What Lies Within

The tables had turned. Sophie was spending almost every free second working on the cabinet now rather than Draco, who was still in the hospital. He was able to walk and change on his own, being almost as good as new. He would be getting out soon. There was 4 days left until the death eaters arrived and Draco would have to kill Dumbledore, who was still traveling. The couple hoped he would be back in time.

"What if he isn't back in time?" Draco wonders as the couple are finally able to leave the hospital together 3 days before it all ended. Draco was moving a little slower than he used to but it was nice to be out of the hospital none the less.

"He will be, we just need to focus on the cabinet and Tuesday we'll just... see what happens." They arrived at the room of requirement and headed inside. Draco took Sophie's hand as they came to a halt in front of the cabinet. He pulled her around to face him, smiling down at her gently.

"Everything is going to change in a few days." He says to her, making her nod. She looks up into his grey eyes, resting her hand on his cheek. She smiles back up at him.

"We won't though." She tells him. "It will always be us, nothing can ruin that." He smiles and nods, leaning down to kiss her gently.

"Me and you against the world, baby." She grins up at him, kissing him again, tangling her fingers in his long blonde hair. He holds her against him tightly, gripping at her hips. They get lost in the kiss for a few minutes before pulling apart, exchanging one last smile before pulling apart. They wanted nothing more than to get lost in each other for the first time in months but knew this was not the time, they had a deadline and it was fast approaching.

They spent the evening working on the cabinet. They contemplated skipping dinner but were both pretty hungry so they ventured out anyway.

"Draco's out!" Pansy exclaims when the couple approach their group of friends that they hadn't spent time with in almost a month. "How are you feeling?" She asks as Sophie and Draco take their seats across from Blaise and Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle beside them.

"As good as new." Draco says, loading up his plate before taking Sophie's and doing the same for her. The couple exchange a smile and go about eating. Pansy breaks into her usual banter about the school gossip but neither of them really listen. They could care less about who was dating who or who talked back to a teacher in class and got detention. In 3 days all of this would be finished anyway. "Good to know Pansy is still as annoying as ever." Draco mutters as the couple finish their dinner and are finally able to break away from the still babbling Pansy.

"That girl can talk." Sophie agrees, wrapping her arm around Draco's waist as they walked. Things felt weird, but in a good way. They both felt relaxed and calm, when they really shouldn't be. They had but 2 and a bit days left. Maybe they were just coming to terms with their fate finally. Or maybe they just liked to not think about it for a little while.

The next 2 days passed by in a haze of spells, arguments, and tears for the couple. They had a way to get Dumbledore cornered. They figure putting a dark mark above the astronomy tower that night will lead the headmaster there and they could overcome him there after they let the death eaters into the castle.

"I don't know if I can do it, Sophie." Draco says to Sophie Tuesday morning. He was literally shaking. They had just come from breakfast, where neither of them managed to eat a single bite. Sophie kept looking around the Great Hall, taking it all in, trying to memorize it, knowing that this was the last time she would ever step foot in this hall. Sophie was close to tears as she gripped her husbands hand tightly on her own. They were making their way down the hall, headed for the cabinet. They were almost certain it was working and would get the Death Eaters inside in just a couple of hours.

"We've come this far and we've both done the best that we can. You know He will do what he wants to no matter what the outcome is. We have each other and will get through whatever he does to us together. There's nothing more we can do." Sophie assures him. They make their way into the room of requirement and turn to face each other once inside.

"I can kill Dumbledore tonight and then I'll have done everything he asked of me and we'll be okay. He can't punish us for doing as he's asked." Draco assures her. She gives a small smile and nods.

"I didn't do as he asked though. I didn't stay close to Harry and get information from him. I actually gave Harry information rather than take it." She mumbles the last part, having never told her husband of the slip up two weeks previous when she let slip to her once best friend that The Dark Lord was out to kill her. Draco didn't even know that she had told Hermione everything over Christmas. Sophie knew Draco didn't trust Hermione enough to keep it to herself even though she has.

"What are you talking about?" Draco questions, frowning at his wife who shakes her head.

"I may have let slip to Harry that the Dark Lord wanted to kill us and that Dumbledore needed to die in order for us to live and be okay. And Hermione knows everything." She blurts it all out in one quick breath before looking away from her husbands shocked face.

"Great, the mudblood and Potter know everything, brilliant. He's going to get in the way and ruin everything." Sophie shakes her head as her husband sneers these words.

"I didn't tell either of them about tonight. They know nothing about what's going to happen. Hermione has known since Christmas and hasn't mentioned a thing to anyone, not even Harry." Sophie assures Draco but she could tell that he was still angry, which set her off. "I was upset at Christmas, you and I were fighting and I couldn't do it alone anymore. I needed my best friend and she was there to listen. I don't regret telling her. She's been there for me more this year than you can even imagine, in times when you weren't or couldn't be there for me instead." Draco's eyes soften at her harsh tone and he understood. He had gone to Crabbe and Goyle a few times this past year as well. They knew quite a bit more than people thought they did, especially when it came to the Dark Lord, since their parents ran in the same circle, the Death Eater's circle, as his family.

