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"Deanna." Ria let out a sigh of relief as Tonks caught the unconscious Dumbledore and brought her onto the broom, wincing at the large gash on her back made by Bellatrix. "Is she alright, love?"

"They're gone." Bill said, flying towards the trio. He looked at Deanna's bleeding figure with worry.

"Is she alright? We got her wand here." Fleur said, handing out Deanna's wand.

"Can you hold on to it first?" When Fleur nodded, Tonks continued speaking. "Listen, go to Muriel's. You still have a few minutes before your Portkey comes home." Tonks said while trying to heal Deanna's wounds as much as she could. "We'll get to the Burrow since we missed our own."

"How about Mad-Eye's body?" Bill suddenly asked, the four of them fell silent at once, still pained at the death of their commander. It was too sudden. They wondered why Voldemort did not kill Moody when he already encountered Moody a while ago but they thought with a sense of bitterness, he was waiting for this moment. He knew just how Deanna's mind worked. She'd sacrifice everything just for her friends and family.

"We'll come for it later." Ria mumbled in response. Bill and Fleur nodded.

"Well, we'll see you in the Burrow." Bill gave the Thestral a pat and he and Fleur flew away from the couple and Deanna.

"How is she, Dora?" Ria asked in worry while holding tight to the broomstick.

"She's fine, but we need to get back to the Burrow quick, Ri." Tonks readjusted her hold on Deanna so that they could go faster, holding on tight to Ria's waist with her other arm. "Don't worry, we have you."

Ria kissed the side of Tonks' head before she proceeded to fly at full speed. Tonks was definitely having a hard time holding Deanna and holding onto Ria, but she did it nonetheless. They couldn't lose anyone else, especially not Deanna. She was worried for Deanna's condition and she was just hoping Deanna was holding on too.

A cough from Deanna surprised Tonks and Ria and relieved them at the same time. "T-Tonks, Ria?"

"Hang on, Dee." Ria reassured her, going faster than she already was. "We're almost there so hang on for a bit. Alright?"

"Can you wake me up when we get there?" Deanna muttered, making Tonks and Ria glance at each other in panic.

"How about you tell us a story? We're almost there, Deanna." Tonks said hurriedly. "You can sleep as much as you want when we get there."

Deanna nodded and coughed up blood once more. She wiped it away with her sleeve before croaking out. "I-I have a stupid friend. She had someone who loved her to the point that everything could end as long as they had each other."

Ria and Tonks couldn't help looking at each other again. Somehow, both of them had a feeling this wasn't about a friend and about a certain someone they knew.

"She was afraid." Deanna clenched her fist and looked up at the starry sky. "There was an incident, and s-she thought it would be best for them to go their separate ways. She didn't think she'd fall over and over again the next time they met."

"Fate does work mysteriously." Deanna let out a teary chuckle before she was overcome by coughs again. She was about to close her eyes but she forced herself to stay awake. "Even after time's passage, one is still longing for another." With those final words, Deanna closed her eyes and surrendered to the darkness once more.

"Deanna?" Tonks started tapping Deanna's cheek. She bent her ear to Deanna's face and her eyes widened when she couldn't hear her breathing. "Ri, she's not breathing."

"We're here." Ria dove down as fast as she could when she caught sight of the Burrow. Tonks started casting spells on Deanna, trying to bring her back. She couldn't die here. Not when she still had something to say to Hermione Granger.

"Damn it, Dee. Hold on." Tonks whispered to her. "Don't you know? She still loves you."

After what seemed to be forever, they finally arrived at the Burrow where they were met by Remus. Ria and Tonks put Deanna's arms around their shoulders. "Remus, Deanna's –"

"What wedding present did Sirius and I bring to the pair of you?" Remus cut Tonks off by raising his wand at them.

"A new couch!" Ria and Tonks shouted at him in frustration. Remus' eyes widened at the sudden animosity before he put his wand down. That was when he finally noticed the bloody figure of Deanna between them.

"What happened?" Remus rushed forward and took Deanna in his arms. He bent his ear to her face and let out a sigh of relief when she was breathing again. "She's alive."

Ria and Tonks too let out sighs of relief at that. Tonks was too panicked to check if Deanna was breathing again. Ria wrapped an arm around Tonks's waist and kissed the top of her head. They were alright. They did it.

"Remus, love?" Sirius came out of the house. "What are –" He let out a little gasp and ran to them. "What happened to Deanna?"

"Damn Voldemort and his Death Eaters happened." Ria said in anger. "Come on, we need to patch her up first." The other three nodded and they quickly rushed into the house where the others were waiting. "Molly! We need help."

Molly gasped when she saw Deanna before ushering the others out of the couch. "Here, here."

"Deanna." Hermione whispered when she saw her former lover, tears coming into her eyes. Why did she have to always get hurt? What happened to her? But she knew. The moment they missed their Portkey, she knew there was something wrong. Harry and Ron held her hands to comfort her, but they knew it was only Deanna who could take away their friends' worries.

"What happened, Tonks?" Fred asked with horror in his eyes, still holding onto his twin brother who was also looking on in horror.

Before she could answer, the doors opened and Bill and Fleur came in. Bill looked around for a while but he too sighed in relief upon seeing his mother tending to Deanna. Fleur was still holding onto Deanna's wand that she cleaned with a spell.

"'ow is she?" Fleur asked Molly.

