Well, we're getting towards the end of this story. =/ Only a few more chapters left. Makes me sad just thinking about it... =(

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Audrey

I awoke on the couch that morning, not by choice. I was freezing cold. I sat up to see the one window to the outside world left wide open, snow drifting into the room. I jumped up, running over to the window, shutting it as quickly as I could. I glanced at the pile of snow on the ground. I was going to be so glad when winter was over. I absolutely hated it, and we had about three months to go. It was hard to tell; the weather was very unpredictable around here.

I walked back over to the couch and sat towards the middle of it. I had just enough room to sit; Artemis was sleeping along the back. I didn't want to disturb him; he was too cute. I don't know how I could ever be mad at him. Our argument played through my head, and I instantly felt bad about it. I knew I had been a tad harsh, and that there was nothing he could do about it. I was just going to have to tough it out. Artemis would be done with being a Death Eater soon enough. Whenever that was, had yet to be determined. I knew tonight was the night he had to complete his task. He and Malfoy had run out of time. I knew it was going to be best to keep my distance once it was time; my name was already going to be drug through the dirt once everyone learned he had done it.

I sat in silence. No one else was up. Most of the student body had gone home after the Ball, and I honestly couldn't say I blamed them. I wish I could've gone home, but I know I wouldn't have been very happy there. My vacation would've been more like prison; my father was a stickler for a clean house; even if there was nothing dirty he'd find something that wasn't quite clean enough for his liking. And we were obviously not allowed to do magic, being minors and all. I still had two months before I could use magic off school premises, and I could not wait for that!

The silence bugged me. I wasn't used to it. The school was normally loud and bustling of activity, even at this hour. The worst part about it was I couldn't move a lot, or make any kind of noise to break the unnatural silence; I didn't want to wake Artemis up. Not because he would be mad, but because I knew he had a lot going on, and desperately needed his rest. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore. I tapped Artemis lightly on his shoulder. He stirred for a moment, but then his eyes fluttered open.

"Well, good morning," he yawned as he sat up.

"Good morning," I mumbled. "Did you sleep well?"

Artemis nodded. "Better than I thought I would, actually." He paused for a moment. "I'm going to take it you didn't sleep well?"

I shook my head. "I did until like an hour ago. It got way too cold in here for me."

"I didn't notice..."

"Yea, but you're not human either, your body already is cold," I said. "My body doesn't tolerate it as well as yours."

Artemis raised an eyebrow. "It could if you really wanted it to."

I shook my head. "No matter what I do, I'm always cold. Even if I was... one of you... I couldn't take the cold. It's just not meant for me."

Artemis shrugged his shoulders. "Suit yourself." He hugged me tightly for a moment. "So... breakfast?"

"I think so," I decided, noticing my stomach growling. "I hope the house elves didn't make crap this morning. It's like now that there's no one here they don't care about what they make!"

Artemis stood, stretching in the process. "They really don't. Where I'm from they'd get punished for such behavior. Hell, Dobby got sent to Draco's family after we couldn't take him anymore."

I stood, following him out of the common room. "My family never had any house elves. Mom liked doing everything she could herself."

"Well, let me tell you, you're better off without them," Artemis retorted. "They're good for nothing. A waste of space in my opinion. We have magic, why do we need them?"

I remained silent as we continued towards the Great Hall. Once we arrived, I realized we were one of the few in there. A couple other students were scattered across the hall at their house tables. Only Malfoy and his cronies sat at ours. We joined them moments later. I was honestly not too thrilled about it, but I soon got over it.

"Ah, 'bout time you were awake," Malfoy sneered.

Artemis shot him a glare. For best friends and cousins, they sure did act like they hated each other sometimes. But I supposed all relationships were like that when they were under tension and extreme pressure. Artemis and Malfoy had always been close, almost like brothers, and I was sure they would stay that way, even with their daunting task looming in the midst.

"Just getting rested up for tonight," Artemis finally replied.

Malfoy hardly nodded. I didn't acknowledge this, as I became fascinated with finding something edible to eat. My mind had zoned out of the conversation for several minutes as I began eating some sub-par pancakes. I only returned to the conversation when I heard my name...

