Draco's POV:

As we were preparing for the fight, more and more people began to appear through Aberforth's tunnel. Fred and George Weasley along with the rest of the Weasley family, Dean Thomas, Lee Jordan, Remus Lupin, Oliver Wood, Angelina Johnson, Kingsley Shacklebolt, and a countless number of other fighters, ready for the battle.

A few of the older kids who weren't quite old enough to be allowed to stay ushered the younger kids through the tunnel, making sure no one was trying to stay behind.

"I don't know about you," Lizzie muttered beside me as she changed out of her robes and into clothes more suitable for fighting, "but I'm done playing the part of a Death Eater. I'm on Harry's side through and through."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," I replied.

I saw Lizzie's eyes sweep the room and land on Sammy, who was trying to hide behind a hammock. She frowned and hurried over towards him. "Hey, you," she hummed, peeking around the hammock at him. "Just what do you think you're doing?"

"I want to stay and fight," he replied defiantly. "This place is my home and there is now way in hell that I am going to let Voldemort touch it." I marvelled at his courage and the way he used Voldemort's name without so much as flinching.

"That's very brave of you," Lizzie spoke, leaning down towards him, "but I can't let you stay. I know you are absolutely brilliant and could probably bring down half of the people in the room in a duel, but this isn't a duel. There are going to be people here that are meaner than the Carrows and I can't let you get hurt. You need to go home to your parents and let them keep you safe. I promise that the second we win this battle, Draco and I will come and find you."

"I want to fight!" Sammy snapped, the childlike innocence suddenly gone and replaced with bold rebellion.

"Sammy," I whispered, leaning down just as Lizzie had, "You have to leave. We won't let you stay here. It's not safe enough for you here."

"I don't care if it's not safe!" the boy exclaimed, tearing up. "This is my home."

"It's our home too, Sammy," I responded. "Me, Lizzie, and every other person in this castle will fight with every ounce of our being to make sure that Harry kills Voldemort. I swear it."

"You swear it?" Sammy asked.

"We swear it," Lizzie repeated with a nod. "As long as you swear to go somewhere that's not here and stay safe."

"I will," he muttered, jumping out and wrapping his arms around our necks. We hugged him back and walked him to the tunnel, where we found Magda and Miah waiting for him.

"Run along you three," I spoke. "And keep each other safe." They nodded and we watched at their forms disappeared down the tunnel.

"Listen up!" Neville shouted once everyone seemed prepared and the younger kids had been evacuated. "Our number one priority is defence, right now. I have no doubt that the professors are out there casting every spell imaginable to shield the school. So we are going to go out there and help them in anyway we can. And if those bloody arseholes somehow get through the defences, we will make them wish that they had never been born."

"There are not only going to be Death Eaters fighting us," I called. "There are going to be other creatures that Voldemort has convinced to join him. You might run into giants, werewolves, trolls,dementors, and hundreds of other creatures. I want you all to know what you are running into and be prepared."

"Ron and I are going to try and find Harry to see if he's found the diadem," Hermione announced. "You all need to run through every spell you know right now and keep them in mind as you go out there. Think of your happiest moment should you run into a dementor and keep your faith strong. I believe in every single one of you."

"Let's go fight us some bad guys," Neville smirked. "DUMBLEDORE'S ARMY!"

The crowd once again roared with him and we all spilled through the door and into the corridors. The mass volume of us decided to make our way to the Great Hall, where most people would seem to convene.

We were right. The students that hadn't hidden away in the Room of Requirement were sitting at their house tables, looking up at McGonagall who was speaking to them "Those of you who aren't yet of age will be evacuated from the premises to a safe house, where you are to remain until further notice. If you are of age and would like to stay and fight, you may stay if you wish. Professor Sprout and Mr. Filch will be overseeing the evacuation."

"Where's Snape?" a girl just a few feet away from Lizzie and I who I recognized at the pug-faced Pansy Parkinson stood and shouted.

"He has, to use a common phrase, done a bunk," replied McGonagall to the castle's great joy. The students erupted into a great cheer. "We have already placed protection around the castle, but it is unlikely to hold unless we reinforce it. I must ask you, therefore, to move quickly and calmly, and do as your prefects-"

She was cut off as a slimy voice echoed throughout the hall. I recognized it at once. It was high, clear, and cold. There was no telling from where it came, for it seemed as if it were coming from the walls themselves. Lizzie tensed beside me and grabbed my hand, squeezing it rather tightly.

"I know that you are preparing to fight," the voice hissed, drawing screams and yelps from some students. "Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood."

The voice paused, causing a silence to wrap around the necks of each student, threatening to strangle them.

"Give me Harry Potter," Voldemort commanded, "and they shall not be harmed. Give me Harry Potter and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter and you will be rewarded. You have until midnight."

The silence surrounded us once more, but this time it was more final, telling us that Voldemort was done speaking. I noticed heads turning and followed them, seeing Harry standing in a corner, looking horrified.

Then, the same pug-faced girl who had asked about Snape stood from her table and pointed to the curly haired boy. "But he's there! Potter's there! Someone grab him!" she screamed. I saw Harry take a step back, scared that someone might actually turn him over to Voldemort.

"You ruddy bitch," Lizzie hissed, releasing my hand and stepping up to Pansy. She pulled a fist back and slammed it into Pansy's nose, who stumbled backwards, covering her now misshapen nose that was gushing blood.

