Chapter Twelve:

It's Over

A/N: Please read, review and enjoy! One more chapter after this and than an Epilogue!

They arrived with no more than seventy-five Aurors and Order of the Pheonix members. They immediately surrounded the perimeter of the Malfoy Manor, flanking the exits as the Ministry for Magic cut-off their Floo network and Dumbledore concentrated on erecting the strongest wards he could around the ones already in place, making it impossible for inside or outside Apparition. They had come prepared this time.

Kearia stood growling behind her master, she could sense the darkness swarming all around her. Harry was looking desperately out into the forest beyond the Manor, how much he longed to return there was a feeling he didn't know would occur but it did almost constantly now.

'This is the night,' he reminded himself coldly, 'You are going to kill Voldemort and end it all tonight,' and with confidence he led the way into the Manor, Draco scurrying after him.

"The Death Eaters that are here and most likely in a panic, formulating some type of plan in the dungeons. Here, take a left," Draco immediately ordered once the three were in the house. The rest of them were not to follow, they would await Harry's orders to do so for it might be easier to lure the Dark Lord into a fight.

The house seemed empty, at an alarming rate. Harry cursed his way down to the dungeons, Draco navigating as their wands were gripped in their hands and their eyes darting each and every way.

It had been six days since they returned to Hogwarts, and after repeating their adventures numerous times mostly to Harry's friends, and an extensive amount of bedrest, the two felt ready to make their move. Harry had eventually become too anxious to sit still, and that's when Dumbledore had set up this entire ambush.

Since the Ministry of Magic recognized Voldemort's return now there was a lot more extra support than their other ambush's, or rescue missions rather. No more were the Light side hiding, scurrying away and keeping away from battle, no more of that. Now they were ready to fight, wands blazing.

"Ah yes, we've been expecting you...Son," a voice hissed as they were nearing the dungeons. Draco's entire body went stiff and his face was taut, he looked up at his looming Father who peered back down at him with his wand jabbed in his son's throat and a venomous glance.

"I would kill you, you know," he drawled, "but the Dark Lord has other plans for a traitor like yourself. Come, Potter, I think..." Lucius' voice went dead as his eyes scanned Harry and then the creature barring its teeth behind him. Lucius faltered completely and stuck out his wand at it, a hex on his lips but Harry was throwing up a shield quickly enough to absorb it.

A murderous look crossed Harry's features as he pushed a still stunned Draco out of the way and stepped before the head of the Malfoy Estate, "Lucius...you'll learn to keep your wand away from Kearia or you'll have to deal with me directly," Harry hissed, his own wand readied at the old man who was sneering downwards, wishing to be able to kill the boy right then and now but he knew the Dark Lord would end up taking his own life.

"Draco..." Harry began softly and cocked his head gently over at the still blonde, "Now!" he ordered and Draco sprang into immediate action.

"Expillearmus!" he screamed, white light pushed towards his Father who was knocked off his feet as his wand flew into his grasp, a smirk curled around Draco's lips. "Stupefy!" Lucius, who had been attempting to collect his wits, was promptly stunned on the floor of the Manor now.

Harry turned towards Kearia and nodded who turned away and bounded towards the entrance of the Manor. They had planned that upon her coming back outside, a select group of Order members were to infilitrate as well, Kearia would lead the way to wherever Harry was. That would give Harry and Draco at least ten minutes.

Grabbing ahold of Draco and leaving stunned Lucius, they started off quickly. "Are there any wards on the dungeons?" Harry asked quickly, his eyes darting around the pitch black Manor. "No...and how do you have any idea where you're going?" Draco hissed.

"Following Voldemort's pull," Harry mumbled, still running with his adrenaline pumping. He had been waiting for this day for years, and there was no doubt or fear that he would most definitely win.

Draco and Harry stopped in front of a door to the dungeons, Draco had already explained what would be on the other side. It was an office, of sorts, more like a meeting room. Couches pulled around in a circle, no windows, just stone walls. But as they entered, it seemed the couches had been removed. And Harry and Draco found themselves with over thirty wands pointed at them in a circle, much like the one on the night of Initiation.

Harry hissed in pain but ignored his burning scar as Voldemort clearly stepped into view in the middle of the circle, approaching the boys. Harry didn't take a moments time to approach him as well, without even a glance at Draco who was numb with fear. "Harry Po-"

"Stupefy! Expillearmus! Avada Kedavra! Reducto! Obscuro! Bombardus! Crucio!" Harry screamed every curse and hex he could think of in one go, and watched all but one be easily deflected by Voldemort who was sneering, but that quickly fell as the Cruciatus Curse vibrated through the creatures body.

