Jamia lead the way. She seemed to have a clear view of which direction to go after leaving the tunnel. Frank followed, quietly.

He had so much to process. Gerard and Mikey had been under an unforgivable curse. Jamie's mother had been firing off spells like mad before sending the Way brothers to do her dirty work... Jamia had a brother?

Frank looked at Jamia as they moved along the treeline to the forbidden forest. He wanted to ask, but he wasn't sure how. He wasn't even sure that she would be truthful if he did ask.

"Spit it out." Jamia spoke without turning away from the path they were taking.

"What?"

"I'm sure you don't remember much of the last few months." She elaborated, "You must have countless questions."

"Questions combined with comments containing a decent amount of swears." Frank nodded, slowing his pace as Jamia stepped through a pair of sistering trees into the forbidden forest. "First off, why are we going in here?"

Jamia turned back around to face him. "It'll be where my mum is." She replied, "She's looking for the resurrection stone."

"Resurrection stone?" Frank couldn't help but laugh. It was easier to do now that he wasn't hovering in front of Gerard, more concerned for him than Jamia's words. Why would something from an old bedtime story be at Hogwarts?

Jamia had a less than amused expression on her face as she nodded. "Rumors spread, and seem quite believable, to those who want nothing more than to see the dark lord rise again." With that, she turned and continued into the forest.

"Dark lord?" Frank hesitated before hurrying after her, afraid to loose her in the dark. "You don't mean... But he's dead. Potter killed him before most of us were born."

"Potter also supposedly killed him when he himself was an infant, but look what happened 17 years later." Jamia shot back. She sighed, shaking her head. "That first revival still gives some demented, former servants, hope that it can happen for a third time."

"That's ridiculous."

"Not in their heads."

"So your mum's a death eater, brother's a squib, where does that leave the rest of your household?" Frank sucked in a breath immediately after speaking. Jamia had stopped in her tracks, but didn't turn to face him.

An eerie silence hung between them before she finally spoke. "My brother is considered the shame of our family." Jamie's voice was soft and on edge, "My mother hides that he ever existed, only ever bringing him up in order to taunt my shortcomings..." Her voice faltered.

"You said that in past tense." Frank spoke up, quietly. "Your brother is gone, isn't he?" He stepped forward during the silence that followed his question.

"My mum seems to have a thing for neglecting young life." Jamia's voice was soft before she shook her head. She set off again, causing Frank to skip to hurry his pace.

He didn't ask anymore questions.

He lit the tip of his wand with a whisper. He wasn't sure how she navigated the darkness so easily without the charm.

"Why the forbidden forest of all places?" Frank finally spoke again, becoming weary of the silence. "Just because Potter went to school here or what?"

"Potter was supposed to surrender himself here at the end of the war." Jamia sounded as if she had composed herself after their previous conversation. "It's a rumor that he had control of one, if not multiple, of the hallows."

"How in depth do people believe in that fairy tale?"

"You'd be surprised."

Silence fell again. Frank hurried to keep pace with Jamia. This place gave him the creeps, especially in darkness. As he looked around, however, he had a strange sense of déjà vu.

"Accio!"

Frank and Jamia stopped at the sound of the spell.

"I know it's here! Accio!"

"Give me your wand." Jamia whispered.

"Like hell!" Frank shot back with a harsh whisper.

Jamia pursed her lips. "Accio my wand then."

Frank nodded, whispering nox before holding his wand out in front of him. "Accio wand!" He recited, picturing the tanned wood of Jamia's wand. There was a moment of silence before they were met by laughter.

"Really, darling?" Jamia's mother taunted with venom in her tone. "If you want your wand, come get it yourself." Her voice came from somewhere through the thick treeline. They couldn't see her and, hopefully, she couldn't see them either.

Frank turned to Jamia, unsure what to do. Jamia seemed just as unsure. Hell, they were just kids, how were they supposed to know what to do?

"Wand at the ready." Jamia finally whispered.

"I thought you said she had lost it." Frank whispered as Jamia stepped forward.

She held out her hand, motioning for him to remain at bay. "Be prepared to stun her." Jamia said without emotion in her voice. She made her way through the trees, leaving Frank alone.

Frank swore lowly, spinning to look at the darkness around him. What was he even doing? How was helping Jamia deal with her family problems going to solve anything happening?

