Author's Note: This was probably one of the hardest chapters for me to write, not because I had no idea what I wanted to happen, but because I just could not write it. I had no ambition to write it. I sent it to Jacy with detailed paragraphs of what I wanted, yet I couldn't write it out. When I had just posted chapter four of this, I suddenly got the drive to finish it.

This is probably the most action packed chapter I've ever written. Ever. It's also the most shocking in the fic. A few warnings:

Graphic descriptions and um… character death? Sorta? *winces*

Two more chapters after this one and we're done! I hope you like it. Surprise?

Also, I'm hosting a fic challenge on my personal livejournal, but since it's friends' locked, I put it at my fic journal. The link is a href=.com/renewing_here/a. There are two challenges with multiple fandoms you can throw at me. Go and have fun!

…………………………

Buffy made a face when she heard the knock at the door. Everyone was here except Draco and Willow, who had taken a walk. Draco said he had something he needed to tell her, and Buffy had a sinking suspicion it involved his talk with Tara that had happened a week ago.

Another thing that had Buffy worried was the fact that Draco's magic was still bothering him. She'd seen him release his magic twice now. The dead patch of grass in the back yard had been hidden by a spell, but seeing Draco drop to his knees in pain and releasing his magic had been terrifying. She saw it in his eyes; he was losing control and still had no idea why.

The doorbell rang and she sighed, shaking the dark memories out of her head. "I'll get it!" she yelled since she was the closest, coming down the stairs on her way to the kitchen. Harry and Pansy were outside, with Pansy working on Harry's magical control.

When she opened the door, her eyebrows went up. They were unfamiliar faces. One female and two males dressed rather strangely in loose coats and clothes that looked outdated. "Can I help you? You're not selling anything, are you?"

The female just smiled. "We're friends from Britain. I'm here to see Draco."

Buffy noticed the British accent but something was off about these people. "Um, he's not here right now, but Pansy and Harry are out back. Giles is here too, if you know him but he's down in the basement."

"Harry and Pansy first, then we can start in with the pleasantries," the female said firmly.

As Buffy turned to let them in, Dawn came down the stairs. "Who are they?"

"Friends from England. Will you go tell Giles and Xander they're here? They're down in the basement." Her sister nodded suspiciously but did as she told, going in front of the group and down the stairs.

Behind Buffy's back, the female nodded to the door Dawn had just gone through, and one of her companions silently followed down the steps. Buffy opened the back door and peeked out, so not to startle Harry out of something important. Both he and Pansy were aware and talking, so she continued out the door.

"Hey guys? Some friends from England are here to see you."

Both Harry and Pansy turned confused gazes on Buffy and then their eyes shifted to behind her. Buffy watched as their faces paled and their eyes widened. Both immediately pulled their wands and it was then she knew she was right to have doubted the intruder's integrity. On instinct, she dove out of the way as Harry and Pansy fired off spells at the people behind her, who said spells right back.

Her eyes widened when the spells the impostors cast towards Harry and Pansy made them disappear. "What the hell?" She immediately turned and was about to start kicking some English ass, but ropes bound her tightly and another spell made her lose her voice.

Panic started setting in. With Harry and Pansy gone, Giles was her only hope, but when he, Xander, and Dawn were all dragged outside in the same shape she was, Buffy started thinking this was end of the world bad.

"Who the bloody hell are you?"

Hey! Why did Giles get a voice and she didn't?

The female just smirked. "You'll have to wait a few minutes, Watcher, until the polyjuice wears off."

"Well I knew it was that. You're walking around wearing a dead person's skin. I just want to know who I'm up against." Buffy could see Giles testing the ropes, but she'd already tried with her full strength. They were magical ropes and she was helpless against them.

Xander and Dawn looked unharmed, so that made her breathe a little easier. They clearly weren't here for Dawn, so that meant they were here for the two people that were absent.

Draco and Willow.

