IMPORTANT: Hey guys, this story is a Half Blood Prince AU. I changed some canon scenes for the plot. One is that Dumbledore died in the Astronomy Tower before Harry found out about the horcruxes so two, there was no visit to the cave and Harry never had the information from Slughorn. Three, Harry and Draco's confrontation in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom did not happen. There will be other canon scenes that will be altered and revealed through the course of the story, remember this is a HBP AU!

P.S. A bit of dialogue was taken from the HBP book and movie. Btw, this is my first ever fight scene so cut me some slack and leave a review :) This idea was inspired by my first Tomione story (which I've already deleted) and morphed into something totally different. Many thanks to Mrs. Ren and Silver Orbed Lioness for doing a quick alpha read when I was doubting myself.

*Thank you to Sunset Whispers for being an awesome beta!

Three. Three seconds passed before Hermione Granger realized she could not move. Dumbledore had cast a Full Body-Bind Curse while the three of them were under the Invisibility Cloak as Death Eaters surrounded him. The Dark Mark was hovering ominously in the pitch black sky over the tallest tower in Hogwarts.

Two. Two faces of the people she would never forget in her life stood before her – Draco Malfoy and Severus Snape: her childhood tormentors. Unobscured by the sea of black cloaks and masks, she could clearly point out Malfoy's white blond hair from the throng of Voldemort's followers. Malfoy had his wand at the headmaster's throat after he disarmed him. His face was crumpled in anguish from the weight of his duty.

"Draco..." She heard Dumbledore speak as though he was not about to be murdered. "Years ago, I knew a boy who made all the wrong choices. Please let me help you."

"I don't want your help!" Draco snarled as angry tears trickled down his cheeks. His knuckles turned white as he gripped his wand tighter. "Don't you understand? I have to do this! I have to kill you! Or he's going to kill me!"

She hardly registered Bellatrix screeching, "Do it, kill him now!" or Fenrir roaring, "He doesn't have the stomach, just like his father. Let me finish him!" in the background as Malfoy continued to remain rooted on the spot, wand trembling in his hand. For the sound of Snape bellowing, "Avada Kedavra!" overtook her senses and a jet of green light pierced the headmaster's chest.

One. One more death in the form of Albus Dumbledore falling from the Astronomy Tower was all it took for the small shred of hope keeping Hermione together finally fall apart. She could feel all the suppressed anger boil deep in her system, erupting to the surface and flowing through her veins like molten lava. Her warring emotions resembled a glass slowly filling. There was no warning, no outward sign of distress until the liquid reached the top and by now it was already overflowing.

She, along with Harry and Ron watched in horror as their headmaster's body suspend in the air. His withered hands reached out, fingertips grasping the endless crevasse of the night. The wind pushed against his face, whipping his hair and his robes with brute force. Although, his calm expression did not falter even in the face of death. Albus Dumbledore surrendered himself to his inevitable fate, until he was nothing more than a blur that swirled out of existence.

She didn't even have time to look as Harry leapt up from the covers of the Invisibility Cloak with his wand drawn out. His magic crackled with rage as he shouted, "Sectumsempra!" in the direction of an unsuspecting Snape and Malfoy. Hermione wasn't sure who he was aiming at, but it appeared Harry didn't care.

Dark magic burst forth from his wand and Snape swiftly sidestepped the spell, but a loud cry erupted from Malfoy's lips as the curse hit him square on the front. Crimson red spurted from his face and body as though he had been slashed with an invisible sword. He staggered backwards and sagged to the floor.

There was no time to mourn Dumbledore, no time to prepare herself to grieve for another life lost as a powerful hex headed straight for Harry's back. Hermione pushed Harry to the side and rolled to the ground. She flicked her wand and screamed, "Expelliarmus!"

Curses and hexes flew from all directions.

"You filthy, little Mudblood!" Bellatrix shrieked and raised her wand at Hermione. A dark curse was coming straight at her.

"Hermione, look out!" She heard Ron yell though, it was too late her for to dodge the curse before she saw him threw himself in between her and the incoming spell.

"Ron!" Her voice was filled with dread as she kneeled next to him when his body landed with a hard thud on the floor. Blood poured from his abdomen as he writhed in pain. She frantically waved her wand at Bellatrix and cried, "Expulso!"