"Audrey, I want you to remain in the dormitories tonight," Artemis instructed. "I don't want you to become a part of this more than you already are. This way, you'll maintain your innocence."

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak a word. I really wished they didn't have to go through with it, but I knew they had to kill or be killed. It was how Death Eater society worked. And I know tonight it was likely for either one of those to be the case. The chance of Artemis and Malfoy actually succeeding were slim to none. Killing Dumbledore? Come on now. If Voldemort couldn't do it, two teenage boys definitely couldn't. It made me nervous. This could be the last day I spent with him, so I had to make the most out of it.

"So that's the plan? We head up there at about eight tonight, after dinner," Malfoy repeated. "It doesn't seem very effective."

"It will be," Artemis insisted. "Dumbledore doesn't take visitors after seven. We'll be unexpected. We corner him, and end it once and for all."

"But who's actually going to kill him?" Malfoy asked in a whisper.

Artemis hesitated. "I don't know. Whichever of us gets the chance to, I guess."

The two fell into an uncomfortable silence. I didn't blame either of them for it really. Today was going to be a major deciding point in their lives. They didn't have time to be joking around or having fun. They had to focus on their task at hand. And as much as I wanted to do something I knew distracting either one of them would be bad in the long run.

The day was spent mostly in the common room. I can't say that I was overly fond of it, but it worked. It beat having to walk around the school all day in our robes. I wasn't very fond of them now; my first few years I was ecstatic about them, but now I hated them and avoided wearing them if I could. Still wore the rest of my uniform though.

Artemis, Malfoy and I just were chatting the day away. We didn't talk about their task or about anything important in particular. We just hung out, like friends would do. Although we had never done this before, I found it rather enjoyable. No classes, no homework, just relaxing with probably two of my closest friends. We really need to do this more often, I thought to myself. As dinner approached, the talking grew more hushed, and eventually ceased altogether.

Next thing I knew it was dinner time, and I was back in the Great Hall. My mind by this point was restless; it knew what was going to happen as soon as dinner ended. I didn't want to let it happen. I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I shook it off as heart burn, thinking I had acquired it from eating the spaghetti dinner. But it wouldn't go away. Then it hit me. I didn't have heart burn; I had heart ache. I couldn't take it anymore. I knew Artemis had to do this, but I didn't want to believe it. It killed me knowing that he was about to kill someone.

Dinner dwindled down, and the hall began to empty. The three of us stood, and Artemis immediately pulled me into an embrace. I hugged him back, never wanting to let go. I knew this very well could be the last time I ever saw him alive. He kissed me gently before pulling away.

"I just want you to know I love you so much," he whispered. "And... I hope you can forgive me for whatever happens tonight, whether it's me completing the task or dying myself."

"I already did," I muttered quietly. "And I love you too." He hugged me again briefly, and I felt my heart sink as I felt him move away from me. I wished he didn't have to leave...

"Please go to the dorms, and be careful," Artemis said. With that, he and Malfoy walked off towards Dumbledore's office. I stood there until I could no longer see them. I turned away from the door way and made my way towards the dungeons.

I had almost made it when I had bumped into someone. I glanced up between the hairs that had fallen into my eyes. Harry looked down at me with a confused look upon his face. "Is something wrong, Audrey?" he asked, seemingly concerned.

I shook my head. "Just don't feel good..."

Harry frowned. "Just go lie down and relax."

I nodded, and moved around him, continuing down to my dormitory. I wanted to just go hide, disappear. And that's exactly what I planned on doing. Once I reached the common room I felt a tad better, but not a lot. I sat down on the couch, staring at the fireplace. The flames danced aimlessly in the pit. I sat and wondered how long it was going to take. The seconds seemed like hours. I began to get jumpy; the slightest shadow freaked me out. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw a person emerge from the shadows. They immediately had my attention.

"Who are you?" I demanded an answer.

"I'm rather surprised you don't recognize me," the sinister voice echoed through the room. His features popped out at me like a Halloween mask. Pale, bald, and almost nose-less, I knew then the man standing before me was indeed Lord Voldemort himself...