……………………………

They both agreed to go to a nearby park. Draco was going to attempt to tell Willow about Tara, but he also needed to release some magic and a place away from the house would be best. He was tired of casting concealing charms on charred trees and grass. Draco didn't think Giles had noticed yet, but Willow felt the difference, as did Harry and Pansy. It was becoming slightly bothersome.

"So, what did you want to talk about? Is there something wrong with me again?"

Draco laughed. "Willow, you're absolutely normal. Your magic levels are incredibly high, your control is astounding, and I daresay you could do anything you could before with less burnout. Now that you've harnessed your powers, the sky is the limit."

He suddenly stopped talking. They hadn't reached the park yet but had it in their sights when a ripple of magic rushed past them. Both paused in the aftershocks.

"Tell me you felt that," Willow whispered.

"Something's wrong," he confirmed. Magic was trying to tell them something, but it was jumbled. Draco's own magic was too loose to make sense of it. "We need to go back. This discussion will have to wait."

Both Draco and Willow spun on their heels and walked back quicker than they'd walked away. Draco couldn't apparate with his magic so out of tune but he was almost willing to take the risk. Once on Revello Drive, they slowed, knowing whatever had happened occurred at the Summers' residence.

Someone came out the front door and Draco's instincts were telling him to hang back. He grabbed Willow by the arm and stopped her, trying to get a good look at the person on the porch. It was a male and the face was familiar to him. When the man stopped at the wooden post Draco had released his magic into the first night he was back, Draco's heart started to beat out of his chest.

A second man joined the first and they both examined the post carefully. Whoever these people were knew Draco was having problems with his magic and knew exactly where he'd released it. Suddenly, one of the men looked up and saw Willow and him hiding near the bushes.

Then he realized where he'd seen the face before—the Daily Prophet. The man had been murdered by rogue Death Eaters.

"Shit," Draco breathed before pulling Willow away. He had enough sense to know he could not fight the Death Eaters with his magic not obeying him like he wanted, and Death Eaters never traveled in pairs. They always had at least three of them working in tandem. "Run," he ordered a shocked Willow. "iRun/i!"

They both took off and Draco heard loud cursing behind them. The Death Eaters were following. They could only run so far, and any magic Draco or Willow used would be easily traceable to them. As he pushed his legs to go faster, thoughts began floating through his mind, trying to think of a way out of the situation. Suddenly, an idea hit him and he turned to Willow.

"Find a dead pocket."

She looked at him in shock and he could see she was running out of breath. "What?"

"Find a magical dead pocket. I can get us out of here without them tracing us if you can find one. You're better at looking than I am."

"But I can't run and concentrate."

Draco growled and grabbed her arm, pulling them closer which slowed them down a bit but he kept up a brisk pace. "I'll make sure you don't run into anything, just do it!"

Willow cautiously closed her eyes and slowed more, but Draco kept pushing them forward. Her eyes snapped open and she gasped. "There's one close. Two blocks up and one block east."

With renewed vigor, he ran harder, despite the cramps in his legs. As he and Willow ducked into the alley she motioned to, Draco could feel it. It was low to the ground, but it would easily fit them inside. Once they passed through the deadened space, Draco cast a disillusionment charm and prayed his magic did what he wanted.

When the Death Eaters appeared around the corner, he put his hand over Willow's mouth to muffle her panting and tried to control his own breathing. His sides were killing him, and if he never ran again, it would be too soon.

"Where did they go?" a Death Eater asked before doubling over in a grimace, as did the other one. When Draco got to see their true faces, he started shaking. Willow felt it and looked at him nervously. He just shook his head and gripped his wand tighter. They needed to get back to the house as quickly and safely as possible. This was very bad.

Because Antonin Dolohov and Rabastan Lestrange were two of the evilest Death Eaters Voldemort had, and where Rabastan was, Bellatrix wasn't too far behind.

Hoping with all his might that he didn't make a sound coming or going, Draco closed his eyes and focused on the back yard of the Summers' house, apparating Willow and himself. When he opened his eyes, Draco realized his deadly mistake. They were in the middle of the backyard with no close cover, and his aunt had been waiting. She stared down at them with her wand draw and pointed directly at him.