Harry welled up all of his hatred for the man over the years, all his love for the ones who had been murdered by him, and pushed it all out of him and through the tip of his wand into the curse that had stuck, Voldemort unable to deflect so many in a row. Harry had planned this, he knew that he should storm in and start shouting off hexes. No time for conversation, no time for mere thought, the only thing that was important was action.

Voldemort hissed and fell to his knees, but he was battling with himself and refusing to cry out in pain as his body jerked and contorted. Eventually he threw it off but Harry didn't lower his wand as he was still gathering himself from using so much magical energy. Voldemort slowly rose to his knees, the Death Eaters awaiting his instructions.

"Do you know why nobody does something as foolish as that, Mister Potter?" Voldemort hissed, slowly sauntering over towards the boys where Draco stood struck still.

"Because...it uses up so much energy that you have none left...for a normal person..." Harry's lips smirked darkly, something Draco had never laid eyes on before. A whole new kind of angry, dark aura surrounded Harry as the Dark Lord approached, the brunette didn't move one bit as he did but merely stood there...smirking! There were quite a few things Draco had found out about Harry and his past that had amazed him in the last couple of days, but still after all that being able to stand there and smirk at Voldemort? Draco hadn't any idea how Harry did it, as he was still fear-struck.

"Exactly. And now you can't do a thing, Expillearmus," Voldemort said with ease, and Harry's wand flicked from his hand and into Voldemort's but Harry's smirk didn't fall.

"Did you ever wonder why I was chosen for the Prophecy?" Harry asked, smirk widening.

Voldemort chuckled darkly, vibrating through the room, "It was those aweful parents of yours, that Mudblood I had murdered," he said, hoping to falter Harry as he had done in the past by those remarks but Harry didn't move. Apparantly he was much less impulsive than a mere few months ago.

"You're wrong," Harry whispered amusedly, "I was chosen for the Prophecy because I'm simply stronger than you," he grinned as Voldemort sneered most angrily and was now only a foot away, his wand jabbed harshly in Harry's chest as the boys scar was bursting with pain he ignored.

"You're a boy, seventeen years old...and you think your stronger than me? Hah! You've quite the delerious imagination, Potter..."

Harry closed his eyes tightly and gathered up all of the magical energy he had left in his core, he was briefly aware of Voldemort still chortling on but it seemed so faraway and distance as he focused his mind. He collected his thoughts and took a deep breathe before whispering in a barely audible tone, "Avada Kedavra," and even though it was so quiet, it seemed to echo through the entire room above Voldemort's venomous screams.

The Dark Lord was visibly thrown backwards by green light that erupted out of Harry's entire body, pushing all at him. It flooded Voldemort, and he screamed bloody murder as his body was sent flying through the air and hit the opposite wall as Death Eaters watched with widened eyes. Harry felt himself go weak and fall to his knees, his entire world going black.

Draco had been distracted by Voldemort's curdling screams but brought himself together to protectively stand in front of Harry's collapsed body. He was still breathing, which was all that mattered to the blonde as the green light that had been surrounding Voldemort slowly disappeared. The Dark Lord didn't move. A few Death Eaters swarmed to him as the others looked mullified at what to do, wands pointed at the two teenage boys.

"He's dead!" one hooded man cried and then it all happened so fast.

The door to the dungeons was snapped in four it seemed as Kearia bounded through. She immediately stood in between Draco, Harry and the approaching angry Death Eaters. And then as voices screamed numerous curses, Draco's world went black too and he fell slumped to the ground.

Draco awoke a few hours later, well into the middle of the night, and he immediately recognized the scratchy sheets he lie underneath of as the Hogwarts Hospital Wing. A smile broke across his face but then he quickly shot upwards, his eyes scanning the room. "Harry?" he called out in a loud whisper, but then his eyes fell on the boy sleeping next to his own bed. Sighing with relief he climbed out of bed and into Harry's, seeing as the room was empty, and he wrapped himself around the other peaceful looking boy and fell back to sleep. Draco didn't know what happened, and at that moment he didn't care. All that mattered was Harry was alright.

When he awoke once more it was to the shrillness of Madame Pomfrey's voice, groaning he snuggled closer into the familiar musky scent that radiated off of Harry. "Mister Malfoy! Release my patient at once!" Madame Pomfrey ordered, Draco groaned and opened his eyes to the bright sunlight that was creeping in the windows only to shut them tightly again. "If you don't release Mister Potter this-"

"Poppy," came the Headmaster's calm voice, "I do feel as though maybe Mister Malfoy's contact will only assist in Mister Potter's recovery," Draco smiled inwardly and thanked the old man. "However, I do believe since Mister Malfoy is awake he should be aware that there are many people in the room wishing to speak with him,"

Draco immediately shot upwards, unaware of how many people there really were in the room. It turned out to be Severus, Remus, Dumbledore, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Ginny, the rest of the Weasleys, Madame Pomfrey, Hagrid, and McGonagall. Groaning Draco sat himself up against the headboard and rubbed his eyes before glancing down at Harry again.