"This year has been hard on both of us, I know." He leans forward, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. "I'm glad that she was there for you." He pulls back to smile down at her.

"Today could be the last time I ever see her." The smile slips off of Draco's face as he stares into his wife's worried and tear filled eyes.

"Go." He then says, taking a step away from her. She frowns, unsure of what he meant. "Go spend time with her and Potter and Weasley. You're right, this might be it. For a long time at least, who knows how long and I want you to be with her today."

"But tonight is it, we still need to-"

"Do nothing. The cabinet is as done as it's going to get and we can do nothing about Dumbledore until tonight. Snape came to me and told me he was back. He'll be here tonight and everything will go to plan. We can do nothing else until then." He reaches out for her hand, lacing his fingers within hers. "Go be with your best friend."

"What will you do while I'm gone?" She wonders. "I don't want to leave you alone." Draco smiles softly, tugging her hand towards him so she falls against him. His hands go to rest on her hips while her hands come to rest on his chest while she looks up into his eyes.

"I'll go spend some time with the guys, see what they're up to." Sophie knew he was lying. She knew he would spend every second until tonight in this room, pacing back and forth and worrying about murdering his headmaster. She knew she shouldn't leave him alone right now to deal with those thoughts but she also wanted to spend time with Hermione, Ron, and Harry. Who knew when, or if, she would get to again.

"I'll be back in a few hours okay?" She says, leaning forward to press her lips to Draco's. He kisses her back for a second before pulling back, smiling.

"Meet me back here at 5?" He asks, making her nod.

"I love you." She tells him. He smiles, bringing a hand up to brush the hair away from her eyes.

"And I love you." She smiles and leans forward to kiss him again before she pulls away and heads for the door. She did hate to leave him here, knowing he was stressing so much about tonight but she decided she wanted to be selfish and spend some time with her best friends.

She waited for the current class to be over and then found Hermione. She gripped at Hermione's arm and leaned close to her.

"It's happening tonight." She tells her as they walk. Hermione gasps, almost dropping her books.

"Let's go somewhere private." Sophie nods so they head in the direction of the girls bathroom nearby. They waited until it was empty and everyone was in class before they locked the door. Hermione faces her best friend, wide eyed and terrified. Sophie was almost in tears again. "Draco is .... tonight?"

"Yes. This could be the last day we ever see each other." Now Sophie does break down into tears. Hermione also begins to cry and hugs her best friend close.

"It's not going to be. We're going to get through this. We're going to stop Voldemort." Hermione assures her. "And don't say you might be dead by then because you won't be. You need to stop thinking so badly. Everything will work out. Draco won't let anything happen to you."

"It's the Dark Lord, Hermione, do you really think Draco could stop him?" They pull back to look at each other, not caring about the tears on their cheeks.

"For you, I know he would try." Sophie gives a small smile and nods.

"You should probably get to class." She says but Hermione gives her a crazy look.

"Yes, because come tomorrow today's classes will have been so important." They both share a laugh, wiping at the tears on their cheeks. "So, what shall we do today? We can get Harry and Ron, Ginny too, and spend some time together."

"We probably should just do that at breaks and lunch. I don't want them to know about tonight, obviously. We can just tell them you're skipping with me because Draco and I got into a fight and I needed you." She didn't need Harry knowing what was going to happen tonight. He may interfere and ruin everything, and then Sophie really would be dead for getting Harry involved and stopping it.

"Good idea." The girls smile at each other for a second before leaning forward to hug one another tightly, not wanting to let go. Their entire lives were going to change forever in just a few hours and it was terrifying. They hated to think that this was the last time they would be together but it possibly could be.

They made their way from the bathroom and out onto the grounds. It was nice and warm outside so they sat by the lake, sure to be out of view of the castle so no professors would see them and they would get in trouble. They didn't care much about getting in trouble, they just didn't want to be interrupted or deal with all of that, they just wanted to make the most of their girl time together.

When break came around, they went in search of Harry and Ron. Ginny was off studying for her O.W.L.s so it was just the four of them, just like old times.

"How is... everything?" Harry asks as they stand in the shade of a tree. Sophie smiles at Harry softly.

"Things are okay. Draco and I are just... stressed and needed some time apart. That's why I've kidnapped Hermione from class for the day."

"I can't believe you actually convinced her to skip an entire day of class." Ron says, looking at Hermione with a surprised and slightly confused look. Hermione gives a small smile and shrugs. Sophie pulls Hermione into a side hug.

"She's just that amazing of a friend." Sophie says. Just then, she hears someone clear their throat behind them. Sophie releases Hermione and turns to see none other than Draco standing there. He gives her a look and then gestures for her to come over. "Be right back." She goes to step towards him but Harry grabs her arm.