"Hello, Draco," she said with a sickly sweet smile.

"Hello, Aunt Bella. Come to finish the job?"

Bellatrix cocked her head and looked between Draco and Willow, who were both deathly still. "You have no idea."

He felt the curse hit him in the shoulder and he rolled with it, fighting against the invisible force squeezing the breath from his lungs. Distantly he heard Willow scream and two other pops in the yard.

"Detain her," Bellatrix ordered coldly. "But don't hurt her. We need her intact. We'll play later."

When the curse was lifted, he gulped in deep breaths of air and laughed dryly. "It's always so nice to see you, Aunt Bella." Draco turned his head to take in the situation. Xander, Dawn, Giles and Buffy were on the grass bound and silenced, by the way they were all shouting but no sounds were coming out of their mouths. Both Lestrange and Dolohov had a grip on Willow, and she was looking at him helplessly.

Draco panicked when he saw Dawn slip out of some of the ropes. He had no idea how she'd gotten out but if one of the Death Eaters were to turn around, they'd probably kill her without glancing. He didn't know if that would affect her, being the essence of the key, but Draco really didn't want to find out.

As Dawn slipped out, he saw a glinting steak knife in her hands, probably left out from when Harry had grilled dinner earlier for them. Never before was he so grateful for Harry's forgetfulness. Speaking of Harry…

"Where's Potter and Pansy?"

Bellatrix grinned down at him, revealing rotted teeth. Her eyes glinted with madness and the wind blew her already mussed hair. Her clothing was the same torn black Death Eater robes that brushed his skin when she leaned down towards him. "Banished a couple of portkeys at them both. They'll be spinning around for a while and when they get back, we'll be long gone."

Draco clenched his teeth and resisted the temptation to do something petty in his weakened state, like pull on her robes to make her trip. But he needed to keep all the attention on him. Dawn, being the smart girl she was, went for Buffy first and nearly had her untied.

"Scared of Potter, are you?" Another hex hit him in the arm, and Draco nearly bit through his lip from the pain. All the nerve endings in his hand were on fire and it hurt to even think about moving them. "Thought so," he choked out.

"I'm not scared of anything!" she screeched, gripping her wand tightly. Draco could see her mind wandering, thinking of another appropriate curse to deliver.

"Are you scared of a pissed-off vampire Slayer?" he asked with a chuckle, now that the curse had been removed and he would breathe better.

His aunt sneered down at him. "Of course not. Besides, I've detained your pathetic Muggle friend. She's—"

"Right behind you, bitch."

Before Bellatrix could even turn around Buffy kicked her so hard she flew off her feet and rolled on the ground. Not wasting any time, the slayer went after the two men holding Willow. She took care of one with a well-delivered jab to the face then solar plexus. Rabastan immediately let go of Willow and fired off his own curse since Dolohov was down.

Draco knew those screams. He'd heard them often enough when he put Muggles and blood traitors under the Cruciatus during his spy days. When he looked up and saw Buffy's back arched off the ground and Rabastan standing over with a maniacal grin on his face, Draco didn't even think. He grabbed his wand from when it had fallen after he'd first been cursed and pointed it at Rabastan.

"iSectusempra/i!"

Buffy gasped as the curse was lifted and scrambled away as Rabastan fell to the ground close to her, gasping for breath as his middle was split open and blood gushed from the open cuts. She turned shocked eyes to Draco but he didn't waste another moment, firing off a curse that would break Dolohov's knees and bend them backwards.

When he heard the two distinctive snaps of bone, Draco had to drop his wand. His magic was severely overused, just by using those two spells and the darkness in him was raging.

"Enough!" Bellatrix shouted, now standing on her feet, enraged as she looked at her fallen Death Eaters. "I thought I had taken care of you."

Draco looked at her, gasping for breath. "What did you do to me?"