'He's never this deep of a sleeper...' he thought before turning to the rest of the group who were all seated in chairs surrounding his and Harry's bed, those his was now thoroughly unoccupied.

"Mister Malfoy, how are you feeling?" Dumbledore asked calmly, making Ron scowl immediately at him. Apparantly they were all there for quick answers.

"Fine, thanks," Draco furrowed his brow as his hand was absently petting Harry's head.

"Would you stop touching him like that and get back in your own bed?" Ron snapped finally.

Draco sneered over at him, "You heard Dumbledore now piss off, Weasel," this comment rewarded him with quite a few disapproving looks that he did not care for. He still hated Hermione and the Weasleys, nothing to do with his affiliation with Harry would ever change that.

"Draco...I think we'd all like to know exactly what happened last night! We showed up and Potter was unconscious, Lucius was stunned, and over thirty Death Eaters were being mulled by that...thing," Snape spat.

"Kearia? Where is she, she alright? Oh Harry will go absolutely nutters if anything is wrong with her!" Draco groaned, just thinking about how frantic the brunette would get.

"That beauty, she's just takin 'erself a nap outside me cabin! Can't believe it when Dumbledore told me, well I o'course jumped on 'er case and got 'er all fit up in no time! She seems to be missin' her Mommy though! I'm so proud of yeh and Harry fer being the first Wizards to capturing and training a Chimeara, bloody beaut'ful!" Hagrid was smiling brightly at Draco, which unnerved the boy completely.

"We did not train her and do not let Harry hear you say that...it gets his wand in a rather tight twist," Draco smirked at the thought of hearing Harry quickly retorting that statement and then blushing and acting as shy as he usually would.

"Kearia aside," McGonagall began testily, "The Death Eaters were either killed by her or subdued by us. They are all awaiting trial at the Ministry, including your Father," she explained.

Draco nodded numbly. They had actually done it? "Is Voldemort dead?" he asked.

"Yes, but how is still of a mystery to us. This is vital to Harry's health," Dumbledore said earnestly.

"Why do you all look so..sombre?" Draco raised an eyebrow, still playing with Harry's soft raven hair. "Harry finally did what you used him for, and should you not be celebrating that the Dark Lord is finally dead?"

"We didn't use Harry! He's my best mate!" Ron stood enraged, but Hermione yanked him eagerly back down into his seat and looked sadly at Draco.

"Mal-Draco," she began softly, "of course we're all happy that it's finally over. It's just that Harry isn't asleep right now..."

"Yes he is," Draco said automatically, his voice cracking, for he feared anything else the brunette could be. He wasn't dead, that's for sure. His chest was rising and falling slowly.

"No, he isn't. He is in a deep state of rest. He is in a coma," Hermione finished sadly. It explained why everybody, all of the usually ramboncious Weasleys, were just sitting around sadly looking from their laps to Harry and then back to their laps.

"W-will he be okay?" Draco whispered out loud, his eyes darted immediately to the boy lying beside him. That explained why he hadn't moved whatsoever when Draco joined him in bed.

"We do not know, but that's why we need to hear exactly what happened last night before Kearia arrived," Pomfrey urged.

So Draco told them everything, not like there was much to tell. The wandless magic amazed everybody, including him even though he had been there. It was still an extremely difficult thing to accomplish. Pomfrey excused everybody from the Hospital Wing except for Draco, Hermione and Ron who all sat staring numbly at Harry.

"I am sure he will be fine, for all he needs is rest," she assured them.

"How long do you think it'll take?"

"As long as Harry needs," she frowned and left the three to their thoughts.

Draco spent no more than thirty seconds away from Harry in the next two weeks, and only then it was to goto the bathroom. His platinum hair was back to its extremely dirtied state and his scent was absolutely vile from not washing. Ron and Hermione didn't look much better themselves. Draco was becoming used to many of the Weasley's visits, since he refused to leave Harry's side he saw them often.

Still, over two weeks time, the boy had yet to awaken. School was starting in a week and Draco was excited because he had the hopes that maybe things could get back to normal. But then he'd look back at Harry and ask himself, 'How can things ever be normal with him?'. Not like he minded it.

