musical mood: one of these nights - red velvet

Malfoy woke up two days later. He wasn't let out of the hospital wing for a week, though, and when he was, he immediately got back to work on mending the cabinet in the Room of Requirement. Time was ticking, for him to kill Dumbledore, and Theodore kill Slughorn, and neither of them were making any progress. At this point, Cass was ready to get it over with and just do it herself.

She began helping Malfoy with the cabinet, growing anxious that it wouldn't be done by the end of the year, and Henry worked with Theodore on ways to assassinate the potions professor.

Working with Malfoy, she found, wasn't as bad as she had thought it might be. In fact, it was almost...fun. Maybe it was the brush with death he had experienced, or maybe he'd always been amusing and she'd simply never noticed. Either way, despite the pressure put on them, she found she didn't mind spending her afternoons with the blonde boy. It was almost as though they were...friends.

"Have you tried this spell? Mendmenium maxima?" Cass asked one day, near the final days of school, handing him a book that she'd snatched from the restricted section with Henry several days ago. It was full of various mending spells, though so far, none of them had worked.

"I haven't." Malfoy looked at it, unconvinced. "But, I suppose it's worth a shot."

He turned to the cabinet, and cast the spell with a wave of his wand.

Nothing happened - nothing ever happened, no fireworks or flashing colours that would signify its fixture. Though, Cass supposed, it might be a bit odd if it did.

"Right, let's send something through, then." Malfoy muttered as he grabbed onto one of the blue pixies that were constantly flying about nearby. The pixie struggled against his harsh grip, and Cass almost felt bad for the thing, as he shoved it into the cabinet and slammed the door shut before the pixie could escape.

He tapped the cabinet with his wand, and the two waited in silent for a minute.

"Ready?" She turned to him, and he gave her a brief, curt nod.

With a deep, shaky breath, Cass opened the cabinet door, to find the pixie was still there, flying about like it had been when they'd shoved it in there. At its renewed freedom, it dashed out of the cabinet and into the Room of Requirement, but the pair hardly focused on the things, as their elated eyes met.

"We did it." Cass breathed, her voice hardly above a whisper, like she couldn't quite believe it. "Oh my God, Draco, we did it!"

He was staring at her in disbelief, his chest heaving up and down. "Holy shit, we did it..."

Before she could stop herself, she leapt into Malfoy's arms, wrapping him in a tight hug. He responded eagerly, squeezing her back. She could feel his heart racing against her chest from excitement, and he let out a sigh of relief, a sigh of months worth of anxiety.

Eventually, they let go of each other, still breathing heavy.

"You ought to write to the Death Eaters." Cass told him firmly. "Tell them they can come tonight. I'll let Henry and Theodore know. By the end of the night, your missions will be complete."

He nodded, and opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by the sound of a door opening.

"Hello?" A wispy voice called out.

"Fuck." Draco muttered under his breath, as Cass instinctively reached for her wand.

"It's Trelawney." She told him, biting down on her lip. What the fuck? How has Trelawney found them?

"Is there someone in here?" The Divination professor continued, and she could hear her rustling about. "I can hear you."

Before Cass could do anything, Malfoy turned the corner, wand in hand. With a silent spell, a beam of light shot out of the end of his wand, and Cass heard a thump, likely Trelawney falling to the ground.

"What did you do?!" She hissed, not wanting to be too loud, in case the professor was still conscious.

"Be quiet!" He responded, grabbing onto her hand and practically dragging her alongside him. "I blinded her. Now come on, let's get out of here before the spell wears off."

*

Cass tracked down the Nott brothers easily, them both being in the library, pouring over books, likely searching for ways to kill poor Slughorn.

"It's done." She said firmly as she pulled out a chair and sat down next to them.

"What's done?" Theodore raised his eyebrows, glancing up from the book he was sharing with his older brother.

"The cabinet. It's fixed. They'll be here tonight." She looked over at Theodore, giving him a pointed stare. "Do you have a plan?"

He shook his head. "Cass, I've had the house elves in the kitchen follow him around for a few weeks. He puts a drop of liquid luck on his tongue every day."

"And?"

"And?! You're the potions expert, you know that makes him essentially immortal!" He hissed, his voice low so no one outside of the three could hear, though his tone was thick with annoyance.

She shook her head, laughing softly to herself. "Luck will only get one so far. If you want this done, it has to be tonight, understand?"

Henry turned to look at her, frowning. "Cass, you're awfully passionate about this. Are your...are your true loyalties shifting? Do you actually want them dead?"

Her jaw dropped at the implication. "What the fuck, Henry?!"