The blue light narrowly missed the older witch, blasting the stone pillar instead, but the impact of the explosion slammed her back against the brick wall with a sickening crunch. Although, she was not going to take any chances with the deranged woman.

With her wand still fixed on Bellatrix, Hermione flicked her wrist and said, "Petrificus Totalus!" Watching in satisfaction as Bellatrix who did not even have a chance to recover from the explosion, gone rigid with her limbs snapped together and jaw shut closed.

Hermione quickly pulled Ron behind a remaining section of the tower. She pointed her wand at the wound and cast a simple "Tergeo," to clear the dried blood. She tore a section of her sweater and gingerly wrapped it around his waist. She took his arm and placed his hand firmly on his stomach to help stop the blood from flowing.

From a few feet away, her eyes immediately found Harry. He was caught in a duel with Snape who held Malfoy's limp body in his arm with a steel grip. Harry was firing spell after spell, brandishing his wand wildly as their former Potions Professor continued to block his attacks with a little more difficulty due to Malfoy's dead weight.

If she took a moment to think about it, Hermione would have found it quite odd why Snape's attention was focused on holding up a shield instead of inflicting Harry with spells of his own.

"Sectumsempra!" Harry's voice was filled with fury and hatred that burned so deep in his heart, it was ingrained in the tissue. "Fight back! You coward, fight back!"

Maybe it was the way Harry said it or the word itself, but if there was one thing Hermione was certain of she saw something in Snape snap.

A movement of the older wizard's wand deflected the curse and he knocked Harry down on the ground with a jinx, kicking the younger boy's wand away. "You dare use my own spells against me, Potter?" Despite the thick tension in the atmosphere, a small glint of recognition reflected in Harry's eyes. "Yes. I'm the Half-Blood Prince."

Before she let her brain decide what to do, her body had acted on autopilot and she found herself running across the Astronomy Tower. Her footfalls rung like a fast paced tune off the stone floor with only one goal in mind: she had to get to Harry. She ran so fast her clothes and hair became slick with perspiration, clinging to her body like a second skin. Though, it was the feeling of something warm and wet trickling down her arm that made Hermione pause and realize something was wrong. A sharp pain flashed up her shoulder and she spotted a large gash had sliced her skin open – she was bleeding.

"You're not going anywhere, Mudblood." She heard Greyback growl wickedly. His wand was fixed firmly at her direction. The werewolf had a feral look in his eyes, an animalistic determination eager to cause more harm and damage than necessary.

"Desist, Greyback!" Snape stopped him. "The Dark Lord has summoned us," he ended his words and took Malfoy's unresponsive form in his arms, disappearing in a cloud of black smoke without looking back at Harry.

Greyback reluctantly walked away. He bared his fangs at Hermione, exposing a row of sharp, pointed teeth capable of tearing flesh but she would not allow herself to flinch. He lifted the immobilized Bellatrix on his shoulder and disapparated as well. Ignoring the excruciating pain on her body, Hermione rushed to Harry's side. "Harry, are you alright?"

He did not move to stand nor did he make an indication he heard her at all. The heaviness of the situation penetrated his limbs as much as it was infused in his mind and then, he broke down in despair. It was a desolate sound that came from a person drained of all hope. She could feel all the agony radiating from Harry. It was palpable like the frigid wind that continued to blow violently in the tower and the adrenaline that had been powering Hermione since the fight evaporated, leaving her weak and tired.

She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and bit her lip as she waited for the pain to subside. "This is the last straw, Harry. We need to fight back."

"We've been fighting all our lives, Hermione..." His voice came out hoarse, various emotions laced in his tone. "That's all we've ever done," he finished so softly – so broken and lost, it almost felt like nothing he did would ever be enough.

The anguish caused by the long cut on her shoulder made Hermione stumble backwards until she felt a chunk of concrete behind her and she leaned against it. Her movements brought Harry's attention to her and he bolted up in alarm when he saw the bright red blood decorating her arm but Hermione was not concerned about that. She held Harry's gaze – hard and determined, forcing him to look directly in her eyes when she spoke,

"No, now we fight dirty."