Smoke still clings to the walls as Tom turns to Mattheo, breath steady despite the chaos.
“She’s gone,” he says flatly. “So get her out of your head.”
Mattheo’s gaze stays locked on the empty space where you once stood. “I can’t.”
Tom doesn’t waste time with sympathy. “Then use it. Or she went for nothing.”
DeathEaters begin apparating in droves, emerging from darkness with manic laughter and crackling curses. Tom and Mattheo don’t hesitate—they meet the onslaught with spellwork so sharp, so controlled, it moves like instinct. Hexes light up the air, as blasts of green and gold clash midair.
Meanwhile, in other parts of the abandoned manor, the rest of your friends are fighting with everything they have.
A DeathEater sneers as he advances toward Pansy, wand raised. “The bIood is already marked. You’re fighting the inevitable.”
Pansy throws a hex that sends him staggering backward. “Then the inevitable better learn to be afraid of us.”
Another DeathEater lunges. “You first, little snake.”
She doesn’t flinch—she counters before he can blink.
Enzo’s voice rises over the chaos, eyes scanning the corridor. “Has anyone seen Daphne?”
Pansy freezes mid-spell. “It’s been a while…”
A cruel laugh comes from behind a cracked pillar. “Maybe she’s just not coming back.”
Out in the forest, Daphne runs—branches whipping against her skin, her breath ragged—but it’s no use. The moment she glances back, the curse hits, and she's captured.
Back inside, Pansy spins on the DeathEater. “ Where the hell is she? I swear, if you lay a hand on her—”
“You want your girl back?” the DeathEater taunts. “Then bring us ours. She won’t be alone. We’re very good with delicate things.”
Elsewhere—miles away, in a warded, isolated room—Theo has a seat as he watches you pace the floor.
"Are you okay?"
You hold up a hand to silence him. "No, I’m not okay. You shouldn’t have taken me."
“I didn’t have a choice," Theo firmly insists.
You whirl around. “Yes, you did! And you made the one that served you.”
“I did what he asked. That’s all.”
“You shouldn’t have listened to him!” Your voice cracks. “I told you I could handle it. You didn’t protect me, Theo. You silenced me. You both did.”
Theo doesn’t answer. He knows that anything he says will only anger you more.
Back at the manor, your friends are breaking. The DeathEaters are relentless. There are too many. Too powerful.
Mattheo is on the ground, wand knocked from his hand, bIood on his lip. Pain wracks his body as another round of Crucio hits, locking his muscles in place. His scream echoes through the broken halls.
Then—
“EXPULSO!”
A blast of force knocks three Death Eaters backward in one spell.
Snape steps into the room, cloak billowing behind him. His wand is still raised. And he is not alone.
DumbIedore and McGonagaII follow, their magic like thunder crashing down from the sky. The air bends to their will. Spell after spell rains down, clearing the room in seconds.
The remaining DeathEaters fall or flee.
McGonagaII looks around at the wreckage. “Leave it to a group of Slytherins to turn disaster into a battlefield. Merlin help us when you graduate.”
Snape steps over a fallen body as he approaches Mattheo. “Where is {{user}}?”
Mattheo is still on one knee, catching his breath. “Where she’s supposed to be…”
He swallows the lump in his throat as he looks your father in the eye. “…Safe.”