"It's a fair question!" He raised his hands in the air in a mock surrender. "The way you've been acting, lately...it just seems like you're truly on their side, is all."

"Well, forgive me for not wanting a repeat of Connor and Ana." She stood up from her seat, and was about to storm off, when Henry reached over and grabbed her wrist, keeping her in place. His brown eyes met hers, with a clear look of desperation, and she felt her heart melt at the sight.

"Cass, I'm sorry. Can you please stay? I need to talk about this, we need to talk about this." There was a raw edge to his tone, that tugged at her heartstrings.

She bit down on her tongue, hesitating. "Fine. What do you want to talk about?"

"I...I don't think we should go through with this."

It was Theodore's turn to speak, his eyes growing wide. "Why not?"

Henry began to explain himself, glancing around to make sure they weren't overheard. "Dumbledore, he's our only hope. He's the only one capable of defeating the Dark Lord. If...if we kill him, the Dark Lord has won. Cass, I know you lost people, because you didn't do what he said. But in the end, aren't their sacrifices worth it, for the greater good?"

Images flashed before her mind, racing through her like a movie in fast motion. Bartemius. Cedric. Connor. Ana. All of their deaths had been at the hands of different people, for different reasons, but all for the same goal. You-Know-Who's rise. She didn't think she'd be able to bear it, if she lost another person. If she lost George, or Alastor, or Henry, or any of her other friends. Naia, Luna, Parvati, Padma, Lavender, Theodore, Terry, hell, even Bethany's death would leave her beyond distraught.

But...that was just her. This was the whole wizarding world at stake, it stretched far beyond her and her close circle of friends. Was she willing to sacrifice not herself, but her loved ones, to save the world?

She'd always be Bound to Barty, but if You-Know-Who was killed, there was little Barty would be able to make her do. Maybe he'd even find a way to break the Bond, since he didn't seem to have a purpose outside of serving his master.

"You're right." Cass breathed. "Let's stop this."

*

"I brought you guys something."

Bethany and Naia all glanced up from their various tasks as Cass entered their shared dorm room, holding a massive bottle of firewhiskey, that she'd fetched from the kitchens. She waved the bottle about, forcing a smile as she sat down on her bed.

"What's the occasion?" Naia asked as she slid off of her bed and made her way towards Cass's, her eyes alite.

"None. I just felt like it." She shrugged, hoping her lie didn't show.

She might not be able to protect her friends entirely, but at least she could make sure the remaining girls she shared a room with were safe for the night. If they stayed in their dorms, sound asleep and away from the battle that was sure to ensue, they'd likely be okay.

Naia grabbed the bottle out of Cass's hand, and took a sip, sighing as the liquid ran down her throat. "Merlin, I needed that. Exams have me going mad."

"Oi, give me some." Bethany moved over to sit by them, snatching the bottle from Naia and chugging half of it in one go.

"Where's Luna?" Cass questioned, glancing around the room. The blonde was notably absent, which wasn't good. If she was out there when things got ugly...

"With her Gryffindor friends." She shrugged. "You know, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, those ones."

"No Potter?"

She shook her head, corkscrew curls bouncing about. "Why? Do you need her for something?"

"No, I was just curious..." She gave the two girls a small smile.

"Do you want any?" Naia handed Cass the bottle after taking another swig.

"I'm alright, thanks."

"Are you sure?" Bethany spoke this time, eyeing Cass up and down with suspicion. "You were the one to bring in the bottle, Crouch."

"Don't call me Crouch."

She raised her eyebrows, but said nothing as she took another sip. "Does this taste funny to you, Johnson?"

"No, it tasted fine to me." Naia frowned, before letting out a loud yawn. "Merlin, I'm exhausted."

"It's like...7." Bethany stared at her, though moments later, she let out a yawn of her own. Though this didn't seem to make her confused, like it did Naia, but instead, her head snapped up. "Crouch, what the fuck did you do?"

Cass stood up from the bed, grabbing her wand off of her bedside table. "It was for your own good, trust me."

"What's going on?" Naia's head moved back and forth, eyes growing wide.

"She fucking drugged us!" Bethany attempted to stand, but her legs began to tremble, and she subsequently collapsed to the ground in a dead faint, a loud thump emitting from under her.

"You....drugged us?" Naia, who had drunk less of the firewhiskey than Bethany said, her voice wavering, either from hurt or exhaustion from the sleeping drought Cass had slipped into the drink. "Why?"

"You'll see." Cass gave her a small smile, trying to suppress her guilt. She was doing the right thing, she knew that, but drugging her friends was still quite low of her. "I love you, okay?"

