Draco felt her weight slacken and he threw his arms immediately around her, holding her up, as he tried to ignore his own feelings of utter horror at what he was witnessing.

"I'll leave you to say your goodbyes," Voldemort spoke coldly before swiftly exiting the room without a backwards glance.

Blood was seeping frantically through Snape's fingers as he continued to grapple at his neck, his breath rattling as he gasped and gulped for air.

"Uncle!" Astrid cried, in a small heartbreaking wail.

Draco let his hands drop from her as he felt her go to move towards Snape, almost crawling across the ground to get to him.

"Uncle," she sobbed again, and Draco watched as her small pale hands went up to his neck to help him staunch the flow of blood.

"A-Astrid," Snape rasped, his voice barely recognisable as his own, "my b-beautiful niece."

"Don't talk, uncle," Astrid implored, as tears cascaded silently down her face. "Please, save your energy. We'll get you help."

Draco felt helpless as he watched this heartbreaking scene. He didn't know what to do. There was no saving Snape, anyone could see that.

It seemed even Snape understood this himself as he shakily lifted the hand that wasn't on his neck and clasped his fingers around Astrid's wrist, looking intently up into her eyes.

"Take them..." he murmured with the little strength he had left, "take them to Harry."

And Draco saw blue tears falling from Snape's eyes. Thinking quickly, he got out his wand and conjured a small glass vial, kneeling down by Astrid and gently placing it in her hand.

She looked up at him in confusion as she held the empty vial.

"The tears," Draco explained gently, realising how much this was going to hurt her, "he's giving you his memories."

Through her own tears, Astrid nodded, and with a trembling hand, held the vial to her uncle's cheek as she collected each and every blue silvery tear. Draco stayed by her side, placing a hand on the small of her back in a gesture of comfort.

When the last tear had fallen, Snape blinked up one final time at Astrid, his bloody hand shakily rising to touch her cheek. "Pandora," he breathed.

A flash of recognition sparked in his black eyes before his face slackened and the life died out of them. The hand that was touching Astrid's cheek flopped to the ground.

Severus Snape was no more.

"NO!" Astrid wailed, throwing herself at him, shaking him as if she could simply wake him up. "Uncle! Please Severus, I need you! I need you! Don't go! I love you!"

She started sobbing hysterically, shaking uncontrollably as she leant forward crying into Snape's lifeless chest. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," she sobbed over and over again.

"Astrid," Draco soothed, placing his hands on her upper arms, trying to gently prise her away from the dead Professor, "he's gone, Astrid, I'm so sorry."

She let him pull her back to him, turning her around as she leant into his chest. He wrapped his arms tightly around her as she cried against him, her body wracked with sobs.

Draco's heart absolutely tore for her. He had never loathed anyone more than her father, and he had a sudden desperate desire to take her into the forest and run. He hated that they didn't even have that option.

Suddenly, his voice filled the room as though Voldemort himself had re-entered, making Draco jump slightly. But it was just his voice announcing to all that if Harry Potter didn't join him in the Forbidden forest in one hour then Voldemort himself would enter the fray and kill every last man, woman and child.

Jesus, Draco thought, he really was a complete fuckwit.

Draco held Astrid tightly to him throughout the whole announcement. And when she spoke, she didn't even allude to the speech her father just gave.

"My father killed him. Killed the only member of my family I had left that I loved." Her body had stilled, her voice no longer quivering through her tears but instead held a cold, angry, steady tone.

She slowly lifted her face, her features set in sheer anger and defiance. "I can't let him go on anymore, Draco."

And Draco dropped his arms as a sick feeling swooped low in his stomach. "No, Astrid, please don't. I'm not ready to say goodbye."

"It will be goodbye either way," she said, her blue eyes swimming with sadness and grief, but even worse - acceptance. "And I'd rather die trying to make the world a better place than being subjected to having my body being taken over by that... monster, while people die needlessly."

He knew she was right, he knew Astrid had no future with whichever path she decided to chose.

But handing her over willingly to death... he didn't think he could do it.

"What now?" Draco asked, not being able to keep the quiver from his voice.

"Now we obey my uncle's last wish," she said, shakily holding up the glass flask, "now we go to Harry."

...

We found Harry in the Great Hall, mourning over the body of Ron's brother with the other Weasley's.

"Harry," I whispered, tapping him on the shoulder with as much respect as I could.

He turned around, his eyes red rimmed from crying. He looked dazedly from me to Draco as though confused as to why we were there.

"I've got something I need to show you," I said, holding up the vial containing my uncle's last gift.

"Can't it wait?!" He spat, his face flickered in irritation, as he started to turn back towards the dead body.

"No, it can't, Potter!" Draco snarled, yanking Harry's arm so that he was forced to wheel back round. "I've just watched the girl I love lose her last remaining member of family that wasn't a monster to her, and despite the grief she is feeling right now, she is stood here trying to fucking save the world!"

Harry's mouth dropped open, looking baffled. "W-What? But... who-"

"Severus," I said, feeling trembly, but trying to keep my voice steady. I felt Draco slip his hand in mine, giving me courage. "My father killed him. And... and he - my uncle - asked me to give you this before he died. It's important, Harry. It will have the answers you need to defeat my father."

Harry blinked, staring at the glass vial as if trying to take it all in.

"Dumbledore's office," he muttered, pushing past me as he snatched the vial from my hand. "Now."

Just five minutes later, Draco, Harry and I were stood around the Pensieve, in which Harry had just emptied my uncle's tears into.

"Are you ready?" Draco whispered to me.

Harry looked at me expectantly.

Squeezing Draco's hand in mine, I nodded.

And in we all dived.