Here's the next chapter! Thanks for reading!
Chapter Twenty-One
Dread filled the air and even though Draco had not been close to the Weasley twin, he could feel the grief and sorrow emanating from Ron, the other Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione. The wall was blown in and all he could do was to try and keep them out of harm's way.
He shoved Hermione forward and pleaded with her to continue moving, at least until they were away from the dangerous place. He pulled Ron along, dragging him away from exacting his revenge and hatred on the Death Eaters who were in the castle, the Death Eaters who killed his brother. He looked back at Harry, who was helping another Weasley move the twin's body.
"Come on, let's MOVE!" he kept yelling at them.
"Here!" Hermione yelled. She pulled him and Ron behind a tapestry. Harry followed them shortly after. Ron was struggling against her and Draco, trying to make his way from behind the tapestry. "Listen to me—RON!"
His face was contorted in pain and Draco never felt so bad for him before. As much as Ron wanted to go out there and fight the Death Eaters, Draco wanted to help him. He was shaking with rage and grief and tears flowed down his blackened face, leaving behind a wet path.
"Ron, we're the only ones who can end it! Please—Ron—we need the snake, we've got to kill the snake!" cried Hermione. She saw that her words had no effect on Ron—he was still struggling against Draco's strong hold. "We will fight! We have to, to reach the snake. But let's not lose sight of what we're doing! We're the only ones who can end it!" She wiped her face on her torn and singed sleeve and she heaved loud breaths to calm herself. She turned to Harry. "You need to find out where Voldemort is, because he'll have the snake with him, won't he? Do it, Harry—look inside him!"
Harry closed his eyes. Draco didn't relinquish his hold on Weasley, who seemed to finally give up. He was still as he leaned against the cold stone wall. Harry opened his eyes and looked at the three of them. "He's in the Shrieking Shack. The snake's with him, but it's got some sort of magical protection around it. He's just sent Lucius Malfoy to find Snape."
Draco's eyes flickered to Harry at the sound of his father's name, but he said nothing.
"Draco…" Harry said slowly. "Your father…he was looking for you. He…Voldemort looked inside his mind and…your father missed you. He's remorseful for how he's treated you and your mother."
Draco's face hardened again. He blinked away the tears in his eyes. "Changes nothing," he said harshly.
The four of them began to argue about who would go after the snake.
"Let's just go!" Harry said, exasperatedly. He threw up his arms in frustration.
They managed to dodge two masked Death Eaters and were nearly trampled by a herd of galloping desks shepherded by McGonagall. As she walked by, they noticed that her hair had come down and there was a gash on her cheek.
"Harry, the Cloak," said Hermione. "Never mind us."
But he threw the Cloak over all four of them. It barely fit and reached down to their waists. They ran down the staircase, holding on to each other as they dodged a number of spells and debris falling all around them. As they ran through the halls, they called out spells to help others.
They ran into the entrance hall, where the hourglasses once stood. The Slytherin hourglass had been smashed to pieces and its green emeralds had fallen everywhere, so people slipped and staggered as they ran. Two bodies fell from the balcony overhead and a gray blur sped across the hall.
"GREYBACK!" yelled Draco. His fury at Greyback's eagerness to help himself to Hermione when they were at the Manor overcame him. He blasted Greyback away from a girl's body, one that he vaguely recognized.
The four of them dodged crystal balls coming from Professor Trelawney, whose huge glasses looked oddly amusing in the battle. At the same moment that she waved a sphere through the air, the huge wooden front doors opened, and gigantic spiders forced their way into the entrance hall. Screams of terror cried out from everyone, Death Eaters and Hogwartians alike.
Harry put his arms around Draco and Hermione on one side, Ron on the other, and pushed them in the direction of the stairs. They ran outside and sprinted down the front steps, not bothering to stay close to one another. Draco looked back and saw a masked Death Eater aim a wand at Harry's back. He stopped and yelled a curse at the Death Eater, but before the curse hit, a giant foot landed on him. Draco looked up in fear and saw two giants standing above him.
He turned around quickly, searching for Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and found them no more than two meters away. He ran to catch up, but stopped when it felt like the air had frozen. He fell to his knees and despair filled his heart.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had already stopped and looked as if they couldn't move. The sounds of fighting seemed to fade away and shapes moved through the darkness, coming closer and closer. Draco saw their hooded faces and heard a number of rattling breaths around him.
Despair overcame Draco and he saw a Muggle family, one that his father had chosen for him, begging and pleading with him for their lives as he was forced to perform the Cruciatus Curse on them. The child in the family was no more than three years old. She was looking at him with fear in her eyes as she cowered before him. He felt the pain of Bellatrix's wand and saw her laughing face. He heard his father's cold laughter, haunting him day and night.
Every breath he took felt like he was breathing in ice.
"H-h-h..Harry…" he said, calling out. His voice didn't sound like it was louder than a whisper. It didn't even sound like his own. Why weren't they moving? Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked as if they were just frozen in time. "P-p-patronuses, Harry…do it…" Draco raised his wand, but knew that whatever he produced would be completely useless. His Uncle Ted had tried to teach him, but he couldn't come up with—
"The way to keep them away is to focus on a happy memory."