And with that, she exited the dorm room, casting a spell to lock the door behind her. No one would be able to get them, they'd be safe. Now, she just needed to find Luna...

"Cass!" Henry called out her name as she descended down the stairs, as fast as her feet would take her. He was standing at the edge of the staircase, his brown eyes wide with panic. "They're here!"

"What?! Already?!" She ran a hand through her hair, and kicked the wall as hard as she could. "Fuck! Fuck fuck fuck!"

"We need to go, now!" Henry continued, grabbing onto her hand and pulling her through the common room. The room was void of students, though the muffled sounds of battle could be heard from outside the door. Henry was right - the Death Eaters were here, and if they didn't do something soon, they'd all be dead.

"What about Luna? I can't find her!"

He shook his head. "It doesn't matter! Cass, if we don't go now, Dumbledore will be killed! The world will be lost! We can't lose, Cass, we just can't!"

She opened her mouth, to agree with him or to protest, she didn't know, because before she could, a spell was cast directly at her. "Expelliarmus!"

The wand she held flew out of her hand, and she hadn't enough time to whip around before the spell was cast again, hitting Henry, and causing his wand to soar out of his grip and into the grasp of his little brother.

"Theo?" Henry frowned as they turned to face him. "What are you doing?"

"You can't stop it." His gaze was dark on them, in a way Cass had never seen on the boy. He tucked the two stolen wands into the pocket of his Slytherin robe, and held out his own, shifting it back and forth between them.

"Theodore, give us our wands back." Cass took a step towards him, hand outstretched. "We need to stop this. If we don't, Dumbledore is going to be killed, and-"

"And the Dark Lord will take over." Theodore finished for her, his voice deadpan.

"Theodore," Henry began, also taking a step towards his younger brother, though much more cautiously. "You don't actually believe the stuff the Dark Lord has been saying, right? You don't want to kill Slughorn, I know that."

A sinister smile grew on his tan face, and this time, Cass stumbled backwards, reaching out and grabbing Henry's hand. "I've been trying to kill that slimy bastard all year, and if he hadn't had that bloody liquid luck, I would've succeeded! You've just been too stupid to see it. You couldn't see through the front I put up, of the nervous, scared boy."

Henry shook his head. "But Theodore, he killed Ana! He killed your bloody girlfriend."

Theodore opened his mouth, but Cass cut him off, as a horrible realisation set in her.

"You were the one to betray us, weren't you? You tipped off the aurors, giving You-Know-Who a reason to retaliate against us. You told the Death Eaters where Ana would be over break. You wanted Ana dead."

Theodore nodded slowly. "Took you long enough to work that out."

Cass shook her head, a sickening feeling filling her stomach, like she was about to throw up. "Why? You loved her, you told me you loved her."

He let out a cold, dry laugh, amused at her words. "I didn't love her, don't you get it? I thought I did, but father showed me reason over the summer. She's a mudblood, she stole magic and enchanted me! She put me under a spell!"

"What do you mean, your father showed you reason? You never felt this way before, you acted so distraught after her death! Was it an act?"

Theodore nodded once again.

Henry was the one to answer her question though, not Theodore, his voice quiet. "He means, he tortured him. He used crucio on him, for dating a muggleborn. He fucked up his mind, like he did to our mum. Only difference is, he didn't finish off the job."

At the mention of Matilda Nott, Theodore's wand was raised once again, pointed directly at his brother, as Cass tried to comprehend what was being said. Had John Nott killed his wife? Tortured his children? It was all so much information, coming at her so fast, she thought she might fall over.

"Don't fucking speak about our mum!" Theodore yelled, and Henry took a step backwards.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry." He took a deep breath. "Theodore, please, just let us stop this."

"I can't."

"Theodore, please-"

"SECTUMSEMPRA!"

The spell hit Henry square in the chest, and he fell backwards onto the floor with a moan of agony. Blood seeped through his clothes and onto the floor, too much blood, there was too much blood, and he was moaning and bleeding he was bleeding out and Cass couldn't breathe and there was so much blood too much blood.

"Henry!" Cass cried out, her legs giving way and she collapsed onto her knees next to him. There were so many wounds, so many places she needed to apply pressure to, she didn't know where to start. She didn't have her wand on her anymore, and even if Theodore hadn't taken it, she had no idea what sort of spell would save him.

"Henry, it's okay, just breathe." She said, choosing to focus on what appeared to be the worst cut, up on his chest. Cass thought she heard the door slam shut, likely meaning Theodore had abandoned the two, but she didn't dare look away from her husband.

