The moon hung low, veiled behind ominous clouds, casting an eerie half-light over the trembling boys before you.

"She’s alive."

The words sliced through the silence.

Draco’s usual composure crumbling as his mind refused to accept the impossible.

"That can’t be true. We saw her d!e."

Blaise, Theo, Mattheo, Regulus, Lorenzo and Tom murmured in agreement, their bodies rooted in place, as if moving would confirm their worst fear—you were real. You were standing right there.

Memories rushed in.

The night they betrayed you.

The night they led you into the D4rk Lord’s grasp. They had told themselves it was for survival. That they had no choice.

And yet…

They had never forgotten the way you looked at them in that final moment. The heartbreak. The fury. The silent promise.

Now, that promise stood before them.

Your eyes glowed like embers beneath the shadows of your hood, burning with something ancient and vengeful. The soft features they once knew had sharpened, sculpted by suffering and reborn in the crucible of betrayal. The d4rkness curled around you like an old friend, your very presence warping the space around you.

A slow, measured step forward.

The boys flinched, instinctively stepping back.

"You thought I was gone." You smirked.

Draco swallowed hard, his hands clenching into fists. "How—"

"You don’t get to ask questions," you cut him off. "You made your choice."

Regulus’ breath hitched. "We—we didn’t have a choice."

A humorless laugh escaped your lips. "That’s what you tell yourselves, isn’t it? That you had no choice? That betraying me was the only way?" You tilted your head, studying them like prey. "You didn’t even hesitate."

Mattheo opened his mouth, but no words came. There was nothing he could say that would erase what they had done.

Lightning crackled in the distance, illuminating your figure for a brief, haunting second.

"You took everything from me." Your voice dropped. "Now, I’m going to return the favor."