His uncle's words came to him and gave him enough strength to stand up. He weakly pointed his wand up, past Harry, Ron, and Hermione and toward the dementors. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on that happy memory.
Hermione's face came into picture. She was standing next to him. They were at Grimmauld Place and she was describing the Black family tapestry to him. His thoughts swirled and everything went out of focus, everything except her face. She was smiling at him, wearing the necklace he had given to her. His thoughts went out of focus and his mind resumed to Hermione punching him repeatedly. Finally, he saw her sitting in front of him, her hands holding his, and she was leaning forward with her eyes closed. The beautiful view of the ocean was visible from the window.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
A silver otter emerged from the tip of his wand. It scurried through the air, running through the dementors and pushing them away.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned around suddenly and saw Draco standing with his wand outstretched. Hermione looked at him with an unfathomable expression on her face.
"Was that you?" she asked.
Draco nodded.
A silver hare, a boar, and a fox soared over them and the dementors fell back even more.
Luna's sweet and pleasant voice filled the air, but Draco wasn't listening. He was watching Hermione, taking in her every feature. She was looking at him like it was the first time that she had ever seen him. She stared at him, trying to memorize every feature. Tenderness, love, and care filled her eyes and she ran forward, despite their short distance from one another.
She threw her arms around his neck and enveloped him in a long kiss. Draco was a bit taken aback, but he stroked her face as he returned the kiss, responding with such enthusiasm that he picked her up and buried his hand into her hair.
It was as if the world had ended and they were the only two people left. Nothing mattered anymore. The sounds of the battle faded, the debris around them disappeared, and the only source of light came from each other.
Draco set her down and finally looked around. Harry and Ron had small, shaky smiles on their faces while Seamus Finnigan and Ernie MacMillan, a Hufflepuff he never spoke to, looked at Draco in surprise and confusion. Luna grinned.
"Love. Well, that's the happiest feeling of all," she said before bouncing off.
"We have to go!" yelled Harry, seeing a giant lift his foot.
"You guys go!" Draco yelled. "You don't need four people in that small space." He gently shoved Hermione in the direction of Harry and Ron.
"Draco, please—"
"Hermione," he said in a low voice. "I'll find you. I promise." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Now go. Keep them safe. They'd never survive without you." He turned away and shot a spell at a Death Eater who stealthily approached them.
"Draco—I—I…I love you." Hermione looked a little nervous at her sudden announcement. Harry was pulling her towards him. He and Ron seemed to forget about Hermione and Draco and looked focused on getting to the Whomping Willow.
"I love you, too, Hermione." He gave her a small smile and nodded to Harry and Ron. "Now go."
Draco ran in the direction that Luna headed off to and he tried to follow her blonde hair. He didn't see her and was nearly taken out by another Acromantula. Kingsley came out of nowhere and saved him, cursing the giant spider out of the way.
"Draco, get in the castle!" he yelled. "There are too many of them. We must regroup!"
Draco nodded and ran back towards the castle. He saw Luna fighting a masked Death Eater ahead and Stunned the Death Eater before he grabbed Luna's arm and dragged her towards the castle.
"Longbottom!" he yelled. "Castle!"
Longbottom nodded at the sound, but continued to fight Travers, whose hood had fallen off.
"Come on, Luna," Draco said, extending a hand toward her.
Luna looked at Draco. "You're a much more pleasant person now. Like a friend." She ran up the stairs, brandishing her wand, but turned back at him. "The pink really suits you, you know."
Draco ran his hand through his hair, forgetting that it was still pink. He narrowly dodged a spell and followed her into the Great Hall. One of the last people he ever wanted to see was standing on the teacher's table, right where the headmaster sat.
His aunt, Bellatrix Lestrange.
She took one look at him and screamed his name.
"DRACO! OH, DRACO!" Her heavily lidded eyes narrowed and she beckoned him forward. Her mouth opened wide in a fit of laughter.
Draco didn't move. He gripped his wand tighter.
"Blood traitor, now is it, darling Draco?" she said, laughing. Her eyes glinted dangerously. "Do you love that filthy Mudblood?"
He raised his wand at her. It made Bellatrix laugh harder. "Are you going to fight me, Draco?" She threw a spell at him. Draco didn't have time to deflect it.
But he didn't have to. Someone stood in front of him and blocked it.
"Nymphadora, move!"
"No." She shoved Draco behind her.
Bellatrix laughed harder. "Oh, look, my darling niece and nephew teaming up together. Are you and the Mudblood going to babysit the cub, Draco?"
Nymphadora aimed a spell at Bellatrix, who blocked it instantly. Draco was shoved aside as Nymphadora moved closer to Bellatrix, both of whom were aiming spells at each other as fast as they could. Draco was a bit fascinated at how fast Nymphadora fought Bellatrix. He knew she was an Auror, but he had never seen her in action like this.