Frank sucked in a breath as a branch snapped somewhere to his left. He spun towards it, shakily pointing his wand in that direction. He kept his lips pressed tightly together, hoping whatever was there hadn't seen him through the darkness.

If he had spoken up, perhaps he could have avoided the sudden ease that washed over him. His wand dropped to his side and he stared ahead, hearing a voice in his head instruct him to come forward.

---

Jamia knew this part of the forest. It was one she had visited on multiple occasions. She had even brought a lovesick Frank through it, once or twice.

She was walking the path that that famous boy with the lightning bolt scar had taken towards his supposed death. The place that was supposed to mark the Dark Lord's victory. The place that lead to his ultimate failure.

She remembered how her mother would drill the path into her mind. Follow the memory. The memory of what? She had certainly never followed this path to have recollection of it. Had her mother been there that night to watch the boy who lived die?

Jamia had never been brave enough to ask.

Her bravery seemed to be building now, however. She was walking to her mother without a wand. She was walking through an extremely dangerous forest without a clear picture of what she was going to do. What was she even walking into? She had come to know that her mother's actions were unpredictable.

"This needs to end." Jamia spoke through the dark, unsure if anyone was even listening. "People are getting hurt. The entire school is under an enchanted sleep. I've searched these woods all year and years before. Your prize doesn't exist."

"It's here!" The snap of her mother's voice made Jamia cringe. "You didn't look hard enough. I should have known I couldn't trust you with this task."

"I tried!" Jamia called out. She had yet to find where her mother was, so she continued moving through the dark. "For my entire time at Hogwarts I bloody tried! It's useless." Jamia stopped her movement, listening to the forest around her before adding, "You can't bring a dead man back a third time."

For a moment, silence answered her.

"What made you lose faith in our mission?" It felt like more of a taunt than a question, "I worked so hard to acquire the information I did. I infiltrated the ministry. I held so many under my control." A light illuminated a section of darkness, revealing Jamia's mother standing just feet in front of her. She pouted at her daughter. "All you had to do was enchant their son in any way necassary. Was that too hard for you?"

Jamia's fist clentched at her side. "I did exactly what you asked." Jamia spoke through her teeth, "Before I realized how much it hurt those around me. Before I fully realized how wrong your outlook is!" Jamia shook her head, "This isn't right! I was afraid before, but I'm telling you now. You're mad."

"Mad!" Her mother repeated with a laugh, "I obtained a prophecy through my work. Two children's blood shall be shed by the same hand before the Dark Lord can be seen again." There was a dark glint in her eyes that sent a shiver through Jamia. "It took time, but I've finally deciphered its meaning." Her eyes flickered to a space behind Jamia, prompting her to spin around.

Her heart sank as Frank stepped through the trees with a blank expression. Behind him stood Professor Howell, carrying a similar expression with his wand pointed at the student. Jamia shook her head, spinning back to face her mother.

"You can't." She pleaded, "Hasn't his family suffered enough?"

"Your time at this school has softened you." Her mother glared at her, "There was a time when you wouldn't bat an eye at such an action."

"Because it was all I knew!" Jamia cried out, "The people here are so different from the way I was raised. The world is so different from the one you grew up in. Can't you just give this time of peace a chance?"

"This isn't how the world was supposed to be!" Her mother shouted, taking a step towards her. "Pure bloods were meant to rule over the muggles and mudbloods as they rightfully should."

"Blood doesn't make you a good or bad person." Jamia whispered, more to herself than anything. She had witnessed kindness from muggleborn students. She had witnessed harshness from pure blood students. She had even seen the reverse affect. Blood didn't put anyone above anyone else.

Jamia felt tears build in her eyes. She had been so cruel based on her mothers words. She just wanted to be accepted into a family who had never made her the primary goal. She was just an eventual pawn in this sick game.

"I won't let you." Jamia finally said, taking slow steps back as she spoke.

"You can't stop me." Her mother smirked, "You may have new life lessons from this bloody school, but what good are they without this?" Her mother's free hand reached into a pocket, pulling out Jamia's wand.

Jamia continued to step back. That did put a damper on things, but it didn't douse the determination to keep Frank from harm. She had hurt him enough. He didn't deserve that, and he certainly didn't deserve what her mother wanted to do to him.