It was one afternoon when Harry was finally opening his eyes. It was a very slow process, but Draco saw them flutter open and then shut again. He immediately ran to Pomfrey's office. "He's waking up, he's waking up!" he screamed excitedly.

Madame Pomfrey dropped everything she had in her hands and rushed over to Harry with her wand out, she then took one look at the boy before turning towards Draco. "Go get freshened up. I need to deal with my patient. Alone," she said firmly before turning back to Harry.

Knowing there was no arguing with the Mediwitch, Draco quickly ran off to the dungeons where he showered and got dressed and fixed his hair. All of his things had been moved there over the past two weeks, readying themselves for Seventh Year at Hogwarts. Draco then ran all the way up eight flights of stairs and into the Gryffindor Common Room where he knew Hermione and Ron were. He was banging loudly on the portrait hole where the two had permenantly moved into, Dumbledore had allowed them to come early so they could visit with Harry whenever they would like.

"What do you want, Ferret?" Ron snapped.

"Harry's awake! Harry's awake, tell Dumbledore, McGonagall, whoever! Harry's awake!" he beamed again before turning on his heel and running back towards the Hospital Wing leaving a gaping Ron in his wake.

Draco felt happiness vibrating through him. He had been so worried that Harry might never recover from using so much of his energy and magic, but now as he stood inside the Hospital Wing he didn't think about that for one second longer. Harry was sitting upright in bed. His hands were trembling as he held a small piece of toast in them, eyeing it wearily. He dropped it and smiled brightly as he caught Draco.

"Wow, you look so...different," were Harry's first words he croaked out. It was true. Clean, well-kept, well-groomed Draco was something he wasn't used to anymore. The perfectly manicured nails, the flat platinum silken hair, the clean skin, no mud on his cloak or the blouse beneath it.

"Harry! Oh, Merlin's beard Harry!" was all Draco could say as he was quickly in Harry's lap, food pushed aside onto the floor, hugging the life out of the brunette who grinned and weakly hugged back.

"I-I heard you never left," Harry said against Draco's hair, he took a long whiff. To him it felt like he had just woken up from one night's rest, but Pomfrey quickly filled him in otherwise.

"Of course I didn't!" Draco quickly said, pulling away from him and then his smile seemed only to brighten as Harry pulled Draco back into another embrace.

"You know I love you Draco," Harry whispered, gently kissing the nape of the blonde's neck.

"I love you too, Harry. So much it hurts sometimes. Gods, I was so worried that..."

"Urgh! My eyes, my bleeding eyes! You wake up after two weeks and this is what I get greeted with?" Ron screeched as he and Hermione approached Harry's Hospital bed where Draco was reluctantly pulling himself off of the boy and onto a chair next to him.

"Sorry, mate," Harry smirked brightly as Ron and Hermione quickly hugged him and sat down next to him.

"Y'know we were afraid we were gonna lose you...right after we'd got you back," Ron explained through flushed cheeks.

"Yeah, but I'm back, right? No need to be sad over that...I just needed...to rest," Harry smiled lightly, he didn't seem put-off about anything at the moment. How could he? He felt better than he had in ages, and he didn't really fully understand why. He had just woken up from a coma, shouldn't he feel worse than this? "Dray, could you pass me my food back please?" he asked, only to be quickly accomodated and his tray of food on his lap again.

"So how are you feeling?" Hermione asked tentatively, trying her best to ignore Draco absolutely beaming up at Harry unable to peel his eyes off the boy.

"Fine. Better than fine, actually," Harry said through a bite of his plain toast, Madame Pomfrey had explained that anything more than that would be too much. "I'm not allowed to leave yet, but she says that by the time school comes around next week I'll be right as red," he smirked.

"Oi mate, you put us in there for a right scare," Ron said sighing, clasping his hand around Hermione's happily now. "Now at least we can celebrate!" he grinned.

"The papers have been going absolutely mad and Molly has been waiting weeks for you to wake up to throw a proper party. Remus is simply beside himself," Hermione smiled gently at Harry who was furrowing his eyebrows.

"Throw a party? What for?" he asked confusedly.

"...you don't remember?"

"Remember what?"

"Harry...V-V-Voldemort is dead," Ron stuttered his name but it came out just the same as Harry dropped his toast back onto his plate as his eyes went wide, "You killed him that night two weeks ago," he explained.

"He's dead? Gone? Forever?" Harry whispered, looking away from his best friends and towards Draco's large smile. Harry immediately melted under those silver eyes that beamed over at him and he took the pale hand that was being offered to him and looked his gaze with Draco's.

"It's finally over. You did it, Harry. We are free," Draco said.

Harry could die then and die a happy man.