When she applied pressure to the horrible cut, he let out a guttural cry. "Cass, stop." He managed to sputter out. "It's okay."

"No, no, it isn't okay! I'm going to get help, okay? You stay here, focus on breathing!" She began to stand up, but Henry grabbed onto her wrist, likely using every bit of strength he had left.

"Don't leave me."

"Henry, I need to-"

"Please."

She hadn't realised that she'd been crying until she sunk back to her knees, tears streaming off of her face and onto Henry's mangled body. "Please, you can't die. Just hold on, please."

He shook his head, knowing his fate was futile. Instead, he spoke, his words coming out in a tight whisper. "Do you...do you love me yet?"

Cass let out a sob. "Yes, Henry, yes, I love you."

And that was the full, honest truth. In the past months, Henry had begun to mean just as much to her as George once had, if not more. Henry had been the only person to truly understand her, he'd been the person to show her the good in such a horrible world, he'd never given up on her, when it seemed like everyone else had.

With a pale, shaky hand that was covered in blood, he reached up and brushed a tear off of her face with his thumb, his soft touch barely grazing her skin.

Then, his hand dropped, and his brown eyes no longer were looking at her, but through her. Cass let out something between a scream and a sob, as the horrible truth consumed her; Henry Nott was dead.

*

"Are you just going to sit there?"

Cass didn't have to look up to see that Barty was next to her, staring down at the body like it was nothing. Like Henry hadn't been everything. She didn't know how much time had passed, the only way to tell being the sounds of battle through the closed door. Had someone come in, the scene would've been one from a horror movie, but no one did. She was all alone, except for her brother.

"Please, leave me be." A sob wrecked through her body, shaking her shoulders. Henry was dead. Theodore had killed him. His own brother had killed him. Her husband.

"It's a shame, really." Barty knelt down next to her. "He was a pureblood, and he treated you well. I wouldn't want my sister married to someone who didn't care for her."

She sniffled, not bothering to question why on earth he would feel that way, why he would care about her relationship status, if she was treated well.

"You need to leave." He told her, his tone oddly serious. "If they catch you here, they'll think you were the one who killed him."

"I haven't got my wand. I can't just walk into a battle without my wand."

He rolled his eyes, the eyes that were so similar to her own. "You'll be fine. Go, before I make you. You know I'll find a way to punish you."

Cass didn't have the energy to argue. She didn't have the energy to do anything, except stand up, wiping the blood off of her hands and onto her skirt. Henry's blood. Because Henry was dead. Murdered.

She felt a hand brush against her back, gently keeping her upright, as she stumbled to keep her footing. Why was Barty helping her? Why did he seem to genuinely feel remorse at Henry's murder?

Somehow, she wasn't sure how, she made it out of the Ravenclaw common room, and into the battle that was occurring directly outside of it.

Spells passed by her head, missing her by mere inches, but somehow, she managed to stumble through the chaos unscathed. Even in the middle of battle, she could feel the eyes of those around her on her, her uniform completely soaked with Henry's crimson blood. Barty was no longer at her side, his hand disappearing from the square of her back the moment she exited the common room.

Theodore was nowhere to be seen - likely off killing Slughorn, but Cass did see Luna, duelling a much older Death Eater, and somehow, winning. With an impressive stunning spell, the man went flying backwards and his head hit the wall, unconscious.

"Cass?" A voice cried out, and she whipped around.

"Lavender!"

She rushed over to her friend, who had just finished duelling a younger looking woman. She was in her pyjamas, and her blonde hair was askew. "What's going on?" Lavender questioned the moment she reached her, grabbing her arms. "Why are you covered in blood? Are you okay?"

"Lavender, I don't have time right now. You need to get somewhere safe, now! Leave the duelling to others."

"No, Cass, I was in Dumbledore's Army, I want to fight! I want to help!"

She shook her head rapidly. "Lavender, please, I can't lose you too."

"What are you on about? Who did you-?"

Lavender's words were cut off by the harsh sound of the killing curse.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

A beam of bright green light burst out of Cuthred Burke's wand, aimed straight at Lavender.

Time seemed to go in slow motion, for a moment. Lavender, sweet, kind Lavender, was in harms way, and Cass could do something to stop it. She hadn't a wand, and the spell was coming at them too fast for Lavender to be able to cast a shield charm.

There was only one option, an option Cass wasn't sure would kill her or not, but that didn't matter. What mattered was keeping Lavender safe.

She didn't stop to think twice before jumping in front of the spell, allowing the killing curse to hit her full blast.