"Just help me find the stone." Her mother coaxed, "The Dark Lord will reward both of us."

"Like how he rewarded Severus Snape?" Jamia pressed, attempting to bide time. She was creeping closer and closer to where Frank stood in his zombie-like state. If she could just get a bit closer...

"Snape was a willing sacrifice." Her mother's eyes gleamed, "He was bestowed with a great honor."

"So if he came back and killed you, you'd be honored?" Jamia asked as she slowly brought her hand behind her back.

"If it is required." Her mother replied. Her wand was pointing more at Frank as she spoke. She would snap at any second.

Jamia felt her hand wrap around her intended target. She gripped it tightly, blinking away some tears. "You don't have to do this..."

Her mother just smiled. "It's already been prophesized." She said, her eyes flickering towards Frank.

Jamia couldn't bide any more time. She ripped Frank's wand from his hand, shouting "Stupify!" as she directed the wand at her mother, stepped in front of Frank, and watched a bright, green light errupt from her mother's wand tip.

---

Frank woke up on the ground, dazed. It took him a moment to register the forest floor below him. Once that realization hit, he hastily pushed himself up to a sitting position.

It was still dark around him, but the feeling was different. The air was heavy and cold. A deranged whisper could be heard near him, as well. He was bringing his eyes up to look at his surroundings, but his eyes caught the pale skin of a figure on the ground a few feet away from him. Frank's eyes trailed up the figure, noting the Slytherin robes that covered them, before he locked with the face.

Jamia was staring up at the sky. Her eyes rested, unblinking, and her mouth was slightly a gape.

"Jamia?" Frank called out as a soft groan rose behind him. As he looked her over, he noticed his wand on the ground just inches from her hand. He readjusted himself in order to crawl closer to her. "Jamia?"

"Where the hell am I?" The voice of Professor Howell carried through the air.

Frank was reaching for his wand, but he was also watching Jamia's midsection. It wasn't rising and falling; it was still. He pressed his hand against hers, rather than immediately snatching up his wand. It was cold.

"Oh, shit." Frank jerked his hand away. He looked at her still figure with wide eyes. He gulped before bending forward to grab his wand. He then scooted back away from her body, bringing his wand close to his chest.

"Frank?" Professor Howell was addressing him now, "What are you doing here? What's-"

"Professor..." Frank pointed at Jamia's still body. He wasn't sure what to feel. One of his fellow students was dead, but she had been pulling puppet strings over him for months... But death? Tears began to build in Frank's eyes. He had seen death before within his own family. He had read of death and spoken to ghosts of strangers. Somehow, someone so far, yet so close to him, dying was drawing up similar emotions to what happened to his sibling... Though these tears may be more from confusion than anything.

"Oh my God, that's a student." Professor Howell was on his feet, rushing over to her. He lifted her arm, feeling for a pulse, before cursing and pulling out his wand. He whispered spells that Frank didn't recognize and that didn't seem at all effective to what he was trying to do.

"She's dead..." Frank trailed off, watching the professor continue with his vein attempts. He finally looked away from the scene, finding a possibly more disturbing sight off in the shadows.

Jamia's mother was hunched over, looking at something that rested in her palm. It was dark in comparison to her skin tone, and shaped as if precisely cut. Her eyes were wide and the smile on her face was insane. Her mouth moved as if she was speaking to someone, but no one was there.

"What happened?" Professor Howell had turned back to Frank. "How did we get out here and-"

This time, he was cut off by mad laughter. His attention was taken over to Jamia's mother, whose head was thrown back in laughter.

"If it will bring you back, my Lord!" She declared, closing her hand around whatever was in her hand and bringing her wand up to the side of her head.

"Stupify!" Professor Howell cast the spell at her, hitting her before she could do whatever she was going to do to herself. She toppled over, dropping her wand and the other thing she had clasped in her hand.

"She killed her..." Frank felt a bit sick now. One of his housemates was dead and her mother was the mad woman who had done it. "Merlin's beard, she killed her..."

Professor Howell was moving over to Frank, now, saying words that Frank couldn't register. Frank brought his knees close to his chest and his his face. He didn't know what to do or think at the moment, and it only made more tears flow from his eyes.