No, no, no.

I couldn't hear, I couldn't see, I couldn't breathe.

"Ronnie,"

Hands were tugging at my shoulders, pulling me off of Fred's body.

"GET THE FUCK OFF ME!"

I wasn't leaving Fred. They couldn't make me.

"Ronnie, please," the voice persisted, tugging more furiously at my arms.

I was faintly aware of being pulled into someone's chest. I gave in, letting my hands cling to them, sobbing uncontrollably.

The familiar scent of expensive cologne mingled with earthy sweat hit me as I buried my face into smoke damaged fabric.

"I can't do this anymore," I wept, "I just want to go home."

"You will," a husky murmur assured me as arms tightened around me. "You will."

"GET DOWN!"

Screams and blasts tore the night air and I found myself being thrown down upon the rubble beneath me.

Draco pinned me down, shielding my body with his own as bangs sounded loud and close above us.

"Draco," I sobbed, "Fred, we need to help Fred."

"They've moved him," he murmured gently, before quickly scrambling off of me. "Come on, we need to get out of here."

But as he tried to help me up with him, a sight made my blood curdle as I froze with terror.

Great big hairy legs came crawling in through the hole blasted in the side of the castle.

"COME ON!" Draco said more fiercely, tugging at my arm as Harry and Hermione started blasting the spiders away.

"IT'S BROUGHT FRIENDS!" Harry cried. "RUN!"

This really wasn't music to my fucking ears.

Draco hurriedly pulled me away as I stumbled and fell over the rubble, finally arriving back to the place where we had tumbled out of the Room of Requirement; Blaise now vanished, Harry and Hermione following close behind.

At the other end of the corridor many people were running backwards and forwards in a chaotic manner, and I noticed a large figure dressed in black Death Eater robes pursuing a couple of students.

Anger suddenly ripped through my stomach, trampling the fear within me.

Shaking in anger and grief, I violently brandished my wand and started to furiously pelt ahead. But a pair arms circled my torso, halting me in my tracks.

"LET GO OF ME!" I roared, pulling with all my might to free myself from Draco's tight hold. "I WANNA KILL THE FUCKING BASTARDS!"

"Damn it, Weasley!" Draco hollered, frantically trying to restrain me as I writhed and kicked. "You'll get yourself fucking killed!"

"I don't care!" I cried, still wrestling to be free, "I don't want to live anymore. What's the fucking point?"

Turning me around, he slammed me up against the corridor wall with his body. His whole face was filled with a furious anguish as he looked down at me.

"BECAUSE I FUCKING LOVE YOU!"

I stilled, looking up at him as we panted heavily against each other. Silver grey eyes pierced down at me with such intensity.

"I love you, Ronnie," he repeated, his voice shaking with ardent conviction. "And I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you."

The emotion that hit me was too much; I started gulping back great big choking sobs. Terror, grief, and anger were still dominant; confusion hitting me at Draco's admission of love.

He cupped my face, wiping my tears away with his thumbs as he gently pressed his forehead against mine. "I'm sorry, Ronnie, I'm so sorry for everything," he murmured hoarsely, his voice breaking slightly.

"For fuck's sake, Malfoy," Harry spat. "Is now really the time? She's literally just lost her brother!"

"Shut it, Potter!" Draco hissed, whipping round to glare at him, "haven't you got a world to go and fucking save?"

"Yes, but for some reason I'm stood here waiting for you to sort out your fucking bipolar feelings for my best mate!" Harry hissed angrily.

"Harry, leave them be," Hermione said, tugging his arm. "Ronnie is in no fit state, let's just go and find the snake ourselves."

"Snake?" Draco frowned, turning back to me. "What snake?"

"Nagini," I whispered, finally finding my voice. "We need to kill it."

"RONNIE!" Harry bellowed furiously. "JUST GO AND TELL A DEATH EATER OUR PLAN WHY DON'T YOU?"

"I can take you to the snake." Draco said immediately, ignoring him. "It's where we were going to take Potter, anyway."

"Okay," I nodded, not knowing what else to do; my mind too numb with shock and horror.