"I made you this way," she hissed. "I can make it better or worse. At first it didn't work because of the Hellmouth, but being related by blood made it easier."

He had no idea what she was talking about, and Draco was about to tune out her insane ramblings, but she raised her wand and he tensed. With difficulty, Draco stood and helped Buffy up. Willow was off to the side, and Dawn had been dutifully untying Xander, who had been closest to Buffy.

"I will deal with you later!"

Magic tingled along his arms. He saw Harry and Pansy apparate into the backyard and take in the sights before them, but he paid them no attention. His focus was on his aunt. Draco followed Bellatrix's line of sight and the line of her wand and saw she was aiming directly for Dawn.

"iAvada Kedavra/i!"

Time slowed for him. Dawn was rushing in between Xander and Giles and was wide open. His magical strength was too depleted for him to conjure something to take the hit of the curse. If Dawn was killed, there was a good chance Bellatrix would be able to take the Key's power, and Bellatrix with that mount of magical energy was horrifying. So Draco did the stupidest thing he'd ever do in his life. He ran, skidded in the grass, and let the green light envelope him instead.

Buffy didn't know what that particular spell did, but when she saw Draco fall and not get up, she was worried. Then she heard Pansy scream in terror and run at Draco, crying. When she got close to him, her hands hovered over his body. Buffy then noticed his eyes. They were wide… and lifeless.

She was in shock. Buffy had noticed where that strange green light was going, and it was aimed at her sister. Draco had sacrificed himself to save Dawn.

Buffy turned to the cackling woman, standing in a circle of burned grass. Her vision tunneled and all she knew was that her threat of ripping our rib cages was going to finally come true. Before Buffy could get there, Harry appeared in front of her and tried to pull her back.

"You have to stop! It'll kill you!"

"What are you talking about?" she struggled against his grip and thought about just throwing him off of her.

"Do you see that circle around her?" She did, but the circle of dead and charred grass meant nothing to her. "It's called a death circle. It's the darkest magic. Anything that crosses it died. That circle of magic will kill you if you cross it. It'll protect us against her but it'll also protect her against us."

Bellatrix was still laughing madly and once Harry made sure Buffy knew not to cross the death circle, he turned to her angrily. She'd killed his godfather, was instrumental in getting Ginny killed, and his only regret about time when he went crazy after Ginny's death was not killing Bellatrix.

"Why? Why did you do it? And why are you still here? You got what you came for, didn't you?" he screamed at her, tears in his eyes. He could still hear Pansy yelling at Draco to wake up, despite knowing he never would.

"Who said I got what I came for. Draco got his, but I haven't gotten mine." She laughed as if she was joking with a friend before her eyes fell to her dead nephew. "Poor bitty baby. Cissy will be so angry at me. If only there was a way to bring someone back from a magical death," Bellatrix mocked before looking at Willow, who had fallen to the ground and was staring at Draco in shock.

"No," Harry whispered in horror. He understood now.

Buffy looked in between him and Bellatrix. "What's going on?"

"She killed him, but it didn't have to be him. She killed him to force Willow into bringing him back." Harry slowly blinked at Bellatrix in alarm. If she wanted to see if a witch could raise the dead, then he knew exactly who she planned on raising. "She's going to see if Willow can do it, so she can bring back Voldemort."

"Do it!"

Harry whirled around and couldn't believe his ears. Pansy was kneeling over Draco's body and staring at Willow coldly. "It would send her over the edge!"

"I don't care! Just ido it/i!"

Willow was shaking her head, still staring at Draco. "I, I can't. I don't have the power anymore. I don't have the connection to him. It wouldn't work." Tears fell down her cheeks. "I can't," she whispered.

"Yes you can!" Pansy finally moved from her position over Draco to rush in front of Willow, shaking her shoulders hard, much to Bellatrix's delight. "You have some of his magic, remember? Part of him lives on in you. Use that connection and bring him back. You've done it before, and you almost did it with Tara. You can bring him back! It was a magical death!"