"I can make him leave. Don't let him come over here and ruin your day more." He mutters, glaring at Draco. This was the first time that they had seen each other since Harry almost killed him. Sophie smiles and leans over, kissing Harry's cheek softly. Harry turns bright red and releases her arm.

"I'm fine. I'll be right back." Harry does nothing but nod so she makes her way over to her husband who looks slightly anxious. "Is everything okay?" She asks when they are out of ear shot of the trio.

"I'm going to try and go through the cabinet." He tells her, looking down at her. She gasps, her eyes wide.

"Are you sure?" She whispers. He sighs and nods.

"I need to know that it's working. I need to know for sure." He explains. She had been thinking this needed to be done for a few days but was afraid. What if it didn't work? What if it killed him? "I'll be okay. I just wanted to let you know, just in case..." He trails off, shrugging. She keeps the tears at bay and nods.

"Just wait until I can be there okay? After classes are over, when everyone is at dinner before they.... get here." She asks of him. She couldn't just hang around all day wondering if it worked or not or if her husband was dead or missing.

"Come with me now. I can't wait." He looks over her shoulder at her friends. "Or after break, I guess." She sighs and nods.

"Okay, after break is over... I'll meet you there." Draco gives her a small smile. He reaches his hands up to rest on her cheeks, smiling down at her.

"We'll get through this, remember?" He mutters, his face dipping down close to hers. She felt weird having such an open display of affection right in front of her friends, especially in front of Harry, she could feel his glare on them but in that moment she didn't really care.

"Together." She vows and then presses her lips against his, her fingers ghosting across his neck and tangling in his blonde hair. He kisses her for a second and then pulls back, smiling. He glances at Harry over her shoulder, smirking a little, before pulling away from her completely.

"See you after break." He kisses her forehead and then turns, disappearing back into the castle while she turns back to her friends.

"Everything okay?" Hermione asks. Sophie gives her a small smile and nods, brushing her hair from her face. Harry had his arms crossed angrily over his chest and was glaring at the ground.

"I guess you and perfect Malfoy worked everything out?" He spits. Sophie sighed. She really didn't want to spend what could be her last moments with Harry arguing over Draco so she did the only thing she could think of. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. He was stunned but hugged her back anyway. "Are you okay?" He asks. She just shakes her head and hugs him again.

Harry had been there from the start of her time at Hogwarts. When Draco abandoned her to try to be the cool kid in charge, Harry stood by her side even though she was a Slytherin. He cared for her and protected her throughout the years and she would always be thankful that she had such a great friend as him, no matter what the future held for their friendship. After tonight, it would all be over, surely. Once he got word that it was Draco that killed Dumbledore, he would hate them both forever.

"I'm sorry." She pulls away, wiping at the tears falling down her cheeks. She was so tired of crying but knew she was no where near done with the tears.

"No need to be sorry. You know I'm here for you." Harry tells her.

"We all are." Ron cuts in. She smiles and pulls him into a hug too. She then pulls Harry and Hermione into it as well. She stood there, wrapped in the comforting circle of her best friends and wanted nothing more than to be on their side. She wanted to go to the Burrow when everything was over. She wanted to be at Bill and Fleur's wedding. She wanted to defeat Voldemort with her best friends at her side.

But she felt the cold band on her ring finger and knew that was impossible. She was at the center of the dark side, whether she wanted to be or not and there was no escaping that.

This was it. This was her last moments with her best friends for possibly ever and she hated for it to end but when the bell rang, she knew this was it. They pulled apart. Hermione was even crying again. Sophie wrapped an arm around Harry's waist, leaning into his side. He hugs her tightly against him, kissing the top of her head.

"I love you guys, you know that, right?" She says, looking at all three of them individually.

"Of course. We love you too." Hermione says, reaching for Sophie's free hand. Ron rests a hand on Sophie's shoulder comfortingly.

"I need to go." She pulls away from them all, more tears falling down her cheeks. "I don't know when I'll see you guys again but.. I hope that you'll be able to forgive me." She reaches up, kissing Harry's cheek and then Ron's quickly before hugging Hermione tightly. She begins to step away from them. "I'll miss you guys."

"What are you talking about?" Harry asks, suddenly more concerned than ever. Why was she saying goodbye? And why did it sound so permanent, not just that they were going their separate ways to class?

"Nothing. Goodbye." She gives them all a look one last time before turning and rushing away. She all but runs back to the room of requirement and falls into the room, slamming the door after her.

"Sophie!" Draco gasps when he sees his sobbing wife. He pulls her into his arms, holding her tightly. They collapse to the ground in a tangled mess. Sophie sobs into Draco's shirt while he kisses her forehead and runs his fingers through her hair, whispering to her that everything was going to be okay even though he really wasn't sure that it was...