in time, we will leave without you! You will have to find your own way back to-"

But Draco was already bolting away, desperately searching the fight with the same terrified look on his face that Harry had worn when searching for Ginny and his friends. But who could he be looking for? All of his friends were probably fighting with the Death Eaters.

Draco pulled the not-really-missing wand out of his pocket, blasting back a Death Eater from a fourth year girl and probably saving her life. He ducked away and was gone before the Death Eater could recover from the stunner and see the face of his attacker.

Harry blinked in surprise, wondering if he had seen it wrong-but no, Fenrir Greyback was now sailing through the air, leaving behind a very relieved young girl. Harry snapped out of his thoughts-

Astoria

I bolted up the stairs wildly, fear grappling at my heart as I saw a body-no. Upon closer inspection it proved to be an almost-human shaped pile of stone from the ceiling covered in a thick pile of dust.

I turned around, surveying the damage, suddenly not wanting to see...but no, it couldn't be true...

"Astoria!" A voice yelled from down the stairs below me.

"Draco!" I yelled, running to the top of the staircase. He hurried up and crushed me into his arms, hugging me and lifting me int the air as if he hadn't seen me in years.

"Astoria-" I registered a hard refusal in his voice, as if he were trying not to cry.

"No-no," I pulled back to look at his face in horror. "Dumbledore...it's true."

He nodded gravely and I buried my face into his chest, sobbing like a baby while a few of Draco's own tears fell onto my back as we stood in our tight embrace, finally not caring who saw.

A\N-Whew, that was more changing POV's than I'd ever done...please Review, and thanks to my beta, and all my readers.

*Remember before Harry left, he left the Felix Felicious for Ron, Hermione, and Ginny.