"I don't have the ritual, or any of the things I need," Willow pleaded.

"It doesn't matter! You have the power! You can will him back!"

Harry saw that Pansy was getting desperate, and that meant she was getting dangerous. He was about to go to her but Buffy stopped him, glaring at Bellatrix. "You said she can't get out?"

"No. She can't even apparate out. She'll have to portkey, and no portkey would deliver her this close. It's a requirement of them; the distance must be longer than fifty meters. Any spell she tries to send will die as well."

Nodding, Buffy went over to Willow and gently pushed Pansy back. The woman collapsed and Giles was at her side in an instant, holding her close as she sobbed into his shoulder. Buffy paid her no attention and put her hand on Willow's shoulder.

"Is it possible? If it isn't, and if you think you can't do this, then don't. I don't want to lose you too. But if it's a possibility, then maybe you could try?"

Willow looked at Draco's body, still crying silently. What was it Draco told her before they'd gotten into this mess? She could do anything? It was true, she felt limitless, but she didn't want to fall into the dark again.

Draco gave her hope. He'd done so much for her and for Buffy, enduring heaven and hell for them, and giving up his life to protect Dawn. He never lied to her, always pushed her, and she never felt worthless around her. His focus was on her, and he helped her achieve the same thing he'd done for himself—balance.

Magic curled around her, and it warmed her from her core. It sensed her insecurities and was soothing her. If she didn't try, she'd hate herself forever. Draco deserved her effort at least.

Without saying a word, she called on her magic and instantly it flared up around her. Buffy was pushed slightly back as a fierce wind spun around her. But unlike Tara, she knew she had to do this right. It was one of the things that Draco told her had affected her so badly—she demanded of her magic when she could have asked. She was going to do it right this time.

Willow closed her eyes tightly, and asked for a meeting with Osiris. If anyone could bring him back , it was Osiris. And unlike with Buffy, Willow wouldn't bring him back by force. She'd just be the conduit.

iIs that really what you want? To be a conduit for my power? My, how you have changed, young witch./i

She gasped at the voice in her mind and the power thrummed in her. iYou have the power to raise him. You can control this situation. If I tried, I would make it worse./i Willow paused, but sensed nothing from Osiris, so she continued on, pleading with him the only way she could. iPlease. Draco brought me back. He showed me the balance, and he healed the Slayer. Why does he not deserve a second chance?/i

iBecause he is already living out his second chance. I spared him once when the unnatural essence of the Dementor was forced upon him. What has he done to be spared again?/i

Willow didn't know how to answer that. Despair started to creep in, knowing that this was her only possibility of bringing him back. Draco had given her a second chance, had shown her how to get in touch with her magic. Without him, she would've never had the capability of doing that again. Then an idea came to her. A very bad idea, but it was an idea all the same.

iIf you don't want to use your own magic, then take mine./i

If a disembodied spirit could show surprise, then she was feeling it. iYour own magic? Your magic for the life of this man? Has he shown you such great compassion and sincerity since you've known him to deserve this?/i

iYes/i, Willow thought firmly.

It was silent and Willow thought that she had failed, but Osiris spoke to her once more.

iIt is done./i

Then Willow was enveloped in a bright white light. It dimmed her senses but her magic made up for all the loss. Suddenly, she was connected to everything and she knew that Osiris was using her as a conduit, like she had first asked.

iBut—but why not take my magic?/i she asked in shock.

iBecause for you to offer up your essence in payment for a life is a sacrifice I will honor and not ignore. /i

Osiris' power flowed in and out of her quickly, but it steadied her. She was urged to stand and did so, following what his magic told her to do. Once she was over Draco's body, she knelt next to him, ignoring the shocked looks from Dawn and Xander. Willow laid a hand on Draco's forehead and felt Osiris push all of his magic through her into him.

"iAwaken/i," she said, and felt the power in her voice resonate through the air.