"She'll be alright." Molly stood up from her position after bandaging Deanna's wounds, her statement making them all relax a little. "But the gash on her back. It'll take some time to heal." She gave Bill a tight hug after.

Hermione couldn't help herself from sitting down beside Deanna and holding her hand. The blood was gone from her body and her clothes, but there was that look on her face that made Hermione know she had gone through too much tonight. She gave Deanna's hand a soft kiss and stroked her hair.

"Mad-Eye's dead." Bill spoke so suddenly, making them all stop moving and speaking. It was too sudden news. To know Moody was dead, it was something none of them could believe. Their strong commander. Dead.

"Deanna... She was tricked by You-Know-Who." Tonks clenched her fists. "He said they found the real Harry and she went back."

"But Harry had already gone past us." Bill continued on. "We were ambushed by the rest of the Death Eaters, and Deanna was too focused in defending us that she didn't see Bellatrix. And... Bellatrix cast that spell on her."

"Mad-Eye took the second one, and Voldemort." Fleur said in her French accent, tear tracks glittering on her cheeks. "Voldemort appeared behind Deanna and Dung panicked. He Disapparated and Voldemort's curse hit Mad-Eye in the face. He fell backward off his broom – Deanna tried to – But it was too late."

"We wouldn't be here if it weren't for Deanna." Ria looked on the resting girl whose hand was being held by Hermione. "She saved us all even in that state."

Silence. All of them were looking at each other and at Deanna. Some of them were already crying. None of them seemed to know what to do. Bill walked over to the sideboard and pulled out a bottle of firewhisky and some glasses.

"Here," he said, and with a wave of his wand he sent thirteen full glasses soaring through the room to each of them, holding the fourteenth aloft. "Mad-Eye."

"Mad-Eye," they all said, and drank.

"Mad-Eye," echoed Hagrid, a little late, with a hiccup.

"There's work to do." Remus drank his in one shot and stood up.

"We need to go." Sirius nodded at him.

"Where are you going?" Harry asked.

"Mad-Eye's body," said Bill. "We need to recover it."

"Can't it — ?" began Molly with an appealing look at Bill.

"Wait?" said Bill. "Not unless you'd rather the Death Eaters took it?"

Nobody spoke. Remus, Sirius and Bill said good-bye and left. Molly broke the silence, standing up. "I think it's time for all of us to rest. Hermione, dear, you and Deanna can stay in Ginny's room."

Hermione nodded once and carried Deanna in her arms, she frowned when she noticed that Deanna was lighter than before. Was she not eating well? Was she not taking care of herself? Molly led her up to Ginny's room in silence and Hermione set Deanna on her own bed.

"Remember what I told you a few days ago, dear?" Molly suddenly said.

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley." Hermione smiled at her. "Until the day you can see no warmth in one's eyes, never give up."

"Indeed, dear." Molly patted Hermione's cheek softly. "She feels the same way for you, Hermione. I just know it. I'll leave you two to it then."

"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley." Hermione called out. When the door closed, Hermione looked back at Deanna whose face had now softened into a relaxed expression as if she was dreaming of something good. She stroked Deanna's hair and sighed. "Why are you like this? Rushing into battle as if you don't care for your own life?"

"Have you ever thought of what we'd feel if you die?" Hermione rubbed a thumb over Deanna's knuckles. "Even if you're too careless, I just can't help myself from loving you." She stared at Deanna's face that glowed under the moonlight coming out of the window.

Hermione made a move to stand up, but a hand holding hers made her stop. Her eyes widened when she looked down and saw Deanna holding onto her hand and muttering. "Don't go."

Hermione's eyes softened at that and she sat back down and intertwined their fingers. "Never."

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Deanna was on her broom and she could see how Moody fell away from her out of her reach, and she could see Voldemort grinning proudly at her as if he had done something amazing. But suddenly, her surroundings changed and she was in a different place.

"You told me the problem would be solved by using another's wand!" A cold voice screamed.

There was an old man screaming of unendurable agony. "No! No! I beg you, I beg you..."

"You lied to Lord Voldemort, Ollivander!" Deanna's eyes widened in realization. There was old Garrick Ollivander on the ground, writhing in agony. She wanted to shout and help the old man but it was like she was locked into her place. Just like the day her father died.

"I did not... I swear I did not..."

"You sought to help Potter, to help him escape me!"

"I swear I did not... I believed a different wand would work..."

"Explain, then, what happened. Lucius's wand is destroyed!"

"I cannot understand... The connection... exists only... between your two wands..."

"Lies!"

"Please... I beg you..."

"No!" Deanna finally yelled, and this time, Voldemort and Ollivander heard her.

Voldemort looked towards her and started speaking. "Deanna–"

But Deanna was thrown back and she opened her eyes, gasping for breath. She looked around and saw that she was in a room. Deanna took in a deep breath and tried to move when she finally felt someone holding onto her hand. She looked to her right and saw a sleeping Hermione sitting on a chair and holding her hand.

Deanna's eyes softened once more and she stroked Hermione's hair. She missed this, she missed her. If only she wasn't the heir of the phoenixes, if only Voldemort wasn't after her, she would have gone back to Hermione right away. She would have never broken up with her in the first place. But these are dangerous times.

Deanna closed her eyes and thought.

'Just for today. Just for today, let me love you again.'

And this time, Deanna went back to sleep, not dreaming of deaths and pain but of a life. Her future with Hermione Granger.

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