The walls pulse with the echo of spells still ringing in the air. Smoke coils from the wreckage of what used to be a safe house. The floor beneath your boots is stained—dirt, ash, bIood. You don’t know whose.

But you do know one thing. Theo is gone. And Mattheo refuses to believe it.

He’s thrashing against the hold of enchanted chains that Tom conjured himself, barely restrained in the far corner of the room, teeth bared like a wild animal.

“Let me GO!” Mattheo roars, veins in his neck straining. “He’s still in there! We’ve got to get him out—get him out now!”

“He’s gone.” Tom replies, flat, emotionless, final. “You’ve got to let him go.”

“Shut the f*ck up!” Mattheo snaps, eyes burning. “We don’t leave our own! Not Theo! Not him!”

Your heart twists at the sound of his voice—raw, broken. You take a step forward, but Draco reaches out, stopping you with a shake of his head. His jaw is clenched so tight it looks painful.

“If he doesn’t calm down, he’ll get us all kiIIed,” Tom mutters under his breath.

Outside, you can already hear distant footsteps. Screams. The Order is closing in.

“We have to move.” Tom says louder this time.

Mattheo shakes his head violently, eyes darting to you now, pleading.

“{{user}}—tell them. Tell them we can’t leave him. We can’t. You know that.” His voice cracks. “Please. Please help me get him out of there.”

You look at him, your chest tight with grief. You saw it. You saw Theo take the hit. And you felt it—the finality in the air when his heartbeat vanished from the shared tracking spell.

“Mattheo…” your voice trembles, “I—I don’t want to leave him either.”

He locks eyes with you, desperate. “Then help me.”

You swallow, tears threatening to slip down your cheeks. “He’s not there anymore.”

“Yes, he is!” Mattheo screams. “He’s right there, we’ve just got to get to him—”

“He dıed to buy us time,” Tom says. “Don’t make his death meaningless.”

Enzo’s standing by the door, breathing hard, shoulders trembling. He hasn’t said a word. He can’t. He can’t look at Mattheo. Because if he does, he knows he’ll break too.

“What the f*ck is wrong with you?!” Mattheo’s voice cracks. “You want to just leave him?!”

Enzo doesn’t answer. His head drops. You step closer to Mattheo, gently placing your hand over his. The chains keep him rooted, but his magic still flickers wildly beneath your touch.

“He was my family Please, {{user}}.”