"Thank you, Miss Parkinson," McGonagall clipped. "You will leave the Hall first with Mr. Filch along with any other person who would wish to hand Mr. Potter over." Her sharp gaze travelled over the crowd and lingered on the few students that stood and followed Pansy and Filch from the Hall.

Kingsley Shacklebolt, who had followed us down to the Great Hall from the Room of Requirement, addressed the room. "We've only got half an half an hour until midnight, so we need to act fast. A battle plan has been agreed between the teachers of Hogwarts and the Order of the Phoenix. Professors Flitwick, Sprout and McGonagall are going to take groups of fighters up to the three highest towers, Ravenclaw, Astronomy, and Gryffindor, where they'll have good overview, excellent positions from which to work spells. Meanwhile Remus, Arthur, and I will take groups into the grounds. We'll need somebody to organize defense of the entrances or the passageways into the school."

Fred and George Weasley stepped forward and said in harmony, "Sounds like a job for us." Kingsley nodded his approval, and I almost felt bad for whatever Death Eater wandered into their defences.

"Potter," McGonagall called to Harry, as the adults gathered by the Head Table to split groups, "aren't you supposed to be looking for something?"

"What?" Harry asked, as if being pulled from a stupor. "Oh, yeah!"

"Then go, Potter," she commanded.

"Right, yeah." All eyes followed him as he jogged from the room.

"I want to be on the front line," Lizzie muttered, turning towards me once Harry had disappeared from view. Her face was deadly and determined. "I don't care where they want us. I'm fighting in the front."

"I'll be right beside you," I agreed with a nod.

"Listen up!" Lupin shouted, drawing everyone's attention. "We have divided the groups up mainly by house to simplify things. Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall will take the entirety of the Ravenclaw house and half of Hufflepuff up to the towers where they will be positioned with the best vantage point. Kingsley, Arthur, and I will be taking the remainder of you and spreading you out at each entrance to the castle grounds where you will be fighting at the forefront. If you wish to be stationed elsewhere, come speak to one of us."

Lizzie latched onto my hand and dragged me up towards Lupin as the students began to make their way to their stations. "Mr. Lupin," she greeted him. "I'm not sure you remember me but-"

"You're Lizzie Samuels and you're Draco Malfoy. You're the spies that have been helping protect the students from the Carrows," he interrupted, nodding to us, and upon seeing our confused expressions, explained how he knew this. "I've been speaking to Neville."

"That makes sense," Lizzie spoke. "Anyway, Draco and I would like to be at the very front of the battle if at all possible."

"That can definitely be arranged," he replied. "Just be prepared to fight."

"We are, sir," I pledged. "More than anyone here."

"Wonderful," he chimed, as he began to lead us along with a group of about 50 others to the front entrance to the grounds, a large, black gate, which stood wide open.

I looked up at the night sky and noticed the dome shaped shield that the professor's had placed around the castle. It's blue transparency reminded me of the bubble that Lizzie had been trapped in over Easter holiday.

"I hope it holds," Lizzie muttered beside me, also looking at the protective shield.

"Me too," I whispered, low enough that she probably didn't hear me.

We pushed our way to the front of the group until we were directly in front of the gate, standing beside Lupin, who stood with a firm grip on his wand and a stony expression on his face. "There are more coming," he confided, not taking his eyes off of the empty grounds in front of us. "We called others in. The Smith's, the Montgomery's, the Finnigan's, the Burke's, and the Cavanagh's. We told them to bring everyone they could spare, but leave their children home."

"We're going to win this," Lizzie uttered, staring ahead just like Lupin. "I can feel it."

"All those families and more and we're still severely outnumbered," Lupin continued. "He's gotten most of the werewolves, giants, trolls, vampires, and all of the dementors. We've got a handful of students barely old enough to be considered of age and some of their parents."

"Numbers don't matter," I hummed. "It's the talent."

"And what you're fighting for," Lizzie added. "They're fighting because they're scared of Voldemort. We're fighting for our home, our family, and our friends."

"Let's hope you're right," Lupin croaked. "Because here they come."

Shadows began to appear from the darkness. Shapes of thousands of humans; no doubt they were a mix of Death Eaters, werewolves, vampires, and innocent wizards that were forced into this just as Lizzie and I had been. Behind the people came the trolls. The twelve foot tall humanoids were carrying weapons of all sorts. Trees that were pulled from the ground roots and all, boulders the size of their heads, and even muggle cars. Behind the trolls came the giants. They were several feet taller than the trolls and carried the same sort of weapons

"But it's only 11:46!" someone behind us in the crowd called.

"They'll likely wait until midnight before they attack," Lupin replied darkly.

He was right again, for the crowd of foes stopped just close enough to be within sight, but still far enough away that we wouldn't be able to hit them with a spell.

"This is really happening, isn't it?" Lizzie whispered, taking a step towards me.

"You should go up to the towers," I offered. "That way you'd still be fighting but you wouldn't be in immediate danger."

"I'm not backing down," she stated sharply.

"I figured."

As the minutes until midnight ticked away, the crowd began to get restless. There was the constant sound of movement behind us as if people were shifting their weight from foot to foot. Occasionally, someone would turn and whisper to the person beside them, but for greater majority, we were silent.

And then someone's tempus ticked 12:00.