"Wow - you've scored yourself a right one there," Harry muttered to me, his voice dripping with sarcasm as Draco marched ahead, beckoning for us to follow him.

"Just fucking don't, Harry," I hissed. "At least he is helping us."

"Yeah - eventually!" Harry scoffed. "He willingly left us all for dead in the Room of Requirement just moments ago, or have you already forgotten that?!"

Draco glared over his shoulder at Harry. "Do you want me take you to the fucking snake or not?!"

Harry said nothing as we all held our wands out, poised and ready to attack once we reached the end of the corridor. We all halted as Draco peered out.

I could see beyond him that people were still running in all directions; fighting and screaming. Bodies lay strewn across the floor; half buried in fallen rubble.

"Are you ready?" Draco asked, looking back at us, his eyes lingering on me.

I gave a small nod of my head. Hermione trembled next to me and I quickly squeezed her fingers in mine.

And then we were fucking running. Draco leading the way as we followed him; ducking and diving, trying to avoid curses flying around us as we parried them with our own wands.

We eventually reached the marbled Entrance Hall; skidding and tripping over debris and glass. Draco constantly looking back over his shoulder, his eyes frantically searching me out.

It wasn't until we flew through the great oaken doors and into the safety of the darkness did he eventually stop and pull me roughly into his arms.

"Are you okay?" He asked breathlessly, concern etched over his face as he stepped back to look me up and down.

But miraculously I was fine; physically. We were all fine.

"For fuck's sake, Malfoy!" Harry panted, bending over to clutch a stitch in his side. "This is not the fucking time! Now take us to the bloody snake!"

"Harry!" Hermione implored, near to tears as she sat breathlessly on the ground.

Draco, ignoring Harry, tightened his arms fiercely around me, pressing his lips firmly against my forehead. I closed my eyes, welcoming his comfort, feeling utterly exhausted.

"Are you all right to go on?" He murmured gently, his lips moving against my skin as he spoke.

I sluggishly nodded my head. I mean, what else could I do? Lay down in the middle of a battle and take a fucking nap?

This time taking my hand, Draco led us across the grounds towards the Whomping Willow, expertly flicking his wand at it causing its branches to cease their violent whipping.

"You know, you could have just told us it was in the Shrieking Shack, Malfoy," Harry muttered ungratefully as we clambered up the passageway. "It's not like we don't fucking know how to get there. It is, after all the place where we discovered your girlfriend had been carrying a murdering paedo around in her pocket for the first three years of school."

"Wait- what?!" Draco spluttered, looking at me agog.

"Oh yeah," I said shrugging my shoulders nonchalantly. "Turned out my rat was actually Wormtail."

Draco's face filled with horror. "But that's... that's-"

"Disgusting, creepy, twisted?" Harry finished for him. "Yeah you could say that. No surprise that he ended up working for you, was it? Pity he's dead. Still, I expect you buried him some place nice so that your girlfriend can visit his grave and fondly remember the bath times they shared together."

Draco's hand clenched in mine as he furiously wheeled round on Harry.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM, POTTER?! I'M TRYING TO HELP YOU HERE!"

Harry instantly pointed his wand right in Draco's face.

"I'M JUST TRYING TO POINT OUT THAT RONNIE DESERVES SO MUCH MORE THAN A SCUMBAG LIKE YOU!"

"Harry, stop it now!" I warned, stepping in front of a snarling Draco and placing a hand on Harry's chest. "This isn't the fucking time. We're in the middle of a battle and I've just witnessed my brother get killed. Stop making it about you and your stupid vendetta against Draco."

"Let's just go, please!" Hermione implored.

With Harry and Draco continuing to glare at one another, we continued up the passageway until we eventually arrived at the Shrieking Shack.

Watching from a slit in the wall, we witnessed Voldemort brutally attack Snape with his snake.

"Oh god," Draco shuddered as we clung to one another in horror. "No."

Harry collected some tears or some shit and the four of us walked back in stunned silence.

The snake was still alive. But Snape was dead.

And I couldn't help but wonder what a fucking waste of time that had been.

*****