"Get down." He turned abruptly, pointing his wand at a high window on the wall closest to them and yelling, "Bombarda Maxima!"

She ducked into his chest as the rubble flew in different directions. His grip on her loosened, and when she opened her eyes there was moonlight on her feet.

Draco pulled her over the stone pieces and paused, quickly surveying their surroundings. A grassy little hill on the west side of the castle. To their left were the craggy rocks on the cliff face. There was screaming to the right, jets of red light and purple smoke.

Hermione gulped in lungfuls of fresh air, the chill of the spring wind chilling the sweat on her skin.

They crept through the grass, their lungs panting heavily as they ran down the hill. Draco swung back to look behind them every four steps, like clockwork.

As they approached a sharp turn into the courtyard that housed the cannons, Draco slowly rounded the stone wall, jerking his head around the corner before proceeding. Hermione had a momentary flash of him in Switzerland, creeping through the bloody ruins.

Her chest was heavy as she watched him clear the next wall, darting his head around the corner and gesturing her forward. Whereas Ron would blunder headfirst and trust her or Harry to cover him, and Harry would consider two possible outcomes instead of the million more likely ones, Draco was swift and overly cautious, precise and planned.

He'd come back to her as a soldier.

Suddenly he was pressing her back into the shadows, tugging her low and crouching over her. She peered under his arm. Two bodies darted by, running up the hill.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of their hiding place, turning the corner through the gate. A boom shook the ground beneath her feet, and Hermione spun back to look at Edinburgh Castle just as the clocktower fell, crumbling sideways and exploding onto the cobblestones below.

"Malfoy!" a voice called.

She slammed into Draco as he stopped cold, throwing his arm behind him and tucking her back.

It was Warrington, running down the lane adjacent to them. "Ditch your girl! If they see one with you, they'll kill on sight!" He darted past them down the hill, heading for the main gates.

A jet of green light illuminated the darkness — he stumbled, and his lifeless body rolled down the stones. Hermione gasped, her head whipping up to the top of the gate where the Killing Curse had come from. There were distant shadows against the moonlight.

Heavy footsteps hurried from behind them, and Draco tugged them back against the stones again. Two men Hermione didn't recognize raced by, and just as quickly, two bolts of green light shot out from the turret, and the men collapsed.

Draco squeezed her hand numb, breathing harshly.

"We'll never make it out this way," Hermione wheezed. "We have no idea how many of them—"

A Killing Curse whizzed by Draco's elbow, blasting the stones behind her.