Author's Note:
Sorry for another long absence and all the ones in the past year or two. My father passed away last month after a long illness.
*g*g*g*g*g*g*g*g*
The crack of apperition was deafening. "Showtime," Draco whispered to Ron, handing him a dagger.
The ginger crouched in front of McLaggen and fisted the other man's hair wrenching his head back to expose his throat. "I wish we had more time for this, but oh well," he said with a smirk. He slid the blade across the wizard's neck. The spray of blood and the look of fear in McLaggen's eyes as he opened and closed his mouth uselessly was satisfying. Ron desperately wanted to watch the prick struggle to the very end, but it was crunch time. He needed to stick to the plan.
Ron helped maneuver his sister so Draco could hold her up with only one arm wrapped around the young woman. He then placed the dagger in the blond's free hand and directed the blade towards his own gut.
"Don't die, Weasley," Draco said quietly.
Ron downed a blood replenisher and handed the empty bottle to the other man to dispose of later. "You do this right, and I won't," he responded with a grin. He then took a deep breath then yelled, "Ginny! No! Let her go!"
The two wizards commenced "struggling" for the knife and heard hurried footsteps coming down the stairs. It was seconds later that Harry appeared. "Ron!" he cried out. As practiced, Ron momentarily looked towards his one-time friend, and Draco plunged the blade into his stomach. As Potter ran, the Slytherin shoved Ron at him, causing them both to fall.
It was at that moment that Dumbledor wobbled down the stairs frantically assessing the situation. "Harry! Put pressure on that wound!" he ordered. The young man quickly complied causing Ron to cry out in pain. The headmaster looked over to Malfoy who had taken the opportunity to lift Ginny into his arms. He was slowly backing towards the wardrobe. "Draco, you don't have to do this," the older wizard pleaded.
"But I do, headmaster," the Slytherin sniveled. "If I don't, he'll kill my parents, he'll kill me." Draco inwardly cringed at how much of a tosser he sounded like.
."We can protect you, son. You and your family," he pleaded.
Well, his acting was apparently paying off. the blond thought. Although he wasn't sure if he should be flattered by the confirmation of his acting prowess, or insulted that the headmaster thought him so pathetic. Deciding it didn't really matter either way, he replied. "You can't keep us safe. You can't keep anyone safe from the Dark Lord."
"That's not true, Draco. Listen to me. We can hide you and your parents. We could keep them from Voldemort and protect them from further prosecution. You could still have a good future. Just let go of the girl. Set her down so we can talk," the headmaster begged.
"I can't do that, Headmaster. Dark Lord's orders. She comes with me, and if you want her to live through the night, then I would suggest you follow me." With that, Draco stepped into the cabinet, Ginny in his arms, and closed the door.
*R*R*R*R*R*R*R*R*R*R*
"Ginny!" Harry cried out, jumping to his feet to give chase. He threw open the cabinet door to find nothing.
"Harry!" The headmaster yelled. He grabbed hold of the young man's arm and pulled him back to his friend. "Look after your friend, Harry. I'll go after Mr. Malfoy."
"Sir, where did they go?" he asked frantically. "And you can barely stand. You wouldn't stand a chance like this, not alone."
"Don't doubt my strength. I have a better chance of retrieving Ms. Weasley, and Mr. Weasley here needs your help. Just keep pressure on the wound until help arrives," he instructed. "His life is in your hands." Harry had little choice but to agree.
Fuck! Ron thought. He was supposed to survive this event, but he was starting to fear that Potter might kill him due to pure stupidity. Thankfully, when Dumbledor moved to the wardrobe, Harry didn't follow.
Once the old man was through, Ron breathed a sigh of relief. They had actually managed it. Dumbledor and Ginny were both on the other side. That left one more person, and it would be perfect, he thought groggily. The blood loss was taking its toll.
As if summoned by his thoughts, Snape flew round the corner. He stopped briefly to assess McLaggen's situation before quickly moving on to Ron. "Potter, tell me what happened," he demanded as he pulled out a vial and brought it to the injured student's lips. Ron immediately recognized the metallic taste of a blood replenisher. "Now, Potter!"
"I-I had a lesson with Dumbledor tonight," he started. "We left the castle. He apparated us back to the Astronomy tower, and the dark mark was above it. Uh, then we heard shouting. I came down and saw Malfoy with Ginny. Ron was trying to help her, but Malfoy stabbed him. Professor, he took Ginny and Dumbledor followed. He can't fight them alone, sir. He isn't well. We need to help him," he pleaded.
"We will not be doing anything," the older wizard growled. "You will stay here and keep Mr. Weasley alive until help arrives."
"Why can't you just heal him?" Potter shot back angrily. "You must know how. Or is it that you don't want me to follow you. You're working with them, aren't you? You're just trying to escape! Admit it!"
Snape growled in aggravation and pulled several more vials from his robes. "Mr. Potter, I have been trying to heal him. Mr. Weasley was cut with a cursed blade. The wound is resisting all attempts to seal it. He needs more help than I can provide. So, you can either stay here and keep him alive until help arrives, or we both sit here and wait. Because there is no way in Hades am I allowing you to go through that cabinet, do you understand?" he sneered down at the boy.
"And what's to stop me from following," the young man challenged.
"Nothing but the death of your friend," Snape countered.
Harry stared the man down for a moment longer before grumbling. "What do I need to do."
The potions master sighed with relief. Ron would have as well, had he the strength. Mother fucker! It really shouldn't have taken this long to choose to save your supposed best friend.
The older wizard waved his wand over the ginger and several lights appeared above him. "Do you see that red light?" He pointed to the orb floating above Ron's heart. "When it fades, it means that he's losing too much blood. Give him half a vial," he said handing him three bottles. "Otherwise, keep constant pressure on the wound."
Snape waited until Potter nodded his understanding before rising to his feet. Moments later he disappeared into the cabinet. Harry moved to push down harder, and Ron cried out again. He started to pull away, but the ginger wrenched up an arm and dropped his hand over Harry's as the heart light started to fade.
Remembering his instructions, the other wizard quickly pressed down again. "Fuck, I'm sorry Ron," he said as he used one hand to snatch up a blood replenisher. Pulling the stopper out with his teeth he brought it to his friend's lips. He drank eagerly until it was taken away. "Only half," Harry reminded him.
Fear started to creep in, and Ron began to worry for his life. It wasn't supposed to be this bad, he thought. Either Draco had cut too deeply or Harry was completely incompetent. The latter seemed most likely. If he had to die in this war, he'd really rather it not be by accident.