He turned his gaze away long enough to see Remus enter the Great Hall, fighting Dolohov. He looked around, trying to find something to do. Dean was across the hall, fighting Yaxley, and looked like he was on the losing end.
"Stupefy!" he yelled. Yaxley fell to the ground.
Dean turned, grateful at the help. "Thanks, Draco." Draco nodded and the two of them bumped fists. "Look out!" Dean pushed Draco to the ground, to avoid a green jet of light.
Draco knocked his face against the piece of splintered wood that broke off from the House tables. He wiped the blood from his nose with the back of his hand and looked around to see the perpetrator.
Remus, standing a couple of meters away, fell at the green jet of light from Dolohov's wand. He seemed to be falling in slow motion and Dolohov laughed as Charlie Weasley took him down from behind. Draco watched, helplessly, and tried to run forward to him, but stopped, nearly getting hit by another jet of green light.
"Where are you off to, Draco-boy?"
Draco spun around and saw Bellatrix heading toward him. He took a step backward, scared at what she was going to do to him. She already demonstrated her senseless acts of terror against people who had done no harm to her and here Draco stood, as one of the reasons why she was punished by the Dark Lord.
"Avada Kedavra!" she yelled.
Draco watched, frozen, as the jet of green light made its way toward him. Everything moved in slow motion. He closed his eyes and saw Hermione's face, glad that she would be the last thing he saw.
The room shook and he heard screams and shouts from all around him. A dull sort of ache pained his head and he fell to the ground, clutching his head.
"You have fought valiantly. Lord Voldemort knows how to value bravery. Yet you have sustained heavy losses. If you continue to resist me, you will all die one by one. I do not wish this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste. Lord Voldemort is merciful. I command my forces to retreat immediately. You have one hour. Dispose of your dead with dignity. Treat your injured.
"…I shall punish every last man, woman, and child who has tried to conceal you from me. One hour."
Draco opened his eyes and looked around the Great Hall. Bellatrix was no longer standing before him. He let out a great sigh of relief and sat back. Her Killing Curse didn't get him.
He looked around and saw familiar pink hair lying next to him. He shook her shoulder.
"Nymphadora, get up! We have to get to Remus!"
He pushed aside a piece of the wooden bench that used to belong to the Ravenclaw table aside so he could get a better look at Nymphadora's face.
"There. Now you have no excuse to hide," he said in an excited voice. "Come on, Nymphadora!"
She didn't move.
"Nymphadora?" Draco said uncertainly. He leaned over her face and peered down. Dread filled him.
Her eyes were wide open. A look of determination filled them.
But they were lifeless. They didn't hold the same twinkle, the same cheeky glint that always stared back at him.
"Nymphadora? Nymphadora!" Draco began to shake her. "Get up, get up!" He shook her harder.
"Wake up! Stop playing, Nymphadora! I'll stop calling you that, I'll call you Dora!" He began to hyperventilate.
"Dora, Dora…I won't even call you that, please, just wake up! Get up! Come on, Tonks, come on! Teddy needs you! Your mother needs you! I—I need you, too…"
"She's gone, Draco."
Not even Kingsley's reassuring voice could calm him now.
"No," he replied stubbornly. "Get up, Tonks."
"She can't."
Kingsley knelt down beside Draco and put an arm around him. He shook Kingsley off.
"Tonks, get up!" he commanded. He shook her harder. Tears filled his eyes as he hyperventilated more. "Get up, get up, get up!"
"She won't."
The tears spilled from Draco's eyes. "You're lying, Kingsley! Get away from me!"
"Draco—"
"NO!" He sniffed, trying to stop the snot from falling on Nymphadora's lifeless body. "Get up and put my hair right! You're not fooling anyone!" He shook her harder. "NYMPHADORA!"
He felt Kingsley gently push him aside to make room for someone next to him. "Draco…"
Draco looked aside and saw Remus lying there. Lifeless eyes stared back at him.
Again, he felt his breath knocked out of him. The room was spinning and he couldn't keep anything in focus. Everything that he had eaten earlier at Aberforth's threatened to come back up.
"NOOOOOO!" he yelled. He pounded on Remus' chest. "GET UP! YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME HERE!"
"Draco—"
"LEAVE ME ALONE, KINGSLEY!"
At last, Kingsley finally seemed to back away from Draco. Draco arranged Remus and Nymphadora's hands so they were touching one another and closed their eyes.
He took a deep breath and didn't bother to stop the tears from cascading down his face. He placed a hand on both Nymphadora and Remus' hands and quietly sobbed.
A soft hand gently rubbed his neck. He smelled her vanilla fragrance as she knelt next to him. She put her arms around him and held him tight. Draco dug his face into Hermione's hair and sobbed loudly. She stroked his back lightly, fighting back tears of her own.
After a long time, Draco pulled back from Hermione. She smiled sadly at him.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered.
Draco nodded, afraid to open his mouth in fear of crying again. "Me too," he said, so soft that Hermione barely heard him. "Me too."