Just as abruptly as she felt it, the power suddenly left her and she fell back to the ground, gasping for breath. Her whole body was clenched in a pain she'd never felt and tears leaked from eyes freely.

A loud gasp came from her right and she made herself look over. Draco was awake, blinking, breathing, and ialive/i. He turned slowly to look at her, and his gaze was full of wonder. Then his eyes narrowed and he sat up, apparently having a lot more energy that she did.

"Are you out of your fucking mind?!"

"Huh?" she asked, but neither had a chance to speak because Bellatrix's screaming laughter made chills go through everyone present.

Buffy was the first one to speak. "Is everyone else seeing the victory dance that I'm seeing?" But Bellatrix paid her no mind as she turned to Willow.

"You will raise him. You will bring him back and the world will bleed!"

Willow was too weak to even shake her head no, but Draco was awake and energized. And it appeared that he was also very pissed off.

"You killed me! Just to see if she'd have the power to raise a dead body. iYou killed me/i!"

"I was going to kill her," Bellatrix said with a smirk, pointing at Dawn. "You just happened to get in the way. I had other plans for you."

Draco stalked forward, his upper lip curled in a vicious sneer. "I don't think I'll give you the chance to carry them out."

Before he pick up his wand and cast a spell, not that it would have done any good against the circle, Bellatrix was whisked away with the portkey. Draco stopped short when he saw what was behind her. It seemed like his Aunt Bella iwould/i have a chance to carry her plans out.

Because a Dementor was coming out of the brush behind the Summers' house, and Draco knew what Bellatrix had done. She'd brought a Dementor to the Hellmouth. Even though the Hellmouth would make the Dementor's effect dulled, if Bellatrix fed it some of her blood, the Dementor could focus directly on the Black blood in his own.

Draco fell to his knees, his dark power spinning wildly out of control. The Dementor in him was reacting wildly to the one in front of him, and was clawing at the surface trying to escape.

Pansy rushed to him and put her hand on his skin, only to pull back, an icy burn on her hand. "Pull it in, Draco."

"I can't," he gritted through his teeth. "It's focused on me, I can't get it out of my head."

"Cast the Patronus!" Giles shouted, causing a panic to swell in Draco.

"The Dementor is focused on him. If I cast a Patronus, I'll kill him!" Pansy turned scared eyes to the Dementor creeping closer. Her breath became visible and she started to cry. "I just got you back. I can't lose you again."

Buffy was staring at the black monster and was about to stab a stake, a knife, or something, and kill it when Giles stopped her. "It's a magical creature that cannot be killed, only driven away."

"Then drive it away!" A shiver wracked her body and despite it being summer, a chill descended, creating a frost on the grass.

"It will kill Draco," Harry whispered next to her, and Buffy saw how pale he was. "I can already hear the screams," he said faintly, spurring Giles into action. He grabbed Harry and dragged him back towards the house, getting Dawn and Xander to help.

Buffy felt extremely powerless watching the monster descend on Draco and Pansy when a voice rang out loud and clear in the yard.

"iI did not save a life, risking another, just to have them both destroyed by a creature of my own making/i."

Buffy looked up and was frozen to the spot. Willow was standing, facing the Dementor. Her hair was black, but her eyes were white, and the voice coming out of her mouth was hers and another—a deep male voice that echoed with power.

"iLeave/i," she said, making a shooing motion with her hand. Buffy was surprised when the creature did as it was told, taking the chill with him. Willow collapsed on the ground and her natural coloring came back, but she was gasping for breath.

Everyone was quiet in the backyard, except for Willow's gasping breath.

"Tell me I did not hear what I just think I heard," Draco said, looking over at Willow in astonishment. "Did you just become a conduit for Osiris twice? Not once, which is more than enough to kill a person, but itwice/i?"

Willow was just as astounded as he was. "I could handle it, and so I'm an open medium now." Her muscles were like jelly and her energy was completely drained. "Someone want to help me up? I don't think I have as much kinetic energy as jell-o right now."

With that, she let the darkness take her and passed out.